AnglingMasters.com Adds Online “Buddy Tournaments” Capability to its Angler Social Networking Web Site

AnglingMasters.com, the world’s largest online fishing community, today announced the addition of a new feature on its Web site, called “Buddy Tournaments,” which allows site users to hold their own online fishing tournaments with other anglers anywhere in North America.

AnglingMasters.com users build free, personalized online user pages called “cabins” where they are able to write and post stories about their trips, upload photos, create and manage a list of online fishing buddies, and compare their latest catches.

“One of the real joys of fishing is being able to tell your friends ‘I caught one this big’ and being able to prove it,” said Dave Abbott, founder, president and chief executive officer of Angling Masters International. “The new Buddy Tournament feature allows our online cabin members to create and participate in friendly online competition with their fishing buddies located anywhere in North America.”

Opportunities to compare catches and participate in national competitions have been limited by the vast differences in rivers and lakes, the many fish species inhabiting them, and the expenses associated with traveling to regional and national competitions.

Angling Masters International, owner of AnglingMasters.com, has developed proprietary length conversion tables and a series of algorithms that allow fish of one species to be compared to fish of another, no matter where they were caught in North America. This proprietary software is called the Angling Masters Fish Calculator.

The Angling Masters Fish Calculator determines a point total for 12 eligible species caught in any freshwater lake, pond, river, or stream in the United States and Canada (excluding Hawaii). The Fish Calculator’s algorithm considers how large each species typically grows in each geographic region and scores fish caught independently thus equalizing the playing field. The Angling Masters Fish Calculator is a key component to holding Buddy Tournaments.

Buddy Tournaments take approximately five minutes to create and are open to either all of a Cabin’s Buddies or on an invite-only based on the creator’s preference. The AnglingMasters.com member creating a tournament is able to establish the rules of the competition and can choose from such features as competitions requiring a witness of the catch and/or the requirement of participating anglers to use the official Angling Masters Measuring Tape to provide accurate measurements of the fish.

“The great thing about AnglingMasters.com is its ability to bring together anglers from the United States and Canada to compete against one another for the first time,” Abbott said. “The Fish Calculator makes it possible for AnglingMasters.com to promote international competition using the Buddy Tournament feature.”

Officially launched in January 2007, the AnglingMasters.com Web site boasts more than 1,000 members and is continually expanding. Angling Masters, in conjunction with The Fish’n Line magazine, tested its online tournament capability with its Fish’n Win tournament in the Fall of 2006. During this tournament, Tim Matheson of Manitoba, Canada caught and released a record breaking, 29-inch brook trout.

AnglingMasters.com also allows businesses, clubs or other commercial organizations to build online “Marinas” providing them with the ability to reach their core fishing audience. Beginning in early April, Marina users will be able to hold online tournaments with the ability to offer product and cash prizes to participants. One of the tournaments, scheduled to begin May 15, 2007, will be sponsored by The Sportsmen’s News.

With the success of the Fish’n Win tournament and other promotions, Angling Masters is developing plans to sponsor multi-species events and giveaways across North America in 2007, with thousands of dollars in cash prizes.

About Angling Masters International and AnglingMasters.com
Formed in 2005, Utah-based Angling Masters International intends to transform recreational fishing into a competitive sport available to any angler. Its online sports fishing community, AnglingMasters.com, is a Web 2.0 network of online properties where North American freshwater anglers of all interests and abilities can share their “I-caught-one-this-big” fishing stories. A strong believer of catch and release fishing and the idea that anyone can catch “the big one,” AnglingMasters.com levels the playing field with its online, multi-species algorithm-based ranking system which allows anyone on any lake, river or stream to share and compare the “value” of his/her catch with the “value” of fish caught by other anglers. To learn more, please visit www.AnglingMasters.com

To learn more about the Fish Calculator and Buddy Tournaments, please visit www.AnglingMasters.com

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