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Dee Thomas
Fall 2022
REMEMBERING
By Jody Only
O
n July 18, 2022, the fishing community lost one of the sport’s earliest trailblazers with the passing
of Bayless “Dee” Thomas. Thomas, born February 10, 1937, achieved three Hall of Fame inductions
for his contributions to bass fishing – Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame (2000), the California Outdoors Hall of Fame (2006), the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame (2007) and would be considered on the short list
of one of the most impactful persons to ever compete as an angler.
While his influence touched every aspect of bass angling, shaping careers, transforming techniques, and
defining design of modern-day tools, that isn’t the highlight of this article. WesternBass wanted to pay tribute
to the Father of Flippin’ remembering Dee as one of the fiercest competitors on the waterways
Here are some of the “front porch” stories told by those that knew him best and a handful of throwback
photos to spark even more memories or fisherman’s tales from days gone by.
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