Alton Jones Jr. is hard-wired for his career as a professional bass angler. Growing up, Alton traveled the country with his dad, Alton Jones Sr. as his father competed in professional fishing tournaments.
“You could say I was bred to fish,” said Alton Jr. “Growing up, my family traveled the country in an RV as my dad competed in tournaments across the country, and my mom home-schooled me and my two sisters. We got to see a lot of the United States in our travels and visited many national parks along the way.”
But home base was always Waco, Texas. When his father wasn’t fishing in tournaments across the country, he would take his son fishing in Texas, which instilled a strong conservation ethic in Alton Jr.
“Growing up in the outdoors helps you understand that it is a fragile resource. From a young age, I was taught that you have to take care of what we have here in Texas.”
As he learned more about bass fishing, he also learned that Texas is at the top when it comes to fish conservation.
“People come from all over the world to fish here, and Texas is hailed as one of the best bass fishing destinations in the world. And that’s because of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center (TFFC) and the Sharelunker program.”
Alton Jr. has visited TFFC many times, which houses the Toyota Sharelunker program. The program invites Texas bass anglers to share their catch for TPWD’s selective breeding efforts to make bigger better bass for all to enjoy.
“Seeing the professionalism and care that goes into taking care of the resources we have really inspires me to want to do more to promote conservation efforts in Texas.”
A global pandemic just underscores the need people have to get outdoors, and that we need to conserve what we have.
“There are more people than ever getting out there and consuming the resources we have. And the more we get people fishing, the more intentional we have to be about conservation.”
Alton Jr is a diehard Baylor fan and graduated from his hometown university with a marketing degree, which has served him well in his fishing career.
“I got a marketing degree because I’m not smart enough to do accounting! Plus, marketing and social media is a huge part of what we do as professional bass fishermen.”
He sometimes competes against his dad in a tournament, and though 6-feet tall is still called “Little Alton” by many fellow competitors. When not on the water searching for that next big bass, Alton enjoys spending time outdoors and is a passionate duck hunter. He was thrilled to get the call to join the ranks of TPWF’s We Will Not Be Tamed ambassadors.
“Texas Parks and Wildlife has always very dear to my heart. Anything I can do to help support the resources I love is important to me. Helping TPWD promote conservation benefits all bass anglers, including me. It helps all duck hunters, hikers, mountain bikers and anyone else who loves and enjoys the Texas outdoors. So, I’m all in!”
