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Gold Valley waives peg fees for open match anglers.
Gold Valley Lakes in Hampshire has introduced a new policy for its Saturday open matches, meaning that the peg fee will be waived until further notice. The idea is the brainchild of venue owners, and father and son duo, John and Will Raison, who are keen to pay anglers back for their support through the winter.

England international and former World Champion Will explained: “My father and I are extremely lucky as we have a core of match anglers who support us right through the year, and so giving them free fishing for a few weeks in the spring is the least we can do.

"Obviously, fisheries are a business and have to make money, but I do feel that sometimes hardcore matchmen get a bum deal, which is why I am keen to make sure they get a little bit back here at Gold.

"A real bugbear of mine is fisheries that don’t let anglers know where their money goes. How many times do you hear anglers say something along the lines of 'Pools were £20, 30 anglers fished, but I only picked up £110 for winning.' The truth of the matter is many anglers are scared to ask about money, but, in my opinion, they shouldn’t have to. For every match we run, we pin up a balance sheet, so the anglers are left in no doubt as to where their funds have gone.

"For the next few weeks at least, match anglers can enjoy a day on us in the Saturday opens – it's just our way of saying thank you.”