Elite Series AOY Scott Canterbury and wife Dixie and family

Some fishing stories start with a clear bite, others with a mere nibble and seem like they take years to reel in. For Dixie Canterbury and 2019 Elite Series AOY Scott Canterbury, their story began all the way back in first grade. They grew up together, became friends and then after college something finally hit. Proof that sometimes the best catches aren’t made in a single cast, their journey, like fishing, was about patience, timing, and knowing when to set the hook. In the pages below, Dixie fills us in on their relationship and history.

HPFC: Can you share the story of how you and your husband first crossed paths?

Dixie Canterbury: This is hard to pinpoint. Scott and I have “known” each other since I can remember. We both grew up in the same small town (Moody, AL) and both went to the same school since first grade. Scott is a year younger than me (really just 9 months) so we really didn’t become “friends” until high school. We were both on the yearbook staff (my junior and senior year and his sophomore and junior year) and became really close through that. We discovered that we went to the same denomination of church, which was rare because we are both Primitive Baptists and it is not a huge denomination. We started going to church together some in high school and during my Senior year went on a few “dates” but I would not get serious with him because I was moving away to college. We ended up losing touch with each other while I was in college, I did see him from time to time but just in passing. When I graduated college I moved back home with my parents for a little bit and started going to the local Primitive Baptist Church with my parents (Beulah Primitive Baptist, Leeds, AL – we are still members there). He was a member of the church but had not been in quite some time. I told his cousin to let him know that I was coming to church there and that he needed to get back to church. He was there the next Sunday (). I was actually dating someone at the time pretty seriously and he was at church with me the day Scott came to church. Scott didn’t let that get in the way though, he was persistent and used my nephew as an excuse to “hang out” with me. He would always come to see Logan or come to take Logan somewhere.

Side story: Scott told his best friend that as soon as I broke up with the guy I was dating we would get married, I didn’t find that out until years after we were married. I told him he had better be glad I didn’t know that or I probably wouldn’t have married him.

My boyfriend at the time lived in Tuscaloosa and I was in Moody so things ended up not working out between us. Scott and I, however, didn’t start dating right away but we hung out a lot “as friends.” Going to haunted houses in the fall was our thing back then. We did that a lot in high school too. He finally asked me out for a real date for a Memorial Day cookout with some friends he worked with and after that there was no turning back. It became serious pretty quickly. He was actually in my sister’s wedding a few weeks after our first date (a groomsmen backed out) and came to the beach with me and my family that week as well. I guess when you know you know, so why delay it. We dated for 6 months before we got engaged and were married 10 months after that. Taylor was born 15 months after our wedding. I guess we didn’t like waiting around on anything.

Another side note: Later, I talked to the guy I was dating when Scott came to church that Sunday (no hard feelings between us by the way). He told me that he knew he was doomed when he saw how we both looked at each other when he walked into church. I probably knew it too but was still in denial.

I think back and wonder what would have happened if we would have dated in high school but I don’t think that was ever in God’s plans for us. I know God used the 6 years we were apart for the both of us to grow. It is hard to explain but I truly believe we are soul mates and God kept us from each other until the timing was right.

HPFC: What were your initial impressions of your husband when you first met him?

Dixie Canterbury: Scott was a little runt growing up and always pestering everyone and VERY hyper. I can remember thinking he was annoying when we were little. When we were in high school, he made me laugh a lot and looking back I probably fell in love with him then but God’s timing wasn’t right.

HPFC: Did you know anything about fishing when you first met?

Dixie Canterbury: I only knew about the kind of fishing I did with my grandfather. Off the bank, jug and trotline fishing. Tournament fishing was new to me and I couldn’t believe people “practiced” to go fishing. I love it though. I probably became one of the biggest fans of tournament fishing. I keep up with it more than Scott sometimes. I knew Scott fished but I had no clue it was as intense as it was. I had heard of Jimmy Houston, Roland Martin, and Bill Dance but I never really paid attention to it.

HPFC: Was there a specific moment or event that made you realize your feelings were more than just friendship?

Dixie Canterbury: Like I said earlier, looking back I think I realized it in high school but something kept pulling me away. I think once I graduated college and was ready to settle down and God really opened my eyes. I have always said we are soul mates (I even had that engraved in his wedding band).

HPFC: How long have you been married?

Dixie Canterbury: We will celebrate our 24th anniversary on October 27th. We got married a month and a few weeks after 09/11/2001. We went to Hawaii on our honeymoon, plane tickets were so cheap. I think we both flew for $700 and there was NO ONE on the plane and Hawaii was a ghost town.

HPFC: When you met was he already fishing professionally or did he have another job and what was his profession?

Dixie Canterbury: He was tournament fishing every weekend but not professionally. When we met he was a manager at The Home Depot and then started his own construction company soon after we were married. Later (before going professional) he worked for Plumb One in Moody.

HPFC: How did the two of you come to terms with him going out and living his dream?

Dixie Canterbury: Scott qualified for the FLW tour through the EverStarts (I think that is what they were at the time). He worked his way up through the BFLs and then the Strens/EverStarts. It was a tough decision because we had a toddler at home and I worked a full-time career. He toiled with it for several years until his boss at the time (Barry Isbell, Plumb One) told him he HAD to take the jump. Barry helped us with the entry fees the first two years. Getting sponsors back then wasn’t easy unless you had already made a name for yourself in the industry. Barry allowed Scott to work while he was home the first three years of his professional career but after the third year, pretty much fired him and told him he had to concentrate on fishing. We owe a lot to Barry and Plumb One. That was probably the toughest decision we had to make. But through prayer we decided it was the right decision. That year was tough on us and we didn’t know if he would be able to fish the fourth year but we were blessed with a Team deal through FLW (StraightTalk). His career really took a turn for the better during that year. People can say what they want but a lot of what these guys do is mental, and if you are worried about where your next paycheck is coming from, it can take a toll on you mentally and cause bad decisions.

HPFC: What doubts might you have had with him going on tour and how did you overcome them?

Dixie Canterbury: At the time we had a 4-year-old and I had a full-time job so we were a little anxious about him traveling. We were blessed to have family very close to us so we had plenty of help with Taylor. Taylor and I travelled to the tournaments on the weekends as much as we could. Taylor will tell you some of her best memories are of me and her getting in the car and driving to tournaments and then turning right back around and driving back so I could be at work and her at school Monday.

HPFC: Was the switch from FLW to BASS stressful for your family?

Dixie Canterbury: Another huge decision we had to make but I wouldn’t say it was stressful. We try praying about all of our decisions and trust that the Lord will guide us to the best decision and also guide us if we don’t make a good decision.

I was nervous because I didn’t know anyone on the BASS side. We had so many great relationships at FLW it was so hard to leave them. They had been our family for 11 years. Things were different for us that first year with BASS. A lot was happening in the industry at the time. We prayed constantly and let the Lord lead us. And I would say it worked out for us, Scott won AOY that year. 

HPFC: How do you manage the frequent separation and limited time together due to his on the road schedule?

Dixie Canterbury: I am going to be really honest here. I am a loner, Scott is not. I think the time away from each other is a main contributor to our long marriage. I know people will gasp at that but I like my alone time. When Scott is home we are constantly on the go so I look forward to re-charging my social battery when he is gone.

HPFC: How do you adjust when your husband returns home after being away for weeks at a time practicing or from competitions?

Dixie Canterbury: When Taylor was younger this was a huge struggle. We would get into a routine and then he would come home and mess it all up. HAHA. We just learned over the years and I pretty much turned things over to him as far as getting Taylor to school and dance when he was home. I guess after doing it for so many years you just figure it out. Now that Taylor is an adult we don’t have much going on so there isn’t too much of an adjustment. We just fall back into our routines pretty easily. It is our norm, I honestly can’t imagine our lives any different. And truthfully when he is “home” he is always on the go so it really doesn’t feel too much different. I am usually ready for him to get back on the road after a few weeks. We have been married for almost 25 years so, I guess it works for us. I don’t think every marriage can handle it, I guess God knew what he was doing putting us together.

HPFC: How did the AOY title change your life?

Dixie Canterbury: That was a whirlwind year. I was so proud of him. He put in so much work that year practicing and studying and it really paid off. I think the recognition it gave him was amazing as far as sponsorships and fans. It was a fun year and something we will always remember. Our lives didn’t change too much. We celebrated and enjoyed it for a little but I have the Nick Saban attitude. Win or lose you have 24 hours to celebrate or mourn and then it is time to get back to work. I did give him a little more time to celebrate the AOY though. We had a huge party at the house and SO many people showed up to congratulate him. We were both taken back with all of the support we got and Scott was so appreciative. God really blessed us that year and we are so thankful.

HPFC: Are there any activities or special events that you and your husband enjoy doing when you are together after he has been gone all season?

Dixie Canterbury: We love football season and entertaining at our house. We have season tickets to the Alabama home games and if he isn’t hunting we go to the games (if he is hunting, Taylor goes with me). For the away games he loves to cook out and have everyone over to hang out by the pool. We also like to cruise/vacation with our friends in the off season. Cruises are about the only time Scott relaxes.

HPFC: Do you have any pet peeves about your husband?

Dixie Canterbury: He is technology challenged and so anytime he needs videos downloaded and edited or a social media post edited he has to get me to help. I work in IT so it is the last thing I want to do outside of work. I always know he is about to ask me to help because he is hesitant because he knows how I am going to react.

Also, Scott is very ADHD and he can’t focus on anything (other than fishing) very long and isn’t very organized. His garage area stays in a mess. I am type A and it drives me absolutely insane. I have learned to let it go after trying to organize it several times and then seeing it right back in a mess days later. I told him the last time I organized it would be the last because I am just wasting my time. It is what it is. His mind just works differently than mine does and I have had to accept that, as hard as it is.

HPFC: What do you think your husband’s pet peeves are of you?

Dixie Canterbury: My type A personality and wanting to have everything planned out. He is a fly by the seat of his pants person and I have to know and plan everything in advance. That is probably the cause of most of our arguments over the years. I think we balance each other out pretty well though. We bring each other to the middle. It would be boring to be married to someone like me. I need him in my life to push me. He needs me to calm him down.

HPFC: What are your retirement plans?

Dixie Canterbury: Retirement? What is that? I will probably work until I die and Scott will probably fish. . If we are able to retire, we will do a lot of traveling. We both love to travel. We went to Italy last year and fell in love. That is definitely on our bucket list to go back for longer than a week. Hopefully, Taylor will have some grandkids in the next few years as well.

HPFC: What is something off the wall that no one knows about the two of you.

Dixie Canterbury: We are open books on social media so this is hard.

I mentioned earlier that we both used to love going to haunted houses. We would scope out all the haunted houses in our area and spend just about every weekend in the fall going to them. We don’t do that now that we are older. But it was so much fun back in the day. There used to be some really good ones around us.

Also, I have mentioned we are COMPLETE opposites and those closest to us know (and have witnessed) that we get on each other’s nerves A LOT. But I can’t imagine my life without him and I am pretty sure he feels the same way.

One other thing I just thought of. Most people probably don’t remember this but I was one of the 15 finalists for the first ever $1 million fantasy fishing prizes at FLW. That was 2008 (Scott’s first year, he won Rookie of the year) and there was no rule about wives playing or winning. I asked them when they called if they were sure I could win, they reviewed the rules and said there was no rule against it. They flew us out to Columbia, South Carolina and had this huge prize reveal live. I got 8th place and won $20,000 in Walmart gift cards. We bought a new house that year so that money went to good use. They changed the rule the next year and a few people said they called it the Dixie Canterbury rule. Not sure how true that is, but a pretty funny story.

Professional fishing has been good to us and we give all the Glory to God. Psalm 16:8 "I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.”