Man’s Favorite Sport? 1964

In this lighthearted comedy set around a lakeside fishing tournament, Roger Willoughby is a top salesman at Abercrombie & Fitch, known for hawking recreational fishing gear and for giving advice he has only heard from customers. He publicly reveals an unusual honesty: he has never fished, cannot swim, and hates the taste of fish. His expertise comes from listening, not from firsthand experience.

His boss, William Cadwalader, orders him to enter the Lake Wakapoogee tournament to boost business, a plan supported by Isolde “Easy” Mueller, the lodge owner’s daughter, and Abigail Page, the lodge’s director of public relations and Easy’s friend. Although he balks at the idea, Abigail—an accomplished angler—promises to teach him to fish before the competition.

Willoughby arrives with an absurdly large stash of camping and fishing gear provided by Cadwalader, despite his complete lack of practical skill. His attempts to learn are clumsy and comic: a near-drowning moment in a boat, and lessons that fail to stick. The plan to get him out of the tournament gains urgency when word arrives that the renowned fisherman Joe Killroy has entered; to avoid competing, they improvise a broken arm for Willoughby, only to discover Killroy actually wears a cast as well. In a misguided move, they saw off Willoughby’s cast, to his horror.

That night, Abigail comes to his lodge asking for a sleeping pill, and slips away after Willoughby heads to greet his customers. She eventually ends up sleeping in his bed, prompting him to sleep on the floor when he returns. The next morning, Easy arrives to check on Abigail, and Willoughby’s fiancée, Tex Connors, shows up, amused at first but furious when Abigail emerges from Willoughby’s room.

When the three-day tournament begins, the novice still struggles. Yet luck—paired with Cadwalader’s gear—lets him haul in several large fish and become a serious contender. A late-night walk with Abigail culminates in a kiss, which she masks as a disappointment, leaving him puzzled and hurt.

On the final day, another huge catch makes him a surprising winner. A tearful Abigail pleads with him to do the right thing and refuse the prize, urging him to confess to his boss and clients. After he decides to be honest, Cadwalader fires him, but the rest of the crowd is impressed by his integrity. He goes in search of Abigail, who has retreated to the lake to be alone. They bicker briefly, then share a tent in a sudden storm, and drift to sleep together, still wary but drawn to each other.

Meanwhile, the other competitors press Cadwalader to bring back Willoughby for business reasons: they realize that the spectacle of an outrightly incompetent man winning with Cadwalader’s gear could boost sales. A storm’s fury and a lake-crossing rescue set the stage for a hopeful finale as Cadwalader arrives with the news that Willoughby is being rehired, and Abigail and Willoughby seal their reconciliation with a renewed kiss.