Bonefish & Tarpon Trust (BTT) will honor business and conservation leader Thorpe McKenzie with the Lefty Kreh Award for Lifetime Achievement in Conservation at the 14th Annual NYC Dinner & Awards Ceremony on October 6, 2025.
A native of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, McKenzie began his distinguished career in New York City as a stockbroker with Kidder, Peabody & Company. In 1980, he and the late Julian H. Robertson, Jr. launched the renowned global hedge fund, TIGER, before McKenzie returned to his home state to co-found Pointer Management, LLC.
McKenzie is a lifelong sportsman whose leadership and generosity have advanced important land and water conservation efforts, from his early support of the Tall Timbers Conservation Easement Program, which led to the protection of significant bobwhite quail habitat in the Red Hills of North Florida and South Georgia, to his 25-year tenure on the board of the Atlantic Salmon Federation.
An avid permit and tarpon angler in the Florida Keys, McKenzie also served for more than a decade on the board of the Don Hawley Foundation. His commitment continues today as a member of the BTT Board of Directors, where his dedication to science-driven conservation is helping to ensure the future of the flats fishery.
“Thorpe McKenzie has demonstrated a lifelong and unwavering commitment to the conservation of wild places that support fishing, hunting, and other outdoor recreation,” said BTT President and CEO Jim McDuffie. “We are honored to recognize his lifetime achievement in conservation and his leadership and support of BTT’s mission.”
As a recipient of BTT’s Lefty Kreh Award for Lifetime Achievement in Conservation, McKenzie will be enshrined on the BTT Circle of Honor, which recognizes legendary anglers, fishing guides, and conservation leaders who have made significant contributions to the conservation of the flats fishery. The Circle of Honor is housed in the Florida Keys History & Discovery Center, located in Islamorada, Florida, and features an annually rotating exhibit about those honored as well as educational content about the significance of the flats fishery.
