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Major League Fishing Announces Formation of New Qualifying Series – the MLF Invitationals

MLF Introduces Six-Tournament Invitational Series Featuring “Win and You’re In” Automatic Qualification into Major League Fishing’s REDCREST  

TULSA, Okla. (Sept. 13, 2022) – Major League Fishing (MLF) announced today the formation of a new qualifying series that will launch in Spring of 2023 – the MLF Invitationals. The Invitationals will feature six events in 2023 and serve as the sole qualifying circuit into the MLF Bass Pro Tour.

The MLF Invitationals will feature a 150-angler field, competing over three days in a five-fish, weigh-in format. All 150 anglers will compete over the first two days of competition, with the top 50 anglers advancing to the third and final day. The winner of each Invitational will be determined by heaviest three-day cumulative weight. Each event will feature a total purse of more than $650,000, with the winner receiving a top payout of up to $115,000 and automatic qualification into MLF’s REDCREST, the Bass Pro Tour Championship that awards the sport’s top prize of $300,000.

MLF Invitationals will feature a $5,000 per tournament entry fee with payouts to the top 50 anglers that place it among the top three circuits in the nation along with providing a qualifying path to the Bass Pro Tour in only six events.

“MLF is committed to offering a wide selection of tournament opportunities to anglers of all skill levels – from our high school and college anglers all the way to our pros who compete on the Bass Pro Tour,” said Kathy Fennel, MLF Executive Vice President and General Manager. “The MLF Invitationals are a new qualifying series geared toward the best interests of anglers and the sport. We believe the Invitationals will be a valuable and efficient option for anglers seeking to compete in high-level five-fish-limit tournaments with an opportunity to qualify for REDCREST, while also providing a pathway for anglers that aspire to compete at the sport’s highest level on the Bass Pro Tour.”

In addition to the six “Win and You’re In” Invitational REDCREST qualifications, the season-long Invitational Angler of the Year (AOY) will also earn a berth into REDCREST for a total of seven REDCREST qualification opportunities. The top eight anglers in the season-long Invitational AOY point standings will qualify for the 2024 Bass Pro Tour.

The MLF Invitationals will replace the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit. Every angler who would have qualified to compete in the 2023 Pro Circuit will receive the first invitations to register for the new MLF Invitationals. The balance of the 150-boat field will be filled by professional anglers from the Bass Pro Tour and 2022 Pro Circuit and Toyota Series anglers who missed initial qualification. All qualified anglers may compete in any number of Invitational events. There will be no co-anglers in the MLF Invitationals.

Every day of competition will be broadcast live on MLF NOW!® and streamed to the Major League Fishing app, MyOutdoorTV (MOTV), and at MajorLeagueFishing.com. Each event will also air on CBS Sports Network, with 13 consecutive weeks of 2-hour shows scheduled in 2023.

Full schedules and locations for all 2023 MLF circuits will be revealed next week.

For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing, the MLF Invitationals and the Bass Pro Tour, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter,  Instagram, and  YouTube.

by AnglersChannel

Top 8 College Anglers Battle For Classic Berth At Bassmaster College Bracket Challenge

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Eight of the country’s best college anglers will launch on Lake Greenwood from Greenwood, S.C., Sept. 30-Oct. 3 during the Bassmaster College Classic Bracket presented by Lew's, fishing for a berth in the 2023 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic.

The 2022 Bassmaster College Team of the Year — UNC Charlotte's Louis Monetti and Michael Fugaro — automatically punched their ticket to the College Classic Bracket to compete alongside the Top 3 teams from last week’s Strike King Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops in this individual, elimination-style tournament.

“(Winning Team of the Year) is pretty amazing. This is something we set out for at the beginning of the year, and it is something special,” Monetti said. “Just consistency and a lot of hard work. We tried to go out every week trying to outwork the field. There were no special tricks or anything like that, just a lot of hours on the water.”

Joining Monetti and Fugaro will be National champions Andrew Vereen and Connor Cartmell from Coastal Carolina University, former Bassmaster High School All-American Jackson Swisher and Seth Slanker from Florida Gateway College and Tyler Christy and Trey Schroeder from McKendree University in Illinois. Christy also qualified for the 2019 College Classic Bracket, won by then-Bethel University student Cody Huff, who just finished a solid rookie season on the Bassmaster Elite Series.

“Just the thought of another opportunity to get back there knowing how much I have grown as an angler in four years is something I have wanted since I made it the first time,” said Christy. “I know I am so much better now, and now I get one more shot to complete my dream.”

On Day 1 of the event all eight anglers will compete individually to determine seeding and set the bracket for head-to-head competition. Morning action on Days 2 and 3, the first two elimination days in the tournament, will be broadcast on FS1 beginning at 7 a.m. CT. For full coverage of the tournament, visit Bassmaster.com.

In addition to a spot in the Bassmaster Classic, the College Classic Bracket champion will also earn paid entry into the 2023 St. Croix Bassmaster Opens presented by Mossy Oak Fishing and the use of a Toyota Tundra and a Nitro Boat.

The 2022 College Classic Bracket is being hosted by Discover Greenwood, S.C.

by AnglersChannel

Marathon Man Raises Awareness, Funds and Fun

Canton, Illinois – Fishing’s Marathon Man, Jeff Kolodzinski, is back for the annual event that raises much needed funds for the Fishing For Life Next Gen Program, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on serving children of military families—especially those families that have lost a loved one during active military service—and single-parent households.

The Marathon Man event is a fishing endurance test in which Kolo (as his friends call him) attempts to break his own world record for number of fish caught in 24 hours. Last year he exceeded his goal of 2,977 (the number of persons killed by 9/11 terrorists in 2001) and set a new world standard with 3,186.

This year, the seemingly unattainable goal is 4,000 fish in 24 hours, nearly double the total Kolo had in 2010 when he first established the world record.

The numbers are important for a couple of reasons. First, we should never forget the lives lost on 9/11. Second, some generous individuals and companies will base their tax-deductible donation on the number of fish Kolo catches—a dollar, a quarter, a dime, or even a penny per fish will help.

How will he do it?

“I fish the same way most new anglers do—right from the bank, using the same kind of tackle. I’ll have a simple pole, a float, and live bait. I wat to show anglers—especially new anglers—that you can catch a ton of fish on simple and affordable tackle. The tackle I’ll use costs under $25, so anyone can do this.”

Why does he do it?

“I’ve always had a special place in my heart for the military,” he says, “even though I’ve never formally served. This is my way materially support those who are serving us.

“I also believe that fishing heals and brings people together and closer to nature. If I can show some people what fishing has to offer and they follow up and get involved, we all benefit.”

Where will he do it?

Giant Goose Ranch is a family-focused campground with 45 lakes for fishing, along with a host of other outdoor activities. The owners and operators at Giant Goose Ranch have been perennial supporters of Marathon Man in a great many ways, including providing the venue and backdrop for fishing’s greatest feel-good event. https://www.giantgooseranch.com/

How can you get involved?

Marathon Man will take place from 10:00 a.m. on Friday, September 9 to 10:00 a.m. on Saturday September 10. The event will be livestreamed at marathonmanfishing.com. Visit the site to make a donation, offer support, and follow Kolo’s progress.

A special thanks to the supporters of Marathon Man: AFTCO, Black Rifle Coffee, Engel Coolers, Giant Goose Ranch, Fishing Tackle Retailer, Lindy/Thill, Mr. Crappie, St. Croix Rods, Sufix, VMC, Zebco … and hopefully you.

by AnglersChannel

Palaniuk’s Sentimental Appreciation of Yamaha

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

Brandon Palaniuk’s words after receiving a $15,000 Power Pay bonus check from Yamaha for winning the Bassmaster® Angler of the Year title were refreshingly genuine, and he got emotional when asked what his longtime relationship with Yamaha meant to him.

“I could talk for an hour about what Yamaha means to me. It’s the only outboard engine I’ve ever run. In fact, the very first time I was ever in a bass boat, it was a friend’s Skeeter 195 powered by a 200-horsepower Yamaha,” reflected the now two-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year.

Known for pushing every competition day to the final seconds, the former Idaho high school wrestling champion went on to say there’s no way he could fish until the last minute and make the afternoon’s tournament check-in time without knowing his 250-horsepower V6 V MAX SHO® would get him back on time every time.

“I always make it within seconds of my required check-in time, and you only do that if you know you’re running equipment you can absolutely count on,” insists Palaniuk.

Not only can anglers count on reliable Yamaha power, they can also count on Yamaha’s Power Pay bonuses. And the best part is they don’t have to beat top Yamaha pros like Brandon Palaniuk, Patrick Walters or Chris Zaldain to cash in for placing in tournaments.

There are plenty of Power Pay offerings for amateur and semi-pro level competitors with sanctioned tournaments spanning the bass, walleye and saltwater segments, including high school and college competitions.

It’s free to register and anglers don’t have to place first tournament to cash-in on the Power Pay money. To learn more, please visit https://yamahapowerpay.com/.

by AnglersChannel

Old Reel, Fresh Line for Jack Dice

Courtesy of Luke Stoner - Dynamic Sponsorships

 Jack Dice is one of just a handful of anglers competing in the Strike King Bassmaster College Series National Championship on Winyah Bay solo this week. The Liberty University graduate is no stranger to making the best out of situations most wouldn’t consider ideal. Whether that’s fishing against the country’s best college teams alone, last minute troubleshooting on his infamous old Ranger, or using well-worn equipment.

Dice doesn’t mind doing things his own way, as he proved last year when he won a Bassmaster College Series event fishing by himself on Lake Cumberland. And he thinks of the wear and tear on tournament tested equipment like the Lew’s LFS Speed Spool he’s holding in this picture quite fondly.

“This is one of my favorite reels, so when we got a text from Bassmaster encouraging us to bring any Lew’s reels to the meeting for an extra spool of line I knew I had to bring this one. Battle scars and all,” Dice said with a smile.

The College Series title Strike King handed out a spool of Contra Fluorocarbon Line to every angler competing during Wednesday’s Pro Night, and if you brought a Lew’s reel you earned yourself an extra spool of line.

“I actually won this reel in a raffle at a BFL four or five years ago,” Dice recalled. “Raffles are not my jam, maybe it’s the Christian in me and it feels too close to gambling or something, but I can honestly say I have never entered a tournament raffle since. But it felt meant to be at the time and this reel has turned out to be a workhorse for me.”

Dice said he couldn’t pass up a chance at a few fresh spools of line, as fluorocarbon isn’t cheap and he was hoping to get his hands on some 17-lb flouro so he could use this reel for flipping and pitching on Winyah Bay.

“I have had this particular reel spooled up with all kinds of different line over the years, but this reel was my primary player in the first National Championship I ever fished on the Harris Chain in 2020,” Dice said. “The tournament didn’t pan out the way I hoped, but I was catching some nice fish on a squarebill out of brush piles. It was one of the coolest bites I’ve ever had leading into a tournament.”

Riding the momentum from a BFL Super Regional win on Cayuga Lake last weekend, the down-to-earth Virginia native came into the second day of competition in 51^st place after weighing just over 8-lbs of tidal water bass in downtown Georgetown on day one. Dice hoped to milk a little better bag of fish out of what he found in his limited practice and improve on his position today.

“I had a fun one-hour flurry today and I learned some things that’ll hopefully make tomorrow an all-day ordeal,” Dice said of his day one efforts. “No matter what though, this is my last college fishing tournament so I’m really just trying to soak it all up and enjoy the process.”

by AnglersChannel

Mental focus fueling Team Toyota’s success in La Crosse

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

The final day of the 2022 Bassmaster Elite Series season begins with three Toyota pros in the Top 10 to begin Championship Monday in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

Matt Arey left the dock in 5^th, Gerald Swindle sits 8^th, and Brandon Lester squeaked into the final spot in 10^th, and each graciously shared their thoughts in the pre-dawn regarding what had gone right the past three days to grant them a place in the Top 10.

Arey: “Not getting mentally spun out on Day 1 when I arrived at my best spot from practice and saw another competitor on it. I stayed confident, went to my next best spot, and that has turned out to be a magical 50-yard X 50-yard area that’s produced fish on a Lunkerhunt swimjig, a vibrating jig, and a Texas rigged stick bait all three days so far.”

Swindle: “Staying focused on truly fishing to win. I already had the Classic made coming in here. So, there was no need to be conservative. For me, that meant getting away from the crowd, by making the longer run to Pool 9. It’s worked well. I haven’t seen another tournament angler around me all week.”

Lester: “My mindset has been the true secret to my success this week. I told myself if I made Monday’s Top 10 cut, then I’d really make Palaniuk earn the AOY title. And that’s exactly how it worked out. Congrats to “BP” – but I really feel good about knowing I set a goal and did my job this week.”

Perhaps most interesting about all three pros’ answers is the fact each cited mental focus as most important to their impressive success on the Upper Mississippi this weekend.

Proving once again that what goes on between the ears is every bit as important as what’s tied on the end of your line.

by AnglersChannel

Arey talks frogs, family, and whitetails at La Crosse Elite

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

 Team Toyota’s Matt Arey is the kind of guy you’d want for a college roommate. Goal focused, spiritually grounded, a great sense of humor, and willing to call time-out to share a plate of cheese curds along Wisconsin’s most famous farmhouse ale, Spotted Cow.

Those traits have him sitting solidly in the Top 20 of the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year points race on the eve of this season’s final event. So Arey paused after two full days of practice to talk topwater frogs, family and whitetail deer at one of Wisconsin’s many neighborhood gathering places – the Thirsty Turtle.

Q: Let’s start by looking back at last week’s event at massive Lake Oahe. What will you remember most about that event?

Arey: If fans haven’t seen the ‘agony of defeat’ video I posted on Instagram @MattAreyFishing, it’s worth a look. I get a 5-pound smallie inside the boat, grab him to walk to the front deck, he jerks and jumps back in the lake. I’ll never forget that fish.

Q: You’ve logged two long days of practice here on the Upper Mississippi River at La Crosse. What can you tell Bassmaster fans to expect this weekend?

Arey: They’ll be a lot of fish catches, but a 3-pounder here is a treasure, and 4-pounders are fairly rare. So they’ll be plenty of action, but a 15-pound limit here is really strong.

Q: The Upper Mississippi River at La Crosse is a topwater frog anglers dream. What should fans look for when buying a topwater frog?

Arey: No doubt frogs will be one of the top three most used lures this week, along with swimjigs and Chatterbaits.

When picking out a quality frog, make sure it has great hooks, a really soft body, and don’t get caught-up buying ten different colors. All you need is a couple light-bellied frogs, and a couple dark bellied frogs. I like the Lunkerhunt compact frog because it comes out of the package with the hooks bent upward a bit and the legs already trimmed.

Q: You’ve been away from your wonderful wife Emily, and your two young daughters for 12 days. How’s everybody holding up back home in Shelby, NC?

Arey: Everybody is doing great, but as always, my sweet wife is balancing the start of a new school year with a golden retriever puppy, plus feeding horses and cleaning their stalls.

Q: As this Elite Series comes to an official end Monday afternoon, I know you’ll soon be immersed in whitetail hunting. Do you have your eye on a particular buck?

Arey: Oh yea, for sure. I’ve got my eye on two great bucks. One is a Pope & Young caliber 8-pointer we call “B 2” – and the other is a buck we call “City Slicker” – he has matching flyers growing off both his G2 antlers.

by AnglersChannel

Brandon Lester, the Elite Series’ best cutman

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

Boxing’s “cutmen” are responsible for managing a fighter’s lacerations during a match to help him continue competing effectively, but on the 2022 Bassmaster Elite Series tour, no other angler has made more “cuts” than Team Toyota’s Brandon Lester.

Entering this week’s final regular season Elite Series event on the Upper Mississippi River at La Crosse, Lester is the only angler on tour to make every semi-qualifier round this season once the full field of anglers in the opening rounds is cut in half, and he highlighted the streak by winning at Pickwick in June.

Not to mention, Lester made ‘the cut’ in both Bassmaster Opens he competed in this year too, and claimed victory at the Southern Open at the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes back in early February.

“Obviously, everybody on the Elite Series wants to make the cut, get at least a $10,000 paycheck, and the chance to fish on Championship Sunday. But at the St. Lawrence River, I started realizing I had the chance to make every single cut this season, including the Opens, and that’s pretty special,” smiled the always humble Tennessean.

Never did his streak come so close to ending as last week at Lake Oahe, SD, but in true Brandon Lester style, he squeaked into semi-final Saturday by grabbing the final cut spot in 47th place.

“I thought there was no way I was gonna make it after catching 10-pounds on Day 1, but on Day 2 my 12-pound limit was barely enough to make it,” says Lester, still shaking his head in disbelief.

Asked what two lures he’d call his MVP of this incredible season, he singled out a Berkley Maxscent plum apple-colored worm that helped him win Pickwick, and a 3/8-ounce Chatterbait Jackhammer tipped with a Lake Fork Live Magic Shad – none of which are sponsor’s lures.

However, there’s more than just “making cuts” on the line this week in La Crosse. Lester sits barely behind Brandon Palaniuk in the Progressive Insurance Bassmaster Angler of the Year title race, and could in fact win the highly respected title if Palaniuk slips up.

“Palaniuk really has to stumble, and that seldom happens. So, my focus is purely on doing my job, and making sure I put myself in position to win, in the rare event he struggles,” says Lester.

That starts with making the cut for the chance to compete on Sunday and Monday, and nobody has been better at that this year than Lester.

by AnglersChannel

Team Support Leads High Schoolers to $5K in Yamaha Power Pay

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

Competitive bass fishing can be a financially demanding endeavor, even at the high school level. And when good parents encounter challenging times, the cash strain intensifies.

Thankfully, generous support from their Mt. Pleasant High School fishing team, and a 5th place finish, made it possible for the team of Spencer Lovett and Evan Word to earn the $5,000 Yamaha Power pay bonus at the recent Bassmaster®High School Championship on Lake Hartwell in South Carolina.

“There’s probably no way we’d ever make the championship on Hartwell without the incredible support of our Mt. Pleasant, TN High School Bass Fishing team,” says Spencer’s dad and their boat captain, Alan, who runs a 19-foot Xpress aluminum boat powered by a 150-horsepower Yamaha V MAX SHO®.

“Our high school team is a special group of generous people – and Spencer and Evan were absolutely ecstatic when they learned we’d won the $5,000 Power Pay bonus from Yamaha,” he added with a smile.

While Spencer and Evan actually won the very first Bassmaster® High School event they ever fished together with a 19-pound limit of Pickwick smallmouth, their 5th place finish at the high school championship on Hartwell using a spinnerbait and a squarebill crankbait was good enough to collect the Power Pay contingency money.

Their earnings spotlight a big advantage of the Power Pay program -- you don’t have to win the tournament to win the Power Pay money. You just have to be the highest finishing registered participant, and it’s free to sign-up.

“Whether you’re fishing big tournaments or high school events, if you’re running a Yamaha purchased in the past 60 months, you’d be foolish not to sign-up for Power Pay. I’m certainly grateful we did,” concluded Lovett.

Making sure you’re eligible for Power Pay bonuses is easy, just visit https://yamahapowerpay.com/.

by AnglersChannel

3 Easy Steps for Midseason Maintenance for Your Rig!

Courtesy of TH Marine

Read the full story at the Link Here:

by AnglersChannel

Matt Arey: “Pro bass fishing’s a team sport.”

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponso

As Matt Arey piloted his Toyota Tundra past countless acres of corn and soybean fields along his 23-hour drive from home in Shelby, NC to massive Lake Oahe in South Dakota the answer to a question he’s been asked dozens of times tugged at his heart once again.

“Is pro bass fishing a team sport?”

It’s a question Arey says he gets asked a lot by folks who aren’t hard-core fishing fans when he’s at elementary school functions with his daughters, church, and elsewhere.

“The obvious answer is “no, pro fishing’s not a team sport” but I usually follow-up by explaining to people from an emotional and mental standpoint this career is absolutely a team sport,” says Arey. “If you don’t have loved ones sacrificing to help you chase your dreams and prosper, this sport will eat your lunch in a hurry,” he adds.

This current Elite Series travel swing to South Dakota and Wisconsin means he won’t see his beloved bride Emily and their two young daughters Reese and Wren for at least 18 days.

That’s rough. And for Arey, leaving home these days seems to be even tougher than when his daughters were younger. At ages 5 and 9, they love interacting with their daddy – fully conversational, active in school, dance, and church activities, and not yet teens seeking independence – family time is the centerpiece of the entire Arey family universe right now – and that includes drawing with colored chalk on the family driveway.

There’s never been a time in Arey’s illustrious pro career that Emily and his daughters failed to draw him a fish-themed “Good Luck” message on the driveway just before he leaves. The colorful heart felt messages on the concrete are among the last images of home as he heads-out to the next tournament, and generally lead to smiles, hugs, and a few flooded tear ducts too.

“About the only way I’m able to cope with leaving is knowing Emily is such an incredible woman and mom, that whether it’s a broken kitchen appliance, a flat tire, or simply getting the girls to all their activities, I can leave home knowing she’ll handle things incredibly well. But don’t get me wrong, her job at home is way tougher than mine as a pro angler,” reflects Arey.

Regarding the job he has to do at giant Lake Oahe, he says managing productive fishing areas based on wind will be the biggest challenge. But a Pulse jig head tipped with a small swimbait, and a Lunkerhunt finesse worm on a Ned head should help yield the 20-pound limits he expects he’ll need to do well at the 370,000-surface acre reservoir.

Arey enters the Oahe event sitting securely in 8th place in the Progressive Angler of the Year points race, and while we all know there’s no such thing as an easy event in this sport, he says the 18 days away from Emily, Reese and Wren will be the toughest challenge of all.

“There’s nothing about this job that’s more challenging than leaving my wife and daughters. It’s tougher than making Classic cuts and Top 10s. But at least I’m blessed to compete with a clear mind knowing I’ve got such an awesome team cheering me along from 1,500 miles away,” says Arey.

Because after all, pro bass fishing really is a team sport as far as the Areysare concerned.

by AnglersChannel

First Helen Sevier Pioneer Scholarships Awarded To Eastman And Morris

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — B.A.S.S. and Shimano have partnered to award the inaugural Helen Sevier Pioneer Scholarships to Elizabeth Eastman of Fairhope, Ala., and Dixie Morris of Valley, Ala. These scholarships not only honor Sevier’s leadership and long-term vision for the growth of sportfishing, but also recognize the efforts of young female anglers as they pursue fishing at the collegiate level.

“Shimano is thrilled to support Elizabeth and Dixie in their future ambition as anglers,” said Sarah Harper Burke, senior marketing manager, Shimano North America Fishing. “They are exemplary young women who are claiming their space within the fishing industry. We applaud their drive and encourage their pursuit of taking their fishing to the next level.”

Eastman, who is entering her senior year at Fairhope High School, grew up fishing the biodiverse Mobile-Tensaw Delta with her dad and sister. She plans to attend Louisiana State University, where she will compete on the fishing team while pursuing a degree in Fisheries and Aquaculture. In addition to a Top 15 finish at the 2022 Alabama B.A.S.S. Nation High School State Championship and serving as treasurer for her fishing team, Eastman is also active in dance, archery team, art club, marine life club, Mu Alpha Theta, National Honor Society, National Art Honor Society and Future Business Leaders of America and was named a National Archery in the Schools Program Academic Archer.

“Winning this scholarship connects me to some amazing women,” said Eastman. “It gives me a sense of support that will help me push through any barrier I may encounter. It also creates a sense of obligation to carry on the legacy that Helen Sevier started.”

Morris is a freshman on the Southern Union Community College Bison Fishing Team with plans to complete a pre-veterinary bachelor’s degree at Auburn University before veterinary school and a master’s degree. Morris had the initial idea to start her high school’s fishing team, the Valley Bass Team, and earned Top Angler (along with her teammate) three times while also helping to grow the team. Morris lives on the Chattahoochee River, with West Point Lake and Lake Harding providing other rich “home waters” for family fishing excursions. In addition to fishing, Morris is active in 4-H, Future Farmers of America and National Honor Society, an award winner in the SkillsUSA program and earned a Bronze Award from Girl Scouts.

“Winning the Helen Sevier Pioneer Scholarship has meant so much to me,” said Morris. “I was already looking forward to fishing on the Southern Union fishing team, but now I am even more excited because this helps to show women and young girls that they can achieve great things in a male-dominated sport. This has really encouraged me to step out and try for more scholarships and things that seemed unachievable.

“I want to thank B.A.S.S. and Shimano for choosing me for this award. I also want to thank Helen Sevier for making the pathway for the entire sportfishing industry.”

Sevier, the second full-time member of B.A.S.S. hired by founder Ray Scott in 1970, was a pioneer at all levels of the organization. During her 31-year career at B.A.S.S., Sevier oversaw a boom in membership as well as the expansion of Bassmaster’s media operation to include seven magazines and two television shows. Sevier was also instrumental in recruiting young people to the sport through the innovative CastingKids program. In 2004, Sevier was inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame, and her induction into the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame came in 2018.

Both Eastman and Morris earned a $2,500 scholarship.

by AnglersChannel

College Anglers - Register Now for the 2022 Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley

No entry fee, double points event set to take place in Paris, TN at Kentucky Lake on September 17-18

SAN ANTONIO, TX (August 9, 2022) – The calendar recently turned over to August and in just a few weeks many students will be returning to the classroom for the start of the 2022-23 school year.  With the start of a new school year also comes a new season of the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series.  The Association of Collegiate Anglers will kick off the year at Kentucky Lake for the 2022 Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley on September 17-18.

Registration

Register for the 2022 Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley.

Registration for the first ACA event of the 2022-23 season is set to close Sunday September 11 at 6:00 PM (CT).

Anglers that originally registered to compete in the event back in March are required to register again for the fall installment of the tournament.

Full details for those who are looking to register, or have already registered, can be found here, to include a complete breakdown of the rules.  Each angler is expected to register individually prior to the cutoff deadline listed above.  If you have any changes to your registration, please notify ACA staff.  All anglers, upon registering for the event, should review the Angler Packet and Official Tournament Rules.

Prizes, Contingencies, and Valuable Points

The Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley is always one of the most anticipated events of the season thanks to it featuring a robust prize payout several times a day and double points to count towards the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.

80 total places will be paid out over the course of two days of competition on Kentucky Lake.  Day 1 will feature four weigh-in sessions, and Day 2 will be comprised of three weigh-in sessions.  All sessions will pay out the Top 10 largest fish, except for Day 2 Session 3 which will award prizes to the Top 20 fish in the final session.

Here is a look at the presenting sponsors for weigh-in sessions throughout the event:

Day 1

Session 1 – Engel Coolers

Session 2 – HydroWave

Session 3 – Bass Pro Shops

Session 4 – Garmin

Day 2

Session 1 – Abu Garcia

Session 2 – Bob’s Machine Shop

Session 3 – Bass Pro Shops & Abu Garcia

Along with the valuable prizes & contingencies available to anglers competing in the event, schools will also be able to earn points for each of their highest two placing fish in the event down to 150^th place.

The Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley is a defining event in the race for Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia each season.  Teams travel from all across the country to earn their share of the points awarded at this ACA major event.  The winner of the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley will earn 1,750 points.

Be on the lookout for updated standings in the race for the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia leading up to the event.

Berkley Baits Only on Day 2

On the second day of tournament competition, anglers will be permitted to use only Berkley baits.  Here is how this is addressed in the official tournament rules:

Berkley Special Lure Rules for Day 2 Only:

During Day two of the Big Bass Bash only artificial Berkley Baits, including hard baits, may be used. Please refer to “Special Lure Rules” below.

Special Lure Rules

• All contestants must use Berkley baits EXCLUSIVELY during this event on Day 2. The complete line up may be viewed at https://www.berkley-fishing.com/

• Spinner bait frames, jig heads, buzz bait frames, etc. may be used when paired with Berkley products as trailers. To clarify you may use other brands jigs and spinner-baits, but those baits must have a Berkley trailer on them.

• All terminal tackle (Alabama Rig Style) must include a “functional” Berkley soft plastic.

• Non-Berkley soft plastic trailers are NOT permitted at any time.

by AnglersChannel

Lester’s Ice Cream Treats for Back to School Bass

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

Team Toyota’s Brandon Lester loves ice cream. Chocolate chip cookie dough, as well as butter pecan top his list. But if you want to go next level, he’s picking a Dairy Queen Reese’s® Peanut Butter Cup Blizzard® with extra peanut butter cups blended in.

Lester’s passion for fishing is on par with extra peanut butter cups too. Between Bassmaster events, you’ll often find him on Lake Guntersville or Tims Ford Lake near home, and when on vacation at the beach, you guessed it, he chases saltwater species in the Gulf.

“I try to fish at least two days a week between tournaments. And this morning, as I was launching at Alred’s Marina on Guntersville, I spotted them busting shad, and I’ve been catching 3-pounders on a Super Spook Jr. ever since,” grinned Lester amid our phone interview.

The Super Spook Jr. is actually one of Lester’s top three choices for catching largemouth as kids prepare to head back to class while daytime highs are still well into the 90s.

He graciously shared his wisdom about how he fishes the iconic topwater, along with insightful thoughts on two of his other favorite lures for back-to-school largemouth.

3.5” Super Spook Jr.

“Anytime you get into late summer there’s gonna be bass schooling on bait near the surface. And while ten pros might tell you the names of ten different topwater lures they love most, I’ll tell you with zero sponsor affiliation a Super Spook Jr. has always been the one I can count on to catch August and September schooling fish,” he shares.

Lester adds a #4 Mustad feathered treble to the rear of this time-proven topwater, and stresses the importance of improving your hook-to-landing ratios by using 30-pound Vicious No-Fade braided line.

Deep Crankbait

“If I was going to try to win a tournament on a Tennessee River impoundment like Pickwick or Guntersville in August, there’s a strong chance I’m going to be throwing a deep diving crankbait first,” says Lester.

He strongly believes the heat of summer keeps plenty of winning schools positioned in the 12 to 20-foot deep zone during August, and a crankbait tends to catch bigger bass than most lures.

Neko Rig

Lester’s not the only one who pounds on summer schools with a crankbait. In fact, thousands of other anglers have joined him since the post-spawn days of May to show largemouth a menu full of diving plugs. As a result, largemouth often grow leery of smashing diving baits by this time of year.

“A Neko Rig on a spinning rod is a ‘bite-getter’ in August when they’ve seen every crankbait in the book all summer long and start getting really finicky,” says Lester.

“And the best part is, a Neko Rig also catches big ones like the 6-pound 13-ounce beast that helped me win the Elite Series on Pickwick,” he smiles.

He picks apart finicky August schools from 5 to 25-feet deep with a Neko-rigged finesse worm with a 1/8-ounce Mustad Tungsten nail weight inserted in one end.

As we began to hang up from our interview around 9:30 a.m., Lester promised to send me a photo from the water when he caught a big one later in the day. And I won’t be shocked if his Tundra pulls into a Dairy Queen near Huntsville on the drive back home for a Blizzard with extra Reese’s.

by AnglersChannel

Darold Gleason’s picks for summer’s dog days

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

These are the days when temps soar so high even small dogs like Rowdy Gleason look for a cool slab of concrete to lay their bellies on.

His ‘dad’ Darold Gleason wouldn’t mind doing the same, but he gets paid to catch fish, not lay on the porch. So, what two lures does the Elite Series pro and famed Toledo Bend guide lean on to catch fish when the thermometer hits a hundred?

“Obviously, in the extreme heat of summer, you could go with a deep diving crankbait, big worm, or a football jig, but I chose two lures to help people catch fish in this heat, based on two factors – simplicity and versatility,” says Gleason.

“So Rowdy and I are choosing a V & M Baby Swamp Hog and a 4.5” Straight Shooter dropshot worm,” says the always comical Gleason, who was one of the very first anglers to register for Toyota’s Bonus Bucks program 14 years ago.

Baby Swamp Hog

“I can hook a Baby Swamp Hog on a Carolina Rig behind a 1-ounce egg weight and reach fish that are 20-25’ feet deep. But I can also pitch it around the shade of dock, as well as submerged vegetation,” he explains.

“Again, it’s versatile. A Gleason’s Candy colored 4” Baby Swamp Hog imitates everything from a crawfish to a bluegill, and it gets bites from big fish, even when it’s 100-degrees outside,” says Gleason, who has a wall full of 10-pound fiberglass replicas representing the many giant largemouth he’s caught from Toledo Bend.

4.5” V & M Straight Shooter finesse worm

“This choice might surprise some people, but the goal is to get bites during smokin hot conditions, and very few rigs in bass fishing generate more bites than a drop shot. If you don’t believe me, look at the front deck of nearly any pro’s boat, and you’ll see at least one drop shot rigged up everywhere we go on tour,” says the Yamaha pro.

“The Straight Shooter worm is super soft, so it’s loaded with action, but it also has a ton of salt, so fish hold on to it longer,” he adds.

Much like the Baby Swamp Hog, Gleason says he’ll cast a hot summer drop shot from docks to deep water. He adjusts the leader length between the hook and weight below depending on what habitat he’s fishing.  He prefers 10” of line between hook and weight around docks, and more like 20” when fishing the deeper zones.

So while several options abound for dredging up summer bass by anglers brave enough to bear the heat, remember these two suggestions from Gleason as straight-up “bite getters” no matter how high the temp.

And remember, you can’t catch ‘em if you’re laying on the porch.

by AnglersChannel

AnglersChannel.com Announces the August Awesomeness New Product Awards! - FINAL DAY TO VOTE ON ROUND 1

Now is the time for YOU to vote on what you think should be the hottest new product of the year!

Each year at the ICAST Fishing Trade Show, New Products are showcased for Media Members to vote on and decide what they think is the hottest New Product of the show.

We have turned the tables and now its YOUR turn to VOTE on what you think should be the New Product Showcase Winner!

Rules are simple. This is a bracket style voting format, divided into categories similar to what is used each year at ICAST.

We have narrowed this down to better fit our demographic, mainly freshwater.  

For Round 1, simply vote for the product you like or are excited about in EACH bracket. THERE ARE MULTIPLE BRACKETS PER SECTION.

Voting will end Monday night August 1st for round 1, Winners will move on, the losers will go home. 

Tuesday August 2nd, we will begin Round 2 and the voting will continue until we have a winner for each category. 

Once we have come to a category winner then Overall Awesomeness Head to Head battle will begin until YOU, the fan, the viewer, the listener, the fisherman (or woman) decide who YOU Think is worthy enough to be named

THE ANGLERSCHANNEL AUGUST AWESOMENESS AWARD WINNER!

What’s in this for you, you ask? Each week and round we will randomly pick voters from each category for gift cards, swag, new products giveaways, etc… When the contest is over we will pile all the names into a Hat and the Big Bass Ninja himself will choose a Grandprize winner! (prize yet to be determined, but we can promise it will be AWESOME!

Vote here today!

by AnglersChannel

Palaniuk asked a young fan for help

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

There’s a good chance 15-year old Preston Bartley of North Gower, Ontario is still shaking following a lifetime memory made possible by Brandon Palaniuk’s perceptive heart at the Bassmaster Elite on the St. Lawrence River.

The teenager who labels Palaniuk his favorite angler, was standing with his loving parents in a crowd of a couple dozen fans near the dock when the longtime Yamaha pro entered the harbor to sack-up yet another 20-pound limit of St. Lawrence smallies.

Most folks didn’t notice, but Palaniuk seemed to be stalling just a tad, but only because he was scanning the crowd, and looking to make a young angler’s day.

“I need a kid to help me bag these fish,” said Palaniuk to the crowd. Then quickly singled out Bartley to climb on to his Skeeter.

The Idaho pro was sure to tell the teen to close the bag after each fish was dropped-in, knowing how smallies love to jump, and based on the fact his admirable kindness nearly backfired earlier this year at Santee Cooper when a big bass nearly jumped back in the lake as a youngster helped him load his catch.

Sacked-up successfully with no escapees, Palaniuk toted his catch to the holding tanks, while Bartley stood next to his parents visibly shaken in a real good way.

“I just love Brandon’s social media content, and you can tell he’s an awesome human, and super approachable. Plus, I caught a 6-pound smallmouth last year on one of his X-Zone Finesse Slammer baits!” grins Gower.

Palaniuk says it’s not possible to involve a young fan every single time he loads up a limit, but whenever the situation fits, he makes a concerted effort to do so.

“It’s something I’ve tried to do for a couple seasons now, and hey, I do need help loading my fish, and I know how much it might mean to a kid, so everybody wins,” says the always thoughtful pro, and brand new dad.

Sure enough, everybody won. The Bartleys, who are longtime B.A.S.S. members, drove nearly two hours to take-in their first ever Bassmaster weigh-in, and thanks to Brandon Palaniuk’skind heart, it’s absolutely one they’ll never forget.

by AnglersChannel