TBF Student Angler Federation (SAF) Announces 2026 High School State Championships and Sanctioned Fishing Schedule.
Registration is open!
PONCA CITY, OK (Dec 8, 2025) – The Bass Federation’s Student Angler Federation (SAF) announced today the 2026 High School Fishing sanctioned schedule. Offering more opportunity than ever before including 41 SAF High School Fishing State Championships, 5 Open Challenge events, 14 state high school athletic association sanctioned tournaments, up to 5 MLF High School Fishing Opens and the pinnacle event in all of high school fishing the 17th annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship. Available dates/locations are listed below and on the website at www.highschoolfishing.org .
“As the founders of the National High School fishing movement in 2007, we immediately seen reaction to getting young people outdoors and the rapid growth potential with parents embracing the concept nationwide at our first High School Fishing World Finals in 2010. We are proud to have had our partners in fishing at MLF be the very first to join us in the High School arena. Together in 2011, we rolled out events in every state and Canada to provide more fishing opportunities for more high school students than anyone else in the world,” said TBF President Robert Cartlidge. “For us High School fishing was and is not about fishing for money, which is why TBF/SAF nor MLF charges any entry fees at our High School events and we do not pay cash to student anglers. It is also not about getting students sponsorships or patches on their jerseys. The core mission is about education through fishing, earning prizes and scholarships and getting young people into the outdoors. We will continue to jointly push the programs forward to accomplish those goals.”
TBF/SAF and MLF will continue advancement opportunities with 1 in 10 teams from each TBF and/or MLF State Championship, Challenge or Open event earning a spot in the National Championship. The 16th Annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship offered over 3 million in college scholarship and prizes up for grabs giving the maximum amount of student anglers the best shot ever for a college scholarship, technical or trade school education.
Additionally, High School anglers who win a SAF state championship and are 16 years old or older(one or both team members) will be offered a High School TBF Living The Dream package, a TBF sponsorship for a year to include: fully paid ADULT TBF\MLF competitor membership, advancement opportunity to represent their home state in a TBF National Semi-Finals as a co-angler, with fully paid entry fees! From there, the sky is the limit, they could qualify for the TBF Federation National Championship or beyond! Check it all out at HighSchoolFishing.org.
2026 Student Anglers Federation (SAF) High School Fishing Schedule
2026 17th Annual High School World Finals / National Championship:
June 24-27, 2026 Lake Cumberland, Russell Springs, KY
2026 Season SAF High School Fishing State Championships
Jan 31 Florida State Championship, Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, Lake Wales, FL
Feb 21 South Carolina State Championship, Lake Greenwood, Ninety Six, SC
March 7 Louisiana State Championship, Lake D’Arbonne, Farmerville, LA
March 21 Kentucky State Championship, Lake Cumberland, Russell Springs, KY
March 28 Virginia State Championship, Smith Mountain Lake, Huddleston, VA
April 4 Georgia State Championship, Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, GA
April 11 Alabama State Championship, Black Warrior River/Tombigbee River, Demopolis, AL
April 11 Mississippi State Championship, Back Bay, D’Iberville, MS
April 11 North Carolina State Championship, Lake Jordan, Chapel Hill, NC
April 11 Tennessee State Championship, Old Hickory Lake, Hendersonville, TN
April 11 West Virginia State Championship, Sutton Lake, Sutton, WV
April 25 Kansas State Championship, Melvern Lake, Osage City, KS
April 25 Tri State Championship (MA,CT,RI), Webster Lake, Webster, MA
April 25 Tri State Championship (MD,DE,NJ), Upper Chesapeake Bay, Northeast, MD
April 26 Arizona State Championship, Parker Strip, Phoenix, AZ
April 26 Iowa State Championship, Lake Okoboji, Okoboji, IA
May 2 Indiana State Championship, Patoka Lake, Celestine, IN
May 2 Missouri State Championship, Lake Truman, Warsaw, MO
May 2 Oklahoma State Championship, Grand Lake, Grove, OK
May 3 Idaho State Championship, Cascade Lake, Cascade, ID
May 9 California State Championship, California Delta, Stockton, CA
May 16 Montana State Championship, Noxon Reservoir, Trout Creek, MT
May 16 Wisconsin State Championship, Lake Puckaway, Montello, WI
May 23 Arkansas State Championship, Lake Hamilton, Hot Springs, AR
May 30 Michigan State Championship, Lake Charlevoix, Charlevoix, MI
May 31 Nebraska State Championship, Lake McConaughy, Ogallala, NE
June 6 North Dakota State Championship, Lake Ashtabula, Valley City, ND
June 6 Ohio State Championship, Alum Creek, Galena, OH
June 7 Colorado State Championship, Pueblo Reservoir, Pueblo, CO
June 14 Illinois State Championship, Shelbyville Lake, Shelbyville, IL
July 11 Vermont State Championship, Lake Champlain, Colchester, VT
Aug 3 Minnesota State Championship, Whitefish Chain, Crosslake, MN
Aug 8 Washington State Championship, Moses Lake, Moses Lake, WA
Sept 12 New York State Championship, Paradox Lake, Paradox, NY
Sept 19 Maine State Championship, Salmon/McGrath Pond, Belgrade, ME
Sept 26 Nevada State Championship, Lake Mohave, Boulder City, NV
Oct 4 New Hampshire State Championship, Connecticut River, Hinsdale, NH
2026 SAF High School Fishing Challenges\Open Events:
March 8 Missouri Open Challenge, Pomme De Terre, Hermitage, MO
March 22 California Open Challenge, Clear Lake, Lakeside, CA
April 19 California Open Challenge, San Joaquin Delta, Oakley, CA
May 9 New England Open Challenge, Connecticut River, Hinsdale, NH
Oct 10 Alabama Open Challenge, Lake Harding, Valley, AL
2026 MLF High School Fishing Opens: (Major League Fishing events)
Feb 21 MLF HS Open, Lake Seminole, Bainbridge, GA
March 14 MLF HS Open, Lake Eufaula, Eufaula, AL
April 11 MLF HS Open, Table Rock, Branson, MO
Sept 26 MLF HS Open, Lake Guntersville, Guntersville, AL
Oct 24 MLF HS Open, Cherokee Lake, Jefferson City, TN
2026 State Athletic Association Events: (Qualified teams only)
Jan 31 GHSA #1, Lake Seminole, Bainbridge, GA
Jan 31 LHSAA Qualifier 1, Toledo Bend, Many, LA
Feb 7 GHSA #2, West Point Lake, LaGrange, GA
Feb 21 LHSAA Qualifier 2, Lake D’Arbonne, Farmerville, LA
March 7 GHSA #3, Clarks Hill, Appling, GA
March 13-14 LHSAA State Finals, Toledo Bend, Zwolle, LA
April 4 GIAA/GAPPS Finals, Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, GA
Apr 11 GHSA #4, Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, GA
April 25 KHSAA Region 1, Lake Barkley, Kuttawa, KY
April 25 KHSAA Region 2, Lake Cumberland, Jamestown, KY
April 25 KHSAA Region 3, Green River, Campbellsville, KY
April 25 KHSAA Region 4, Harrington Lake, Harrodsburg, KY
May 8-9 KHSAA State Finals, Kentucky Lake, Calvert City, KY
May 9 GHSA State Finals, Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, GA
GAPPS – Georgia Athletics Private Parochial School
GISA– Georgia Independent Athletic Association
GHSA – Georgia High School Athletics
LHSAA – Louisiana High School Athletics Association
KHSAA – Kentucky High School Athletics Association
Complete rules are available HERE
Registration for the 2026 season state championships and challenge events is open now at HighSchoolFishing.org . For SAF High School Fishing State Championships, each team must compete in the state in which their school is located. Teams from all states can compete in a SAF challenge event or a MLF High School Fishing Open tournament. Entries for all State Championships, SAF Challenge events or State Athletic Association events should be made at HighSchoolFishing.org or by calling TBF at (580) 765-9031, entries for MLF Open HS events should be made at High School Fishing – Major League Fishing or by calling 270-252-1000. There is no limit to the number of teams accepted into a tournament from each school or club except per State Athletic Association rules and those events only.
All MLF and TBF High School Fishing tournaments are free to enter, there is no event entry fee. The tournaments are two-person (team) events for students in grades 9-12 (one member of each team can be 7th or 8th) and open to any SAF-affiliated high school club.
About The Bass Federation
The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. The Federation is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization there is. TBF, our affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 50 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2007 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing and are proud partners in fishing with MLF. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.
