TBF Student Angler Federation (SAF) Announces 2020 High School State Championships and Sanctioned Fishing Schedule.

PONCA CITY, OK (Oct 9, 2019) – The Bass Federation’s Student Angler Federation (SAF) announced today the 2020 High School Fishing sanctioned schedule. Offering more opportunity than ever before including 48 SAF High School Fishing State Championships,  2 Open Challenge events, including the Bass Pro Shops/ Cabela’s Early Bird Open Challenge event, 13 state high school athletic association sanctioned tournaments, up to 15 Bass Pro shops FLW High School Fishing Opens (TBA by our partners in fishing at FLW) and the pinnacle event in all of high school fishing the 11^th annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship. Available dates/locations are listed below and on the website at www.highschoolfishing.org .

In 2020 across all SAF sanctioned events, we expect more than 35,000 participants in the SAF High School Fishing program and just between the TBF and FLW major events there will be 76 tournaments in which to compete plus hundreds of other events through local SAF sanctioned trails.

“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 FLW 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 FLW 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 FLW will continue advancement opportunities with 1 in 10 teams from each TBF and/or FLW State Championship, Challenge or Open event earning a spot in the National Championship and ALL SAF members world-wide are eligible to compete in the High School Fishing World Finals where in 2019 High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship offered a record $2.8 Million in College scholarship and prizes up for grabs giving the maximum amount 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\FLW 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.

2020 11^th Annual High School World Finals / National Championship:

June 23-27         Upper Mississippi River                                                                                      LaCrosse, WI.

2021 12^th Annual High School World Finals / National Championship:

June TBA           Lake Hartwell                                                                                                    Anderson, SC.

2020 Season SAF High School Fishing State Championships:

Nov. 23, 2019     Utah State Championship – Sand Hollow                                                            Hurricane, UT

Feb. 1, 2020       Florida State Championship – Harris Chain                                                         Tavares, FL

Feb. 1                Texas State Championship – Lake O the Pines                                                   Marshall, TX

Feb. 16              Louisiana State Championship – Toledo Bend                                                     Many, LA

Feb. 22              South Carolina State Championship – Lake Hartwell                                           Anderson, SC

March 1              Georgia State Championship – Lake Lanier                                                         Gainesville, GA

March 8              Arkansas State Championship – Lake Dardanelle                                                Russellville, AR

March 21            North Carolina State Championship – High Rock Lake                                          Salisbury, NC

March 22            Nevada State Championship – Lake Mead                                                          Boulder City, NV

March 28            Kentucky State Championship – Lake Cumberland                                              Burnside, KY

March 29            Mississippi State Championship – Lake Ross Barnett                                          Jackson, MS

March 21            Washington State Championship – Lake Washington                                          Renton, WA

April 4                Virginia State Championship – Lake Gaston                                                        Bracy, VA

April 5                Alabama State Championship – Neely Henry                                                      Gadsden, AL

April 11              Tennessee State Championship – Lake Chickamauga                                         Dayton, TN

April 25              Arizona State Championship –  Lake Havasu                                                        Havasu City, AZ

April 25             Kansas State Championship – Lake Melvern                                                            Osage City, KS

May 2                 Oregon State Championship – Ten Mile Lake                                                      Lakeside, OR

May 2                 Ohio State Championship – Alum Creek State Park                                             Delaware, OH

May 3                 California State Championship – Cal Delta                                                          Oakley, CA

May 3                 Oklahoma State Championship – Grand Lake                                                     Grove, OK

May 3                 West Virginia State Championship – Sutton Lake                                                Sutton, WV

May 9                 Idaho State Championship – Lake Lowell                                                            Caldwell, ID

May 9                 Illinois State Championship – Rend Lake                                                               TBA

May 30               Indiana State Championship – Brookville Lake                                                    Brookville, IN

May 30               Tri State Championship (MA,RI,CT)  – Quaboag                                                  Brookfield, MA

June 6                Maine State Championship – Little Sebago Lake                                                 Windam Town, ME

June 6                Nebraska State Championship – Red Willow Reservoir                                       McCook, NE

Aug. 15             Wisconsin State Championship – Lake Waubefa                                                 Madison, WI

July 7                 Minnesota State Championship – Lake Minnetonka                                             Wayzata, MN

July 11               Ontario State Championship – Georgian Bay                                                      Waubaushene, ON

July 12               Quad State Championship (PA,DE,MD,NJ) – NE Rvr Upper Chesapeake                North East, MD

July 19               Vermont State Championship – Lake Champlain                                                 Colchester, VT

July 19               South Dakota State Championship – Enemy Swim Lake                                      Webster, SD

July 25               Michigan State Championship – Lake St Clair                                                     Harrison Township, MI

Sept. 12-13        New York State Championship – Great Sacandaga Lake                                     Northville, NY

Sept. 27             Colorado State Championship – Lake Pueblo                                                      Pueblo, CO

Oct. 4                 New Hampshire State Championship – Lake Winnipesaukee                               Alton, NH

2020 SAF High School Fishing Challenges\Open Events:

Jan. 25, 2020      Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Georgia Early Bird Challenge – Clarks Hill                             Evans, GA

Oct. 10               New Hampshire Open – Lake Champlain                                              Fort Ticonderoga, NY

2020 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens: (TBA)

2020 State Athletic Association Events: (Qualified teams only)

Feb. 29              GAPPS Qualifier – Lake Lanier                                       Gainesville, GA

March 7              LHSAA Reg 2 Regional Championship – Toledo Bend                                         Many, LA

March 14            LHSAA Reg 1 Regional Championship – Ouachita River                                     Monroe, LA

March 14            LHSAA Reg 3 Regional Championship – Atchafalaya Basin                                 Berwick, LA

March 14            LHSAA Reg 4 Regional Championship – Bayou Segnette                                    Westwego, LA

March 21            GAPPS Finals Championship – TBA                                                     TBA

March 28            MissHSAA Mississippi Activities Association – Lake Ross Barnett                          Jackson, MS

April 3-4             LHSAA State Finals – Cross Lake                                                                      Shreveport, LA

April 25              KHSAA Reg 1 Regional Championship – Lake Barkley                                        Kuttawa, KY

April 25              KHSAA Reg 2 Regional Championship – Lake Cumberland                                 Jamestown, KY

April 25              KHSAA Reg 3 Regional Championship – Green River Lake                                 Campbellsville, KY

April 25              KHSAA Reg 4 Regional Championship – Cave Run Lake                      Salt Lick, KY

May 8-9              KHSAA State Finals – Kentucky Lake                                                                 Calvert City, KY

GAPPS – Georgia Athletics Private Parochial School

LHSAA – Louisiana High School Athletics Association

MissHSAA – Mississippi High School Activities Association

KHSAA – Kentucky High School Athletics Association

Additional SAF events are being added for the latest events line up, visit HighSchoolFishing.org.

Complete rules are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com

Registration for the 2020 season state championships and challenge events Opens November 11, 2020 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 FLW 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 FLW Open HS events should be made at Flwfishing.com  or by call 272-252-1000. 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 FLW and TBF High School Fishing tournaments are free to enter there is no event entry fees. The tournaments are two-person (team) events for students in grades 9-12 (one members of each team can be 7^th or 8^th) 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 FLW. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.

Cicero and Snyder Win High School Fishing World Finals

Anthony Cicero IV and Dakota Snyder fished their way through three full days of qualifying rounds to sacked a 16-pound, 6-ounce three-fish limit on the fourth and final day to win the Student Angler Federation’s (SAF) 10th annual High School Fishing World Finals on legendary Pickwick Lake out of Florence, Alabama June 19-22.

Representing Pennsylvania’s Elizabethtown High School, the hard-fishing duo topped an enormous field of 389 teams from 38 states and two foreign countries — Canada and Zimbabwe — to claim the prestigious World Final Champions crown. Squads were comprised of two anglers and an adult boat captain, pushing the total number of participants to more than 1,160.

“It’s absolutely unbelievable,” said Cicero. “Emotions are running high.”

With a payout of more than $2.85 million in college scholarships, cash, gift cards and other prizes at stake, competition was fierce. In fact, tournament officials report that the prize purse was certainly the richest in SAF High School Fishing history and likely the largest ever posted in a single event in all levels of competitive bass fishing.

Total payout in scholarship offers and prizes included: $1.62 million from Simpson University in Redding Calif., $1.08 million from Kentucky Christian University in Kentucky, $96,000 from Bethel University in Tennessee, $10,000 from FLW Outdoors, $12,000 from The Bass Federation, plus more than $40,000 in prizes from sponsors and TBF.

Produced by the Student Anglers Federation (SAF) under the TBF umbrella with support from FLW Outdoors, the popular four-day High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship dual-event format allows families to attend both premier championship events at one time with only one weeks’ vacation. Both events kicked off June 19, with the National Championships concluding on Friday and World Finals wrapping up Saturday.  All anglers to compete for three days, with a second-chance round designed to keep everyone in the game until the final-day cut.

Saturday’s field included the 10 National Championship finalists, the top 10 teams from Friday’s World Finals semi-final round, and the next 10 teams (highest day-three weight) from the semi-final round and second-chance rounds combined. A Friday night pizza party, which saw competitors devour more than 350 pizzas, included a “Lucky Dog Last Chance Wildcard” drawing for one team, not already qualified, to compete on day four – bringing the total number of teams competing in the World Finals finale to 31.

While many teams chose to ply Pickwick’s popular offshore ledge fishery, Cicero and Snyder played the shallow game.

Targeting the Mulberry Creek area, near Kroger Island, the team zeroed in on shallow grass with woody cover and hooked bass in depths ranging from 8 inches to five feet.

One area was particularly productive. “We were fishing a stump where we had caught a couple in practice. We caught our three best fish there today and ended it all,” Cicero reported. Anchoring their limit was a 7-7 behemoth that earned Big Bass honors.

Snyder noted that they enjoyed their fastest action throughout the tournament during the morning hours and in overcast conditions—a trend that continued on the final day.

For the win, Cicero and Snyder earned their choice of team scholarship offers to go to a top school and fish on the college fishing team including: A $56,000 – ($28,000 per angler) Scholarship offer from Bethel University, a $100,000 ($50,000 per angler) scholarship offer from Kentucky Christian University and a $80,000 ($40,000 per angler) scholarship offer to Simpson University. Snyder plans to join the United States Marine Corps after graduation, but Cicero says the scholarship options could be life-changing for him.

“This is an amazing opportunity,” he said. “The doors are wide open right now to three great schools, and I have a lot of thinking to do.”

TBF President and CEO Robert Cartlidge said providing such educational opportunities to youngsters who love fishing was a motivating factor for event organizers, and he praised supporters of these efforts.

“It is great to see our sponsor partners and these universities supporting young people in outdoor sports,” he said. “This is one of the reasons why we founded the national high school program in the US back in 2007, so that young anglers could live their dream and earn a good education through fishing that would be on par with any other sport.”

“History was made at Saturday’s World Finals awards ceremony, and it was something to see, as multiple colleges and university recruiters were on site, competing for top teams to attend their institutions of higher learning,” he added. “Whatever else happens, that is a success for these young people in my book.”

Alabama’s Gardendale High School squad, brothers Griffin and Fletcher Phillips, finished second with a 14-pound, 13-ounce limit anchored by a sag-bellied 7-pound, 1-ounce beauty. Adding to the excitement of the siblings’ day, the big bass bit shortly before the weigh-in started.

“We had a grassline where we got a few big bites in practice when it was overcast, but because it was sunny when we blasted off, we didn’t think we could get bit so we didn’t stop there,” Griffin explained. “But as we were heading back in the afternoon, our dad (their boat captain) said, ‘You have enough time, you can stop on it.’”

“We pull up, I make three casts with a 1 1/4-ounce white/chartreuse spinnerbait with gold willow-leaf blades, hook that big fish and I was like ‘This is the one we need,’” he continued. ”We had a decent bag that was about 10 pounds, but that fish helped out our bag a whole lot.” For their Second place finished the team was offered the following scholarships: A $40,000 – ($20,000 per angler) Scholarship offer from Bethel University, a $90,000 ($45,000 per angler) scholarship offer from Kentucky Christian University and a $80,000 ($40,000 per angler) scholarship offer to Simpson University.

In total more than 60 scholarship offers were made to top teams at the event the full list of scholarship offers is below. All teams had to meet eligibility requirements of each schools program and scholarship offers.

Bethel University, $96,000.00 –

SAF’s long-time partner who has offered scholarships every year for 10 years now. Offered to the winning team 56K – (2) 28K scholarships and to the 2^nd place team a 40K – (2) 20K scholarships.

Kentucky Christian University – $1,080,000.00 as follows:

$100,000 – (2) 50K scholarship offers to the World Finals winners, $90,000 – (2) 45K scholarship offers to the 2^nd & 3^rd place team in the World Finals, $80,000 – (2) 40K scholarship offers to the 4^th -12^th place teams in the World Finals and $80,000 – (2) 40K scholarship offers to the Winners of the National Championship

Simpson University Redding Ca. – $1,620,000.00 as follows:

TOP California teams – $120,000 – (2) 60K Scholarship offers to:

• Top World Finals Team – Ryan Beaty – James Alderman – Alhambra Calif, HS Bulldogs
• Overall Combined weight – Cooper Goff – Nathan Phillips – Lake County Calif, HS

Top 5 western State teams 100,000, (2) 50K Scholarship offers

1. CA – Sam West – Sheldon Reese, Lake County HS
2. AZ – Taj White – Ethan Ryan, Phoenix HS
3. AZ- Weslee Barnes – Jacob Jones, Phoenix HS
4. ID – Kyle Mann – Cole Koenig, Lodi HS
5. CA – Justin Hurney – Tyler Hurney, Freedom HS Falcons

Additionally, Simpson University also offered the Top 10 places in the World Finals a $80,000-  (2) 40K scholarship offers  and  the Top 16 GPAs in the tournament – $5,000 Scholarship award that is stackable with any of the Simpson U awards above.

TBF & FLW also presented their annual cash scholarship offers of $12,000 & $10,000 respectively, and finally over $40,000 in prizes and sponsor giveaways were awarded at the event.

For complete results, visit HighSchoolFishing.org. The website also offers information on attending or qualifying for the 2020 High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship dual event, which is set for La Crosse, Wisconsin.

For the hundreds of event pictures check out our facebook page HERE and results are on our results page along with daily weigh in videos HERE

World’s Richest Bass Fishing Championship Event Ever Held?

Prize Purse Tops $2.7 Million For 10^th Annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship in 2019

The Student Angler Federation, (SAF) announced today that Student anglers will compete for a share of the record $2.7 million prize purse offered at the 10th Annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship dual event June 19-22 on Pickwick Lake in Florence, Ala., registration for this premier event closes Friday June 14^th.

Comprised of lucrative college scholarships, cash scholarships and an array of other prizes, the purse is the richest in High School Fishing history by far and possibly the largest ever posted in all levels of competitive bass fishing.

The payout was quickly pushed to over $1.1 million to celebrate this 10^th anniversary event. Bethel University who has supported the World Finals from its start in 2010, once again started the ball rolling with their annual scholarship offers totaling $96,000, then Kentucky Christian University (KCU) in eastern Kentucky stepped up in a big way and is offering 12 scholarships totaling $1 million dollars, including a top scholarship of $100,000. Then earlier this week, Simpson University in Redding, California, added $1.5 million in multiple scholarship offers to the pot, targeting mainly top student angler teams from the western half of the US including a $60,000 offer to the top California finishers, and more than 40 other Simpson University scholarship offers as well, pushing the total to nearly 2.6 million. All 3 of these colleges have or are building out top level college fishing teams and are working to recruit for their fishing teams.

Educational incentives don’t end there, not everyone can travel to one of these top schools for their degree and maybe some don’t want to go to college. America certainly needs well trained, well paid, technical and trades craftsmen and women as well. So, The Bass Federation (TBF) and FLW both annually offer cash scholarships. FLW offers the winning team of the National Championship portion of the dual event a $10,000 cash scholarship and advance opportunities to the BFL All-American. (If they meet age requirements) and TBF annually provides $10,000 scholarships in the World Finals portion. These scholarships ensure that no winning team goes home empty handed. Additional smaller scholarships, daily sponsor prizes for all teams, a gift for every graduating senior attending on senior night, tens of thousands in gift cards and a plethora of other daily prizes from all the event sponsors push the total purse past the $2.7 million mark.

While the payout is epic, TBF President and CEO Robert Cartlidge believes the educational opportunities trump the record dollar signs.

“This may well be the richest prize pool ever for a bass fishing championship event of any kind, anywhere in the history of the sport, but that is not what makes it a valuable event,” he said. “In our minds, as far as TBF and our partners in fishing at FLW are concerned, what makes this the richest payback anywhere has nothing to do with the dollar amount; it is because of the dozens of top-notch educational scholarships with which students will have a chance to earn post-secondary degrees. Those educations are worth more than any dollar amount anyone can put on an event.”

Produced by SAF under the TBF umbrella with support from FLW Outdoors, the popular four-day High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship dual-event format allows all anglers to compete for three full days, with a second-chance round designed to keep everyone in the game until the fourth and final day cut much like any other high school double elimination event.

The High School Fishing World Finals portion of this dual event is open to ALL SAF members world-wide so that all SAF members have a chance to earn a life changing scholarship and is expected to draw nearly 400 two-person teams from about every U.S. state, plus competitors from foreign destinations ranging from Canada to Zimbabwe. The National Championship portion of the event you must qualify for through SAF State Championships, FLW Open events and SAF sanctioned trails across the nation. This format allows friends, siblings and club team members to travel and compete together in one or two premier events with separate prize pools, in a one week long family friendly vacation all at once, with only one travel cost for the families. There is still time for any high school team to get registered and attend as registration for the World Finals event closes Friday June 14^th.

For complete details, visit HighSchoolFishing.org. You can also follow the daily action, including Facebook Live morning takeoffs and live streaming weigh-ins, at www.HighSchoolFishing.org and enjoy additional daily coverage and photos at FLWFishing.com.

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 nearly 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. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook. For more information about The Bass Federation, visit bassfederation.com or call 580-765-9031.

For full details and more information about the Student Angler Federation and this year’s High School World Finals, visit highschoolfishing.org or call 580-765-9031.

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