NEWS RELEASE

TBF, FLW ANNOUNCE 2018 HIGH SCHOOL FISHING SCHEDULE

MINNEAPOLIS (Nov. 9, 2017) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) and The Bass Federation (TBF) announced Thursday the 2018 High School Fishing schedule, including 29 Student Angler Federation (SAF) High School Fishing State Championships, 24 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens, seven state high school athletic association sanctioned tournaments and three SAF High School Fishing Challenge tournaments, plus the most anticipated events of the year, the High School Fishing National Championship and World Finals on Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama.

“High School Fishing is the perfect recruitment, retention and reactivation program,” said FLW President of Operations Kathy Fennel. “Since its introduction in 2010 with the inaugural High School Fishing World Finals, we’ve seen how effective it is at getting new anglers and lapsed anglers on the water while retaining existing anglers who often serve as mentors for school teams. You need to look no further than the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2016 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife-Associated Recreation that shows an 8 percent increase in fishing participation since 2011 to see the program’s effectiveness. While several factors undoubtedly play into this growth, High School Fishing is certainly a leading contributor. We are creating a whole new generation of anglers and providing them with a connection to their schools and the outdoors.”

The more than 20,000 anglers that participated in the TBF/FLW High School Fishing program this year will have 72 tournaments in which to compete in 2018.

“As the sport’s leading youth organization, we are proud to have FLW as our partner in providing more fishing opportunities for more high school students across North America than anyone else,” said TBF President Robert Cartlidge. “Together TBF and FLW are laying the foundation on which our sport will continue to build, and we look forward to another incredible season working with schools from New York to California and into Canada to provide unprecedented opportunities for students and their families.”

2018 High School Fishing World Finals/National Championship:

June 26-30 Pickwick Lake Florence, Ala.

2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens:

Jan. 13 Lake Mitchell Open Clanton, Ala.

March 3 Columbus Pool Open Columbus, Miss.

March 10 Douglas Lake Open Kodak, Tenn.

March 17 Truman Lake Open Warsaw, Mo.

April 7 High Rock Lake Open Lexington, N.C.

May 5 Mississippi River Open (Wis.) La Crosse, Wis.

May 12 Lake O’ the Pines Open Jefferson, Texas

May 13 Clear Lake Open/Calif. State Championship Lakeport, Calif.

May 20 Smith Mountain Lake Open Huddleston, Va.

June 3 Whitefish Chain Open Crosslake, Minn.

June 9 Raisin River Open Monroe, Mich.

Sept. 8 Rend Lake Open Whittington, Ill.

Sept. 15 Kentucky Lake Open Gilbertsville, Ky.

Sept. 22 Raystown Lake Open Hesston, Pa.

Sept. 29 Wheeler Lake Open Decatur, Ala.

Oct. 6 Lake Monroe Open Bloomington, Ind.

Oct. 13 Lake Murray Open Prosperity, S.C.

Oct. 20 Grand Lake Open Grove, Okla.

Oct. 27 Mosquito Creek Lake Open Cortland, Ohio

Nov. 3 Dale Hollow Lake Open Burkesville, Ky.

Nov. 10 Ouachita River Open West Monroe, La.

Nov. 17 Lake Hamilton Open Hot Springs, Ark.

Dec. 8 Lake Seminole Open Bainbridge, Ga.

Dec. 15 Lake Okeechobee Open Clewiston, Fla.

2018 SAF High School Fishing State Championships:

Feb. 10 Georgia State Championship – West Point Lake LaGrange, Ga.

Feb. 24 Florida State Championship – St. John’s River Putnam County, Fla.

March 10 Texas State Championship – Lake Palestine Flint, Texas

March 24 Louisiana State Championship – Cross Lake Shreveport, La.

March 31 Kentucky State Championship – Lake Cumberland Somerset, Ky.

March 31 Kansas State Championship – Wilson Lake Russell, Kan.

April 7 Mississippi State Championship – Tenn. Tom Waterway Columbus, Miss.

April 7 Illinois State Championship – Clinton Lake Weldon, Ill.

April 14 Virginia and North Carolina State Championships – Kerr Lake Henderson, N.C.

April 28 New Hampshire State Championship – Lake Winnipesaukee Gilford, N.H.

April 29 South Carolina State Championship – Lake Murray Prosperity, S.C.

April 29 Tennessee State Championship – Kentucky Lake Birdsong, Tenn.

May 5 Idaho State Championship – C.J. Strike Reservoir Mountain Home, Idaho

May 6 Arkansas State Championship – Lake Dardanelle Russellville, Ark.

May 12 Ohio State Championship – Alum Creek Reservoir Columbus, Ohio

May 13 California State Championship/Clear Lake Open Lakeport, Calif.

May 19 Alabama State Championship – Lake Neely Henry Gadsden, Ala.

May 20 Iowa State Championship – Mississippi River Davenport, Iowa

May 27 Oklahoma State Championship – Fort Gibson Lake Wagoner, Okla.

June 2 Tri-State Championship (Conn., Mass., R.I.) – East Brimfield Lake Sturbridge, Mass.

June 2 Indiana State Championship – Brookville Lake Brookville, Ind.

June 17 Minnesota State Championship – Mille Lacs Lake Isle, Minn.

July 7 South Dakota State Championship – Lake Henry TBD

July 8 Quad State Championship (Pa., Del., Md., N.J.) – TBD TBD

July 21 Nebraska State Championship – Missouri River Niobrara, Neb.

July 28 Michigan State Championship – Gull Lake Kalamazoo, Mich.

Aug. 5 Wisconsin State Championship – Bay of Green Bay Oconto, Wis.

Sept. 16 New York State Championship – Great Sacandaga Lake TBD

2018 SAF High School Fishing Challenges:

Feb. 18 Lake Hartwell Early Bird Challenge Anderson, S.C.

June 24 New England Challenge – Lake Winnipesaukee Gilford, N.H.

Sept. 16 Minnesota Open Challenge (Walleye) – Lake Bemidji Bemidji, Minn.

2018 State Athletic Association Events:

March 17 GICAA Georgia State Championship – TBD TBD

May 20 IHSA Illinois State Championship – Carlyle Lake Carlyle, Ill.

April 21 KHSAA Kentucky Regional Championship – Lake Barkley Kuttawa, Ky.

April 21 KHSAA Kentucky Regional Championship – Lake Cumberland Somerset, Ky.

April 21 KHSAA Kentucky Regional Championship – Green River Lake Campbellsville, Ky.

April 21 KHSAA Kentucky Regional Championship – Cave Run Lake Morehead, Ky.

May 11-12 KHSAA Kentucky State Championship – Kentucky Lake Calvert City, Ky.

Additional SAF High School Fishing State Championships are being added. For the latest SAF High School Fishing State Championship and Challenge tournament schedule, visit HighSchoolFishing.org.

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

Registration for the 2018 season opens December 4, 2017, for the Lake Mitchell Open. Registration for all other events will begin Jan. 3, 2018. 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 FLW High School Fishing Open tournaments and SAF High School Fishing Challenge events. Entries for State Championships and Challenge events should be made at HighSchoolFishing.org or by calling TBF at (580) 765-9031 and entries for Opens should be made at FLWFishing.com or by calling FLW at (270) 252-1000. There is no limit to the number of teams accepted into a tournament from each school or club.

All FLW and TBF High School Fishing tournaments are free to enter. The tournaments are two-person (team) events for students in grades 7-12 and open to any SAF-affiliated high school club. The top 10 percent of teams competing in each event held prior to June 10 will advance directly to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship, held in conjunction with the pinnacle event in all of High School Fishing, the 2018 High School Fishing World Finals, June 26-30 on Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama. Qualifiers in tournaments held June 10 or later will advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship. The High School Fishing National Championship awards the winning team a $10,000 scholarship ($5,000 per student).

All SAF High School Fishing members automatically qualify to compete in the industry’s most prestigious high school bass tournament, the 2018 High School Fishing World Finals. At the 2017 High School Fishing World Finals more than $170,000 in scholarships and prizes were offered to 332 teams from 33 states and Canada.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow High School Fishing on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and Facebook.com/HSfishing. Visit FLWFishing.com and HighSchoolFishing.org for more information on how to sign up or to start a club at your school.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2017 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 258 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.

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 45 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.

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