Student Angler Federation Announces New Layout For the High School Fishing World Finals And National Championship
Building off a record 2018 High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship where nearly 400 teams from across the globe competed, The Bass Federation’s Student Angler Federation (SAF) and our partners in fishing at FLW announced today a new strategically aligned three-year schedule.
The High School Fishing World Finals is without a doubt, the event that started it all in High School Fishing, it has led to more high school anglers, teams and trails starting up than any other single item. Many anglers can trace their roots to a member participating at the very first world finals held in Arkansas in 2010 or to being one of the first SAF school clubs founded in 2007. From there, the SAF program, backed by TBF and FLW, has grown into the industry leader and the world’s largest and longest running High School Fishing Program. The championship events have offered well over one million dollars in college scholarships and youth prizes since the first World Finals event and has advanced to the point that schools and families need more time to plan attending like most other premier sporting events. To better support that that need, SAF has set up a three-year rotation in a very large sort of “triangle” across the US. Now anglers anywhere in the world can plan travel, raise funds and chart a path to reach the pinnacle in High School Fishing.
First up is June 18-22, 2019 with registration opening up January 3rd. The 2019 High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship will return to the popular Pickwick and Wilson lakes at Florence, Alabama out of MacFarland Park. The facility easily accommodates an event of this size and in 2018 TBF/SAF and their partners in fishing at FLW staged and sent out 392 teams in about an hour each morning with a throngs of industry vendors and spectators at the daily weigh-ins under 12,000 sq ft of tent space.
“Florence Lauderdale Tourism is excited to again be the Host for the 2019 High School World Fishing Finals! We have hosted this tournament for several years, and plan to host it again in the future as it brings a huge economic impact to our community. We look forward to seeing young enthusiastic anglers fishing our beautiful lakes!” Stated Rob Carnegie, President of Florence Lauderdale CVB
In 2020, the Championships will look to a new location in the June/July time frame that any angler would want to fish. It is the bonified fish factory of the Upper Mississippi River at LaCrosse, WI.
“”Explore La Crosse is ecstatic to partner with the Student Angler Federation to host the future of professional bass anglers, the High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship in 2020! The Upper Mississippi River out of the La Crosse area is one of the best bass fisheries in the country with incredible quantities and high quality largemouth and smallmouth bass. La Crosse County not only bolsters great fishing, but also world class fine dining, incredible arts, outdoor recreation in hiking and biking, a variety of attractions, and so much more for the entire family to enjoy during their stay.”
June 2021, will find the Championships on the massive boarder waters between South Carolina and Georgia of Lake Hartwell at Anderson, SC.
“We are very proud to be working with the TBF\SAF and hosting the High School World Finals and National Championship in 2021! The future in bass fishing is our high school anglers and we look forward to the opportunity to host them all in our community. Our team at Anderson County has worked very hard to ensure that we’re a destination for bass fishing with Green Pond Landing, one of the top facilities in America and our fishery, Lake Hartwell, has been named a Top 100 Bass Lake in America for 4 consecutive years! We could not be more excited about hosting the future of our sport right here in Anderson!”
In the competitive fishing arena there is just no way around travel for the anglers, industry staff and partners it is expected fishing is no different than baseball, softball, cheer or dance team championships. Couple that with the fact that few places can accommodate 400 plus teams on the water for a week limits the options. It’s a large event but designed so that as many young anglers as possible can have a chance at the more than $150,000 in scholarships offered each year and to experience the comradery of an event this size where lifetime friendships are made.
“Feedback from the students and families is they understand that travel is a part of it, it is not their favorite part nor is it ours, but they wanted more time to plan, save and raise funds and possibly schedule a vacation a year in advance to prefish someplace new, so we are announcing 3 years in advance. Stated TBF President\CEO Robert Cartlidge. If you can picture a “triangle” of locations paired with a four-year High School career it means that at least 2 out of the 3 years the pinnacle events in all of High School Fishing will be “closer” to everyone no matter what side of the “triangle” you live on.
“Closer” is relative of course but now clubs and families can plan vacations and prepare.”
The popular four-day High School Fishing World Finals and National championship combined event format is a very unique structure where all anglers compete for three days in a format with a second chance round designed to keep everyone in the game until the final day cut. The dual event format saves families money by not having to make two trips to different premier events. For full details, check out HighSchoolFishing.org. You can get your club affiliated with SAF and compete! All TBF, SAF and FLW High School Fishing events are no entry fee events. To register, anglers only need to be a member of the Student Angler Federation (SAF) which is a mere $25 per year and includes competitor SAF and FLW memberships. It is as easy as completing the online registration at HighSchoolFishing.org.
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 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.
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 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. 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.
