TBF Student Angler Federation (SAF) Announces 2021 High School State Championships and Sanctioned Fishing Events Schedule.
PONCA CITY, OK – The Bass Federation’s Student Angler Federation (SAF) announces the 2021 High School Fishing sanctioned schedule. Offering more opportunity than ever before including 48 SAF High School Fishing State Championships, 2 Open Challenge events, the Bass Pro Shops/ Cabela’s Early Bird Open Challenge event, 16 state high school athletic association sanctioned tournaments, as well as a number of FLW High School Fishing Opens (TBA by our partners in fishing at FLW) and the pinnacle event in all of high school fishing the 12th annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship June 30-July 3 in South Carolina. Available dates/locations are listed below and on the website at www.highschoolfishing.org.
In 2021 across all SAF sanctioned events, more than 35,000 anglers are expected to participate in the SAF High School Fishing program and just between the TBF and FLW major events there will be some 75 plus 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 continue to see the program grow and get more young anglers and families out into the outdoors. For us it has never been about “growing the sport of tournament fishing” which is one reason why we will not pay cash to kids at our youth events, we do scholarships and prizes only. For us, our high school and youth program under the SAF umbrella is and always has been about education through fishing and getting people into the outdoors. It is not about trying to win some money or getting a sponsor patch on your shirt. It is about having some clean family fun in the outdoors.” said TBF President Robert Cartlidge. “We are proud to have had our partners in fishing at FLW be the very first to join us in the National High School arena. Together we provide more fishing opportunities for not just for youth anglers but all anglers than anyone else in the world. We will continue to jointly push the programs forward to accomplish those goals.”
SAF sanctioned national events will continue advancement opportunities with 1 in 10 teams from each TBF/SAF 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 2020 High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship offered a record $3.2 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. NEW for 2021 is both the National Championship winners and the 12th annual World Championship winners will receive CUSTOM championship rings.
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 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.
2021 12th Annual High School World Finals / National Championship:
June 30-July3 Lake Hartwell Anderson, SC.
2021 Season SAF High School Fishing State Championships:
Jan. 30, 2021 Florida State Championship – St. Johns River Tavares, FL
Feb. 13 Alabama State Championship – Neely Henry Gadsden, AL
Feb. 13 Texas State Championship – Sam Rayburn Zavalla, TX
Feb. 20 South Carolina State Championship & Open – Lake Hartwell Anderson, SC
Feb. 28 Georgia State Championship – Lake Lanier Gainesville, GA
March 7 Arkansas State Championship – DeGray Lake Arkadelphia, AR
March 14 Louisiana State Championship – Red River Shreveport, LA
March 21 Mississippi State Championship – Pickwick Lake Corinth, MS
March 27 Kentucky State Championship – Lake Cumberland Burnside, KY
March 27 Arizona State Championship – Lake Martinez Yuma, AZ
April 3 Tennessee State Championship – Lake Chickamauga Dayton, TN
April 17 North Carolina State Championship – High Rock Lake Salisbury, NC
April 17 Virginia State Championship – South Holston Bristol, VA
April 24 Kansas State Championship – Melvern Lake Melvern, KS
April 24 Utah State Championship – Sand Hollow Hurricane, UT
May 1 Missouri State Championship – Truman Lake Clinton, MO
May 1 MD, DE, NJ Tri-State Championship – Potomac River Woodbridge, VA
May 2 Oklahoma State Championship – Lake Texoma Durant, OK
May 2 West Virginia State Championship – Sutton Lake Sutton, WV
May 8 MA, RI, CT Tri State Championship – Quaboag Brookfield, MA
May 16 Illinois State Championship – Carlyle Lake TBA
May 22 Ohio State Championship – Delaware Lake Delaware, OH
May 22 Iowa HS State Championship – TBA
May 23 Wisconsin State Championship – Lake Winnebago Oshkosh, WI
June 5 Indiana State Championship – Brookville Lake Brookville, IN
June 5 Nebraska State Championship – Red Willow Reservoir McCook, NE
June 6 South Dakota State Championship – Big Stone Lake Hartford Beach, SD
July 10 Maine State Championship – Thompson Lake Oxford, ME
July 11 Pennsylvania State Championship – Oneida Lake Brewerton, NY
July 13 Minnesota State Championship – Lake Waconia Waconia, MN
July 18 Vermont State Championship – Lake Champlain Colchester, VT
July 18 Colorado State Championship – Lake Pueblo Pueblo, CO
July 25 Michigan State Championship -Lake Hubbard Hubbard, MI
Sept 12 New York State Championship – Mohawk River Waterford, NY
Oct 3 New Hampshire State Championship – Sunapee Newberry, NH
TBD Nevada State Championship – TBA
TBD Oregon State Championship – TBA
TBD California State Championship – TBA
TBD Idaho State Championship – TBA
TBD Ontario State Championship – TBA
2021 FLW High School Fishing Opens: (TBA) Soon
2021 SAF High School Fishing Challenges\Open Events:
Feb 6, 2021 Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Georgia Early Bird Challenge – Clarks Hill Evans, GA
Feb. 20 South Carolina State Championship & Open – Lake Hartwell Anderson, SC
TBD New Hampshire Open
2021 State Athletic Association Events: (Qualified teams only)
Jan. 23 GHSA #1 Lake Seminole Bainbridge, GA
Feb. 13 GHSA #2 West Point Lake LaGrange, GA
Feb. 27 GAPPS Qualifier – Lake Lanier Gainesville, GA
March 20 GHSA #3 – Oconee Buckhead, GA
March 20 GAPPS Finals Championship – Oconee Buckhead, GA
March 20 MissHSAA – Invitational Pickwick Lake Corinth, MS
March 27 LHSAA Reg 1 Regional Championship – Ouachita River Monroe, LA
March 27 LHSAA Reg 2 Regional Championship – Toledo Bend Many, LA
March 27 LHSAA Reg 3 Regional Championship – Atchafalaya Basin Berwick, LA
March 27 LHSAA Reg 4 Regional Championship – Bayou Segnette Westwego, LA
April 10 GHSA – #4 Clarks Hill Evans, GA
April 17 LHSAA State Finals – Cross Lake Shreveport, LA
April 24 KHSAA Reg 1 Regional Championship – Lake Barkley Kuttawa, KY
April 24 KHSAA Reg 2 Regional Championship – Lake Cumberland Jamestown, KY
April 24 KHSAA Reg 3 Regional Championship – Green River Lake Campbellsville, KY
April 24 KHSAA Reg 4 Regional Championship – Cave Run Lake Salt Lick, KY
May 7-8 KHSAA State Finals – Kentucky Lake Calvert City, KY
May 8 GHSA State Finals – Lake Lanier Gainesville, GA
GHSA – Georgia High School Athletics
GAPPS – Georgia Athletics Private Parochial School
MissHSAA – Mississippi High School Activities Association
LHSAA – Louisiana High School Athletics 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 2021 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 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 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 TBF/SAF and FLW 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 7th or 8th) plus a adult boat captain, (3 people to a boat no exceptions) 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.
