Nearly 600 Anglers Set to Compete at Kentucky Lake for Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash

Wednesday, September 20, 2023

Nearly 600 Anglers Set to Compete at Kentucky Lake for Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash

SAN ANTONIO, TX – The Association of Collegiate Anglers is set to host its first event of the 2023-24 season on the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series this upcoming weekend. The no-entry-fee, nationally televised Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley will take place September 23rd and 24th on Kentucky Lake in Henry County and Paris, TN. Nearly 600 of college fishing’s top anglers will be on hand to compete for more than $30,000 in prizes and contingencies, as well as double points to count towards the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.

The Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley is a two-day big bass format event that will pay out a total of 80 places, Overall Big Bass, and several exact weight bonuses. On Day 1 of tournament competition, there will be four weigh-in sessions. Those sessions will close at 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 1:00 PM, and 3:00 PM. Each session will pay out prizes to the Top 10 biggest bass. Day 1 sessions are presented by these sponsors: Session 1 – Evolution Fishing, Session 2 – Bajío Sunglasses, Session 3 – Bass Pro Shops, and Session 4 – Garmin.

Day 2 of tournament competition will be comprised of three weigh-in sessions. Those sessions will close at 9:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 1:30 PM. Tournament competition concludes earlier on Sunday afternoon to allow anglers time to travel and return to campus for classes on Monday. The first two sessions of Day 2 will pay out the Top 10 biggest bass. Day 2 Session 3 will award prizes to the Top 20 biggest bass weighed in during that session. Day 2 sessions are presented by these sponsors: Session 1 – Abu Garcia, Session 2 – Bob’s Machine Shop, Session 3 – Bass Pro Shops and Abu Garcia.

Following the conclusion of weigh-in on Day 2, the overall tournament standings will be finalized, and first place will be awarded the “Overall Big Bass” title for the event. First place will pay out over $5,000 in additional prizes.

View the complete prize list here.

Anglers will be eligible for thousands of dollars in contingency and bonus payouts during the first ACA event of the season at Kentucky Lake. View the list of contingency programs available to anglers at this link. All total, the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley will award well over $30,000 in prizes and contingencies.

The Top 10 finishing anglers in the overall event standings will earn automatic qualification into the 2024 Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops at Pickwick Lake next may. View the complete Championship qualification criteria.

Along with the valuable prizes and contingencies up for grabs, the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley is an ACA double points event. Schools will be eligible to earn points for their two highest-finishing teams inside of the Top 150 in the overall event standings. First place will be awarded 1,750 points. Bass fishing clubs/teams that are able to place two teams high up in the standings will be able to earn 3,000 plus points. Eight of the Top 10, and 18 of the Top 25 teams are set to compete at Kentucky Lake this upcoming weekend. An updated points standings will be released prior to the beginning of the event.

Read the full article.

About the Association of Collegiate Anglers

The Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA) is a division of CarecoTV that was created to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing, with emphasis on competitive events nationwide. The ACA created the original BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Series 18 seasons ago. That single event has evolved into the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, which is now recognized as the longest-running consecutive collegiate bass fishing series in existence.

The ACA owns the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, Bass Pro Shops School of Year presented by Abu Garcia program, and associated assets. The ACA lineup of major college fishing events includes a variety of tournaments nationwide that are multi-day tournaments, all of which are televised on several networks, as well as streamed on a variety of connected platforms. The ACA also provides support to numerous schools operating regional events nationwide which helps to grow the exposure and awareness of college fishing.

Thanks in part to the large diversity of media exposure the ACA provides, the series boasts the largest amount of televised and streaming coverage of any collegiate fishing series. This includes a dedicated television series on numerous television networks and streaming platforms, as well as additional coverage of select events inside other programs. This combination includes coverage from Discovery Channel, CBS Sports, Pursuit Channel, as well as other regional and national networks. You can also find coverage online at any time of past events thanks to coverage on OutdoorActionTV.com and PursuitUp.com

For more information on the ACA or the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com. For more information on Bass Pro Shops, visit www.BassPro.com. For more information on CarecoTV, visit www.CarecoTV.com.