Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley Set to Begin Tomorrow
PARIS, TN (September 18, 2020) – With practice in the books and the virtual tournament meeting complete, anglers are all set to compete in the 2020 Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley. The Big Bass Bash is the Association of Collegiate Anglers’ first event of the 2020-2021 season on the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series. Anglers from all across the country are in Paris, TN on Kentucky Lake competing for their share of $40,000 in payout and double points towards the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.
Day 1 of tournament competition will begin bright and early tomorrow morning. The first flight of boats will leave out from Paris Landing State Park beginning at 7:00 AM. Saturday will feature a total of four weigh-in sessions:
Session 1 presented by Wiley X: Launch – 9:00 AM
Session 2 presented by HydroWave: 9:01 AM – 11:00 AM
Session 3 presented by Bass Pro Shops: 11:01 AM – 1:00 PM
Session 4 presented by Garmin: 1:01 PM – 3:00 PM
The prize payouts on Day 1 will consist of products ranging from Wiley X sunglasses, to HydroWave H2, hundreds of dollars in Bass Pro Shops gift cards, and two Panoptix LiveScope units from Garmin. Each session will pay out the Top 10 finishing anglers.
Day 2 will be slightly modified compared to Day 1. There will be three separate weigh-in sessions from takeoff till 1:30 PM:
Session 1 presented by Abu Garcia: Launch – 9:30 AM
Session 2 presented by Berkley: 9:31 AM – 11:30 AM
Session 3 presented by Bass Pro Shops: 11:31 AM – 1:30 PM
Sessions 1 & 2 will payout the Top 10 in each, and Session 3 will award prizes to the Top 20 of that hour. On Day 2 of competition, anglers will be permitted to use only Berkley baits. This creates a great amount of excitement on the final day as anglers look for the winning bite that will claim top honors. In 2019, Hunter Schneider from Adrian College won the tournament by catching a five plus pound bass on the Berkley Power Swimmer. Follow this link to read about Berkley baits that could factor in this weekend.
Kentucky Lake is setting up to provide a competitive playing field over the course of the next two days. Fall like weather conditions have both the baitfish and bass on the move. The baitfish are moving up into the shallow creeks and haunts of Kentucky Lake, making the bass more susceptible to being caught. Numerous reports of three to four pound bass being caught came in during the open practice period. Early predictions have the field thinking that it will take a six pound plus bass to claim the victory on Kentucky Lake this weekend.
Double points will be on the line for teams hoping to surge up the standings in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. The highest two teams finishing inside of the Top 100 for a specific school will earn points for their team. 1,000 points will go out to the winner, meaning that many schools have the opportunity to earn 1,500 points or more come the end of the weekend. View the current standings here.
Live tournament coverage will begin via the blog starting tomorrow morning early. That will be shared across all social media platforms, with additional updates and live streams being sent across those channels as well. Each weigh-in session will be streamed live via the Outdoor Action TV app and website. Be sure to tune in beginning tomorrow morning early, and get ready to see some big Kentucky Lake bass cross the stage at Paris Landing State Park.
