For Immediate Release: For info contact – TBF National Office 580.765.9031 support@highschoolfishing.org
16th Annual High School Fishing World Finals & National Championship, Grove, OK June 24-28 on Grand Lake.
Registration for the World Finals is OPEN NOW through June 20th for all SAF members worldwide, get signed up today!
Pinnacle event offers RECORD prize pool totaling well over 3.8 MILLION dollars in prizes and scholarship offers.
The premier High School Fishing event in the world is headed to Grove, Oklahoma on Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees June 24-28. The 16th Annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship dual event will boast a record prize pool in 2025 well over 3.8 MILLION dollars in scholarship offers and prizes. Already teams from just about every US state and around the world from such places as Canada, Zimbabwe, Africa are signed up for this wildly popular week-long family event and compete for a share of the richest prize pool in all of bass fishing all done with NO entry fees.
The World Finals is open to any and all High school anglers\SAF member in the world, you do not have to qualify so everyone attending will be competing in the World Finals. SIGN UP TODAY! Registration closes Friday June 20th. Again, teams do NOT have to qualify for the World Finals portion of this event it is open to all High School anglers.
The student anglers pay no entry fee to compete in this one-of-a-kind dual event. The World Finals portion is the granddaddy of all national High School events, and where the bulk of the prizes and scholarships are awarded. At the same time on the dual-stage, the top 10% of High School teams from all SAF sanctioned events including MLF Open events nationwide in the preceding 12 months are qualified to compete in a national championship segment of the event with its own set of prizes and scholarships offers that will top $500,000. So those National Championship qualified teams are entered into both events and have a chance at both prize pools all in one trip.
“We are very proud to be working with the TBF/SAF and hosting the High School World Finals and National Championship at Wolf Creek Park, on Grand Lake, in Grove Oklahoma!” Stated Brent Malone Executive Director of Grove Convention & Tourism Bureau. “We look forward to hosting the anglers and their families in our community. Our team at Grove Oklahoma has worked extremely hard to ensure that Wolf Creek Park is a top destination for bass fishing. Wolf Creek Park, a nationally recognized facility, hosting two Bass
Master Classics & two MLF Red Crest Championships is very excited to host the World Finals and National Championship as one of the biggest events Grove has ever held. Grand is a Top 50 Bass Lake in America; We will provide our guests with a Grand Championship Experience!”
A high school team consists of 3 people to a boat, 2 High School anglers, and their adult boat Captain / Coach, no high school angler may fish alone. Add in all the families and friends for both anglers in the boat will push the expected attendance to roughly 3000 people connected to this week-long event.
“We are excited to be heading to Grove, Oklahoma. It is the perfect place, very centrally located in the US and a world class facility, with a great fishery to hold this event.” Stated The Bass Federation’s President/CEO Robert Cartlidge. “Since the very beginning we wanted a format where ALL high school anglers could come and have a shot at a scholarship if they do well. Neither TBF /SAF nor our partners in fishing at MLF, who was among the first to join our Student Anglers Federation (SAF) movement and grow it side by side with us, requires any entry fees for our regular High School events nor do we pay cash to kids at High School events. It is always prizes & scholarships. The result has been the explosion seen in high school fishing participation nationwide, it all adds up to a good wholesome experience for the kids and their families.”
From the Student Angler Federation standpoint as the founders of the national level High School fishing movement in 2006, high school fishing is not about being the next “pro angler” or getting sponsor patches on your shirt. Those all may or may not be by-products but the National High School fishing program was started for 3 simple reasons. First, to get youth into the outdoors with clean family fun, to live, learn in, and learn to respect the outdoors. SAF’s purpose is to use fishing to get kids outdoors with adult mentors and family with the intent of not just educating them about common sense, manners, and ethics, but about math, science, and language arts and why those are important to fishing yes, but also to life in general. Secondly, SAF wanted to provide post-secondary education opportunities. Not just college, but trade/tech school too, as our country was built by and still needs trades and skilled craft people. College is not for everyone, especially in today’s college world. Education opportunities are what SAF is promoting. Three, SAF did not want the HS program to be about money, which is the reason why there are no entry fees and no cash paid to student anglers under this program all awards are prizes and scholarships.
The unique format of this dual event is credited with making it so successful and it was developed with feedback from the parents and families over the last decade. In a competitive arena as there is just no way around travel for the anglers, staff, and partners. It is expected in fishing, no different than national HS stick and ball leagues, cheer or dance team championships, or any other high school sports. The two events are conducted together as a dual event not just to save travel costs and vacation time but to make it a true family vacation where many HS teams can travel together, have fun, and any youth from any background anywhere has a chance to come and earn a life-changing educational opportunity if they can. All while experiencing the comradery of an event this size where lifetime friendships are made.
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, much like any other double elimination High School sport. It is designed to keep everyone competitive and in the game until the final day cut. For full details, check out HighSchoolFishing.org. You can get your club affiliated with SAF and compete! All TBF, SAF and MLF 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 MLF memberships. It is as easy as completing the online registration TODAY at HighSchoolFishing.org.
The event is filmed for national television on the Pursuit Channel and other Networks. LIVE coverage will run daily on www.HighSchoolFishing.org and Facebook www.facebook.com/hsfishing
About The Bass Federation
The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is 100% 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 and proud “Partners In Fishing” with MLF. TBF, our affiliated state federations, and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 fishing, youth, and conservation events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for 5 decades. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing movement in 2006 and the Federation also founded the National Junior angler program for 8th grade and under in 1994, to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.
