| Date | Tournament | Location | Details/Results |
| May 20-21 |
Nebraska State Tournament | Lake Okoboji, IA; Hwy 9 Ramp | *Open to all TBF NE members |
| June 24-25 |
Ultimate League Fishing Event | TBA | *Open to all TBF NE members |
| July 22 |
Nebraska High School State Championship | Merritt Reservoir, Beeds Landing, Valentine, NE | *Open to all NE SAF members |
| August 19 |
Travis Ferguson CF Event | Mozingo Lake, Maryville, MO | *Open team tournament |
| August 20 |
TBF Open Event | Mozingo Lake, Maryville, MO | *Open team tournament |
| September 16-17 | TBF Semi-Final District 8 | Lake Okoboji, Okoboji, IA; Emerson Bay | *Open to TBF NE members who qualified during 2017 season |
Jan 07
2017 Nebraska TBF Schedule Announced
Jan 01
1st Ultimate Match Fishing Tournament (ULF)
The dust has settled from our first Ultimate Match Fishing (ULF) tournament. This is a head-to-head boater only tournament series to qualify 2 fishermen to our NE TBF Regional team along with earning some pocket change and bragging rights. The tournament format is challenging as it has a different qualifying system each round.
Tournament Day 1 saw Shawn Holly leading the pack for the 4 man cut for day 2. Shawn had a 5 fish limit (on an 18” length limit lake) of 19.48 lbs. Reports of several 4 pound plus fish were caught and released as they would not measure 18”.
Day 2 only 4 make the cut to fish (Shawn Holly, Terry Hussey, Bill Knoell and Mark Krueger). This round was for the total weight of all fish over 12”. Again Shawn took top honors for this round. Shawn hit the mother-lode with 49 scoreable bass for a final weight of 110.55 lbs. Terry Hussey finished 2nd with 17 fish and a weight of 34.32 lbs. Both anglers qualified for the ULF Championship to be held at a later date.
3 weeks later we held our ULF Championship with Shawn Holly and Bill Knoell, as Terry Hussey was unable to participate due to a work injury suffered the week prior. This time to “add to the mystery” we met at Bass Pro Shop in the morning to drive our anglers and 2 donated boats to Lake “X” with the lake unknown to either before arriving at the boat ramp. This was a real shoot-out but Shawn won the 5 fish event over Bill. Congratulations to both Shawn and Bill for fishing hard and qualifying for the Regional Team. Our overall winner was Shawn Holly and our runner-up was Bill Knoell.
Our thanks to Ranger Boats for providing funding allowing us to get 4 scales for the event.
Dec 14
THE BASS FEDERATION(TBF) AND FISHING LEAGUE WORLDWIDE (FLW) EXTEND PARTNERSHIP
FLW to Debut 24-event High School Fishing Open Series
MINNEAPOLIS (Dec. 14, 2016) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) and The Bass Federation (TBF) today announced a multi-year extension to their strategic partnership, bolstering the relationship between the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization and the nation’s oldest broad-based grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization. Terms of the agreement were not released.
As part of the extended partnership FLW will undertake the largest expansion of the co-managed High School Fishing program since launching the state-championship series of High School Fishing events in partnership with TBF in 2011. The expansion includes facilitating a new series of 24 High School Fishing Open tournaments to complement the existing State Championships and High School Fishing World Finals coordinated by TBF. TBF will also debut two High School Fishing Challenge events to meet growing demand from the more than 15,000 young anglers that participated in the program in 2016. All told, students will now have 76 FLW and TBF High School Fishing events in which to compete in 2017.
“High School Fishing is the foundation on which our sport will continue to grow,” said FLW President of Operations Kathy Fennel. “With the continued erosion of traditional pathways into fishing, the industry is taking note of High School Fishing’s recruitment, retention and reactivation potential. All it takes is one visit to a High School Fishing tournament to see that FLW and TBF have tapped into something special that unites generations in a way our sport has never seen before.”
No changes will be made to the existing program for adult TBF anglers. Fourteen TBF anglers (seven boaters and seven co-anglers) will advance to the BFL All-American from the TBF National Championship. The TBF National Champion boater will also advance to the Forrest Wood Cup and continue to receive the life-changing “Living the Dream” package to fish the entire season as an FLW Tour pro using a TBF-wrapped Ranger boat and tow vehicle without paying a single entry fee. TBF members will also continue to receive priority entry into all FLW tournaments.
“TBF is proud to partner with FLW in providing the nation’s most extensive network of grass-roots fishing opportunities from our TBF junior program through high school and college to the TBF National Semi-Final Series for adult anglers and ultimately our ‘Living the Dream’ package on the FLW Tour,” said TBF President Robert Cartlidge. “No two organizations work more closely to provide more fishing opportunities for more anglers nationwide than FLW and TBF. We are proud of that tradition and what it means for future generations.”
Veteran Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament director Dave Maxfield has been tapped to lead the new series of High School Fishing Opens as FLW High School Fishing tournament director. Working closely alongside Maxfield will be Scott Ellison, who has been promoted to FLW Youth Director and Promotion’s Manager.
Going forward, High School Fishing will operate on a school calendar with the National Championship being held in the summer in conjunction with the High School Fishing World Finals. The top 10 percent of teams in each State Championship, Challenge and Open will advance directly to the High School Fishing National Championship. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.
All participants must be Student Angler Federation (SAF) members to participate. SAF membership includes both TBF and FLW membership plus a digital subscription to FLW Bass Fishing magazine, online training courses and more.
SAF members never pay an entry fee to participate in FLW or TBF High School Fishing tournaments and all clubs are covered by SAF insurance, which means there is no added expense for schools with sanctioned High School Fishing clubs.
2017 High School Fishing Open & Challenge Schedule:
Jan. 15 – Lake Okeechobee Challenge, Lake Okeechobee
Feb. 19 – Lake Hartwell Early Bird Challenge, Lake Hartwell
March 4 – South Carolina Open, Lake Murray
March 11 – Mississippi Open, Columbus Pool
March 25 – Arkansas Open, Lake Hamilton
April 1 – Texas Open, Lake of the Pines
April 22 – Alabama Open, Logan Martin Lake
April 29 – North Carolina Open, High Rock Lake
May 6 – Wisconsin Open & Iowa State Championship, Mississippi River @ La Crosse
May 13 – Missouri Open, Truman Lake
May 14 – California Open & State Championship, California Delta
May 20 – Virginia Open & State Championship, Claytor Lake
June 3 – Minnesota Open, Mississippi River
June 10 – Michigan Open & State Championship, Detroit River
Sept. 9 – Louisiana Open, Ouachita River
Sept. 16 – Maryland Open, Potomac River
Sept. 23 – Pennsylvania Open, Raystown Lake
Sept. 30 – Indiana Open, Lake Monroe
Oct. 7 – Illinois Open, Lake Springfield
Oct.14 – New York Open, Oneida Lake
Oct. 21- Oklahoma Open, Grand Lake
Oct. 28 – Ohio Open, Caesar Creek
Nov. 4 – Kentucky Open, Lake Cumberland
Nov. 18 – Tennessee Open, Norris Lake
Dec. 2 – Georgia Open, Lake Lanier
Dec. 9 – Florida Open, St. Johns River
2017 High School Fishing State Championship Schedule:
Jan. 29 – Texas State Championship, Sam Rayburn Reservoir
Feb. 11 – Georgia State Championship, West Point Lake
Feb. 26 – Florida State Championship, St. Johns River
March 25 – Louisiana State Championship,Cross Lake
April 1- Kentucky State Championship, Lake Cumberland
April 1- Mississippi State Championship, Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway
April 2 – Illinois State Championship, Clinton Lake
April 9 – North Carolina State Championship, Kerr Lake
April 9 – Missouri State Championship, Table Rock Lake
April 29 – South Carolina State Championship, Lake Murray
May 6 – Ohio State Championship, Alum Creek Reservoir
May 7 – Arkansas State Championship, Lake Dardanelle
May 7 – Idaho State Championship, C.J. Strike Reservoir
May 7 – Tennessee State Championship, Norris Lake
May 20 – Arizona State Championship, Lake Pleasant
May 21 – Alabama State Championship, Lake Neely Henry
June 3 – Indiana State Championship, Brookville Lake
June 3 – Massachusetts, Rhode Island & Connecticut Tri State Championship, Mashapaug Pond
June 11 – Colorado & New Mexico Dual State Championship, Lake Pueblo
July 8 – Wisconsin State Championship, Lake Winnebago
July 9 – Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland & New Jersey Quad State Championship,Chesapeake Bay
July 15 – New York State Championship, Mohawk River
July 15 – South Dakota State Championship, Lake Cochran
July 16 – Minnesota State Championship, Mille Lacs Lake
July 16 – Ontario Province Championship, Georgian Bay
July 22 – Nebraska State Championship, Lake Merritt
Aug. 13 – Washington State Championship, Potholes Reservoir
High School Fishing World Finals and National Championships:
June 3, 2017 – National Championship, Wheeler Lake
(2016 qualifiers)
June 27-July 1, 2017 2017 World Finals/National Championship, Pickwick Lake. (qualifiers from events held Jan. 1 – June 10, 2017)
June 26-30, 2018 2018 World Finals/National Championship, TBA. (qualifiers from events held June 11, 2017 to June 9, 2018)
Complete rules can be found online at FLWFishing.com and Highschoolfishing.org.
For State Championships, each team must compete in the state in which their school is located. Teams from all states can participate in Open tournaments and Challenge events. Entries for State Championships and Challenge events should be made at Highschoolfishing.org or by calling TBF at (580)-765-9031. Entries for Opens should be made at FLWfishing.com or by calling FLW at (270)-252-1000. Entries for all events will be accepted beginning January 3. There is no limit to the number of teams accepted into a tournament from each school or club.
Full schedules, including additional state championships, and latest announcements will be available on Highschoolfishing.org and FLWFishing.com.
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 2017 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 235 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. 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: @FLWFishing.
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 45 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.
# # #
Jun 13
CONSISTENCY PAYS OFF FOR OLTJENBRUNS AND HUSE
June 13, 2016
It is often mentioned amongst anglers that a five fish per day in any multi-day event will typically put you in the money. That notion held true at the 2016 TBF Nebraska State Tournament.
Solid weights were weighed in after day one as many anglers found fish located in the recently flooded bushes. Ben Milliken of Bennington, NE was leading after day one with a 5 fish limit of 18.54 pounds. That bag was anchored by a solid 5.44 pound largemouth. Bob Walla brought in a solid back at 15.05 pounds. Rounding out the top 5 after day one was Shane Oltjenbruns (14.56), Robert Hime (14.21) and Lee Wubbels (12.90).
Day two provided for a completely new fishery as water levels dropped several inches overnight. Many of the day one leaders struggled to adjust. Milliken’s 3.5 pound lead over second place Walla disappeared as he was only able to bring one fish to the scales at 1.55 pounds. Walla also struggled bringing just over 3 pounds to the scales opening the door for Shane Oltjenbruns and Robert Hime.
Oltjenbruns’ day two bag of 13.95 coupled with his solid day one allowed him to capture the title with a two-day combined total of 28.51 pounds. Robert Hime finished second nearly 3 pounds back with a two-day total of 25.39. Rounding out the top 5; Lee Wubbels, BJ Miller and Dave Thomsen.
Although limits eluded him, Paul Huse put together a two-day effort that tallied 20.81 pounds and earned him the 2016 Co-Angler title. Jacob Rasmussen shocked the Co-Angler field after day one when he brought in a gigantic bag at 17 pounds. Rasmussen put everyone on notice that he was here to win the title. Though over 5 pounds behind Rasmussen, Huse brought in a solid bag that weighed 11.66 pounds.
Much like the rest of the field, Rasmussen struggled on day two with just over 3.64 pounds. Brian Sorensen brought in a nice bag to 11.66 pounds to lead all day two Co-Anglers. It was Paul Huse’s consistency that allowed him to capture the title with a day two total of 9.15 pounds. Rounding out the top 5 in the Co-Angler Field was Jacob Rassmussen finishing second followed by Brian Sorensen, Billy Ray and Brian Daschel.
The qualifying anglers will compete in the 2016 Semi Final to take place later this fall in Pickstown, SD.
Complete tournament results can be found HERE.
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