Over 600 Anglers Set to Compete at Kentucky Lake for the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley

This upcoming weekend, the Association of Collegiate Anglers will host its first event of the 2024-25 campaign, its historic 20th season. The Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley will be contested at Kentucky Lake in Henry County and Paris, TN on September 21-22, 2024.  Over 600 of the top collegiate anglers from schools all over the nation are set to compete in this no-entry-fee, nationally televised, double points event which will feature media coverage on a variety of streaming platforms, live coverage, social media promotions and is nationally televised on several networks. The full field will compete for two days in hopes of claiming their share of the over $40,000 in prizes and contingencies on the line, 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 – Berkley 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 – T-H Marine, Session 3 – Berkley Fishing.

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 close to $4,000 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 event of the ACA’s 20th 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 $40,000 in prizes and contingencies.

The Top 10 finishing anglers in the overall event standings will earn automatic qualification into the 2025 Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops at Lake Hartwell 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. 21 of the Top 25 teams are set to compete at Kentucky Lake this upcoming weekend. An updated points standings will be released following the conclusion of the event.

The presenting sponsor for this event is Berkley Fishing. On the second day of tournament competition, anglers will be permitted to use only Berkley baits. Read the Official Rules to view the complete details. The ACA recently published a feature article highlighting Berkley baits that could be key for success at Kentucky Lake. Check out that article at this link.

The ACA will provide live coverage of the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley at Kentucky Lake in Paris, TN. Live weigh-in, for both days of tournament competition, will be streamed on the ACA website. The tournament live blog will begin on Friday with the final day of Official Practice and run through the conclusion of Day 2 of tournament competition. The live blog, along with live weigh-in, a live leaderboard, recap articles, photos and more can be found on the ACA website.