Bass Fishing Entering the Second Half of Its Season

The Association of Collegiate Anglers is entering the second half of the 2022-23 season on the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series.  In preparation for the spring season and the final push towards crowning the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia, the ACA has opened registration for its two remaining events of the season.  Those two tournaments are the Pickwick Slam at Pickwick Lake on April 22-23, 2023, and the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Hartwell during May 25-26, 2023.

Register for upcoming events here.

The first event on the calendar this upcoming spring is the Pickwick Slam.  Set to take place at Pickwick Lake in Florence, AL on April 22-23, 2023, this will be the last ACA major event before the year-end Championship in May.  The Pickwick Slam is a two-day, traditional five-bass limit, no-entry-fee event.  Take off and weigh-in will take place at McFarland Park in Florence, AL.

As the final ACA major regular season event for the 2022-23 campaign, a lot will be on the line as hundreds of the country’s most elite college anglers compete on storied Pickwick Lake.  Total payout for the event will consist of over $20,000 in prizes and contingencies.  Schools will also be eligible to earn double points towards the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.  Each university bass fishing club/team will be able to earn points for its two highest-finishing teams inside of the Top 150 in the final overall tournament standings.  First place at the Pickwick Slam will earn 1,750 points for their respective school.

The Top 10 finishing teams at the Pickwick Slam will earn automatic qualification into the 2023 BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops.  Each of the Top 10 teams will be required to compete as the same two angler pairing at the year-end Championship event.  These qualifications are in addition to the spots secured by teams via other criteria.  View Championship Qualification Criteria here, and follow this link to see how many boats your school has qualified thus far.

The 2022-23 college fishing season will then culminate with the 18^th edition of the annual BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops at Lake Hartwell.   College fishing’s longest-running National Championship event will be contested for the first time in Anderson, SC on a fishery that has been the playing field for some of the most prestigious events in the sport of competitive bass fishing.

This two-day, five-bass limit, no-entry-fee event will crown a National Champion and award the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.  Take off and weigh-in will take place at Green Pond Landing in Anderson, SC.

For the first time in the history of the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops, the event will count for triple points towards the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.  First place will earn 2,500 points, and schools will be able to earn points for their three highest-finishing teams inside of the Top 150.  University bass fishing clubs/teams that enter the event within 7,000 points of first place will mathematically have a shot at finishing the year ranked number one.

The 2023 BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops will boast a total payout during the event of over $30,000 in prizes and contingencies, with the Top 40 in the final overall tournament standings receiving payout as well as other prizes that will be awarded during the event.

Each of these ACA nationally televised events will receive extensive media, digital, and live coverage.