American Fishing Tour adds more divisions for 2014
Category: notes
Aug 14th, 2013 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Aug 14th, 2013 at 12:00 AM
ATHENS, Ala. – Anglers fishing the American Fishing Tour, presented by American Bass Anglers, may find more action closer to home in the upcoming season.
ABA added nine more divisions in states ranging from New York to California. Each AFT division offers weekend anglers low cost bass tournaments within their geographic area. The new tournaments will begin later this fall or in the spring, depending upon the division. Additional divisions are forming and will be announced soon. As specific schedules for each division are finalized, they will be posted on the ABA website at www.americanbassanglers.com.
Jim Johnson will head up District 108 in New York to fish Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Steven Hampton takes over Texas District 52 to fish the Stillhouse and Belton lakes around the Belton area. Brian Hunziker of Huntsville, Texas, will open Texas District 55 to fish the Waterwood and Lake Conroe areas of the Lone Star State.
Richard Borne of Bay St. Louis, Miss., will run the Louisiana District 111. Brandon Little of Champion, Mich., will conduct tournaments for District 69 in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Galen Bennett of Slagle, La., heads up Louisiana District 111, gearing up to fish Toledo Bend.
Charles Hickcox of Temecula, Calif., will open California District 63, the first to operate in the Golden State. The district will hold tournaments in the Vail, El Capitan and Havasu areas. Randy Brewington of Moulton, Ala., will run District 22 for fishing in northern Alabama around Lake Wheeler and Lake Wilson. Lee King of Cherry, N.C., will head up District 14 for fishing around the Lake Norman area.
During each tournament, anglers accrue points based upon how they finished in that event. After a grueling season fishing several events, the top points leader from each AFT division will fish for bragging rights and major prizes during the annual AFT Divisional Angler of the Year Fish-Off.
The 2013 AFT Divisional Angler of the Year Fish-Off will be held Oct. 19, 2013, at Richard B. Russell Lake on the Georgia-South Carolina line. The champion will take home a new fully rigged Triton 21XS boat package equipped with a 200-horsepower Mercury Pro XS outboard motor, a MotorGuide trolling motor, a set of Carlisle trailer tires and wheels, Odyssey batteries and a supply of Royal Purple oil products. The complete package retails for nearly $60,000.
The 2013 AFT National Championship tournament will be held Oct. 23-25, 2013, on Clarks Hill Lake. Also known as Lake Strom Thurmond, Clarks Hill Lake also forms part of the Georgia-South Carolina line near Appling, Ga. Anglers fishing the 2013-2014 season in the new divisions will be eligible to compete for slots in the 2014 AOY and national championship events.
For more information, call ABA at 256-232-0406. On line, see www.americanbassanglers.com.
About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers commitment is to provide low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers visit www.americanbassanglers.com.