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Ponca City, Okla. Feb. 12, 2014
Professionally run competitive bass fishing and thousands in cash and prizes will be on hand when the Cabela’s North American Bass Circuit kicks off its 2014 tournament season on South Carolina’s legendary Lake Hartwell February 16, Hosted by the Anderson Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The team-format tournament offers one day of competition on the 56,000-acre world-class bass fishery. Teams are scheduled to fish from safe light to 3 p.m. When the dust settles, the team with the heaviest total weight for up to five bass will be crowned the tournament champions. Bass fans of all ages are invited to watch the action unfold at the weigh-in, which is free and open to the public. The action begins at 3 p.m. at Portman Marina, which claims the title of the state’s largest inland marina.
Competitors will vie for serious cash and bragging rights. Cabela’s NABC payouts are based on the number of teams entered in each event. Qualifying tournaments with 75 teams or more offer a guaranteed first-place cash purse of $10,000 plus payout to the top 20 percent of the field. Plus, the NABC Big Bass Pot, along with sponsor contingencies including Ranger Cup, Stratos 2X, and Optima True Blue add thousands in cash and prizes to the total.
Teams competing in multiple events can reap even greater rewards. Those fishing at least three NABC tournaments have a shot at qualifying for the prestigious, high-stakes championship for their respective NABC Region, which offers $15,000 cash for first place based on a full field. Regional Team of the Year titles will also be awarded to the team from each region with the highest point total from any three NABC qualifiers. Each title is worth $2,000 in Cabela’s gift cards, plus trophies and paid entry into their 2014 regional championship and 2015 regional qualifiers. In all, Team of the Year races will award more than $7,000 in cash and prizes to the top five teams in each region.
This is the first of four Cabela’s NABC Southeast Region qualifying tournaments in 2014. The remaining schedule includes Lake Lanier, Georgia, March 22; Clarks Hill, Georgia, May 4; Lake Russell, South Carolina, June 1; and the Southeast Region Championship on Lake Lanier, Georgia, Aug. 9-10. In addition, the NABC North Region features qualifiers at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, May 10; Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin, June 14; Leech Lake, Minnesota, July 26; and Lake Vermillion, Minnesota, August 22-23 (two-day bonus event). The North Region Championship is set for Oct. 4-5 on the Mississippi River at La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Cabela’s, the World’s Foremost Outfitter for hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, is in its fourth season as title sponsor of the NABC. Other sponsors include: Ranger Boats, Stratos Boats, Mercury Marine, MotorGuide, Optima Batteries, G-Juice and Sea Grant.
Based in Ponca City, Oklahoma, the Cabela’s NABC is open to two-person teams regardless of club or sponsor affiliation. Entry fees are $500 per regular season tournament and $600 for each two-day region championship. The Circuit offered more than 100 percent payback to anglers in 2013 and will do so again in 2014. In addition, a small donation is included in each entry fee and matched by NABC and other conservation organizations up to 3-to-1 in support bass conservation projects anywhere the NABC does business.
Registration remains open through the Sunday night prior to each tournament or until the field fills. For more information, visit
northamericanbasscircuit.com, email info@northamericanbasscircuit.com, or call (580) 765-9031.
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