Amidst a banner year for rainfall in California, Best Bass Tournaments (BBT) has kicked off a great season for our six circuits; although high water levels and fishery conditions did force some postponements, changed launching locations and/or rescheduled dates.
Best Bass Tournaments appreciates the patience of the anglers working through these situations and supporting us through these inconveniences.
Most recently, the BBT was able to secure a make-up date for the postponement of the March 11 Mother Lode tournament. The new date was released as July 8 with Ladd’s Marina on the California Delta as the new venue.
BBT OPEN TEAM TOURNAMENTS
Rapidly approaching is our first Open team event for 2017, the Rat-L-Trap Open presented by Bill Lewis Outdoors.
The 2017 Rat-L-Trap Open will blast off on the California Delta from Russo’s Marina on Saturday, April 23.
The BBT is excited to offer a 100 percent payback and BBQ for a $115 entry fee. The one-day event will also feature a $20 Big Fish option and for the early birds, that enter and register received by Monday, April 10th, a $15 discount is available.
Online registration is available here. Mail in can be done with this Entry Form.
The 2016 Rat-L-Trap Open welcomed nearly 100 teams and paid back over $10K. It is a Delta team event that you won’t want to miss!
Following the Rat-L-Trap Open, the BBT will also host two other Open events for 2017 – the Snag Proof Open as a two-day event on August 5 and 6 and The BassFest on September 10.
BIG OL PIG LUNKER CLUB
Congratulations are in order for the impressive double-digit, Big Ol Pig addition to the Lunker Club with Michael Gaston’s 11.21 from McClure. Gaston landed his on March 18, competing with team partner Randy Whited. Their tournament total went 22.02 and earned the victory for the event.
There have been three other bass entered in the BBT Lunker Club for 2017 – all in the seven-pound class range. Doug Naruo and Bryan Cod each caught theirs from Don Pedro and Sean Wayman reeled in his from Berryessa.
NORTHERN REGION
The Northern Region welcomed over 120 boats to the season-opener on Berryessa in February. The winning team of Marvin Dixon and Lance Evans took home over $5,000 for a five-fish limit of 21.78, including their big bass that went 6.80.
CENTRAL REGION
The Central Region has three events under their belt with the opener at Don Pedro in January, a Pine Flat event in February and their McClure event in March. The McClure event saw the aforementioned win with 22.02 by Gaston and Whited. They bested a field of more than 70 boats, earning over $3,000.
MOTHER LODE REGION
The Mother Lode Region has drawn an average of a 70 boat field at both their events held at Don Pedro. Winners of both the Mother Lode’s Pedro events have banked over $3,000 each, with the team of Hayden and Dennis Lee winning the January event with 21.14 and Kevin Davidson and Bryan Cox taking the trophy in the February event with 22.11.
COASTAL REGION
The Coastal Region hosted a pair of events at Nacimiento. The bite has been tougher so far this season for the Central Coast lakes, allowing James Keeney and Tom Ryan to take the win with 9.11 in February and Matt Clausen and Troy Tiddwell to place first with 11.46 in March. Each team claimed between $1,600 and $1,900 for their finish.
DELTA/WINE REGION
The Delta/Wine Region opened their season at Berryessa on March 18 with a field of nearly 130 teams. Patrick Zapponi and Wayne Antoine were the first to grab a win for the Region with a limit of 24.51 that included a kicker weighing in at 7.51. The team shared over $4,800 for their work on the water.
SOCAL TST REGION
The SoCal TST Region held both of their season’s events on Pyramid. Chris Burrows and Mike Miller made the top-spot with 15.00 at the February event and in March, Martin Brian and Jason Hemminger cashed the winner’s check for 17.45. Each team banked over $1,200 for their respective victories.
Each BBT Region hosts six events. The full 2017 BBT schedule is available here.
BBT Teams may qualify for the Tournament of Champions (TOC) through an individual region or in the Traveler’s Circuit by competing in a total of seven BBT regional events.
The BBT TOC will be held October 7 and 8, in an undisclosed location.
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