BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Three lakes in very different parts of the country — Lake of the Ozarks, Lake Shasta and Upper Chesapeake Bay — will host B.A.S.S. Nation Regionals in 2017.
“You can’t get more West, Central and East than our regionals,” said Jon Stewart, director of the B.A.S.S. Nation. “We’re proud of the diversity of this schedule.”
Top performers in each of the three regionals will advance to the 2017 Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation Championship presented by Magellan Outdoors.
Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Mo., will host the first regional of the year, April 5-7. Teams from Texas to Ohio will be invited to compete in the B.A.S.S. Nation Central Regional.
“Lake of the Ozarks is a very popular tourist attraction,” Stewart said, “but it’s also a great fishery, especially that time of year. It should really fish well.”
The 2017 Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation Central Regional presented by Magellan Outdoors will be the final event in a trifecta on the 54,000-acre reservoir. The Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Central Regional presented by Bass Pro Shops will take place March 29-31, followed by the Costa Bassmaster High School Midwest Open presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, April 2.
“B.A.S.S. will be at Lake of the Ozarks for nearly two weeks, and we’re looking forward to it,” Stewart said. “It’s a beautiful place.”
The Ozarks Tri-County Lodging Association and the Lake of the Ozarks Convention & Visitor Bureau (funlake.com) are the local hosts for the event.
For the Western Regional, two weeks after the Central has concluded, B.A.S.S. heads almost as far west in the United States as possible, to Lake Shasta in Redding, Calif. The 2017 Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation Western Regional presented by Magellan Outdoors will take place April 19-21, in conjunction with the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Western Regional presented by Bass Pro Shops.
Anglers from New Mexico to Washington will make up the competitors in the Western Regional.
“Lake Shasta will be another great event,” Stewart said. “It’s a good spotted bass fishery with the potential for some big spotted bass.”
California’s largest reservoir at 30,000 acres, Lake Shasta is nestled inside the Shasta-Trinity National Forest and looks up to the magnificent Mount Shasta.
“We’re excited to go to Redding, and they’re excited to have us,” Stewart added.
The Redding Convention and Visitors Bureau will host the tournament.
The final B.A.S.S. Nation Regional of the season will be held 2,800 miles away on the opposite coast. Upper Chesapeake Bay in North East, Md., will be the site of the 2017 Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation Eastern Regional, June 14-16. Cecil County Maryland will serve as the event’s host.
Teams from Maine to Florida will compete in the Eastern Regional.
“We’ve been to the Upper Chesapeake Bay a few times for regionals, and we just had a Bassmaster Elite Series event there in 2015,” Stewart said. “It’s a great community, and it’s very supportive of B.A.S.S.”
The fishing for the Eastern Regional should be good, too. In August 2015, Bassmaster Elite Series pro Aaron Martens won the four-day Elite Series tournament with 70 pounds, 2 ounces.
States send teams of 20 to each regional. The top boater and nonboater from each state in each regional will qualify for the 2017 B.A.S.S. Nation Championship, which will be held in fall 2017 at a location to be announced.
2017 Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation presented by Magellan Outdoors Schedule
Event Lake City Date
Central Regional Lake of the Ozarks Osage Beach, Mo. April 5-7
Western Regional Lake Shasta Redding, Calif. April 19-21
Eastern Regional Upper Chesapeake Bay North East, Md. June 14-16
