The opening day of this year’s Toyota Texas Bass Classic will be available in more than 75 million homes when the tournament airs Saturday on Versus, a member of the NBC Sports Group.
“The national viewing audience will have plenty to look forward to from all the on-the-water action with the anglers to the evening weigh-ins,” said Tournament Director Lenny Francoeur.”The thrill of this year’s championship has been captured in every minute. Viewers will be able to be up close and personal with the world’s best anglers in the only unifying world championship in the sport of bass fishing.”
Powerline Services pro Keith Combs of Texas won the TTBC championship in a sudden-death fish-off against Toyota Trucks pro Mike Iaconelli of New Jersey. After three days, the two were tied with more than 75 pounds and returned to Lake Conroe for the fish-off. Tension mounted as time elapsed and the championship was on the line for the first angler to catch a keeper and verify it with tournament officials.
As the official broadcast partner of the TTBC, Versus will air the championship in three parts (tape-delayed) with two 30-minute episodes for the first and second days of fishing and a one-hour special for the final day. The official broadcast schedule is as follows:
First Day 1 Dec. 3 at 1 p.m. ET (re-air Dec. 7 at 4 p.m. ET)
Second Day 1 Dec. 10 at 1 p.m. ET (re-air Dec. 14 at 4 p.m. ET)
Final Day 1 Dec. 17 from 1-2 p.m. ET (re-air Dec. 21 at 4 p.m. ET)
The TTBC field is comprised of the world’s best in professional bass fishing. The 50-angler field includes representatives from the Bass Pro Shops PAA Tournament Series, the Walmart FLW Tour and the Bassmaster Elite Series. The TTBC is the only event of its kind to bring in the best anglers from the major tours together on the same lake to compete for one world championship title.
The Toyota Texas Bass Classic tournament functions are operated by the Professional Anglers Association with technical assistance and support from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Inland Fisheries Division. Title sponsor for the event is Toyota. Additional sponsors include Evinrude, Ricoh, Carrot Stix, US Reel, Mustang CAT and ATX Wheels.
For more tournament information visit the toyotatexasbassclassic website, or follow at the Facebook website/ToyotaTexasBassClassic
About the PAA
The Professional Anglers Association is a non-profit organization that gives professional anglers a unified voice in order to aid in the growth of the sport of professional bass fishing. The PAA also aims to administer educational programs to the average angler, to increase enjoyment of the sport, and to embrace sound conservation practices to further the future of the sport.
By: Alan Clemons
