Struggling with the undersized sack holding an oversized bass the wide-eyed angler finally made it to the weigh-in stage. Waiting for the angler was a big, grinning, bear of a man who was about to give the now nervous amateur from, “Anywhere, USA” the most exciting experience of a lifetime. “12 pounds, 7 ounces, announced tournament director, Bob “McBass “Sealy, who, with the attending crowd, applauded in noisy appreciation for the nervous anglers Big Bass Splash.
This big bass weigh-in is an exciting moment for the Sealy Outdoors “McDonalds Big Bass Splash” event, but this exceptional tournament is filled with such exciting moments of crowd and angler interactions, which offers on stage tournament excitement, live entertainment, family fun in the sun, and food and beverage concessions for its three day long big bass-a-thon. And its free and open to the public, so bring your lawn chairs.
Created in 1982 by Bob and Donna Sealy, their efforts soon produced one of the most unique concepts ever developed for the bass fishing tournament industry. A concept so attractive to the average amateur angler, for which it was developed, that a record entry of anglers who participated in the 1993 event drew over 6,700 anglers from 32 states and three countries to the shores of Lake Sam Rayburn. The event also attracted the active interest of legendary Texas Governor, Ann Richards, who actually fished the event and gave stage presence to award big bass cash and prizes to the McBass Anglers.
Unique? Yes, this tournament IS unique because of the variety of different options it offers its anglers to win. Catching big bass is certainly one option, but so are the hourly cash rewards that are meted out for the top heaviest bass weighed-in per hour. What the experienced McBass anglers do is to catch 3 bass (tournament rule of no more than 3 bass allowed in live wells during the tournament) then listen to the radio to the top bass that are weighed-in. For instance, if you are holding a 5.6 lb bass, and a 5.4 lb bass is listed as being in 5th place for that hour, then you can weigh-in your 5.6 lb fish to beat the 5.4 lb bass to claim that hourly spot. And since you are allowed to weigh-in 5 bass per day (1 per hour) this gives you five chances per day, or 15 chances per tournament, to win cash and prizes. What other tournaments offer so many chances? Only McBass.
Hourly paybacks are just one option to win. There are others. Such as the exact weight bass that could really win you BIG MONEY items such as a TRITON/MERCURY bass boats LOADED with Lowrance electronics and Minn-Kota trolling motors that are awarded each day for the exact weight bass that may be caught. Anglers fishing this option usually take an electronic fish weigh scale with them. They then weigh their bass and if it’s close to the exact weight mark they then bring their bass in to be weighed on the official tournament scale to see if it’s a winner. Many an exciting, or disappointing, moment is shared by all who fish and witness this exact weight option.
Little Anglers; Kids are the future of fishing and Bob Sealy has a soft heart for his Little Anglers group. The kids 12 years and under are allowed to fish for perch, bass, crappie, and catfish during the tournament to hopefully win some great prizes and awards. This is a parents “Kodak Moment” dream come true as lil’ anglers weigh their catches on stage.
Early Bird draw; Is when those who registered early to fish the event have a chance to take home some excellent prizes awarded by Academy Sports & Outdoors on a random “luck-o-the-draw” option.
Elimination draw; This has become a major entertainment event for the tournament crowd as all registered anglers are given a chance to win a fully rigged Triton/Mercury bass boat with Lowrance Electronics and a Minn-Kota trolling motor. As the “lucky-five” anglers are picked from random draw they are then put through a hilarious procedure of “let’s make a deal” where only one lucky angler wins the Triton/Mercury bass boat.
T-Shirt Bonus Hour; This endeavor offers the angler the option of purchasing an event souvenir T-shirt for the purpose of doubling their money for the 11am to Noon bonus hour offered each day. If you catch the heaviest bass weighed-in during this hour you will double your cash winnings for that hour IF you have a T-shirt. And believe me; I’ve witnessed many anglers fail to buy the $10 T-shirt losing the chance to double their cash.
Overall Winners; This option is the “meat and potatoes” of the McDonalds Big Bass Splash event where those anglers who caught and weighed-in the top-five heaviest bass of the three day long tournament will win MEGA PRIZES and cash awards. Such as the angler who caught the 12-lb- 7-oz bass who probably took the a top of the hour win for cash, will now win the top “sportsman’s package” prize for his incredible catch as well as the championship trophy for the tournament IF his amazing bass holds up as the top bass of the Big Bass Splash. As a reporter for the Sealy Outdoors event for these past 20 some years I have seen some hairy moments where these hopeful anglers were beaten within the last few minutes of the tournament. So the angler who caught that 12-7 bass will have to sweat it out for the remainder of the event to find out if they are #1.
GUARRANTEE: Being that this big bass tournament is a “guaranteed” pay out event, ALL of the prizes and awards are then GUARRANTEED to be given away by the end of the tournament. So if any of the prizes are left unclaimed, such as the daily exact weight Triton/Mercury bass boats, ALL of the registered anglers are then eligible to win the unclaimed prizes through a random drawing at the end of the tournament event.
FREE OPEN DRAWING TO THE PUBLIC; This is the “THANK YOU” prize from Sealy Outdoors to the public who chose to attend this family oriented tournament event. In this final option, before the Big Bass Splash fades into big bass history, a lucky adult spectator will win a “luck-o-the-draw” Cherokee Travel Trailer to take home. WOW!!
Last, but not least. The important reason for the very existence of the McDonalds, Big Bass Splash is to raise important funds for the Ronald McDonald Houses and their select charities. So far, in its 23 years of tournament operations, Sealy Outdoors anglers managed to raise over $TWO MILLION DOLLARS$ for the needs of these charities.
As a special note; Bob Sealy and his Sealy Outdoors Inc; are now planning for their 25th Annual Lake Sam Rayburn McDonalds Big Bass Splash scheduled for 2009, which will offer a GUARRANTEED $ONE MILLION DOLLAR$ cash & prize payout. âWe hope to best our record number of competitors set in 1993, stated Bob, but even if we donât the one million dollar payout will be awarded regardless. This is our way of saying âThank Youâ for all of those McBass family anglers whoâve supported us for the past 25 years. Besides, Bob grinned, âYou havenât seen anything yet!
2007 Schedule;
| April-21-22-23 | Big Bass Splash | Lake Sam Raybun | $560,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| June-9-10 | Big Bass Splash | Lake Guntersville-AL | $75,000 |
| June-22-23-24 | Big Bass Splash | Lake Toledo Bend-LA | $360,000 |
| July-21-22 | Big Catfish Splash | Lake Fork-TX | $50,000 |
| September-14-15-16 | Big Bass Splash | Lake Fork-TX | $400,000 |
| October-20-21 | Big Bass Splash | Kissimmee Chain of Lakes | $75,000 |
For more Information on the McDonalds Big Bass Splash call-1-888-698-2591.
This Ed Snyder/Outdoors report sponsored by; Fishing World.com- Sealy Outdoors Inc- Lake Sam Rayburn Pavilion Assn;-By: Ed Snyder / Ed Snyder Outdoors
