MINNEAPOLIS (Nov. 5, 2014) – FLW announced today the schedule for the 2015 FLW College Fishing season and several enhancements for the 2015 season, highlighted by the addition of a new FLW College Fishing Open Tournament offering a Ranger Z117 to the winning team and advancing the top 10 teams directly to the 2016 FLW College Fishing National Championship. The event will be open to teams from any conference, and there is no limit on the number of boats each school can enter.
“Our goal is for this to be the single largest gathering of collegiate anglers in history,” said Kathy Fennel, FLW President of Operations.
The two-day tournament, featuring a full field both days, will be held March 20-21 on Kentucky Lake and should feature incredible fishing action given the lake’s ability to produce big catches that time of year.
To better accommodate growing demand, FLW will no longer restrict field sizes at 
qualifying events. Participation is also being opened to full-time graduate students at four-year colleges and full-time undergraduate students at community colleges. Previously participation was limited to full-time undergraduate students at four-year colleges and fields were limited to 50 boats.
Each FLW College Fishing conference will host three qualifying tournaments and a Conference Championship (previously called an Invitational), except for the Western Conference, which will host two qualifying tournaments and a Conference Championship in 2015.
“This change, along with opening the fields, is intended to help cut travel costs for Western Conference teams, many of which have to travel substantially more miles than teams in other divisions to have representation in three tournaments,” said Kevin Hunt, FLW College Fishing Tournament Director.
The top 15 teams from each qualifier will advance to a Conference Championship. From there the top 10 teams will advance to the 2016 FLW College Fishing National Championship, and one member of the national championship team will ultimately advance to the 2016 Forrest Wood Cup for a shot at winning $500,000 – the biggest payday in bass fishing. To determine who punches his or her ticket to the 2016 Forrest Wood Cup, the national champions will fish head-to-head on an undisclosed body of water the day after the 2016 National Championship is complete. They will switch from teammates to opponents for a final winner-take-all showdown that pays a minimum of $10,000 as a Forrest Wood Cup qualifier.
In a move that mirrors recent changes on the Walmart FLW Tour, FLW College Fishing anglers will wear their own jerseys at the 2015 National Championship and going forward, greatly enhancing the value that each team’s local sponsors receive.
Registration for the 2015 season opens Dec. 15, 2014, for teams from clubs represented in the 2014 FLW College Fishing National Championship. All other teams may register beginning Dec. 16, 2014. Teams can register at CollegeFishing.com or by calling 270.252.1000. Teams fishing the 2015 FLW College Fishing National Championship will receive a travel allowance based on the distance traveled to the event, but all other travel allowances have been discontinued. There are no entry fees in FLW College Fishing tournaments. Phones are open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central time Monday through Friday.
“We are looking forward to a tremendous 2015 season as we continue to build on the momentum of ICAST, an incredible 2014 Forrest Wood Cup in Columbia, SC, newsstand sales that rank FLW Bass Fishing magazine as the best-selling title in its category, our recent NBC network broadcast success and our recent New York Times cover story,” said Trisha Blake, FLW President of Marketing. “All of this means more opportunity for students fishing FLW College Fishing, the nation’s largest collegiate tournament trail.”
The 2015 FLW College Fishing season is highlighted by the internationally televised FLW College Fishing National Championship, which features qualifiers from the 2014 calendar year. The championship tournament will be held April 17-19 at Lake Murray in Columbia, South Carolina, hosted by Capital City/Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism.
2015 FLW College Fishing Schedule:
NEW FLW College Fishing Open
March 20-21 Kentucky Lake, Gilbertsville, Ky.
Central Conference
April 11 Table Rock Lake, Kimberling City, Mo.
June 13 Kentucky Lake, Gilbertsville, Ky.
July 25 Mississippi River, La Crosse, Wis.
(Conference Championship)
Oct. 3-4 Carlyle Lake, Carlyle, Ill.
Northern Conference
May 9 Smith Mountain Lake, Huddleston, Va.
July 11 Indian Lake, Lakeview, Ohio
Aug. 1 Chautauqua Lake, Jamestown, N.Y.
(Conference Championship)
Sept. 12-13 Chesapeake Bay, Northeast, Md.
Southeastern Conference
Feb. 14 Lake Seminole, Bainbridge, Ga.
May 2 Lake Guntersville, Guntersville, Ala.
May 30 Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, Ga.
(Conference Championship)
Sept. 26-27 Pickwick Lake, Florence, Ala.
Southern Conference
Jan. 24 Sam Rayburn Reservoir, Jasper, Texas
Feb. 21 Lake Texoma, Pottsboro, Texas
Sept. 19 Red River, Natchitoches, La.
(Conference Championship)
Oct. 17-18 Grand Lake, Grove, Okla.
Western Conference
Feb. 7 Lake Havasu, Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
May 9 California Delta, Bethel Island, Calif.
(Conference Championship)
Sept. 26-27 Clear Lake, Lakeport, Calif.
2015 FLW College Fishing National Championship
April 17-19 Lake Murray, Columbia, S.C.
Host: Capital City/Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism
College Fishing is free to enter. All participants must be registered, full-time undergraduate students at a four-year college or university and members of a fishing club recognized by their college or university.
For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow College Fishing on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing. Visit CollegeFishing.com to sign up or to start a club at your school.
