Major League Fishing Set to Kick Off 2023 Season with Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Sam Rayburn

BENTON, Ky. (Jan. 6, 2023) – After an extremely successful 2022 season that brought tremendous growth and excitement to the sport of bass fishing, Major League Fishing (MLF) is primed to do it again. The 2023 MLF season kicks off this weekend, Saturday, Jan. 7, with the Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) opener at Sam Rayburn Reservoir.

The event, hosted by the Jasper County Development District, will showcase more than 350 weekend boaters and Strike King co-anglers competing for a top prize of up to $13,000, including the lucrative Phoenix MLF Bonus contingency award. The last few years, the BFL season opener on Sam Rayburn has drawn major media attention – huge fields and huge bass. The 2020 season opener saw a record-breaking field of 230 boats, and both the 2020 and 2021 events required five-bass limits in excess of 40 pounds for competitors hoping to actually win the tournament.

“The Phoenix Bass Fishing League is the top-level tournament trail for weekend anglers that want to compete in bass-fishing tournaments,” said MLF Senior Tournament Director Daniel Fennel. “It’s only fitting that a BFL event kicks off the year, as it is the premier avenue for anglers, whether they are starting as amateur or striving to become a professional that competes on the Bass Pro Tour.”

With more than 196 tournaments on the schedule this year in the United States alone, the schedule includes MLF’s biggest and most prestigious event, REDCREST IV, which will take place March 8-12 on Lake Norman in Charlotte, North Carolina. The General Tire Outdoor Expo – a free family-friendly festival featuring the latest and greatest tackle, boats and equipment – will be held March 10-12 in conjunction with the tournament.

For complete details and updated information visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, the Discovery Channel, the Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, the World Fishing Network, and on-demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 13 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement, and fish care.

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