Syracuse.com - Bassmaster tournament aftermath: More than 1,000 bass were caught and released on Oneida Lake

[HuntingNY-News]

The bass were released each day after they were weighed at "many different locations" on the lake, a Bassmaster spokeswoman said.

Last weekend’s Bassmaster Ramada Challenge on Oneida Lake saw tournament officials hand out $1.3 million in cash prizes. Local economic experts say the event contributed more than $2 million to the local economy.

Where did these guys come from? Not a single fisherman was from New York state.

The states most represented among the 97 anglers competing were Texas (15), Alabama (14), Oklahoma (10), Florida (six) and Arkansas (six).

Cara Clark, a B.A.S.S. spokeswoman, told me a total of 1,082 fish were caught during the four-day, catch-and-release competition. She said only 10 fish were turned in dead to be weighed, which resulted in a 4-ounce deduction each time from the anglers’ total weight.

Following each day’s weigh-in, the bass were taken straight from the stage to the tournament’s catch-and-release pontoon boats, which had large, water-filled livewells.

“We have two boats with several wells on each,” Clark said, adding that the bass were released “in many different locations” on the lake.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog