The inaugural
Missouri Invitational Bass N Golf Championship at Old Kinderhook, presented by Bassing Bob, will take place Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 29-31, at Old Kinderhook Golf Resort near Camdenton. This unique pro-am tournament pairs amateur anglers with 20 of Missouri's best and most celebrated tournament fishermen to compete for a total guaranteed prize pot of $10,000.
Twenty registered amateurs will have the opportunity to fish with Guido Hibdon, winner of the Bassmaster Classic and two-time BASS Angler of the year; Dion Hibdon, winner of the Bassmaster Classic and FLW Forrest Wood Cup; Brian Maloney, FLW All-American National Champion; and Marcus Sykora, FLW All-American National Champion, just to name a few of the fishing pros participating in the tournament.
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| The Pro-Am teams will face off for a nine-hole scramble on Old Kinderhook's Tom Weiskopf-designed course during the afternoon on Friday, Oct. 30. |
This isn't your typical fishing tournament. There will be action-packed fishing and afternoon weigh-ins, but there's another catch: all teams will be paired with a PGA golf pro and play nine holes of golf on Old Kinderhook's Tom Wieskopf-designed gem of a course.
According to Bob Renken, executive director of Old Kinderhook, it's a great fit. "The idea of having an event like this has been in my mind for a long time and I'm happy to say all the pieces have come together to make it a reality. It's the perfect way to showcase our new lodge here at Old Kinderhook and the Lake of the Ozarks, which was recently chosen the best recreational lake in the country. We have one of the best bass fisheries in the nation right in our own backyard, as well as world class golf, so why not celebrate both at the same time?"
To help bring the idea to fruition, Renken recruited a couple friends to assist him. The first recruit was one of the Midwest's premier bass fishing promoters, Bob Bueltmann, owner of www.BassingBob.com and publisher of Lake of the Ozarks Fishing News. The second was another local Lake of the Ozarks resident and pro tournament angler, Marcus Sykora.
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Bob Bueltmann, owner of BassingBob.com and one of the Midwest's premier bass tournament promoters, helped to organize this unique Pro-Am tournament.
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"I think this is a brilliant idea and it will be a fantastic event," says Bob Bueltmann. "It's very rare for your average weekend angler or amateur fisherman to have an opportunity to fish with a seasoned professional, much less be able to compete in a tournament alongside and against some of the best in the business."
Bueltmann said the initial response within the fishing community was astounding. "We allotted 20 spots for the amateurs and they were all sold out within three days of making the first announcement of the tournament. Old Kinderhook and the Lake of the Ozarks are on par with the very best fishing and golf destinations in the country, so everyone is very excited about what will turn out to be a wonderful experience for all the participants."
The event gets underway on Thursday, Oct. 29 with a cocktail reception and sit-down dinner with all the professionals and amateurs at The Ballroom at Old Kinderhook. The evening's festivities, including the reception and dinner, are open to the public at a cost of $40 per person. Following dinner, there will be live and silent auctions where the 20 participating amateur anglers can bid on their professional tournament partner for the weekend. The live auction will be for the top-four national fishing champions: Guido Hibdon, Dion Hibdon, Marcus Sykora and Brian Maloney. The silent auction will take place throughout the evening for the amateurs to bid on the remaining 16 professional anglers.
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| Fall at the Lake of the Ozarks is often very beautiful and one of the most productive times of the year for fishing. |
The tournament officially kicks off at 7 a.m. on Friday morning when the anglers take off from Old Kinderhook's marina to search the waters for hungry bass. Fishing teams will return to Old Kinderhook for a drive-through fish weigh-in at 1 p.m.
On Friday afternoon, fishing duos will be joined by their randomly placed PGA golf pro for a 3 p.m. shotgun start. The anglers-turned-golfers will then play nine challenging holes at Old Kinderhook, deemed the second best golf course in Missouri by readers of Golf Magazine. Later that evening at Old Kinderhook, beginning at 7 p.m., there will be cocktails, a buffet dinner and bonfire.
The last day of the tournament begins at 7 a.m. on Saturday as the bass boats take to the water for seven hours of fishing. The final weigh-in is at 2 p.m. with an awards ceremony to crown the champions at 3 p.m. After the awards ceremony, everyone, including the public, is invited to attend the season opening of Old Kinderhook's outdoor ice rink and Halloween Party.
The payout for the event will be determined by a cumulative points system based on the two-day total weight of fish caught and a sliding points scale for pars, birdies and eagles during the three-person golf scramble (a par is worth one point/pound, birdie is worth two points/pounds and an eagle is worth three points/pounds). The payout will include cash prizes for the top four teams with a guaranteed $5,000 going to the winning team. There also will be cash prizes for the biggest bass and "closest to the pin."
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| Champion Marcus Sykora poses for a photo with his two children, Mason and Madison, and his FLW All-American trophy. Marcus hopes to replicate his successes at the Missouri Invitational Bass N Golf Championship at Old Kinderhook, Oct. 29-31. |
Sykora, who won the 2014 FLW All-American championship on Wilson Lake in Alabama, is proud to be involved with the tournament. "What a true honor it is to be able to plan and participate in such a cool event. This is an unbelievably stacked tournament and we'll all be excited to test our skills on Lake of the Ozarks, one of the best bass lakes in the nation." Being one of the top-four champions participating, Sykora is confident the fishing will not disappoint. "I know that no matter who I end up being paired with, we're going to have a great time and we'll
look forward to some of the best fishing this lake has to offer. It's one of my favorite times of year to fish."
Special Bass N Golf lodging rates are available at the tournament headquarters, Old Kinderhook. Visit www.OldKinderhook.com for reservations. For more information on the Missouri Invitational Bass N Golf Championship, visit the "tournaments" page on www.BassingBob.com.
