Tulsa catches a big one.
The region will host the 2016 Bassmaster Classic. Tulsa also hosted the 2013 tournament, which drew the event’s second-highest attendance of 106,850. VisitTulsa Chair Jeff Stava said tourism plays a big role in the region’s economy.
"Visitor traffic drives economic impact in our community and in this region to a tune of over $345 million annually," Stava said. "And with each large-scale event we bring to town, that number continues to grow."
The tournament will be March 4–6, 2016, with the fishing at Grand Lake and weigh-ins at the BOK Center.
Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb reminisced about watching ESPN’s coverage of the 2013 Classic, which began with a spinning globe.
"The visual zooms in to North America, to the great state of Oklahoma, and then to northeast Oklahoma, stretching from Tulsa to Grand Lake," Lamb said. "You can't buy that marketing."
B.A.S.S. CEO Bruce Akin called the area a "hotbed" of fishing.
"Twenty percent of our membership is in Oklahoma or a contiguous state to here," Akin said. "Ten percent of our membership is within 300 miles of Tulsa, here."
Eleven Oklahomans are hoping to qualify for the 55-angler field. The total purse for the event is more than $1 million.
