The Bassmaster Classic, organized by the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.), is the premier professional bass fishing tournament, first held in 1971 on Lake Mead, Nevada, and has evolved from a fall event to a late winter one over the decades. Rick Clunn and Kevin VanDam have each won a record four times, while the first-place prize grew from $10,000 in 1971 to $500,000 in 2006 (later reduced to $300,000 in 2014). The three-day catch-and-release competition features a cut to the top 25 anglers after day two, and until 1976 the venue was a "mystery lake" kept secret from competitors until they boarded an aircraft. Venues have ranged from the St. Lawrence River (1980) and Pittsburgh's Three Rivers (2005) to the Red River in Louisiana, with women first competing in 2009. A recent controversy surrounds forward-facing sonar, which debuted in the 2021 Classic and prompted B.A.S.S. to implement equipment standardization rules in 2025 rather than an outright ban. Notable records include Preston Clark's largest bass (11-10 lbs, 2006) and Easton Fothergill's heaviest total weight (76-15 lbs, 2025).