Visit Franklin County and Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge to Host Major League Fishing

The sixth annual Major League Fishing all-star event will take place at Smith Mountain Lake in Franklin County, Virginia, from May 17–22.

Hosted by Visit Franklin County and Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge, the tournament will showcase 30 pros who qualified from the 2024 Bass Pro Tour season competing for a prize of $100,000 to the winner.

“We are beyond excited to welcome Major League Fishing‘s top big bass anglers to Smith Mountain Lake,” said Kevin Tosh, director of tourism and communications at Visit Franklin County. “This prestigious event is a powerful opportunity to showcase not only one of America’s rising top tier bass fisheries but also the vibrant metro-mountain charm of Franklin County, Virginia’s Blue Ridge, and the entire Smith Mountain Lake community.”

While MLF has held 61 tournaments on Smith Mountain Lake in the past, this event marks the first time the MLF Bass Pro Tour will hold a tournament on the fishery.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming our friends at Major League Fishing, a premier professional bass fishing brand, to our destination,” said John Oney, vice president of sports and sales at Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge. “This all-star Bass Pro Tour event will feature professional anglers, families, staff and other support personnel from across the country in a six-day competition. As a result of hosting, our region will be highlighted through ongoing national television coverage on Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel and MLFNOW! live streaming.”

In addition to overall tournament awards, bonuses are awarded in each round of competition with payouts of $10,000 for the single biggest bass on each day of Group A & B Qualifying, $30,000 for the biggest bass in the Knockout Round and $100,000 for the biggest bass in the Championship Round.

“Virginia’s done a phenomenal job on this fishery, and they’ve been stocking it for quite a while,” said Martin Villa of Charlottesville, Virginia, who will be in the event.. “It’s been a minute since any big event has been here, but it seems like the region is setting up for a series of professional events over the next five years. It’s Virginia’s best fishery, hands down.”