This just came up in another section so I thought I would also post it here.

How can you "try" tournament fishing w/o having to petition to join a club, pay dues, etc???

Contact your local club presidents (Fed nation, Tbf, Aba, etc) and ask for a list of the fund raiser tourny's for the year.  Not only will you be competing against a fair representation of the talent that is out there but your $$ will be going to a great cause.

Just a suggestion

Excellent thought LBH, I love that it's for a cause and the lack of commitment!  I wonder if they would allready have tourneys lined up for next season.....

They do in RI!!!

CAST For Kids!!  April 23rd, 2008

This is the time of yr that these things get planned.  If they have not set dates yet, they could probably tell you when they will and you could contact them then.

The DOT office in Tifton, Ga. had a nice little tournament to raise money for cancer research last May. They might do the same this year(2008). Had 30-35 boats, nice payout for a charity event. Lots of fun.

   I got SKUNKED!! ;D ;D

Many tournament organizations have open tournaments this means the tournaments are open to the public. Example Bass-N-Bucks or Bass Camps  

Yeah, the open tournaments can be fished by anyone although they might have some minmum boat/motor and/or insurance requirements you have to meet to get in. Some may be a little expensive to enter for a first timer but hey, if you can catch a few good fish, you might just get that money back at the end of the day.

Additional Ideas:

Along the lines of LBH reply for charity evens, Team Bass USA has fundraiser tournaments in a few states, and sometimes they waive the member fee, if I am not mistaken.  But it is for pairs.

http://www.teambass-usa.com/

Some clubs will let you fish one or two as a guest with no committment, as an incentive to try to entice you into the club or so you can see if it is right for you.  Worth looking into!  

Our local newpaper has a listing in Fridays issue of all the up-coming tournaments. I take a look at it to find the pot tournaments and then I make sure I'm there early. I like the ones that are held on weeknights.

Fluke- How long is a weeknight tourny? (time frame)

Fluke- How long is a weeknight tourny? (time frame)

The Tuesday night tournaments in my area are 4 hours....gotta get on 'em quick! 5 bass limit, all 14"'s or better.

Most tournaments for charity have low buy-ins. Your local paper should have a lists of what's going on in your area each week. They are for a good cause, and they pay out relatively well. It's a great time to practice!

There is one in my area this weekend for a friend who lost his life in the Cancer battle. We are donating the money to Cancer. Also most companies like my own donate lots of great prizes so you can walk away with some great new gear!