Outdoors Briefs

Plan now for hunter ed ahead of fall hunting seasons

Summer just got underway, but fall will be here for you know it. Time to plan ahead and get youngsters enrolled in a hunter education course before the big rush hits in September.

Hunter education in Texas is required of every hunter born on or after Sept. 2, 1971. The minimum age for certification is 9 years of age. Hunters younger than nine can take the course, but must retake the class once they come of age in order be officially certified.

There are two ways to obtain hunter ed certification:

* Traditional Two-Day Course: Includes an average of 14 hours of classroom instruction. Classes are taught by certified instructors, usually on weekends. Cost is $15 per student. Students must score 70 percent or better on a written exam.

* Online or Home Study, 1-Day Field Course: Allows hunters to study at their own pace over the Internet, then attend a one-day field course that includes a skills trail, live firing exercise, ethics presentation, review and final exam. A minimum score of 80 percent is required. Fee is $15.

For more details on hunter education in Texas and a complete listing of upcoming courses by city and date, see the TPWD website, www.tpwd.state.tx.us/ and navigate to the hunter education link.

TTBC advance tickets on sale

Organizers of the Toyota Texas Bass Classic recently announced that a limited number of advance sale tickets are available at a discounted price of $10 per day.

The TTBC is the year-end championship for the Professional Anglers Association (PAA). Tickets will cover grounds admission to the sponsor expo, daily weigh-ins and country music concerts by headline entertainers including Pat Green, Josh Turner and Zona Jones.

The event will be held on Oct. 16-18 at Lake Conroe in Montgomery, Tx. Normal ticket prices are $20 per day. Admission is free for youths 17 and under who are accompanied by a ticketed adult.

Tickets are available for purchase on the tournament website, www.toyotatexasbassclassic.com.

Quick pick nets $100,000 fantasy fishing prize

A 52-year-old floor installer who admittedly knows nothing about professional bass fishing is the latest winner in the FLW Fantasy Fishing sweepstakes.

Robert Davis of Branson, Mo., grabbed the $100,000 top prize following the Wal-Mart FLW Tour event held recently on Kentucky/Barkley Lakes with a Quick Pick entry he filled out when the circuit visited Missouri's Table Rock Lake in March.

Interestingly, Davis had completely forgotten about registering for fantasy sports richest game until he received a phone call notifying him that he had won.

"This is unbelieveable," Davis said. "I really don't know anything about professional bass fishing and this is the first time I have ever played a fantasy sports game. I guess this really proves that you don't need to know anything about bass fishing to win big at FLW Fantasy Fishing."

Contestants accumulate valuable points over the course of the season based on the accuracy of their Top 10 angler picks in each tournament. The popular fantasy fishing league will award $1 million to the overall points winner at conclusion of the 2009 Forrest Wood Cup on Aug. 1 in Pittsburg, Pa.