Big Cat Quest fishing waters of Rome today

Weigh-in at Kroger will be free to the public between 1 and 4 p.m.

Anglers from across the Southeast will hit the waters flowing through Rome today in the Bass Pro Shop Big Cat Quest fishing tournament.

Promoter Ken Freeman said he expects somewhere in the range of 50 teams to participate in what will be the final qualifier for the series finale in New Madrid, Missouri, in October.

Some of the anglers will fish as far away as Weiss Lake in Alabama prior to the weigh- in which will take place at Kroger, 1476 Turner McCall Blvd., in East Rome.

The weigh-n will begin as early as 1 p.m. and all anglers must be out of the water by 3 p. m. in order to meet the weigh- in deadline of 4 p.m.

Awards will be given for the largest catfish and the heaviest stringer. Teams of two to three fishermen will be allowed to weigh five fish at the weigh- in and cannot have more than six catfish in their possession at any time while on the water.

Freeman said the fish can range from two pounds to 60 pounds.

“Here at Rome you never know; you can see a lot of big flathead catfish around here,” Freeman said. “With this front coming in, everything changes so it’s hard to imagine what’s going to happen.”

The Rome tournament is one of 18 in the Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest Series, which has tournaments in Virginia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, Missouri and Texas. The Rome event is the only event in the series in Georgia this year.

Simply fishing in the tournament in Rome qualifies anglers to participate in the championships at New Madrid.