About this tournament

Eastern Montana Bass Anglers (EMBA) is the region’s longest-running bass club, with a season schedule that bookends Montana’s open-water bass fishing — the EMBA Open at Tongue River Reservoir in the spring and the BassCat Rally on Fort Peck in the fall. The fall event has become a hybrid: an EMBA-sanctioned open tournament that also serves as the Northwest BassCat Owners Group’s annual Montana rally.

The two-day format launches each morning from Hell Creek Marina, with weigh-ins each afternoon at the marina. Five-fish limits, 14-inch minimum, live-release, and standard EMBA safety rules apply. Field is capped at roughly 25–40 boats, with priority registration for EMBA members and BassCat owners.

Fort Peck in late September is a smallmouth tournament — the upper end of the lake produces consistent five-pound class fish on main-lake structure and the BassCat Rally is the event most regional anglers point to for chasing a kicker.

Schedule

• Friday evening — Optional pre-tournament social and rules meeting at Hell Creek Marina
• Saturday — Daylight launch, 3:00 p.m. weigh-in
• Sunday — Daylight launch, 2:00 p.m. weigh-in and awards

Entry & Prizes

Entry: $200 per two-angler team. EMBA membership encouraged but not required to enter. Hell Creek Marina launch fees apply separately.

Prizes: Cash payouts roughly 80% paid back to the field, plus a big-bass side pot and BassCat owner side awards. Year-end EMBA Angler of the Year points awarded.

What to expect

Late September on Fort Peck is smallmouth prime time. Look for fish staging on main-lake points and rocky humps in 15–25 feet of water, with drop-shots, Ned rigs, and football jigs all producing. A topwater bite often fires up on calm mornings around schooling perch. The run from Hell Creek up to the Big Dry Arm is long but productive — plan fuel and have a backup plan for wind.

History

The Northwest BassCat Owners Rally has been held on Fort Peck out of Hell Creek for over a decade, traditionally on the late-summer / early-fall calendar. EMBA folded the rally into its sanctioned open tournament schedule to give the event tournament credit and broader exposure across the regional bass community.