OUR MISSION:
Outdoor Marketing Solutions LLC and TEXAS TOURNAMENT ZONE are dedicated to providing the competitive angler an immediate and singular source for all things tournament fishing. TTZ embraces all aspects of competitive angling including the planning, promotion and directing of bass fishing tournaments. Our website, ttz1.com, delivers tournament news and information pertaining to the sport of bass fishing. We believe our emphasis upon superior customer service, innovation and quality will help us discover new approaches to serve our anglers, inform our viewers and represent our partners.
OUR PARTNERS:
TEXAS TOURNAMENT ZONE believes in the products and services displayed by our partners. We build a relationship with our partners and deliver more than just banner ad placement; we realize our customers’ goals and provide them with the tools and expertise to grow their business and spread their branding. Our sponsors are not just a presence on our website, it’s truly a partnership.
BRIAN BOOKER
Owner
Brian grew up in the
piney woods of deep east Texas near Sam Rayburn Reservoir. He graduated with honors from Waco-Robinson High School where he lettered in basketball and football. His natural choice for higher education was to head back east to Stephen F. Austin State University, where he received his degree in liberal arts and really started to hone his writing skills.
Right out of college Brian served as a probation officer before moving into a corporate sales position with a top Fortune 500 leasing company. Brian’s sales consistently exceeded expectations and in just over a year he advanced into management.
Currently Brian resides in Lago Vista near the banks of Lake Travis in the greater Austin area and has a son, Brayden, who loves to fish as much as his dad does. Brian started fishing at 4 years old, checking trot lines and catching crappie on Sam Rayburn Reservoir where he grew up in East Texas. In 2002, he began developing a passion for bass fishing after getting in a bass boat for the first time. Brian’s competitive fishing started in the Lone Star Brush Hawgs bass club, a venture he and a friend pioneered. He served as treasurer and later president of the club, while starting to fish circuit events.
Brian’s writing passion collided with angling to create a perfect fit for TTZ in terms of product and tournament write-ups. He presents a polished and knowledgeable commodity for TTZ and remains an accomplished corporate professional who manages claim adjusters for a Fortune 500 company.
If you would like to get in touch with Brian, you can email him at brian.booker@ttz1.com
GRANT SCHNABEL
Director of Business Development
Grant was born in southe
rn Wisconsin and spent his youth growing up in the Midwest where he found his passion for sports and the outdoors. From an early age, he would tag along harassing his dad and grandfather trying to learn as much as he could about the outdoors. Grant started “fishing” with a stick, short line and a rubber washer. From there he quickly moved to ice fishing and any other methods he could to spend time on the water. He has fished from coast to coast, Mexico to Canada, and many points within.
After graduating from Hononegah High School where he lettered in golf, Grant went on to finish his education with a bachelor’s degree in business from Illinois State University. Throughout the years, Grant worked in sales related positions surrounding the golf industry. In March of 2005, Grant relocated to the great state of Texas. At that time, he began to pursue largemouth bass fishing with same desire he has for the outdoor experiences he was accustomed to.
Grant currently resides in NW Austin and works for a private distribution company within the electronics industry. Grant has held multiple positions in sales and purchasing, currently working as a Product Manager. His experiences and business acumen help make him a valued member of the TTZ team.
If you would like to get in touch with Grant, you can email him at grant.schnabel@ttz1.com
SHAWN TAMEZ
IT Director
Shawn is everything IT for TTZ. Shawn earned his EE degree in 2000 and has spent the last 15 years in software development building application, system, and enterprise level software for small start-up to fortune 500 companies.
In 2013 Shawn started the Thursday Nighters, a unique weeknight tournament series in the San Antonio/New Braunfels area to fill a void for south central Texas anglers. In only its 3rd year, it grew to become one of the largest in Texas. Shawn quickly recognized the cumbersome efforts to efficiently manage tournaments as they grew, thus by utilizing his passion for tournament fishing and Information Technology, Shawn and his team created an application that delivers data in real time and streamlines the tournament and angler management process which is used by TTZ today.
We’re excited to have Shawn on the team as we continue to innovate and lead the way by bringing new technologies and ideas to tournament fishing.
If you would like to get in touch with Shawn, you can email him at shawn.tamez@ttz1.com
JOHN D. WARD
Director of Sales & Marketing
John received his BBA in Marketing from Texas State University in 1997. After spending his first few years out of college working as volume broker for Dell Computers, John become the youngest Marketing Director ever for Image Microsystems. After expanding their operations from Los Angeles to Austin, John was looking for new challenges outside of the IT vertical. With the IT bubble starting to shift a bit in the early 2000s, John moved away from the tech industry and over to government contract consulting.
For the last 13 years, he has worked remotely as a Government Contracting Consultant for a research and intelligence firm in Washington D. C.. In 2016 John became President of WinGov Consulting. Federal contractors world wide rely on John and his expertise in identifying, qualifying, and winning government contracts.
When he is not busy with his wife Alice, and two young sons Keeran and Harrison, you can usually find John on the water. Bass fishing is John’s passion and in his work with TTZ he always describes it as a labor love. TTZ is happy to have John’s 18 plus years of sales and marketing experience to support our growth efforts. For all things sales and marketing to TTZ, please contact John anytime.
John Ward – 10.32 lbs – Lake Austin
If you would like to get in touch with John, you can email him at john.ward@ttz1.com