Tournament Rules and Regulations

2025 - 2026

 

 

Tournament Fees

Tournament fees shall consist of $20.00 per person, per tournament and they will be paid at the regular club tournament meeting by members, guests, and prospective members fishing the tournament. Any late entries must pay Tournament fees prior to start of tournament. All tournament monies will be paid to the Vice President in the form of cash or through Pay Pal, and are non-refundable. Tournament monies will be paid out at the tournament or next monthly meeting. If a club member is behind on club dues, (see Bylaws) he will not be allowed to fish the tournament.

 

One hundred percent of all tournament fees will be paid out as prize money each month:

1st Place    50%

2nd Place   30%

3rd Place    20%

(Winnings based on $15 per Anger)

Big fish winnings paid at $5 per Angler

 

Non-boaters are required to offer the boater $25 for a one day and $50 for 2-day tournaments to help offset Boater Expenses.

 

Tournament Committee

A tournament committee will consist of at least three volunteer members (at least one of which is a "Boater") who have not been on a tournament committee for the prior 4-month period. The tournament committee will serve for a four-month period and will recommend tournament location, Start and End times, a minimum of one month in advance. A Club officer will call for a vote to approve or alter the committee's recommendations by a majority vote. Tournament Committee will be responsible to start the tournament announcing the official start time, boat order, and oversee the "clocking-in" of any tardy anglers at weigh-in. Boats in no wake zone of ramp shall be considered “IN” for weigh in purposes.

 

All two-day tournaments will be conducted on the same basis as a one-day tournament. (i.e., prize money will be the same, only one 1st Place, 2nd Place, 3rd Place and only one large fish.)

 

Pairing

The selection method for pairing members fishing a tournament is as follows:

A Random draw will occur to determine which Co-Angler will be paired with which boater.

In the event there are more Co-Anglers than Boaters to fish, Co-Anglers will be prioritized based on percentage of meetings attended (on a rolling 12 meeting basis). In the event of a

tie the Co-Angler attending the meeting will have priority. Partners must change each month.

 

After the draw, An Unpaired Member (Boater or Co Angler), may use any craft 16.5 ft or better, That fits the boater definition in the By Laws Article 2 , Section D1,

 

Boaters may volunteer to fish alone (without a member Co-Angler) if there are more boaters than Co Anglers. However, no person exercising this option may fish alone two months in succession or more than twice a season and these individuals will be paired FIRST in the succeeding tournament.

 

In the case of any inconsistencies, errors or omissions during a tournament draw, a total re-draw is required

 

Undecided

If, at the meeting, a Boater is undecided as to whether he will fish or not; he must either:

  1. Hold himself out of the draw (thereby burning one of his 2 options, see section on “Pairing”),
  2. Enter the draw as a Co-Angler (provided there are enough boaters to accommodate Co Angler members) OR,
  3. Be entered into the draw as usual, provided there is at least one more boater than co anglers so if he draws a co anger and cannot make it, the club will reassign his co angler to another boater if possible (see the section on “No Shows”).

 

In addition, if a boater does not show up to the meeting and does not communicate that he is undecided to another club member BEFORE the meeting starts and still wishes to fish, may do so but will not earn any points for the tournament.

 

Guests / Prospective members

A member may request to fish with a guest or prospective member provided the members’ boat is not needed for club members in the draw. The club meeting and fishing tournament may count toward new membership qualifying requirements.  All guests or prospective members must pay the $20 Tournament fee and are eligible for winnings. Big fish pot winnings can be split by agreement of the anglers on that boat.

When a prospective member fishes in a team tournament during his qualification period, his fish will be counted for that tournament, but no points will be awarded to the prospective member.

 

No-Shows

If a boater does not show up at the tournament site or cannot fish for any reason, a draw (which includes all single boaters) will occur to determine which boat the Co-Angler will fish

from. If there are no single boaters available, the Co-Angler will be refunded his tournament fees for that tournament, and that tournament will not count against him. (i.e. he will get an additional “drop” in the standings.)

 

NOTE: If you are running late, you must call or text your partner and at least 2 club officers 30 minutes in advance to inform them. At that point, the Boater will wait 15 minutes after start time as a courtesy. If you do not call or text these individuals, your partner does not have to wait for you.  If you get to the ramp and your boater has left prior to the prescribed 15 min Courtesy period, please call or text a club officer to verify the time.

 

Early Departures

If a member shows up at the launch ramp with every intention of fishing the tournament and must leave before weighing in, he will earn last place points.

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Tournament Methods and Format

1.      Only Black Bass and Peacock Bass per state regulations will be allowed as an accepted species

 

2.      No live bait (or previously live bait) of any type.

 

3.      Only one rod per person in the water at any given time, and all fish must be caught on a rod and reel.

 

4.      No contestant may leave the boat at any time for the purposes of actively fishing or landing a fish. For example; leaving the boat for “Nature Calls” or retrieving a snagged lure are permitted. (There may be other valid reasons), If a participant falls in the water while fighting a fish, he should hand the rod to his partner as quickly as possible so as to re-board the boat as safely and as quickly as possible.

 

5.      A Boat / Team Format will apply for purse winnings of each Tournament. Each boat/team will bring in the best 5 fish for weigh in. Every effort must be made to keep fish alive and well. This will apply for Boater/Co angler or lone boater. Each person must document and verify with his partner his personal best 5 fish for Standings and Points purposes.

 

6.       Eligible fish for inclusion in a contestant’s catch must be a minimum of 1 Lb or greater. When State exemption permits are not used, State regulations will apply. (i.e.: No more than one fish over 16”) Per current state regulations, only 2 Peacock Bass per person may be included in Live weigh-in. However the 2 peacock bass limit does not apply to a participant’s best 5 personal catch.  A four-ounce (1/4 lb) penalty will be assessed for each dead fish brought to weigh-in. This penalty applies to the boat Bag and the personal best 5 for the tournament; however this penalty will not apply to Big Fish. No Culling of Dead Fish, per State Regulations.  If a fish dies in your live well, it becomes part of your bag and will be subject to the DF penalty.

 

7.      A late penalty will be assessed to each tournament member who is late for weigh- in (i.e. not in “No Wake” zone of ramp). Such penalty will allow for a five-minute grace period.  Official time will be kept and announced by the tournament committee. The penalty shall consist of the deduction of one point for each minute late, to a maximum deduction of fifteen points. Exceeding fifteen minutes late (16 minutes or more), including the grace period, will constitute a "no weigh in." Members are responsible to weigh in their own fish or provide written weights to the weigh master. The only allowable exception is Boat, Engine or other equipment failure that would have reasonably prevented the boat from coming in on time.

 

8.      No fish may be received into a contestant's boat unless said person legitimately catches it during the tournament hours.

 

9.      All fish brought to the weigh in must be transported in a plastic watertight bag supplied by the club and released from the bag.

 

10. Fly rods are allowed as a method of fishing.

 

Point System

  1. A point system will be used to determine the Angler of the Year in the club. Total points will be based on the best ten tournaments out of a possible twelve tournaments in a year for each member (two drops per year).

 

  1. There will be 12 tournaments per fiscal year, one each month (except August), including one "wild card" tourney. The time and location will be selected by the Tournament committee or general membership.

 

  1. First place will receive 300 points with a 5 pt decrease per position through 5th place. There is a 4 pt decrease from 6th to 10th, a 3 pt decrease from 11th to 15th, a 2 pt decrease from 16th to 20th and place 21 through 36 are declining at increments of 1Pt. each.

 

  1. When there is a tie for a place, the next place given should be the actual place (i.e., if two people tied for fifth place the next place should be seven and so forth).

 

  1. A 10 Point bonus per tournament will be earned by Club members that attend the regular club tournament meeting.

 

All ties consisting of weight and/or points will be allowed with duplicate awards for position or prize money.

Examples:

  1. Tie for first place - split first and second place money, second place receives third place money.
  2. Tie for third place - split third place money
  3. Tie for year-end awards - duplicate awards will be given.

 

Safety

1.      Life vests must be worn while the boats are on plane. Co Anglers are responsible for their own life jackets. A violation of this rule will result in disqualification from the tournament.

 

2.      If available, kill switches must be worn.

 

3.      No alcoholic beverages are to be consumed during tournament hours. Violators will be disqualified from the tournament. A two-time offender will be kicked out of the club

 

General Rules

1.      All boaters or non-boaters must have a valid Florida fishing license to fish any tournament, unless otherwise exempted from such requirement by Florida Law.

 

2.      No boater or non-boater can give or receive any information from any source during a tournament. Cell phone use between tournament participants shall be limited to emergencies or matters of safety.

 

3.      All deposits on rooms for any club tournament or function will be paid by the club member. Any member agreeing to share a room will be liable for his share of the room and any provisions purchased on his behalf.

 

 

Unsafe Conditions

In the event at any time, between the meeting and the day of the tournament, the site is deemed unfishable, unsafe, or unacceptable for any reason or the weather is deemed unsafe, by any angler in the tournament, a vote will be taken by the President of all members fishing said tournament to change tournament location and/or tournament date. A 75% affirmative vote of club members fishing and voting on such vote will be required.

 

Rule Violations

If a rule is broken and disqualification occurs, the disqualification will be only for the day of the broken rule. A disqualification Shall consist of forfeiture of any winnings (winnings to be rolled over to next tournament), and forfeiture of tournament fees. Disqualification for rules other than safety violations; member shall be entitled to Last place points Minus 15 pts, and are eligible for drops. Safety related violations (see above) will result in zero points and are not eligible for Drops.