HUB CITY BASSMASTERS
TOURNAMENT RULES
2010 TOURNAMENT SEASON
ARTICLE I: SITE SELECTION & ANGLER PARTICIPATION
A. There will be one Club sponsored tournament per month in a tournament Year. A Tournament year will run from January through December. Additional tournaments can be scheduled, but monthly tournament points will not be awarded for additional tournaments. Club tournaments will be one day tournaments unless voted on and approved by club members.
B. Tournament dates for the year will be voted on by club members during the November or December club meeting prior to the tournament year. Tournament site will be voted on by club membership during the club meeting the month before each tournament. In the event of a tie the President’s vote will be the tie breaker.
C. If a tournament site is determined non-fishable (non-fishable is defined as unfavorable water conditions, weather, or extenuating circumstances), an alternate site will be selected in order of precedence as follows:
1. A majority vote of the club members at the club meeting prior to the tournament.
2. By executive committee meeting if a regular club meeting will not be held before the scheduled tournament and members can be notified of the change prior to departing for the tournament site.
3. At the proposed site by a majority vote of members present.
D. A member must be current in all club dues to be eligible to fish a monthly club sponsored tournament unless prior arrangements were coordinated with a club Officer.
E. Guests may fish Club tournaments with a current club member only. A guest may participate in Tournament awards and optional Big Fish awards for no more than two tournaments in a tournament year. After two tournaments a guest can only participate in the optional Big Fish award. Provided special circumstances exist, exceptions to this rule can be voted on and approved by club members on a case by case basis.
F. A minimum of four anglers are required to schedule an official monthly tournament. The minimum requirement will be met during the monthly meeting prior to the tournament date.
ARTICLE II: ENTRY FEES & AWARDS
A. A tournament participation fee of $15.00 per tournament shall be collected by the Tournament Director, Treasurer, or designated representative prior to the start of each tournament. Participation fees can be paid by check or cash. Awards will be paid by check from Club funds. The tournament fee will be used to provide awards in the following percentages:
First Place---------50%
Second Place------25%
Third Place--------15%
Club Funds--------10%
NOTE: If less than three members weigh-in fish, the tournament awards will be paid out in full for each tournament as follows: One place only = 90%, Club Funds=10%. Two places: 1st=58%, 2nd=32%, Club Funds=10%. If no fish are caught, all tournament fees will be returned to the members.
B. There is an optional $5 big-fish pot, winner take all.
ARTICLE III: ANGLER PAIRINGS & LAUNCH ORDER
A. All members should express their intentions to fish a tournament to a club officer by telephone or e-mail no later than the day of the monthly club meeting in which the tournament is held.
B. Members who elect to fish a tournament as a non-boater prior to or at the monthly club meeting have pairing priority over guests and will be paired through a draw at the meeting. Members who express their intent to fish a tournament as a non-boater after the meeting will be paired with a boater through a draw conducted by the Tournament Director only if there are available positions with boaters.
C. Any boater member who is not paired up with a non-boater member at the monthly meeting may elect to bring a guest.
D. Any Boater member with a track record of showing up at the tournament by themselves or with a guest without notifying the Tournament Director of their intention to fish and status prior to or at the monthly meeting is subject to disqualification from the Tournament at the discretion of Club Officers.
E. Non-boaters are responsible for paying their share of Tournament expenses for gas, oil, launch fee, etc. to the Boater. For most one day tournaments, $25 should suffice. However, the final amount will be left up to the boater and non-boater. Boaters should not have to ask for compensation but have the right to decline payment if they so choose.
F. The boater decides all areas to fish and has control of the boat at all times unless they should choose to let the non-boater take control.
G. Starting positions (launch order) will be assigned in a draw conducted at the monthly club meeting prior to the tournament. Club Members who express their intent to participate after the meeting will be assigned a starting position in the order that they notify the Tournament Director.
F. A boater is anyone who has fished from his/her own boat for 2 or more tournaments during the tournament year.
ARTICLE IV: BOATER SAFETY & EQUIPMENT
A. All boats must be properly registered, contain the required U.S. Coast Guard safety equipment, be in safe operating condition, and operated in a safe manner at all times.
B. All boats must contain an aerated live well capable of sustaining a two-man limit of fish and must have a means of separating or identifying individual catches for weigh-in, either through a divided/separated live well or tags.
C. All boats will have their bow and stern running lights on at the time of launch through their arrival at their first fishing spot.
D. All boat occupants must wear life vests when the combustible engine is running above idle speed unless State Law requires it to be worn any time the engine is in operation. Non-boaters are responsible for coordinating the availability of a life vest with the boater they will be fishing with. If boater does not have one, non-boaters will be responsible for bringing one.
ARTICLE V: GENERAL RULES & RESTRICTIONS
A. A minimum of one (1) boat and two (2) fishermen are required to officially start a tournament.
B. The Tournament Director may suggest a change in the start and/or stop time, call off the tournament due to hazardous weather conditions, or change the tournament site. Club members present at the tournament site will vote to approve or disapprove any suggested changes.
C. The Tournament Director will insure a safety & live-well check is accomplished, perform a watch-sync, and announce the official weigh-in time.
D. The boater with the last launch number will be the starting official and initiate launch after the Tournament Director determines safe launch conditions have been met. Staggered starts will be utilized in each tournament.
E. Participants may begin fishing anytime after the starting official has called their number and the participant has moved at least 50 yards from the starting checkpoint.
F. Fishing is not permitted within 50 yards of another contestant’s boat if it is anchored with the trolling motor up.
G. Fishing is not permitted in waters prohibited by state, county, or federal regulations.
H. All fishing must be conducted from the boat.
I. Only casting, spinning, spin-cast, or fly rod tackle may be used. Only one rod may be used at a time. No trolling or live bait is allowed.
J. Good stewardship and care of one’s fish from catch to final release is encouraged during hot months by cooling the live well water with ice or other approved oxygen producing chemicals available on the market.
ARTICLE VI: WEIGH-IN PROCEDURES, LIMITS, & RESTRICTIONS
A. A two (2) ounce per minute penalty will be imposed for anglers arriving after official weigh-in time. After fifteen minutes, no points will be awarded. The Executive Committee may make the decision to re-qualify any late angler for unforeseen difficulties such as boat failure or assisting another angler whose boat has failed.
B. Dead fish penalties will be imposed as follows:
1 dead fish – 4 oz. (0.25 lb)
2 dead fish – 10 oz. (0.63 lb)
3 dead fish – 18 oz. (1.13 lb)
4 dead fish – 28 oz. (1.75 lb)
5 dead fish – 40 oz. (2.5 lb)
C. Only largemouth, smallmouth and spotted (Kentucky) bass will be weighed. Unless specific state or lake restrictions apply, tournament limit for each angler will be seven (7) fish, each of which must be a minimum of twelve (12) inches long from the tip of the tail (when squeezed together) to the mouth of the fish (which must be closed). No dead fish may be culled. A golden rule will be used to measure the fish at the weigh-in. Any under-sized bass presented for weigh-in will result in the loss of that fish and the angler’s largest fish. Courtesy checks can be accomplished by any Club Officer but must be done prior to presenting fish to Tournament Director or weigh-master for final weigh-in.
D. All live fish must be released after weigh-in. An exception would be a fish in the Lunker category (over five pounds) that is to be mounted.
E. Determination of an injured fish (hook in mouth) to be alive or dead, will be made by the Tournament Director or one of the appointed weigh-masters.
F. Fish will be weighed on club scales minus stringers and/or marking devices by the Tournament Director and weight-masters. Tournament standings/awards will be determined by highest total weight. In the event of a tie the angler with the largest fish will be awarded the position. The other angler will be awarded the next lower position. If only one fish per angler is caught points for the two places and award money (if any) will be added together and divided between the two anglers.
G. If an angler leaves the tournament early (prior to weigh-in) they should make every effort to notify another angler of their status or leave a note on the Tournament Director’s vehicle.
ARTICLE VII: CONDUCT, GRIEVANCES, & APPEALS
A. The tournament Director may penalize or disqualify any entrant for any violation of tournament rules, fishing regulations, or un-sportsman like conduct.
B. Any grievances must be registered within fifteen (15) minutes of the weigh-in to the Tournament Director or any club official present. A written protest must be submitted to the Executive Committee within five days. Protests will be arbitrated by the Executive Committee members not involved in the protest after the written protest has been received and all involved parties have been interviewed. The decision will be announced at the next monthly meeting. Awards for positions affected by the protest will not be presented until the protest is arbitrated. All decisions are final.
ARTICLE XIII: AWARDS AND POINT ALLOCATION
SECTION I: POINT ALLOCATION
All anglers who participate in a tournament will receive an automatic 5 points for participation if they weigh in no fish. Anglers who weigh in fish during a tournament will be awarded place points as described below:
First Place-------------------------- 200 Points
Second Place----------------------- 195 Points
Third Place------------------------- 190 Points
Fourth Place------------------------ 185 Points
Fifth Place-------------------------- 180 Points
Sixth Place-------------------------- 175 Points
Seventh Place----------------------- 170 Points
Eighth Place------------------------- 165 Points
And so on with a consistent reduction of 5 points per place accounting for all anglers that weigh a fish.
SECTION II: ANNUAL POINT STANDINGS
Annual point standing will be based on the results of all tournaments an angler fished in a tournament year up to 10 tournaments. All Anglers will drop their (2) worst finishes of the year in determining the Annual Angler of the Year award. This will allow anglers who may have had to miss a tournament for unseen circumstances or simply have a bad tournament to remain competitive for the title. Every effort will be made to conduct an annual awards Banquet the month following the years end to properly recognize and reward those anglers who won in the following categories.
SECTION III: ANNUAL AWARDS
ANNUALLY
Angler of the Year ----------------------------------------- $250.00 and Plaque/Trophy
Runner-up Angler of the Year---------------------------- $150.00 and Plaque/Trophy
Tournament Lunker of the Year (5 lb and over)------- $50.00 and Plaque/Trophy
Sportsman of the Year------------------------------------- $50.00 and Plaque/Trophy
Non-boater of the Year------------------------------------ Plaque/Trophy
Heavy Stringer of the Year------------------------------- Plaque/Trophy
3rd Place Overall ------------------------------------------- $80.00
4th Place Overall ------------------------------------------- $70.00
5th Place Overall ------------------------------------------- $60.00
6th Pace Overall -------------------------------------------- $50.00
QUARTERLY
Angler of the Quarter-------------------------------Plaque/Trophy/$20.00 entry fee for 1
Club tournament