Tarpon Tomorrow Pro-Am Texas Tournament Series
2008 TOURNAMENT RULES
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All Rules Subject to Change
Before the Tournament

GENERAL RULES

The following rules will remain in effect throughout the entire tournament series. Interpretation and enforcement of these rules shall be left exclusively to the Tournament Officials. All decisions of Tournament Officials are final.

1.      All anglers must have a valid Texas Fishing license and saltwater stamp and must observe Texas Parks and Wildlife rules and regulations.  All participating boats must comply with all state and federal registration, fishing permit requirements and all safety rules or regulations.

2.      All fish must be caught by rod and reel. Minimum line test for conventional tackle is 30 lb test monofilament and 50 lb test for braided line.  Minimum line test for fly tippet is 30 lb test tippet.  Natural or artificial bait may be used.

3.      There will be the following Tournament Divisions:
-  Tarpon Pro Division – Tarpon Amateur Division – Tarpon Fly Division (Port O’Connor only – Pro/Am Combined) – Tarpon Kayak Division

4.      Tournament teams will be composed of a maximum of four (4) persons on board, with the exception that there may be up to four adults and two youth anglers.  All teams are expected to follow high standards of sportsmanship, safety, courtesy and conservation.  In the Pro Division only, boats may have four (4) anglers plus the Captain on the boat; however, under this circumstance, the Captain cannot fish.  No boat may have more than six (6) persons on board, including youth anglers and the Captain.

5.      The tournament reserves the right to refuse any entry from any prospective entrant with or without cause in its sole discretion. Any applicant refused entry will be entitled to a full refund of paid entry fees.

6.      Tournament Officials will not be responsible for mailed entries that are not delivered by the postal service. You may send a self addressed, stamped postcard with your entry which will be returned as verification that your entry was received or you may e-mail tarpontomorrowproam@hotmail.com to confirm receipt of your entry.

7.      In the event thunderstorm warnings or dangerous weather conditions exist prior to the start of the tournament, the day’s fishing will be delayed or postponed. Tournament Officials will be at tournament headquarters and can be reached at 713-819-1840 in the event of postponement.

8.      If inclement weather conditions occur during the tournament it is the entrant’s responsibility to seek safety until safe conditions prevail. If the Tournament Officials declare a rain-out, it will be rescheduled to August 9-10, 2008.  A rainout will be called by Thursday morning at 8:00 a.m. the week of the tournament and will be posted on the tournament website.

9.      In the event of an injury or accident, the following list offers telephone numbers and VHF channels monitored by local emergency personnel: VHF Channel 16; Local EMS: 911.

10.  All participants are responsible for the operation, maintenance and safety of their vessels, themselves and their fellow team members.  All participants are expected to use their own best judgment.  No action by the Tarpon Tomorrow Texas Tournament Series should be construed as an endorsement or representation concerning whether it is safe to leave port or continue fishing at any given time.  The Tarpon  Tomorrow Texas Tournament Series will not give advice or recommendations to teams concerning weather conditions.

12.  All participants must sign entry form, which includes a waiver, releease and indemnity agreement concerning liability.  If any team fails to have each member of its team sign this form, it may lead to disqualification and a refusal to award prizes to that team and/or the angler. 

 

Specific Tournament Rules

The following rules will remain in effect throughout the entire tournament series. Interpretation and enforcement of these rules shall be left exclusively to the Tarpon Tomorrow Tournament Series Tournament Officials. All decisions of tournament officials are final.

1. All General Tournament Rules apply to each individual tournament and the tournament series, unless they specifically conflict with these rules.

2. There will be two tournaments with individual divisions in each tournament. Tarpon Tomorrow Tournament Series reserves the right to change or modify these divisions at any time prior to the Friday before any tournament. The anticipated make up of the tournaments and the divisions are as follows:

Tarpon Tomorrow Pro/Am Galveston: (1) Amateur Division; (2) Pro Division; (3) Kayak Division.

Tarpon Tomorrow Pro/Am Port O’Connor: (1) Amateur Division; (2) Pro Division; (3) Fly-fishing Division (Pro and Amateur combined); (4) Kayak Division (Pro and Amateur combined).

* The inclusion of a Kayak Division in the tournament series will depend on the preregistration of at least six (6) kayak entries before the Galveston Tournament. If there is no kayak fishing at any one of the first three tournaments due to inclement weather for operation of a kayak, the Kayak Division entrants may roll-over their entry fee to the next scheduled tournament.

3. A boat must compete in the Pro Division if any of its team members is a professional fishing guide or a person who has accepted wages, compensation or pay for hire for the purposes of taking other individual(s) fishing at any time during the past five years. Any boat who has a team member who fits the foregoing criteria must be captained by someone who holds a USCG Captain’s License. Which division a boat is permitted to participate in is left to the sole discretion of the Tarpon Tomorrow Tournament Series Officials.

4. All boats, other than Kayak Division entrants, must come and go from tournament harbor headquarters as follows: (1) Boats need not moor or dock within the harbor overnight, however, they must leave and return, directly from fishing, for check-in to the tournament harbor by water on each day of the tournament; (2) For the Galveston tournament only, on Sunday and Sunday only, Tarpon Division boats may leave from their port of choice in Galveston or the Galveston Bay complex but must return to tournament harbor headquarters by water, directly from fishing, on Sunday afternoon to qualify. No boat may be trailered at any time after leaving the tournament harbor and prior to qualifying on the same day. Boats may be trailered overnight on Saturday night. For Kayak Division participants, only, they may come and go from tournament headquarters by automobile but must conform to the same check in and departure times as all other entrants.

5. Registration and check-in will be at tournament headquarters and open from 6:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on the Friday before each tournament and will reopen at 5:30 a.m. on Saturday and close at 7:00 a.m. on Saturday.

6. All teams must pick up their tournament packet from tournament headquarters on Saturday morning during registration. All teams must pick up their competition packet on Saturday morning from Tournament Headquarters prior to fishing and must leave from the tournament harbor on Saturday morning. In the Galveston Tournament, no boats may leave harbor prior to 6:30 a.m. on Saturday and 6:30 a.m on Sunday (For the Galveston tournament, boats may leave from their port of choice in the Galveston/Galveston Bay system on Sunday, no later than 6:30 a.m. so long as tournament officials have been notified at registration). During the Port O’Connor tournament only, boats may leave from The Sanctuary at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday and need not return to register fish until Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Fishing is open and continuous from Saturday at 6:30 a.m. until Sunday at 2:00 p.m. in Port O’Connor only. A signal may be sounded at 6:30 a.m. on each morning of the tournament from tournament headquarters signaling the commencement of competition.

7. All anglers and teams must have their proof of catch documentation submitted to tournament officials at the registration desk no later than 5:00 p.m. on Saturday for fish caught on Saturday, during the Galveston tournament. On Sunday, all anglers and teams must return, by water, and submit their proof of catch documentation at the registration desk no later than 2:00 p.m. during Galveston tournament and 2:30 p.m. at the Port O'Connor tournament to qualify. Trophy presentation will follow shortly thereafter.

8. Trophies in the Tarpon Divisions will be awarded based on the best overall two day performance in each of the individual divisions as follows: (1) First tarpon caught by an angler in each Pro and Amateur Division; (2) Most tarpon caught by a single angler during the tournament in each Pro and Amateur Divisions; (3) Most tarpon caught on a fly-rod by an angler (Port O’Connor only - Pro/Am combined); (4) Most tarpon caught by a female angler (Pro/Am Division combined); (5) Most tarpon caught by a youth angler (16 years or younger on August 1, 2008 - Pro/Am Divisions combined); (6) Most tarpon caught by a kayak angler (if applicable); (7) Most tarpon caught by an Amateur Division Team; and (8) Most tarpon caught by a Pro Division Team. In the various divisions, more than one trophy may be awarded to the same team. There will also be two overall Tarpon Tomorrow Tournament Series trophies awarded to the teams in each of the Pro and Amateur Divisions with the most tarpon tagged with PAT Satellite tags during both tournaments combined. In case of any tie, the team who tags the first tarpon during the tournament series wins.

9. If a Tarpon Division Boat wishes to leave from a port other than tournament headquarters on Sunday during the Galveston Tournament only, that Boat must disclose its port of departure for Sunday morning to tournament officials at the time of registration.

10. Galveston Specific Tournament Rules: All must teams and competitors must comply with the following rules to qualify a fish for the tournament: (a) the fish must be caught during the permitted fishing hours of the tournament (i.e. 6:30 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. Saturday and 6:30 a.m. Sunday and 2:00 p.m. Sunday); (b) all fish must be caught by rod and reel and the angler must comply to all IGFA rules and regulations and the tournament line restrictions [see General Rules]; (c) a Polaroid or other form of insta-matic or digital camera must be used to take a photograph of any fish caught, such that photographic proof can been tendered for qualification; (d) when a fish is hooked, a team member must attempt to contact tournament officials on VHF Channel 72 and announce the hook-up or alternatively, attempt to contact tournament officials by cell phone at 713-819-1840 [if there is no answer on the cell phone, you must leave a message]; (e) when a fish is released after landing, similar hails on VHF or cell phone must be attempted; (f) a photo must be taken of the fish and include in the photograph the angler (photo of angler not necessary in kayak division only) and the identifying mark handed out in the competition bag (for multiple fish, in appropriate order)(this rule may be suspended to further the tagging of the fish at the discretion of the tagging boat); (g) the photo must be tendered to tournament officials at the registration desk immediately upon returning to the tournament harbor, on the day the fish is caught; (h) all boats must return directly from fishing, on the water, to the tournament harbor, each day, if they have qualifying fish to register; and (i) all boats must return to the tournament harbor and be checked in at the registration desk by 5:00 p.m. on Saturday and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday to qualify. All fish must be released alive and no tarpon may be completely removed from the water and into a boat. If such a landing occurs, the fish will not qualify for the tournament.

11. Port O’Connor Specific Tournament Rules: All must teams and competitors must comply with the following rules to qualify a fish for the tournament: (a) the fish must be caught during the permitted fishing hours of the tournament (i.e. 6:30 a.m. on Saturday through 2:00 p.m. Sunday); (b) all fish must be caught by rod and reel and the angler must comply to all IGFA rules and regulations and the tournament line restrictions [see General Rules]; (c) a Polaroid or other form of insta-matic or digital camera must be used to take a photograph of any fish caught, such that photographic proof can been tendered for qualification; (d) when a fish is hooked, a team member must attempt to contact tournament officials on VHF Channel 72 and announce the hook-up or alternatively, attempt to contact tournament officials by cell phone at 713-819-1840 [if there is no answer on the cell phone, you must leave a message]; (e) when a fish is released after landing, similar hails on VHF or cell phone must be attempted; (f) a photo must be taken of the fish and include in the photograph the angler (photo of angler not necessary in kayak division only) and the identifying mark handed out in the competition bag (for multiple fish, in appropriate order)(this rule may be suspended to further the tagging of the fish at the discretion of the tagging boat); (g) the photo must be tendered to tournament officials at the registration desk immediately upon returning to the tournament harbor no later than 2:30 p.m on Sunday; (h) all boats must return directly from fishing, on the water, to the tournament harbor; and (i) all boats must return to the tournament harbor and be checked in at the registration desk by 2:30 p.m. on Sunday to qualify. All fish must be released alive and no tarpon may be completely removed from the water and into a boat. If such a landing occurs, the fish will not qualify for the tournament.

12.  A tarpon will be considered a tagged tarpon and will be counted if the fish is lip gaffed and handed to a tag boat for tagging or the angler fighting the fish begins the transfer to the tag boat and then is subsequently lost due to no fault of the competing team.  The determination of whether a fish is large enough or should be tagged is left to the sole discretion of the tag team leaders and will be made after consultation with the anglers.

13.  SPECIAL RULES MODIFICATIONS FOR PORT O'CONNOR:  Registration on Friday will be at the Sanctuary.  The Tournament Headquarters will shift to the Inn at Clark's for Saturday Morning Registration and Saturday Morning Check-In (to pick up competition packets) beginning at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday until 7:00 a.m. on Saturday morning.  If you are going to trailer your boat Saturday night, you must submit all proof of catch materials for Saturday no later than 9:00 p.m. on Saturday at the Inn at Clarks.  Just leave them with the front desk if tournament officials are not around.  If you are leaving the boat in the water, Saturday proof of catch may be submitted by the deadline on Sunday.  Sunday check in and trophy presentation will be at the Sanctuary.

BE SURE AND CHECK LINE TEST REQUIREMENTS IN THE GENERAL RULES FOR EACH CATEGORY OF FISHING

 

KAYAK DIVISION RULES

The following rules apply to the Kayak Division:

1. All kayak participants must be at the tournament headquarters prior to fishing on each day of the tournament. Kayak participants may not leave tournament headquarters prior to the time designated for all other participants to leave the harbor/dock.

2. Kayak participants may leave by water or automobile and then launch within the restricted area set forth below.

3. Kayak participants must return either by water or by automobile, directly from fishing, and must have their photographs and proof of catch turned in within the time deadlines set for all participants.

4. If inclement weather exists on the day of the tournament, which may prohibit kayak fishing, at least two or more of the kayak participants must notify tournament officials of their concern at least fifteen minutes prior to the time they may leave tournament headquarters on the first day of any individual tournament. A meeting will then be held of all kayak participants at the time at which they are permitted to leave headquarters. A vote will be taken of all present kayak participants and the majority vote will decide whether fishing will take place during the tournament (if there is a tie, it will be broken by the flip of a quarter). The tournament, nor any of its officials will be responsible or liable for any decisions made concerning the safety or propriety of this decision. If the decision is made that the weather is not conducive to kayak fishing on the first day of the tournament, then there will be no kayak division for that tournament and all entry fees for the kayak division will be rolled over for the next scheduled tournament, refunded or turned into a contribution to Tarpon Tomorrow, Inc.

5. For there to be a kayak division in the Tournament Series, there must be at least 8 kayak participants pre-registered with a post mark no later than July 4, 2007 for the Galveston Tournament.

6. All general and other tournament rules which do not conflict with these rules will apply.

7. All kayak participants must launch from a location within the geographical launch boundaries set for the kayak division in each tournament as more fully described below. Each kayak participant must launch from a point of land within the permitted geographical location and return to that same launch point after fishing, directly from fishing. For the Port O’Connor tournament only, a kayak participant may obtain a tow or lift to any point of land within the geographically permitted area to launch; however, after launching, the kayak participant may not be towed or lifted to any other location, without first returning to the original launch point. Transportation in case of emergency and any exceptions to these rules for safety will be determined at the sole discretion of the tournament officials. No kayak may have a motor for propulsion other than an electric trolling motor.

8. Geographical Launch Boundaries:

Galveston Tournament - any place within the Galveston Bay complex or along the coast between the southern most bank of the Brazos River and the southern most bank of Sabine Pass and inland up to three miles.

Port O’Connor Tournament - any place within the Matagorda/San Antonio Bay complex (which is defined as the shoreline of any bay system with a southern most starting point of the opening of the intercoastal waterway into Aransas Bay and ending on the most north and eastern shoreline of East Matagorda Bay) or anywhere along the coast from the northern most bank of the Bernard River to the southern most point of Matagorda Island State Park and inland three miles.

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