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Tournament Rules  (Updated December 5, 2023)

 

 

Delaware Bass Chapter Federation

 

 

 

 

PO Box 208 Magnolia, DE 19962

BUDDY TOURNAMENT REGULATIONS

 

1. REGISTRATION: Completed Entry Forms and entry fees must be in the hands of the Tournament Committee by 6:30 PM on the Tuesday prior to the tournament to be eligible for the boat number draw.

 

A. Entries received by mail after 5:00 PM on Tuesday will be added to the end of the draw, as will entries accepted at the ramp.

 

B.  All late entries received in accordance with Rule 1A will be added onto the end of the numerical list on a first come first added basis.

 

C. A valid insurance form (i.e. $100,000 liability minimum) must be attached to all entries or available for inspection the morning of each tournament.

 

2. PARTICIPANTS AND ELIGIBILITY:

 

A. You MAY fish with a partner of your choice. Any contestant under 16 years of age must fish with a partner over 16 years of age.

 

B. No refund of the entry fee will be given after the draw. A team that has to withdraw for an unexpected reason will have their entry fee transferred to the next regular Buddy Tournament providing that they contact the Tournament Director  prior to the start of the Drivers Meeting.

 

C. If a team wishes to withdraw prior to the draw, they may do so by notifying the ,Tournament Committee or Tournament Director. In this case, the entry fee will be refunded.

 

D. ALL tournament boats MUST be checked and in the water by 6:00 a.m. the day of the tournament. **NOTICE**Any Team preregistered, in the Draw and arrives after 6:00 am, but before the start of the drivers meeting will be assessed a $20.00 late fee and be moved to the end of the launch order.

 

 

E. Each Buddy Team may use one (1) alternate partner each tournament season. Should this be necessary, the team must clearly mark on the Entry Form that an alternate partner is being used. In the event of an emergency, a change may be made by notifying the Tournament Director or a member of the Tournament Committee **Note:** Season is defined as the (5) qualifying tournaments. No alternates will be allowed for the Classic.

 

F. In the event that a scheduled Buddy Tournament falls on a date that the National Anglers are forced to miss said tournament, the National Anglers will be afforded  an additional alternate partner, provided an Alternate is used in the Buddy Tournament they are forced to miss. 

 

G: Classic Qualification: The first 15 Teams in points after the completion of the Buddy Tournament trail will have that position in the Classic provided they fish Buddy Tournament #5. One team will be added random draw from Teams fishing all 5 Tournaments, that did not qualify via 15.

 

H: To qualify to fish the National Semi-Final you must fish the State Qualifying Tournament unless you are qualified by being the Boater and/or Co-Angler rep from your Club. Being the Boater and/or Co-Angler  in your Club exempts you from fishing the SQT portion of qualification.

 

 

3. OFF LIMITS: All waters of the river of origin will be off limits starting at  12:01AM Saturday weekend of tournament. Fishing during each tournament is permitted anywhere except:

 

A. Within 50 feet of any gas pump.

 

B. Within 100 feet of another competitor’s boat.

 

C. Any waters declared “No Fishing Areas” at the drivers’ meeting 15 minutes prior to take off.

 

4. FLIGHTS: Each Buddy Tournament, depending on docking conditions and number of boats, MAY consist of two flights.

 

A. Flight #1 will consist of the first half of the entries drawn at the Federation Meeting on the Wednesday preceding the tournament. The first drivers’ meeting is at 6:15 AM and they take off at 6:30 AM.

 

B. Flight #2 will consist of the second half of the entries drawn at the Federation Meeting on the Wednesday preceding the tournament and all late entries in accordance with Rule 1A. This flight’s drivers’ meeting will take place at 6:45 AM and they will take off at 7:00 AM.

 

C. Flight #1 will weigh in at 3:00 PM and no boat from Flight #2 will be allowed to tie up at the weigh in site until 3:30 PM.

 

 

5. SPORTSMANSHIP: Competitors shall follow a high standard of courtesy, safety, and conservation, especially with regard to boating and angling in the vicinity of non-competitors who may be on the tournament waters or at weigh-in site. No one can be under the influence of Alcoholic Beverages or drugs during the tournament hours which conclude after you Weigh in.

 

6. SAFETY: Safe boating conduct must be observed at all times. If you must pass a boat, do it in a safe manner.

 

A. The Tournament Committee will designate certain areas in each tournament as Reduced Speed Zones. (A Reduced Speed Zone is one in which the driver reduces the boat’s speed to a point at which the boat can be safely handled at all times.) In Reduced Speed Zones passing a competitor’s boat is not permitted. Passing a Competitor’s boat in these zones will result in disqualification.  

 

B. U.S. Coast Guard approved chest type life preservers must be worn whenever the combustion motor is running. Kill switch must be attached whenever the combustion motor is in gear.

 

C. Minimum boat length is 14 feet.

 

D. Competitors must remain in the boat at all times during the tournament, except to extricate from a spot or obstruction.

 

E. Stick steering will not be permitted in any Federation backed event.

 

F. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to adjust any and all rules for concerns of safety and wellbeing of Anglers. This to include starting and Ending times of Tournaments.

 

7. TACKLE AND EQUIPMENT: Only artificial lures shall be used. No live bait allowed. Only one rod per contestant may be used at a time. All boats must have some type of livewell capable of maintaining the catch of both fishermen. No stringing of fish allowed.

 

8. DRIVERS MEETING: A drivers meeting will take place 15 minutes prior to take off as specified in Rules 4A and 4B. Each driver must attend.

 

9. SCORING: Winners shall be determined by the pound and hundredths weight of each team’s catch for the day.

 

A. Only large and small mouth bass will be weighed.

 

B. Fish must measure legal length with mouth closed. A flat board will be used to measure fish.

C. Four (4) ounce penalty for each dead fish. No dead fish may be culled. Each team should do their utmost to keep all fish alive, as they must be released at the Tournament.

 

D. Bass that are mangled or mutilated will not be weighed.

 

E. Five (5) fish limit per boat.

 

1. All boats must remain in the water until after their fish have been weighed in.

 

2. At no time will a team have more than five (5) fish in their possession.

 

3. In the event that a team has more than five (5) fish in its possession, they will automatically be disqualified from the tournament.

 

F. Bass presented for weigh in that fail to measure legal length will be eliminated from the day’s catch and the team will accrue penalties at the rate of one (1) pound for each bass under legal length. This penalty shall be deducted from the total score of the team. If only one (1) bass is presented and it fails to measure legal length, the team will lose their Thirty (30) show-up points.

 

G. LATE PENALTY WILL BE LEVIED AT THE RATE OF:

 

1. One (1) pound per minute and after 15 minutes the boat will be disqualified.

 

2. The boat must be in the down position in the no wake zone of the weigh in site by check in time.

 

H. Tie Breaker: 1st Big Fish 2nd Total number of fish

 

10. TRANSPORTATION OF FISH: The fish shall be presented to the Tournament Committee for weigh in held in a bag with sufficient water to sustain the fish for the brief period from the boat to the scales.

 

11. PROTEST OF RULES:  Any protest concerning a violation of the rules must be presented to a member of the Tournament verbally or in writing before weigh in starts and presented in writing with in 5 minutes of close of weigh in. Tournament Committee will meet with all parties and a decision will be made.

 

12. RULE CHANGES: Great effort, study, and research have gone into the formulation of these rules. The above rules of Tournaments will remain unchanged and enforcement of these rules shall be left exclusively to the Tournament Committee. In the event of a rule violation, the Committee may impose such sanctions, as it deems appropriate, including but not limited to disqualification, forfeiture of prizes and prohibition from participation in subsequent tournaments. The decision of the Committee and its officials shall be final in all such matters.

 

13. DECLARED TOURNAMENT WATERS: The Delaware Bass Federation fishes the following rivers: Potomac, Nanticoke, Choptank, Pocomoke, and Sassafras (Upper Bay). All water accessible by boat from the launch site on each river are tournament waters. Any Off Limits will be declared by the Tournament Director or Tournament Committee based on the weather conditions the day of each tournament.

 

14. STATE LAWS & REGULATIONS: All state laws and regulations will be observed during ALL Delaware Bass Federation Buddy Tournaments. (i.e. no wake zones, license, limits, etc.) If a competitor receives a state or federal citation during a tournament, the team will be disqualified from that event.

 

 

15. SQT/NATIONAL SEMI FINAL:

PARTICIPATION: Each club has the right to send participants to SQT. Each club if participating must send paired Boaters and Co-anglers. In the event that a Club has an extra Boater or Co-angler. Extra Boaters will be placed in a hat and drawn until extra co-anglers are covered. After Co-anglers are covered the remaining Boaters will have the choice of talking among themselves to decide how to even up the Boaters and Co-anglers. Co-anglers will be given the same opportunity to even up if a boat is available. In the event that no decision is made on how to even up, the participating boaters names will be placed in a hat and drawn. First draw is boater, second draw is co-angler. In the event that the participants refuse to enter draw, they will not be permitted to fish. No Late entries will be accepted for the SQT. Your application must be entered into the draw to quality to fish.

 

A) Each Club has the right to send 1 Boater and 1 Co-angler directly to NSF.
 

 

(Updated 12/05/2023)

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