Loading...

Sailfish Shootout

March 30 - April 2, 2016

Tournament Rules

  1. The Captain's Meeting will be held Wednesday, March 30th, 2016 at 7pm at Monty's Seafood in Coconut Grove for all registered teams. A team representative must be in attendance, as rules are subject to change.
  2. PERMITS & LICENSES: All boats must possess the appropriate NMFS Highly Migratory Species Permit. All anglers will also need to have a valid Florida Fishing License.
  3. FISHING HOURS: The Tournament will begin with the call of "lines in" at 8am and continue until 4pm on April 1st and 2nd, 2016. Fighting a hooked fish after the call of "lines out" is permitted, however all hookups must be called in from 3:45pm until 4pm. All boats must be inside the marina before 7pm each evening. Any gamefish requiring a weigh-in must be at the scales prior to closing at 7pm. There are no lay days or weather days, unless determined by the Committee. Fish at your own risk.
  4. BOUNDARIES: North: 26.16 (Hillsboro Inlet) South: 25.15 (Carysfort Light) East: 79.37 A vessel may not cross outside the boundaries while fighting a fish. Crossing the boundary will result in disqualification of that fish. GPS tracks must be on in case of dispute.
  5. TOURNAMENT START: All boats must depart from Government Cut to Cape Florida Channel. Video Evidence: At the start of each fishing day, teams must video their GPS prior to departing the port to verify they are within the departing boundaries. The GPS must show date, time and Latitude/Longitude. During this sequence, please also state the boat/team name for the camera. Boats may not be trailered to/from a fishing area at any time during the Tournament. All boats must depart and return to the marina on their own bottom.
  6. ANGLING & EQUIPMENT:
    • International Billfish Tournament Regulations apply.
    • Six anglers per team per day are permitted, with no restrictions. If an angler is not registered at the team registration, he/she may not be added after the start of the tournament. One-time hook and hand is permitted.
    • A maximum of eight lines (with hooks on rod and reel) are permitted at any one time. Live bait, dead bait, or combination of both must be deployed with non-offset circle hooks. Only artificial lures may be deployed with J hooks.
    • Kites are permitted.
    • Chumming of any kind is not allowed during tournament hours.
  7. AMATEUR TEAM STATUS:
    • To qualify for Amateur Status, no professional anglers are allowed.
    • Teams requesting Amateur Status must be approved by the Committee prior to the start of the tournament.
    • NO team member/angler that has been paid as a captain, mate, guide or commercial fisherman in the past five years shall be eligible for Amateur Status consideration. Failure to divulge correct information in order to obtain Amateur Status will result in that team's expulsion from the tournament and all fees, entries and jackpots will be non-refundable.
    • Amateur teams may employ one professional Captain OR mate.
    • All other Tournament Rules apply.
  8. TOURNAMENT SPECIES:
    • Only sailfish are eligible for the overall championship.
    • Tuna (yellowfin and blackfin only), wahoo, kingfish, cobia and mahi are eligible for the Gamefish Division, with a 15 lb. minimum weight requirement, and are categorized as "Gamefish" in this tournament and are not eligible for points towards the Sailfish Division.
  9. REPORTING OF SAILFISH: A sailfish release must be called in to the "Committee Boat" with the boat name and the angler name. The "Committee Boat" will then verify your information by announcement and give you a release confirmation number, which must be recorded on your daily catch affidavit and turned in at the end of the fishing day, with your video evidence. It is unnecessary to call in any other species besides sailfish. If you are hooked-up after 3:45pm, you must inform the "Committee Boat" on VHF channel 68. It is also necessary to inform the "Committee Boat" should the fish be lost prior to release. In the event you cannot reach the "Committee Boat" via VHF or relay, please use the telephone number provided to you at the Captain's Meeting.
  10. GAMEFISH DIVISION WEIGH-IN: Teams may weigh in one of each species per day. Scale hours are 4pm - 7pm each fishing day. Any fish eligible for weigh-in must be: 1) recorded on the day's catch affidavit with the angler's name and time boated, 2) brought to the scales by a team representative (by vehicle or boat) and 3) appear on video (during the fight or on the ride in) with the official time and date stamp. Any tie shall be broken on time or the monies split. The Gamefish Division is tournament-wide, winner-take-all and weight-benchmarked by the last largest fish brought in by species (i.e., day one's 15 lb. Mahi is knocked out by day three's 20 lb. Mahi, etc.). Mutilated fish will be disqualified. Species benchmarks will be listed on the Tournament Standings board and announced by the "Committee Boat" prior to lines in each day.
  11. CATCH & RELEASE RULES:All sailfish must be released to qualify. A sailfish is considered released when a team member grabs the leader and then cuts the leader. Please release the fish in good condition by either removing the hook-set or cutting the leader as close to the hook-set as possible. "Popping" the leader is not a good method of healthy release, and we ask that you refrain from doing so.
  12. CATCH & RELEASE POINTS: Each released sailfish will be worth 100 points.
  13. CATCH & RELEASE VERIFICATION & RECORDINGS:
    • Release Verification Recordings - each team is required to submit video evidence of all sailfish catch and releases. This recording shall be time and date stamped in accordance with the "official time" as stated by the "Committee Boat" prior to each day's fishing. Your UNINTERRUPTED video proof shall include: 1) registered angler fighting the fish 2) proper identification marker 3) sufficient footage of the fish in order to accurately determine the species 4) proper release evidence - see Rule 10 above.
    • Release Confirmation - each sailfish release will be assigned a number and a color card by the "Committee Boat" when a release is called in. This number must be recorded on your day's Release Affidavit and the colored card must be videoed right away to have it correspond with your release time. Failure to record this/these number(s) and color card(s) will result in disqualification.
    • Sailfish Release Affidavit - each sailfish release is required to be noted on the day's affidavit and submitted with your video to the Committee each fishing day. Failure to turn in your affidavit will disqualify that day's catch(es). Release Affidavits are supplied with your registration package. If you do not have one for each day, please see the Committee for a replacement.
    • Media Requirements - it is the team's responsibility to possess the camera(s) necessary to obtain sufficient release footage. All recordings must be submitted at the end of each fishing day on SD card(s) only and will be returned to you after the tournament. It is also the team's responsibility to have any necessary accessories and appropriate number of SD cards for each fishing day - failure to do so will delay the verification process. We highly recommend you have at least two recordings on different cameras, and underwater shots are the best way to accurately identify the species.
    • Submission of Recordings - verification recordings must be submitted to the Committee between 4pm and 6pm each day of fishing. Participants may deliver SD cards by vehicle, by foot, or request the Committee to make available a representative at the Dinner Key (main channel) head pin to receive their footage. In case of inclement weather, this option may not be available. All recordings, images, sounds, etc. become property of the Tournament and may be used at any time. All recordings and images may be downloaded from the team's devices, if absolutely necessary. If the Committee be unable to download the verification recording, the recording will not qualify. Please see INSTRUCTIONS & SUGGESTIONS re: video attached. . Teams who wish to have their SD cards returned to them must request the Committee to do so when turning them in for review.
  14. DISPUTE & POLYGRAPH: In the unlikely event a dispute or protest is filed with the Committee, it is possible a polygraph test may be required should the dispute not resolve. Team members must be available within 24 hours of the dispute and must not consume alcohol or any controlled substance eight hours prior to testing. Failure to report for a polygraph test or refusal to answer any questions satisfactory to the Committee may result in disqualification. All disputes or protests must be submitted to the Committee in writing prior to 5pm on the last day of the tournament. All decisions made by the Committee and/or Examiner will be final. No refunds of any kind will be given. All teams give consent to such examination(s) when registered.
  15. PAYMENT OF CASH AWARDS:
    • Participation in optional jackpots is not required to compete for awards.
    • 90% of all optional jackpot fees are distributed in the form of cash prizes/awards except for the Gamefish Division and Top Captain/Crew categories, where 100% of fees will be distributed.
    • Participants wishing to pay optional jackpot fees up to 10 days prior to the Tournament may pay by U.S. currency, personal check, company check (payable to Skip's Tournaments, LLC), wire transfer or credit card. Participants paying optional jackpot fees within 10 days prior to the Tournament may pay by U.S. currency or wire transfer.
    • Cash awards for the Sailfish Division are determined by points as stated in these Rules.
    • The Gamefish Division is determined by weight as stated in these Rules. In the event no qualifying fish in this/these division(s) are weighed, the monies collected will be equally distributed among other catagories.
    • All winners must submit an IRS Form W-9 prior to receiving cash award payment(s). Payments by the Tournament to the winner(s) will be completed within five (5) days of the Tournament's end and may be withheld until a Form W-9 with a valid Social Security Number or Employer Identification Number is received.
    • Please reference U.S. Company Disclosure in regard to award payments.
  16. TROPHIES/PRIZES/AWARDS:
    • Top Team
    • Top Angler
    • Second Place Team
    • Third Place Team
    • Top Lady Angler
    • Top Junior Angler(s) - age at registration
      1. Ages 12-15
      2. Ages 7-11
      3. Age 6 and under (Gamefish will count toward this category, if necessary)
    • Gamefish Division(s)

Sponsors