1. PARTICIPANTS / ELIGIBILITY
• Participation is open to all anglers with a valid fishing license
• Each team will consist of 1 to 2 anglers per boat ( non-tournament passengers are not allowed on tournament boats)
2. ENTRY FEE / PAY OUTS
• There is a one time $5 annual membership fee
• Entry fees are $40 per boat ($35 to main pot / $5 to Big Bass)
• All entry fees are to be paid in CASH only
• Payouts:
– 1 – 7 boats pay 1 place (100%)
– 8-15 boats pay 2 places (60%, 40%)
– 16-35 boats pay 3 places (50%, 30%, 20%)
– 36+ boats pay 4 places (45%, 30%, 15%, 10%)
– Big Bass pays 100% of Big Bass pot
3. REGISTRATION / TOURNAMENT HOURS
• Tournament hours are 6:30PM to 10:00PM (dependent on # of flights)
• Registration begins at 6:00PM
• Scales close 15 minutes after last flight and no later than 10:45pm.
• Each boat must register in person at the registration site
• Teams will be given a chip with boat number, flight number, and check-in time during registration
• Chip must be turned back in by your scheduled check in time to the tournament official located at the registration site in order to weigh in
• All boats will be required to have fully functional livewells
• All boats are subject to a livewell check
• Fishing begins after the release of the boats by the tournament directors
4. LIVE FISH / WEIGH IN
• A limit of fish shall consist of 5 bass (Bass shall be defined as any of the species known as largemouth, smallmouth, spotted, and Guadalupe bass)
• All fish must be a minimum of 14”
• A .50 pound penalty will be accessed to any team bringing any undersized fish
• No team may have more than a limit of 5 bass in their livewell at any one time except in the short time frame of culling a single fish
• Culling of a dead fish is not allowed
• Dead fish will incur a 1lb penalty per fish
• Dead fish will not be eligible for Big Bass
• In the event of a tie, the biggest single fish determines winner
5. PERMITTED FISHING METHODS
• All anglers must abide by all state and local laws at all times
• Only artificial lures may be used
• All fish must be caught in a legal, live, conventional manner using rod and reel
• Each competitor may only have one rod in use at a time
• Trolling with combustion motor is prohibited
• All angling must be performed from the boat. You may only leave the boat in case of an emergency
• No “hole sitting” allowed, which means you cannot have another angler/boat holding a fishing spot for you
6. OFF LIMITS PERIODS
• Lake Dunlap will be “off limits” from 6:00am Wednesday to 4:00pm Thursday the weeks the tournaments are held on Lake Dunlap. There is no “off limits” period for events on Canyon Lake
• The Championship event will have a 5-day off limits period which consists of the Monday-Friday prior to the championship tournament
7. OFF LIMITS AREAS
• Contestants may fish anywhere on tournament waters accessible by boat and available to the public, except areas designated as “off limits” or “no fishing” by state, local, or federal officials
• The “off limits” areas include but are not limited to:
– The dam behind the buoys on Lake Dunlap
– The area from the dam to the buoys around the intake at Canyon Lake
– Inside the tire breakwater at Canyon Lake Marina
8. ETIQUETTE / SAFETY
• All anglers must use extreme safety, caution, and courtesy at take off in addition to high standards of sportsmanship and conservation at all times during these events. Any infraction of these fundamental sporting principles may be deemed cause for disqualification
• Life Jackets/PFD’s must be worn anytime the combustion motor is in gear
• No fishing within 25 yards of a competitor’s boat unless otherwise agreed upon by the other tournament angler
• Every boat must have all required safety equipment as defined by the State of Texas which includes fully functional nav and anchor lights
• In the case of inclement weather, it will be the competitor’s decision to seek shelter or continue fishing
9. AOY SCORING
• Each individual angler will accumulate points for each event even though you may fish as a team.
• AOY pts are accrued from the 1st tournament on March 17th to the last tournament on July 29th
• 1st place will receive points equal to the number of teams entered
• Each descending place will receive 1 pt less than the previous place
• All anglers that enter but do not weigh fish will receive 5 points less than the last place team that weighed in and no less than 1pt
• If a team is disqualified for any reason, they will receive 0 pts for the tournament
• Tie breakers:
– 1st tie breaker goes to the angler with the most 1st place finishes
– 2nd tie breaker goes to the angler who has the most top 3 finishes
– 3rd tie breaker goes to the angler who has entered the most events
10. CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFICATION
• Only the Top 100 anglers on the Angler Of the Year Standings shall be eligible
11. PROTESTS
• Decisions of the Tournament Director are final and are not subject to appeal. Interpretation of these rules will be left exclusively to the Tournament Director in his sole and absolute discretion.
• Each competitor agrees to report any rule violation to the Tournament Director immediately upon discovery of the violation. The violation of a tournament rule may result in weight loss, total loss of weight for that event, the ineligibility to participate in future events, or any other penalty deemed appropriate by the Tournament Director in his sole discretion.
• Protests must be made in writing within 10 minutes of the official closing of the scales at each tournament
*Any violation of the rules stated here with in, will result in immediate disqualification and ban from participation of any Thursday Nighters tournaments in addition to possible prosecution by the state of Texas.
* By participating in these events, the competitors assume all risks associated with each event and hereby release, discharge, and hold harmless the host, sponsors, and tournament officials from all claims, injury, and/or damage that may incur during the Thursday Nighters tournaments.
