By registering and submitting payment, the angler agrees to and has read all the tournament rules and regulations.
Boundary: Anywhere in Levy County. Suwannee River is the northern boundary with the Withlacoochee as the southern boundary.
Rules: All tackle tournament, artificial, live bait, and fly. Anglers must declare conventional (spin gear with artificial and live bait) or fly at registration. No switching between conventional and fly, anglers must fish chosen category for the duration of the tournament. Fish must be caught on rod and reel, no snagging. Each angler is responsible for their entries on the Fishing Chaos app. This is a photo tournament. All entries must be made via the Fishing Chaos app at the time of landing potential fish. Anglers are encouraged to release live and healthy fish but are not required to do so. All anglers must have a valid Florida fishing license. Each angler must follow the rules set by FWC. Kept fish will not be allowed entry after the tournament. Youth anglers may have assistance from parent or guardian but will still need their own profile within the Fishing Chaos app.
Scoring: There will be 1st, 2nd, 3rd, place for the most cumulative inches for five fish with the slot limit.
CATEGORIES
Conventional Division
Total Inches (5 fish within slot) - 1st, 2nd, 3rd
Fly Division
Total Inches (5 fish within slot) - 1st, 2nd, 3rd
Youth Division (12 and under, open tackle)
Total Inches (5 fish within slot) - 1st, 2nd, 3rd
Biggest Fish
Longest fish entered, outside of slot. Open to any participant regardless of final placing or category.
TACKLE
Only rod and reel are permitted. The rod may not be altered after a fish is hooked, and must remain connected to the reel. Artificial fly, lures, live and cut bait may be used. A rod broken, above the reel seat, during the fight will not disqualify a caught or released fish.
ANGLING
The tournament strongly recommends that teams observe all recognized courtesies and sporting practices between boats. It is also considered unsportsmanlike to “guard” or “save” spots, or have any other vessels do this on a team’s behalf. Scouting of fish by means of aircraft or drone is not permitted, thus neither is filming by means of drone during the tournament.
FISHING TIMES AND TERRITORY
Boats will be allowed to launch and fish from any location within Levy County. Suwannee River is the northern boundary and the Withlacoochee is the southern boundary. There is no limitation to the number of times a boat may be launched/hauled during the day. Lines shall not enter the water prior to 6:00am on Saturday. Only captures that occur and are submitted via the Fishing Chaos app between the times of 6:00am – 3:00pm will be eligible. i.e. A fish captured at 5:45am and submitted at 6:05am is not eligible, nor is a capture that occurred at 2:55pm and is submitted at 3:05pm. Any team not checking in at the award ceremony location at the angler check-in station by 4:00pm will be disqualified; and thus will not be ranked for scoring.
FISH HANDLING
The fish’s mouth should be closed, and physically contacting the nose stop on the scale. Photos should be taken to include the entire body of the fish. Fishing Chaos submittal must be made as close to capture location and as quickly as possible. Submittals of photographs depicting fish that are clearly deceased, frozen, have lost color, etc. will be rejected, count as a lost tag, and may be grounds for disqualification.
VESSELS
Powered and unpowered vessels are permitted. Vessels shall carry all state and USGC required safety items, and be operated by an appropriately licensed individual.
MEASURING AND SCORING
Each angler will be provided with a tournament measuring scale, all photographs submitted must be completed using the tournament measuring scale. Measuring scales can be picked up from the captain’s meeting in Cedar Key the Friday before the tournament. If you cannot make the captain’s meeting you can pick up your ruler at the A Street ramp between 5-6am Saturday morning of the tournament. It is encouraged to pick up your scale from the captain’s meeting the evening prior to the tournament. Photo submittals will be reviewed by the tournament director. Fish length will be rounded down to the nearest whole inch. i.e. a 18.75” fish will be awarded 18pts and be considered an 18” fish in the length category. (It should be understood that this means if a 18.25” fish is submitted by Angler 1 Prior to an 18.5” fish being submitted by Angler 2; Angler 1 will be ranked above Angler 2. This is to prevent dispute over ability to determine exact fish length via photograph.) In accordance with state regulations, total length shall be measured with the mouth of fish closed and tail pinched then released. Mouth shall be touching vertical stop of board, and tail of fish shall be pinched. Any photographs deemed unacceptable will be rejected or reduced by the Tournament Committee during review. Official and final scoring for all categories will be determined only after check-in at 4:00pm is complete and all submittals have been reviewed.
WEATHER
All efforts will be made to keep the tournament schedule fixed, but in the event of extreme inclement weather that could be considered dangerous to those participating, Sunday will be used as a backup day. The captain’s meeting will remain on Friday, and if in question, the final decision will be made at that time.
GOVERNANCE
The tournament will be conducted by the Tournament Committee. Disputes or protests shall be submitted to the Tournament Committee and shall be resolved through a unanimous decision of all tournament board of directors members. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to change, modify, or clarify rules at any time prior to the start of the Captain’s Meeting for each tournament in order to ensure the event is conducted in a fair and sportsmanlike manner.