Tournament Rules

1. This is a catch, photograph, and release tournament. Contestants photograph their catch on a tournament measuring board, release the fish, and send the photo to the Scoring Committee. See Scoring Procedure. One may keep a catch as long as it complies with the FWC regulations as of tournament day Saturday June 3, 2023.
2. SAFETY FIRST: Registered captains are responsible for all members of their crew and have the discretion to determine the seaworthiness of their vessel with regard to existing sea and weather conditions.  Participants are urged to stay abreast of marine and weather advisories by monitoring VHF Channel 16 and readily available weather and maritime mobile apps. All registered vessels must comply with State, Federal, and USCG safety and fishing regulations. The Rough Riders are not responsible for any violations of any State, Federal, and/or USCG safety and fishing regulations.
3. This is a captain’s choice tournament. Therefore it is up to the discretion of the registered captain to determine whether his or her craft is seaworthy for existing sea conditions. Participants are encouraged to scan channel 16, in addition to the tournament channel (68) to keep abreast of any marine or weather warnings. The captain is responsible for all members of his/her crew both on and off the water.
4. Tournament hours are 6:00 AM to 4:00 PM EDT (lines in the water), Saturday only June 3 rd .  Scoring ends promptly at 4:00 PM EDT, and the awards presentation will begin approximately 4:30 p.m. poolside or as soon as scoring is complete.
5. Tournament boundaries: The north end of Anclote Key. South side of Venice Inlet. West 50 NM at 270 degrees out of Long Boat Pass (N27 26.648  W83 30.799)
6. Eligible fish species: Snook, Redfish, Trout, Mackerel (Spanish and King), Grouper (Red, Black or Gag, NO goliath), Snapper. (all except Cubera) and Tarpon.
7. All fish must be caught with handheld rods and reels. Bent-butt rods are prohibited.
8. Casting the bait on behalf of a registered angler is permitted, as is the netting of a fish by another person when landing a fish. When fishing from a boat, trolling, drifting, and anchoring are permitted. While trolling, drifting or still fishing, a rod secured in a rod holder may hook a fish; however, the angler who initially touches or removes the rod from the rod holder must thereafter continuously fight and land the fish without assistance from any other person. Assistance from any other person is limited to casting a line to position a bait, leadering the fish, and/or netting the fish caught by the participating angler.
9. No transfer of fish among Competition participants shall be allowed.
   
10. This is a boat tournament, which means prizes are awarded to the boat’s team, not individual anglers.
11. Each boat and non-motorized craft will be assigned a boat number (Non-Guided) or boat letter (Guided), an official measuring board and will need a device capable of recording and transmitting photographs to the Scoring Committee.
12. Ties are not awarded. In the event of tied measurements, the submission’s time of reception by the Scoring Committee will be used. The earlier reception time will take precedence.
13. All scoring decisions are at the sole discretion of the Scoring Committee, comprised of three judges and scoring personnel, and all decisions are final and not subject to challenge.
14. Tournament Rules may be changed at any time through the conclusion of the Captains meeting.
15. No refund of entry fees unless the tournament committee cancels the tournament.