2023
Official Tournament Rules
This
is a fun tournament, and all participants are expected to fish in a
sportsmanlike manner and to follow IGFA Regulations as well as the following
additions. Please pay special attention
to the “circle hook only” rule amendment (12.i).
1. Minimum Boat Size: 30 ft LOA. Final determination of boat eligibility will
be at the discretion of the Tournament Committee.
2.
All
vessels and participants shall comply with Florida state and Federal Fisheries
laws and regulations regarding fishing licenses, vessel permits, fishing gear,
season size limits and bag limits.
3.
Tournament
fishing will begin at 8 am. All entrants
must check out each day by radio with the Committee Boat before entering the
ocean. All entrants must not pass the
sea buoy before 7 a.m. Boats must leave and enter from Fort Pierce
Inlet, St. Lucie Inlet, or Jupiter Inlet.
Tournament fishing will stop at
3:00 pm. All boats inside the inlet by 4:30 p.m. will
be considered on time. Any late returns shall be penalized by
deducting all fish caught for that day. Mechanical or electrical problems will not
excuse a late return.
4.
Tournament
fishing boundaries and inlets:
a. Northern Boundary 27°50’00” N, ≈ 2 miles South of Sebastian Inlet
b. Southern Boundary 26°50’00” N, ≈ 8 miles South of Jupiter Inlet
c. Only inlets within the boundary lines
allowed (i.e. Ft. Pierce, St.
Lucie, Jupiter)
5.
Dangerous
boat operating during tournament and especially in the inlet area will result
in DISQUALIFICATION! No passing allowed between Sandsprit Park
and the St. Lucie Inlet. To maintain safety in a narrow channel, no
passing between Sandsprit Park and the seaward side of the North/South
breakwaters. A slower boat may, at its
discretion, via Channel 80 VHF invite a faster boat to pass in the restricted
area. Safe and gentleman-like conduct to
and from Pirate’s Cove Marina is expected.
6.
Any
fish hooked before 3:00 pm and reported to the Committee Boat may be fought
until caught, but vessel must be in by 4:30 pm.
Any fish hooked after 3:00 pm on
any fishing day is ineligible.
7.
Line,
Leader, Bait, Rods and Reels
a. The angler or crew will furnish all tackle
and line.
b. Spinning Reels are not allowed.
c. All sailfish must be caught on dead bait or
artificial lures. No live baiting or
chumming permitted. Dead bait or
artificial teasers without hooks are permitted.
NO PITCH BAITING IS PERMITTED AT ANY TIME.
d. LINE AND BACKING: 20lb line is the only line
permitted in this tournament. Monofilament, multifilament, and lead core
multifilament lines may be used. Wire
lines are prohibited. Backing is
permitted. The catch shall be classified
under the breaking strength of the first 16.5 ft of line directly receding the
double line, leader, or hook. This section must be comprised of a single,
homogenous piece of line and may not exceed 130-lb line class.
e. Double lines are not required but
are measured from the start of the knot, braid, rill or splice, making the
double to the furthermost end of the knot, splice, snap, swivel or other device
used for securing the trace, leader, lure or hook to the double line. The double line shall be limited to 15 ft.
f. LEADER: The use of a leader is required. It must meet the following
specifications: The length of the leader is the overall length including any
lure, hook arrangement is 15ft. There are no regulations regarding the
material or strength of the leader.
g. The combined length wind-on leader or double
line, and the leader, shall not exceed 20 feet, including the hook.
h. Single hook only.
i. “NON-OFFSET” CIRCLE HOOKS ONLY – J-HOOKS ARE
NOT ALLOWED.
j. LINES & TEASERS: A Maximum of 8 lines
per boat are permitted. 6 lines with
baits and 2 teasers without rods. Teasers
are permitted without hooks. Live
teasers are not permitted. Teasers may
be deployed from rod but with an electrical reel or kite rod with an
electric reel. Teasers must come off the
outriggers.
k. Neither teasers nor baits are allowed in the
water until fishing starts at 8:00 am.
l. Boats can be dead in water or moving forward
for the first hook up. If baits are left
in the water for multiple hook ups, the boat CAN be backing down, but any fish
caught must be hooked, fought, and released from the cockpit. If baits are brought in, they may not be put
back out until normal trolling is resumed.
m. In the event of a multiple
hookup, the angler may make use of the rod holder to hold the rod. NO REELING OF LINE CAN OCCUR FROM A ROD
HOLDER DURING THE HOOKUP.
8.
Only
releases by registered anglers will count towards totals. Any registered anglers per boat, per day with
no more than two (2) of those registered anglers being professional. A professional is any person who has been
paid for their professional services as a captain, mate or crew member while
engaging in fishing within the last twelve (12) months.
9.
Scoring
ties will be broken by the boat first achieving winning status as determined by
the time recorded in daily catch logs. The
numeric day of fishing for the boats in question will also be used to break
scoring ties.
10.
Competing
boats must honor and give fighting boats all the room necessary. Backing down is permitted.
11.
Any
protest must be filed in writing or by the angler on the observer’s daily log
by 6:00 pm on the same day as the protested incident. A $500.00 protest binder must accompany all
protests. This binder is refundable if the
Rules Committee upholds the protest. All
protests will be held confidential, and the Rules Committee’s decision WILL BE
FINAL.
12.
Participants
in the Pirate’s Cove Sailfish Classic fish at their own discretion and
risk. The decision to fish is solely the
captain’s choice. There will not be
any weather lay days.
13.
Officials
and all other persons connected directly or indirectly with the operations of
the tournament shall be exempt from any liability for loss, damage, negligence,
harm, or injury suffered to any participant, entrant, sport fisherman, their
companions, boat captains, crew members, vessels and equipment which may occur
during the tournament.
14.
All
boats must carry Liability Insurance.
SAILFISH
(Tier 1):
1.
THIS
IS A SAILFISH RELEASE TOURNAMENT. An official release will be credited when the
swivel touches the rod tip for the first time, or the mate takes control of the
leader. The digital image must have the colored flag
of the day in view. Release is official when swivel touches the
rod tip or mate takes control of the leader.
The leader must be cut as close to the fish as possible. Deliberate jerking or snatching of leader by
mate to cause the leader to break will disqualify the fish.
2.
A
sailfish hook-up must be called into the “Committee Boat” as soon as possible
on VHF channel 73. If unable to reach “Committee Boat” by VHF
radio, then releases can be called in by cell phone. The
“Committee Boat” will validate your hook-up by announcement. Any
cell phone releases called in will be relayed over VHF radio. All
boats must have a VHF radio. The “Committee Boat” will then verify your
information by announcement and give you a release time, which must be recorded
on your daily catch affidavit and turned in at the end of the fishing day, with
your video evidence. If you lose your fish prior to release (i.e. jump-off, pulled hook, etc..) please inform
the “Committee Boat” as soon as possible.
The time stamp of the digital image is the official release time and
must be within (plus or minus) fifteen (15) minutes of the time reported by
radio to the “Committee Boat.” If the
timestamp of the identification of the fish is over fifteen (15) minutes from
the VHF call, then the release time will be moved to the time of the
identification time.
a. Video Requirement: Every billfish
released in the tournament must be verified by video footage clearly
identifying the release. The video clip
to be shot by all teams should be to initialize the video device with the time,
date and GPS location, and flag color of the day at the start of fishing. All videos and score cards must be turned
into the “Committee Boat” by 6 p.m.
3.
Sailfish
catches must be reported to the Committee Boat as released. Boat name, angler name and time of release
must be reported, and fish number caught for video/camera. Releases may be relayed if Captain cannot
reach Committee Boat.
4.
The
total number of fish caught will determine winners regardless of the number of
days fished (up to three).
GAME
FISH (Tier 2, 3 and 4)
1.
You
must enter tier 1 to participate in tiers 2, 3 and 4.
2.
Gamefish
are defined as kingfish, dolphin, wahoo, and blackfin tuna. If no qualifying gamefish are caught in tier
2, the tournament will roll the prize money for each category in the next
year’s prizes.
3.
Winning
gamefish will be determined by weight. In
the event of a tie, the winner will be determined by the first fish weighed in. Fish must be in fresh edible condition and
fit for human consumption. All gamefish
must be weighed on the day they are caught.
Hookup time for gamefish should NOT be reported to Tournament
Headquarters.
4.
All
gamefish eligible for prizes must be off-loaded and weighed at the official
Tournament weigh station from the boat landing the fish. The fish must be entered on the official
entry form by the Tournament Weigh Master.
The same scales and weigh station will be used for all fish. Gamefish scales will close at 6:00 p.m. Participants must notify the tournament
committee by radio, text or phone prior to 4:30 p.m. and give specific ETA to the official weigh
station.
5.
The
weigh station is located at Pirate’s Cove Resort and Marina. All Gamefish must be brought in by boat.
6.
Attempted
weight alteration of any gamefish will be subject to disqualification and
automatically disqualify the boat from the tournament. IGFA rules apply regarding mutilated
fish. The Rules Committee reserves the
right to cut open any fish for inspection of suspected weight altering efforts
such as inserted weights, ice, water, etc.
7.
The
Weigh Master has the right to refuse any fish in their sole discretion.
8. The weigh station will remain
open until the last checked in boat is offloaded and fish is weighed.
Chris Dempsey @
772-287-2500 ext. 150
