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Print out...Tournament
Application
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA ANGLERS
RULES & REGULATIONS (Revised for
2004)
Rule Changes
Interpretation of these rules
shall be left exclusively to the tournament director. Failure to comply with any
rule may result in disqualification. The decision of the tournament director
shall be final in all matters. In the interest of good sportsmanship,
contestants are reminded that the “spirit of the rule” will prevail in all
judgment cases. WPA reserves the right to change or amend events at the
director’s discretion.
Participants & Eligibility
Participation in the angler of
the year points is open only to members of WPA. Tournament officials reserve the
right to refund any entry fee, if it shall choose for any reason not to accept
the application for membership. Non- members may be permitted to participate
in open tournaments only. Membership for the year is
only 20.00
Age Limits
Any
person under 18 years of age must be a team partner with a parent or legal
guardian. Persons under the age of 18 years must have the signature of his/her
parent or legal guardian on the entry form, as well as the contestants.
Entry Fee
Early
entry is $110.00, events can be fished alone but entry fee is based on 2 person
teams. Ten dollars will be deducted from the entry for the Championship fund.
Paybacks will be based on $100.00. The entry MAY be $120.00 on the day of the
Tournament. All participants must hold WPA membership unless fishing an open
tournament.
Transfers
Entry fees will be transferred to
another tournament or refunded only if proper notification is made to WPA 10
days preceding the tournament. No refund on memberships. Transfers are made at
no charge. Refunds are charged a $10 processing fee.
Mandatory Check-In
All
teams must check in and sign up with the tournament director prior to the
tournament. At least one team member must check in at registration and be
present for the rules/safety briefing unless arrangements are made with the
director prior to the event. All pre-registered teams will have priority
take-off position numbers. Late and on site sign-ups will be assigned start
numbers.
Boat Inspection
All
boats are subject to inspection during the tournament. Inspections may take
place at any time tournament day. No boat may come in contact with a
contestant’s boat during the tournament hours except in an emergency. There will
be a mandatory boat inspection just prior to every tournament start.
Safety
Safe
boating must be observed at all times. Each contestant, under penalty of
disqualification for that day, must wear a Coast Guard approved personal
flotation device at all times when the combustion engine is operating above idle
or back trolling speed. The flotation device must be fastened securely and the
safety stop switch attached until the combustion engine is shut off. All other
safe boating regulations must be adhered to.
Weigh-In, Check-In
Teams must come to the official
weigh-in site by water unless otherwise stated. Teams must verify weight prior
to close of scales. Weigh-in slips when used must be signed by one partner to
verify weight. Teams must check in by the official check-in time or be
disqualified for the day. Boats within line of sight and off plane at the
official time are considered on time.
Sportsmanship
All
contestants are expected to follow high standards of sportsmanship, courtesy,
safety and conservation. No alcoholic beverages or
unprescribed drugs are allowed in the boat at any time. Drunkenness at
any official tournament activity will be considered a violation of the rules.
Tackle and Equipment
Walleye: Live bait
and artificial lures may be used. Trolling as a method of fishing is
permitted. All fish must be caught live in a conventional manner.
Bass: No live bait may be used.
Trolling is not permitted.
Contestants must possess applicable state fishing licenses. Cellular phones, CB
or marine radios are allowed for emergency situations only. They may not be
used during tournament hours to talk with other boats. All state regulations
must be adhered to.
Permitted Fishing Locations
Contestants may fish anywhere on
the tournament waters accessible by boat except areas designated OFF LIMITS by
the tournament director or marked on the water. Contestants must remain in the
boat at all times except in the case of dire emergencies. In such cases an
emergency, partners may enter another competitor’s or rescue boat. In case of
an emergency/disabled boat, at least one partner may return [by boat] with the
catch by the official check-in-time. Above all, the safety of the competitors
is priority.
Off Limits
When water is put off limits, all
members must abide by the off limits period. Off limits
means not on the water. Any fishing, boating, canoeing or any kind of
water travel is forbidden on the off limits waters.
Weather Conditions
Tournament officials will only
begin tournaments during acceptable and usual weather conditions. It is
solely the responsibility of the contestants to be aware of changing weather
conditions. If conditions change during tournament hours to unsafe conditions,
the contestants are required to seek safe shelter until the weather conditions
pass.
Rules and Bag Limits
All rules and regulations
concerning each tournament will be issued during the official registration and
meeting period. Violation of any of the rules and regulations may result in
immediate disqualification. Tournament bag limits will be five fish per team
with a minimum of the state legal length. State size and bag limits will always
take precedence over tournament rules unless there is no size or bag limit
regulations issued by the state. Species that will be weighed are Walleye:
walleye, Sauger and saugeye.
Bass: large mouth, small mouth, spotted bass. Scoring will be in
pounds/ounces and hundredths. Culling of fish, if permitted must be done on the
water immediately after being caught. Presentation of more fish than the
tournament limit will result in immediate disqualification for the day. If big
fish is weighed dead, a two-ounce or .12 penalty is
subtracted from the scale weight. Other dead fish will be weighed at the
discretion of the director. Automatic disqualification for a short fish brought
to the scale. A .12 or 2 ounce
penalty for each dead fish will be at every tournament. Short fish will not be
weighed, but returned to the water immediately.
Ties
With the consent of the director
and mutual consent of all involved, anglers may decide to split the combined
total of the tied places and awards or conduct a coin toss. Decision of the
director will be final.
Boats and Motors
All
boats entered in the tournament must carry a $100,000 liability policy. All
boats must be equipped with some type of safety-stop switch. Each boat must
have all state and federal safety equipment. Each boat must have properly
aerated or reticulating live well space to maintain a live limit catch. All
outboard motors used during official tournament hours will not exceed the
horsepower limitations as indicated on the manufacture’s rating plate affixed to
the boat. Any boat having a plate that has been altered or changed will be
disqualified. Any boat without a plate
cannot be used during
official tournament hours, they may elect to use a
tournament-approved boat.
Polygraph or Voice Test
Polygraph or voice test may be
given to any team in the tournament at the director’s discretion. Failure to
take or pass the test will result in immediate disqualification without
recourse. Anyone that has ever refused to take or has failed a test will not be
eligible to fish any WPA tournaments. Anyone under the influence of drugs or
alcohol will be disqualified. The complaint maker will pay fees for test unless
the team fails the test. In this case the person or team who fail the test
shall incur the cost.
Protest and Waiver
A team has the right to protest
another team. The protest must be in writing and accompanied by a $150.00 check
made out to the WPA. The protest must be handed to the tournament director
within 30 minutes after the scales have closed. The burden of proof will be on
the team filing the protest. If necessary, the tournament director will
investigate the protest and employ a polygraph or voice stress test. If the
protest is valid, the disqualified team will be financially responsible for all
costs and the $150.00 fee will be returned to the filing team. All decisions by
the director will be final and without recourse. Protest deemed frivolous and
slanderous will result in suspension of the protesting team’s membership
rights. Tournament officials are not allowed t discuss protest with contestants
until an official protest is filed with the fee and within the time allotted
above. Discussion of this type without an official filing will be considered
unsportsmanlike conduct and will be dealt with accordingly. Only contestants
con issue protests.
Liability
The WPA, its’ officers and
employees, promoters, directors, sponsors and organizations assisting in the
tournament operations, their agencies, etc., are not responsible for deaths,
injuries, damages, liability, theft, fire or any loss of any kind to entrants,
spectators, etc. Each entrant upon signing an entry form will be signing a
waiver form. Disqualification for any reason will result in forfeiture of entry
fee. The directors’ ruling is final. The WPA reserves the right to change,
amend or alter any aspect of events it conducts at its desecration.
2004 REVISED RULES
& POINT
SYSTEM
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA ANGLERS
Points from each
team’s best four (4) tournaments will be counted for Angler of the Year honors.
An additional 5 points will be given for each tournament pre paid thirty (30)
days prior to the event.
An additional two (2) points multiplied by 2 for each additional out of state
tournament will be added. Example:
if fishing from PA anglers will receive 2 points for the first out of state
tournament, 4 for the second, 6 for the 3rd ,
8 for the 4th and so on.
The top 10 teams from each state qualify for the Championship.
Participants must be WPA members in good standing for points to be counted.
Participants do NOT have to be members to fish in OPEN TOURNAMENTS.
Participants must fish in at least 3 tournaments per season to qualify for the Angler of the
Year or Championship. A
minimum of two (2) tournaments from a state are needed to qualify from that
state. Anglers can qualify from
any state.
Each angler’s points will count individually for his or her total. Point
totals will follow each angler regardless of who he or she fishes with.
Anglers must fish the Charity Tournament to qualify for Angler of the Year
honors. (This can be one of the
three tournaments).
Anglers can substitute partners once during the year for team AOY honors or the
championship.
Ties - With the consent of the director and mutual consent of all involved,
anglers may decide to split the combined total of the tied places and awards or
conduct a coin toss. Decision of the director will be final.
2004
REVISED RULES & POINTS SYSTEM
Series Champions and
Angler of the Year will be automatic Cabela’s
National Team Walleye Qualifiers from WPA
All other NTW
qualifiers selected by Cabela’s will be based on WPA
points accumulated during the year.
5 additional points will be given for each entry paid 30 days prior to the
event.
2 points added for out of state tournaments. (See above for example)
1st PLACE
.................100
2ND PLACE
.................90
3RD PLACE
.................80
4TH PLACE
.................70
5TH PLACE .................60
6TH PLACE…………..50
7TH PLACE ………….40
8TH PLACE…………..30
9TH PLACE ………….20
10TH PLACE…………10
Below 10th
PARTICIPATION
(Fish caught)….....7
PARTICIPATION
(No fish caught)....5
+ (1) ONE POINT ADDED TO POINT TOTAL FOR EACH BOAT REGISTERED FOR THE
TOURNAMENT.
ADDED TOGETHER FOR A TOTAL ____________
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