Emerald Coast Redfish Club

MEMBERSHIP / TOURNAMENT ENTY FEES:Membership dues for the 21012 season is $40.00 per individual. Only paid members may participate in ECRC tournaments.
Tournament entry fee will be $25.00 per person ($50 for each team) for each of the 8 regular season ECRC events and for the ECRC Championship Tournament.
A contestant can pay $240.00 on or before the initial ECRC 2012 tournament which will cover all of the 2012 season fees (membership dues + all 9 tournaments). Payment may be made prior to the first tournament by check to: The Emerald Coast Redfish Club, 2403 Valley Oak Court, Panama City Beach, FL 32408 or in person at the 2012 Kick-off Party. This pay up-front method is preferred as it will allow the ECRC Committee to have an operating budget and results in a savings of $25.00. Alternately, a contestant may sign up and pay for individual events at the check-in of any ECRC event.
PAYOUTS: 80% of the tournament entry fees collected will be paid back at each tournament (this percentage will be evaluated periodically to see if it needs to be increased or decreased depending on the status of the ECRC budget). For each tournament, there will be a paid position for each 5 teams entered (i.e., if 21 teams are entered, 4 places will be paid; if 25 teams are entered, 5 places will be paid). A minimum of 3 places will be paid for all events. Example payouts are as follows:
3-19 Teams: 20-24 Teams: 25-29 Teams: 30-34 Teams:
1St Place - 50% 1st Place - 47% 1st Place - 44% 1st Place - 42%
2nd Place - 30% 2nd Place - 26% 2nd Place - 24% 2nd Place -22%
3rd Place - 20% 3rd Place - 17% 3rd Place - 15% 3rd Place -15%
4th Place - 10% 4th Place - 10% 4th Place - 9%
5th Place - 7% 5th Place - 7% 6th Place - 5%
100% of all membership dues and the remaining 20% of tournament entry fees not given out at each tournament will be placed into the ECRC General Operating Budget (to be used for plaques, end-of-year prizes, Club equipment, and good-will events). Approximately 50% of annual proceeds will be used for End-of-Season prizes to include at minimum prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd ranked teams in the ECRC Team-of-the-Year race.
PARTICIPATION/ELIGIBILITY:
Participation is open only to current (paid) members of the ECRC. All participants must have in their possession a valid fishing license and are required to follow all applicable federal, state, and local regulations. Any violation of such regulations may result in disqualification from tournament. Any person age16 or under must have a legal parent sign an ECRC official "Release of Liability" form to participate. Contact ECRC staff for details.
SCORING SYSTEM:Each team's weight will be determined by the combination of two legal (see "Fish Limits & Penalty") and will be measured in pounds to the nearest hundredth of a pound (i.e., 6.72 lbs). The largest team weight will be tournament winner and will receive 100 points for the event. Each descending team weight will receive one point less. All teams that participate but do not weigh fish will receive participation points of 10 points less than the points earned by the last place team to weigh fish. If a team is disqualified for any reason, they will receive zero points for that event. In the event of a tie, the team with the largest single fish will be awarded the higher level of points. If teams remain tied, both teams will be awarded the higher level of points.
If both members of a team have paid membership dues and have paid entry fee before an ECRC tournament, but were unable to attend or had to leave early, they will receive participation points for the event.
TEAM-OF-THE-YEAR (TOY):TOY points will be determined by adding all regular season tournament points and then subtracting the lowest two individual event scores. The same 100-point structure will be awarded to the ECRC Championship Tournament, but that score cannot be dropped. The highest scoring team will be crowned ECRC Team-of-the-Year at the conclusion of the Championship Tournament.
FISH LIMITS & PENALTY:Only Redfish/Red Drum are accepted species. Bag limit for event is 2. Size limits will comply with State of Florida regulations (total length with pinched tail between 18 inches and 27 inches). Total length means the length of a fish as measured from the most forward point of the head to the hind-most point of a pinched tail on a flat rule. The fish will be measured first with it's belly towards the weigh-master's belly. If the fish is deemed not legal, the fish will be flipped and will be measured again. If still not legal, the fish will be disqualified. The Tournament Director will appoint a Weigh Master who will have sole discretion as to whether a fish is legal. It is advisable that each team check their measuring device with the official ECRC device (Check-It Stick). The legal limit is two Redfish per angler however a total of only two Redfish per team will be allowed to be weighed. Fish presented for weigh-in that fail to measure within the legal slot will not be counted in the team's weight. If a Redfish dies prior to weighing, one half pound will be subtracted from that fish's total weight (declaration of dead fish will be the sole discretion of the Tournament Director or the designated weigh master). No person shall harvest in or from the waters of the State of Florida at any time, or unnecessarily destroy any Redfish of total length less than 18 inches or greater than 27 inches. All weigh-in bags will be supplied by ECRC.
PARTNER SUBSTITUTION:A team may have as many partners as needed, but all partners must have paid membership dues. All points shall stay with the Team Captain for the entire season. For an alternate to fish the ECRC Championship tournament and for the Captain to receive TOY points, the alternate must have participated in at least two tournaments with any team during the regular season.
SAFETY:Safe boating must be observed at all times. At the discretion of the ECRC Committee, tournament days may be shortened, postponed or canceled due to unsafe weather or water conditions. The tournament will not start under U.S. Coast Guard "Gale Storm" or tropical storm/hurricane warnings. If a tournament is postponed due to unsafe conditions, that tournament will be re-scheduled by the ECRC Committee (preference will be given to the next Saturday).
PERMITTED FISHING METHODS:
All fish must be caught in the mouth with a rod and reel using artificial baits only. All snagged fish will be release immediately. Only one fishing rod per contestant may be used at a time. No wading or trolling is permitted.
PERMITTED FISHING LOCATIONS:
Teams may fish anywhere in tournament waters available to the general public and accessible by boat, except areas designated as "off-limits", "no boats" or "no fishing" by local, state or federal officials. All angling must be conducted from the boat. The only time a contestant is permitted to leave the vessel is in order to move it from an obstacle (i.e., sandbar) to continue safe operations. Teams must leave and return to the official checkpoint by the same boat. The boat must remain in tournament waters during the tournament day. No tournament boat (that is weighing in fish) may be loaded on the trailer before the weigh-in unless permission is granted by the Tournament Director. During tournament hours, contestants may not obtain or receive assistance from non-competitors, follow a non-competitor's boat, participate in the practice of "hole sitting" or the placing of markers by anyone.
TOURNAMENT HOURS:
Tournament hours will be from safe light until 3:00 pm, or as modified by the Tournament Director. Safe light /safe weather wait time can be added to the end of the day up to two hours. Teams must be at the official check-in site (as determined by the Tournament Director) by 3:00 PM (as determined by the Tournament Director's cell phone time). Tardiness will result in a deduction of one pound per minute, or any part of minute, late.
EMERGENCY OR BREAK-DOWN:In the event of an emergency or equipment failure, there will be only one permitted method of team members to return to the official check-in site to weigh in fish:
- Both team members must remain in their boat and be towed in by water. Under this condition, the team's fish may be counted without penalty (except possible late penalty, dead-fish penalty, or other penalties consistent with tournament rules). Teams that elect to return to the official check-in site by any other means than cited above will be forced to forfeit their catch and will be awarded participation points only.
- If a call is made to the Tournament Director prior to the official weigh-in time, he has the option to make an exception to any late penalties being placed on the rescue boat.
BOAT & HORSEPOWER REGULATIONS:All boats must have all required U.S. Coast Guard safety equipment and contain a livewell sufficient for keeping Redfish alive. The outboard motor will not exceed the horsepower rating set forth on the Maximum Capacity placard installed by the manufacturer.
SPORTSMANSHIP:
Each team is expected to follow high standards of sportsmanship, safety, courtesy, and conservation. The use, possession or consumption of any illegal drugs (other than prescription) during tournament fishing hours will not be tolerated and will be cause for disqualification from current and future ECRC events. If a contestant appears to be under the influence of alcohol during tournament fishing hours, it will result in disqualification from current ECRC event.