Billfish and Gamefish Division Tournament Rules

1. Registration. All boats must be registered with the tournament committee and entry fees paid prior to fishing in order to qualify for prizes and trophies. To qualify for the early entry deadline, your registration must be received by July 1, 2008. Entry fee covers tournament registration and attendance at all planned entertainment and social activities for up to six participants. A boat may be substituted at any time during the tournament but must be approved by the Tournament Committee. 20% of all entry fees shall be retained by the BOCC. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to refuse entry to anyone.

2. Refunds. Once officially registered, all entry fees are non-refundable, with the exception of a tournament cancellation. In the event the tournament committee cancels the tournament, 80% of all entry fees will be refunded within sixty (60) days of the cancellation date. We retain 20% under these circumstances to enable us to fund our charities.

3. Rules Meeting: Each boat should be represented at the Captain’s Meeting on Wednesday evening, August 27, 2008 on the east end of Front Street, Beaufort, North Carolina. It is the responsibility of the boat captain to know the rules and any changes to the rules that may take place at the Captain’s Meeting.

4. Fishing Days, Times and Lay-days. This tournament is a 3-day tournament, captain’s choice, with two days of fishing and one lay-day. Non-fishing days must be reported to one of the official reporting stations on the official lay-day form prior to 9:00 a.m. of the day declared as a non-fishing day. Fishing time will begin at 9:00am and end at 3:00pm on August 28 and 29, 2008 and will begin at 8:00 am and end at 2:00 pm on August 30, 2008. No lines, teasers, or cameras are allowed in the water before official fishing time. Fish hooked prior to or after hours are not eligible. Official time will be GPS time. In the event of weather, the tournament committee reserves the right to adjust the schedule, postpone or cancel the tournament.

5. Fishing Boundaries: All boats must fish within 50 nautical miles of the Beaufort Inlet Sea Buoy.  GPS coordinates of Beaufort Sea buoy - 34.38430 N    76.40680 W

6. Reporting: All billfish must be reported to the tournament committee when hooked, lost or released. Radio frequency shall be VHF CHANNEL 72 and SINGLE SIDEBAND CHANNEL 4146.0.  

6.1. Reporting Stations:

Beaufort - Front Street Village

Swansboro - Dudley's Marina

Morehead City - Morehead Yacht Basin

Harkers Island - Calico Jack's Marina

7. Mandatory Hooks: All tournament participants must use non-offset circle hooks when deploying natural bait or natural bait/artificial lure combinations. “J” hooks are allowed on artificial lures only.

8. Rod and Reel, Leader Rules: This is rod and reel, hook and line tournament. Double line and leader combined may not exceed 40 feet, neither of which may exceed 30 feet. No live bait permitted. Captain and mate or any other crew member can hook fish and pass the rod to one angler who must fight the fish.  Manufacture package declares test and hook type.  Bridge rod may be passed by 2 crewmembers before one angler fights the fish.

9. Billfish Releases: To qualify as a released fish the leader must be touched by a crewmember or the end of the leader must be wound to the rod tip. A qualified release requires that the fish to be released stay in the water at all times. Any fish that is removed from the water by holding it up for display or bringing it into the cockpit will be disqualified and the boat assessed a 500 point penalty in all billfish release categories in which it is entered.

Billfish releases must be attested to by the Captain, angler and one crew member on board the boat at the time of the release on the official release form provided by the tournament committee. The completed official release form must be turned in to an official reporting station or the tournament weigh station by 11 p.m. the day the fish is released to qualify. Faxed submissions will be accepted if received before 11 p.m. deadline.

10. Billfish Scoring and Prizes. Winners of billfish categories shall be determined by points. Billfish release points shall be 400 points for each billfish species and shall include blue marlin, white marlin, sailfish, spearfish and hatchet marlin. In the event of ties, the first boats to achieve the winning totals shall be declared the winners. In the event that no qualifying billfish are caught, all entry fees shall be retained by the tournament and added to the following year’s purse accordingly.

11. Gamefish Scoring and Prizes: Winners of gamefish categories shall be determined by weight. In the event two or more fish are of the exact same weight, the fish weighed first will be declared the winner. Hookup time for gamefish does not need to be reported to the tournament committee. In the event that no qualifying fish are caught in each gamefish species level, that prize money shall be retained by the tournament.

12. Gamefish Weigh-ins: All gamefish must be weighed-in at the Beaufort waterfront weigh station. All fish must be weighed-in from the boat from which they were caught, under its own power, and must be in fresh, edible condition and must not be mutilated or darted in any way, except for gaff punctures. Fish may be offloaded to an official BOCC weigh station chase boat. All fish must adhere to federal and state regulations for size and bag limits in force during the BOCC. No trucking or overland transportation of fish is allowed. Weigh Station opens at 3:30pm on August 28, 29, 30, 2008. One member of the boat’s crew must remain with the fish to verify weigh-ins. All junior anglers, lady anglers and senior anglers must accompany their fish to the scales to get credit for their fish.

13. Junior, Lady and Senior Anglers: Prizes will be awarded to the junior, lady and senior anglers who scores the most billfish release points and who weighs in the heaviest fish in each gamefish category.  A junior angler is determined by not having reached their 16^th birthday by the registration date of the tournament. A lady angler is any female who has reached their 16^th birthday by the registration date of the tournament. A senior angler is any angler who has reached their 65^th birthday by the registration date of the tournament.

14. Weight Alteration: The Rules Committee reserves the right to cut open any fish for inspection of any suspected weight altering efforts such as inserted weights, ice, water, etc. Attempted weight alteration of any fish will automatically disqualify the boat from the tournament.

15. Protest: Any protest must be in writing and submitted to Tournament Headquarters by 6:30 p.m. Sat. Aug. 30^th and must be accompanied by a $200.00 cash deposit.  If the Rules Committee upholds the protest, the deposit will be returned. Otherwise, the $200.00 cash deposit will become the property of the tournament.

16. Polygraph: Top money winners will be subject to a mandatory polygraph. The polygraphs will be performed at a designated time and location. The captain and one other crew member must be present. Individuals that are required to take the polygraph test must not have consumed alcohol or any controlled substance within eight (8) hours prior to the test.

17. Consent of Participants: All tournament participants consent and authorize the Tournament Committee and their advertising/public relation agencies to use and reproduce names, voices, and/or photographs, whether taken or recorded and circulate the same for any and all purposes of publicity and advertising of all kinds and descriptions in any and all media formats.

18. Rules Committee: The Tournament Rules Committee will determine the solution to questions or situations and its judgment will be final. Flagrant disregard for BOCC rules will result in disqualification of the boat and removal from the tournament with no refund of monies paid.

All current State and Federal Regulations will apply to these rules & will be reviewed during the Captain’s Meeting.

Level I - Billfish Release

Must enter Level I to enter any other level

Early Entry $1300

Regular Entry $1500

Level II - Gamefish

Early Entry $400

Regular Entry $500

Level III – Big BOCC Billfish Release Sponsored by Front Street Village

(Winner Take All)

Early Entry $1,000

Regular Entry $1,200

Level IV – Daily Billfish Release

Early Entry $400

Regular Entry $500

Level V - Bald and Beard Division

Early Entry $50

Regular Entry $75

Level VI – Gregory Poole Power Series (Winner Take All)

Early Entry $4000

Regular Entry $5000

Prize Schedule as follows:

Level I – Billfish Release

1^st place 50%

2^nd place 30%

3^rd place 20%

Level II - Gamefish - Dolphin, Tuna and Wahoo – each species

1^st place 50%

2^nd place 30%

3^rd place 20%

Level III - Billfish Release Winner Take All

1^st place 100%

Level IV – Daily Billfish Release

1^st place 50%

2^nd place 30%

3^rd place 20%

Level V – Bald and Bearded

1^st Place 100%

Level VI – Gregory Poole Power Series Winner Take All

1^st Place 100%

Junior Angler – Trophy & Prizes

Lady Angler – Trophy & Prizes

Senior Angler – Trophy & Prizes

20% of all entry fees are retained by the tournament. In the event only two fish are weighted in a level paying three places, first will receive 60%, second 40%. If only one fish is weighed in a three-place level 100% of the prize will be paid to the single winner.

The BOCC reserves the right to adjust the rules according to State and Federal Regulations as updated. Final rules will be presented at the Captain’s Meeting.

King Mackerel Division

Tournament Rules

1. Registration. All boats must be registered with the tournament committee and entry fees paid prior to fishing in order to qualify for prizes and trophies. The early entry fee for the King Mackerel Tournament will be $250.00 per boat before July 1, 2008. Entry fee after July 1, 2008 will be $350.00 per boat. Once officially registered, all entry fees are non-refundable, with the exception of a tournament cancellation. Registration times are 4:00-9:00pm on Friday, 8/29. In the event the Tournament Committee cancels the Tournament, 80% of the entry fee will be refunded within sixty (60) days of the cancellation.

2. Boat number. This tournament is limited to 250 boats. The first 250 entries will be accepted.

3. Weather. In the event of “Extreme” weather the Tournament Committee reserves the right to adjust the schedule, postpone or cancel the tournament.

4. Fishing Times. This is a one day tournament. Fishing time begins at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, August 30, 2008. No lines, even for the purposes of jigging bait, are allowed in the water before 6:30am.

5. Fishing Boundaries. All boats must depart a North Carolina inlet: the most southern inlet will be Little River Inlet; the most northern inlet will be Oregon Inlet.

6. Weigh Station. All King Mackerel Tournament fish must be weighed-in at the Beaufort waterfront weigh dock. Weigh Station will open at 3:30 on August 30, 2008.

7. Official end time. There will be no official ending time for king mackerel fishing, but fish must be past a tournament official who will be stationed at the entrance to Taylor’s Creek at Olde Town Yacht Club by 5:00pm on Saturday, August 30, 2008. Scales will open at the Beaufort waterfront weigh dock at 3:00pm. Tournament boats may proceed directly to the weigh station for check-in/weigh until 4:00pm on Saturday. After 4:00pm, tournament boats must check in with the Official Tournament Check-In Boat located at the entrance of Taylor’s Creek. Boats failing to meet these deadlines will be excluded from the day’s competition.

8. Official Time. Official time will be GPS time.

9. Once a boat has checked-in at the checkpoint, boats must proceed toward the Official Weigh Station at the Beaufort waterfront in a safe, “commonsense,” single-file fashion without land stops.

10. Boats are to proceed in an orderly fashion to the weigh station. One member of the crew must remain with the fish to verify weight and time.

11. All fish must be weighed-in from the boat from which they are caught. All fish must be brought to the weigh station by the boat on which it was caught, under its own power. No trucking or overland transportation of fish is allowed. Fish must be offloaded from the boat at the designated area only. Any fish not offloaded from the boat at the designated area will be disqualified.

12. Maximum of one king mackerel per boat may be weighed-in per category...i.e. (1 per youth angler, 1 for lady Angler, one for placement prize money)

13. Fish must not be mutilated in any way, except for gaff and hook punctures. All fish must be fit for human consumption. All fish are subject to the scrutiny and inspection by the Tournament Committee, Weighmaster and Marine Fisheries Officials.

14. Protest. Any protest must be in writing and submitted to Tournament Headquarters within one(1) hour of the last fish weighed and must be accompanied by a $200.00 cash deposit. If the Rules Committee upholds the protest, the deposit will be returned: otherwise, the $200.00 cash deposit will become the property of the Beaufort Offshore Celebrity Classic.

15. Only King Mackerel may be entered into competition.

16. All fish must be caught by hook and line. Only six (6) fishing lines may be fished at one time on any boat.

17. Each boat should be represented at the Captain’s Meeting on Front Street, Beaufort, North Carolina on Friday, August 29, 2008. It is the responsibility of the boat captain to know any and all rule changes that may be announced at the Captain’s meeting.

18. In the event two or more fish are of the exact same weight, the fish weighed first will be declared the winner.

19. All boats entered must adhere to USCG regulations for their size.

20. Boat Replacement. A boat may be replaced after the close of registration, but only before fishing time begins (6:30am on August 30). Any changes made after registration closes must be approved by the tournament committee by radioing tournament headquarters and providing all replacement boat information.

21. The winner will be subject to a mandatory polygraph. The polygraph will be performed at a designated time and location. The captain and one other crew member must be present. Individuals that are required to take the polygraph test must not have consumed alcohol or any controlled substance within eight (8) hours prior to the test.

22. Issuance of prize money. Gregory Poole Beaufort Offshore Celebrity Classic will issue the prize monies to the winner after the successful completion of the polygraph.

23. Congregating. Any two or more boats coming together for any reason after competition begins and before weigh-in may be disqualified.

24. The Rules Committee reserves the right to inspect all boats entered into the competition at any time.

25. Any tournament official or tournament sponsor entering the tournament in compliance with the tournament rules is eligible for any and all prizes. Tournament committee will be monitoring VHF channel 72.

26. All tournament participants consent and authorize the Tournament Committee and their advertising/public relation agencies to use and reproduce names, voices, and/or photographs, whether taken or recorded and circulate the same for any and all purposes of publicity and advertising of all kinds and descriptions in any and all media formats.

27. The Tournament Rules Committee will determine the solution to questions or situations and its judgment WILL BE FINAL.

28. The Tournament Rules Committee reserves the right to refuse entry to anyone.

29.  Junior, Lady and Senior Anglers. Prizes will be awarded to the junior, lady and senior anglers whose boat weighs in the heaviest king mackerel.  A junior angler is determined by not having reached their 16^th birthday by the registration date of the tournament. A lady angler is any female who has reached their 16^th birthday by the registration date of the tournament. A senior angler is any angler who has reached their 65^th birthday by the registration date of the tournament.

30. TWT 23’ & Under Division.  Must meet all SKA rules pertaining to 23' and under.  

31. The BOCC reserves the right to adjust the rules according to State and Federal Regulations as updated. Final rules will be presented at the Captain’s Meeting.