Home
Select a Lake
How To Enter
Tournament Info
Contact
Support Our Sponsors
2007-2008 Midwest Fish Tournaments LLC
How to Register:
Entry Fees:
2008 Big Bass Bash Rules
Decisions:
-The following rules for the Big Bass Bash Tournament will be interpreted solely by the tournament director. The director reserves the right to reject any entry he feels is not in the best interest of the Tournament. Any announcements made by the tournament director at the tournament site take precedent over written rules. All decision of the tournament director are final.
Broadcast:
-All announcements concerning semi-hourly results will be broadcast over the official radio station
for that lake. Please bring a portable radio in your boat.
Safety: The Following is Mandatory:
-Running lights if you get on the water before daylight.
-All contestants must wear a securely fastened US Coast Guard approved life vest while the main engine is running.
-All boats must have an operating kill switch while the main engine is running. You may not get out of your boat at any time unless an emergency occurs.
-All boats must be equipped with an operating live well. (An aerator in an ice chest is acceptable)
-Boat owners must have at least $100,000 of Boating Liability Insurance. Proof of insurance may be asked for at any time.
-No alcoholic beverages allowed during tournament hours.
Eligibility:
-Participants under 18 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or adult with written parental permission.
-All local, state, federal and Game & Fish regulations shall apply and must be observed during tournament hours. All tournament boats may be inspected by tournament officials at any time.
-If a contestant is disqualified for rules violations, all other contestants in his/her boat will be disqualified.
-This tournament is designed for amateur anglers, if you have made $12,000 or more from tournament fishing a year prior to tournament date, you are ineligible to fish.
. This does not apply to previous winners of the Big Bass Bash. Anyone who has provided guide service on the tournament lake for pay within the past 90 days of this official tournament date will not be eligible to compete in this tournament.
-Each boat may have up to 3 contestants. Each contestant is responsible for their own catch. Only paid contestants are allowed in a boat. Non contestants are not allowed in a paid contestants boat at any time during tournament hours.
-Contestants must have a valid fishing license for the tournament lake in their possession unless exempt. License may be asked for at the time of weigh-in.
Registration and Entry Fee:
-Entry form with complete entry fee must be received before fishing. No refunds or substitution of entry fees allowed.
-Checks WILL NOT be accepted when registering at the lake.
Permitted Fishing Areas and Hours:
-Official Tournament Lake off limits from fishing begins at 8:00pm on Friday and ends at starting on Saturday, and 8:00pm Saturday and ends at starting time on Sunday.
-Permitted fishing areas are anywhere on tournament waters available to the public and accessible by boat, except areas designated as “off limits” or “no fishing “ by local, state, or federal officials or within 50 yards of a competitor’s boat that was first anchored. You cannot fish within the marker buoys or within 100 yards of any weigh-in station.
-No contestant may leave a boat to land a fish.
-Contestants may leave from any launch site on the official tournament lake. No casting until starting time of the tournament.
Weigh-In, Sportsmanship & Conservation:
-Participants are expected to show sportsmanship, safety, courtesy, and conservation during tournament hours.
-Use of a professional guide is prohibited during the week (7days) prior to the starting time of the tournament.
-Each contestant is allowed to have 2 fish in their possession at any time during the tournament. Fish entered into the semi-hourly contest do not carry over from hour to hour. Only the largest fish per contestant is eligible to win an overall prize.
-Semi hourly weigh-in times will be as follows: 6-9 a.m.(7-9 a.m. for LOZ), 9-11 a.m., 11-1 p.m., and 1-3 p.m. Each individual may weigh-in 1 fish per time slot, up to 4 a day.
-A fish may only be weighed once. Once the fish has been weighed-in it becomes property of the tournament committee and will, if possible, be returned live and healthy to the lake.
-A 15 inch length limit and all other lake rules will apply.
-All bass caught during the tournament hours must be weighed in on the day of the catch.
-No trailering of boats. You must come to the weigh-in by water.
-Only largemouth, smallmouth, and Kentucky spotted bass( Black bass) will be eligible to be weighed in.
-All fishing will be done with a rod and reel and artificial lures only. The use of pork rinds is acceptable. No trolling is permitted.
-No electronic tracking device (implanted microchips) may be used to locate fish for tournament purposes. However, depth finders and graph charts are acceptable.
-No contestant can have more than one (1) fish in a weigh-in bag, and cannot weigh-in more than one fish per each weigh-in period. Tournament weigh-in bags will be provided, but you may use your own.
-Any artificially or preserved bass will be disqualified and that contestant will be subject to prosecution under federal law.
-No bass allowed on ice. Bass must be alive when they are brought to the weigh-in. Dead fish will not be weighed-in.
Ties:
-All hourly ties will be broken by the earliest weigh-in time for that hour, if weigh-in times are the same tiebreaker will be determined by earliest application entry.
Ties for the overall big bass will be determined by earliest application entry.
Protests:
-All protests must be submitted to the Director within fifteen (15) minutes of the weigh-in completion.
Polygraph:
-Each contestant agrees by signing the entry form, to submit to polygraph testing. Tests WILL be given at random at the Director’s discretion. Anyone who fails or refuses to take the test will be immediately disqualified.
Legal Concerns:
-The tournament sponsors, officers, employees, etc. will not be responsible for boating or water accidents. Each tournament contestant will be solely responsible for his/her actions with regard to inclement weather or any other potentially dangerous situation which may arise. The contestant assumes the risk of any and all damages or injury of any nature which may result from any source during the tournament. Should any contestant be a minor, a parent/guardian shall grant such release on the part of the minor.
-The tournament director has the right to cancel the tournament for any reason. Shall this occur a refund will be given to each contestant. The tournament could be postponed and date of tournament rescheduled due to reasons beyond our control.
-The following rules for the Big Bass Bash Tournament will be interpreted solely by the tournament director. The director reserves the right to reject any entry he feels is not in the best interest of the Tournament. Any announcements made by the tournament director at the tournament site take precedent over written rules. All decision of the tournament director are final.
Broadcast:
-All announcements concerning semi-hourly results will be broadcast over the official radio station
for that lake. Please bring a portable radio in your boat.
Safety: The Following is Mandatory:
-Running lights if you get on the water before daylight.
-All contestants must wear a securely fastened US Coast Guard approved life vest while the main engine is running.
-All boats must have an operating kill switch while the main engine is running. You may not get out of your boat at any time unless an emergency occurs.
-All boats must be equipped with an operating live well. (An aerator in an ice chest is acceptable)
-Boat owners must have at least $100,000 of Boating Liability Insurance. Proof of insurance may be asked for at any time.
-No alcoholic beverages allowed during tournament hours.
Eligibility:
-Participants under 18 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or adult with written parental permission.
-All local, state, federal and Game & Fish regulations shall apply and must be observed during tournament hours. All tournament boats may be inspected by tournament officials at any time.
-If a contestant is disqualified for rules violations, all other contestants in his/her boat will be disqualified.
-This tournament is designed for amateur anglers, if you have made $12,000 or more from tournament fishing a year prior to tournament date, you are ineligible to fish.
. This does not apply to previous winners of the Big Bass Bash. Anyone who has provided guide service on the tournament lake for pay within the past 90 days of this official tournament date will not be eligible to compete in this tournament.
-Each boat may have up to 3 contestants. Each contestant is responsible for their own catch. Only paid contestants are allowed in a boat. Non contestants are not allowed in a paid contestants boat at any time during tournament hours.
-Contestants must have a valid fishing license for the tournament lake in their possession unless exempt. License may be asked for at the time of weigh-in.
Registration and Entry Fee:
-Entry form with complete entry fee must be received before fishing. No refunds or substitution of entry fees allowed.
-Checks WILL NOT be accepted when registering at the lake.
Permitted Fishing Areas and Hours:
-Official Tournament Lake off limits from fishing begins at 8:00pm on Friday and ends at starting on Saturday, and 8:00pm Saturday and ends at starting time on Sunday.
-Permitted fishing areas are anywhere on tournament waters available to the public and accessible by boat, except areas designated as “off limits” or “no fishing “ by local, state, or federal officials or within 50 yards of a competitor’s boat that was first anchored. You cannot fish within the marker buoys or within 100 yards of any weigh-in station.
-No contestant may leave a boat to land a fish.
-Contestants may leave from any launch site on the official tournament lake. No casting until starting time of the tournament.
Weigh-In, Sportsmanship & Conservation:
-Participants are expected to show sportsmanship, safety, courtesy, and conservation during tournament hours.
-Use of a professional guide is prohibited during the week (7days) prior to the starting time of the tournament.
-Each contestant is allowed to have 2 fish in their possession at any time during the tournament. Fish entered into the semi-hourly contest do not carry over from hour to hour. Only the largest fish per contestant is eligible to win an overall prize.
-Semi hourly weigh-in times will be as follows: 6-9 a.m.(7-9 a.m. for LOZ), 9-11 a.m., 11-1 p.m., and 1-3 p.m. Each individual may weigh-in 1 fish per time slot, up to 4 a day.
-A fish may only be weighed once. Once the fish has been weighed-in it becomes property of the tournament committee and will, if possible, be returned live and healthy to the lake.
-A 15 inch length limit and all other lake rules will apply.
-All bass caught during the tournament hours must be weighed in on the day of the catch.
-No trailering of boats. You must come to the weigh-in by water.
-Only largemouth, smallmouth, and Kentucky spotted bass( Black bass) will be eligible to be weighed in.
-All fishing will be done with a rod and reel and artificial lures only. The use of pork rinds is acceptable. No trolling is permitted.
-No electronic tracking device (implanted microchips) may be used to locate fish for tournament purposes. However, depth finders and graph charts are acceptable.
-No contestant can have more than one (1) fish in a weigh-in bag, and cannot weigh-in more than one fish per each weigh-in period. Tournament weigh-in bags will be provided, but you may use your own.
-Any artificially or preserved bass will be disqualified and that contestant will be subject to prosecution under federal law.
-No bass allowed on ice. Bass must be alive when they are brought to the weigh-in. Dead fish will not be weighed-in.
Ties:
-All hourly ties will be broken by the earliest weigh-in time for that hour, if weigh-in times are the same tiebreaker will be determined by earliest application entry.
Ties for the overall big bass will be determined by earliest application entry.
Protests:
-All protests must be submitted to the Director within fifteen (15) minutes of the weigh-in completion.
Polygraph:
-Each contestant agrees by signing the entry form, to submit to polygraph testing. Tests WILL be given at random at the Director’s discretion. Anyone who fails or refuses to take the test will be immediately disqualified.
Legal Concerns:
-The tournament sponsors, officers, employees, etc. will not be responsible for boating or water accidents. Each tournament contestant will be solely responsible for his/her actions with regard to inclement weather or any other potentially dangerous situation which may arise. The contestant assumes the risk of any and all damages or injury of any nature which may result from any source during the tournament. Should any contestant be a minor, a parent/guardian shall grant such release on the part of the minor.
-The tournament director has the right to cancel the tournament for any reason. Shall this occur a refund will be given to each contestant. The tournament could be postponed and date of tournament rescheduled due to reasons beyond our control.