IDA WAlleye Tour Tournament Rules
In-Depth Angling River Series
RULES AND REGULATIONS
RULE CHANGES
These rules will remain unchanged. Interpretation of these rules shall be left exclusively to the tournament director. The decision of the tournament director shall be final in all matters. Failure to comply with any rule may result in disqualification. All rules have “loop holes”; contestants are reminded that the spirit of the rule will prevail in all judgment cases.
AGE LIMIT
Contestants under 18 years of age must have the signature of his/her parent or legal guardian on the entry form, as well as the contestant’s signature. At least one member of the team must be age 18 or over.
ELIGIBILITY
These events are open to the public. Each team must complete, sign and submit an official entry form along with payment. Tournament officials reserve the right to refund any entry fee, if it shall choose, for any reason. Contestants must enter as two-person teams. Fishing alone is discouraged. If a situation arises where only one member of the team is able to participate, proper notification must be made to the In Depth Angling Tournament Director as soon as possible. Upon approval, the Director may provide an observer.
SAFETY
Safe boating must be observed at all times. Each contestant must wear a Coast Guard approved personal floatation device t all times when the combustion engine is operating above trolling speed. The floatation device must be fastened securely and the safety-stop switch attached.
BOAT REQUIREMENTS
All boats must meet Coast Guard and State requirements. Motors may not exceed BIA rating established by the manufacturer. All boats must have an aerated livewell large enough to sustain the limit of fish in releasable condition. All boats are required to carry a minimum of $100,000 of liability insurance.
SPORTSMANSHIP
All contestants are expected to follow high standards of safety, conservation, and sportsmanship. No alcoholic beverages or non-prescription drugs are allowed in the boat at any time.
PARTNER SUBSTITUTION
Each team must declare a Captain and Partner. Points are distributed to teams and points may not be transferred in the event of partner changes. A partner change constitutes a new team. Substitutes can not be a member of another team to accumulate points, unless prior approval from the director is given.
TIES
If a tie occurs, the team with the heaviest single fish weighed will determine the tiebreaker. If a second tiebreaker is needed, any cash awards of the two finishers will be added together and divided equally to each team. Points placing will be determined by the flip of a coin.
ENTRY FEES
100 BOAT MAXIMUM (unless otherwise stated). The entry fee is $100.00 for all one-day events. This does not include an optional $10 Big Fish pot (100% payback)
TOURNAMENT ENTRIES/CANCELLATIONS
Tournament entries are based on a first received, first entered basis. Cancellations may be granted upon review by IDA officials. A $25 processing fee for transfers or cancellations may be assessed.
BOAT INSPECTION
There will be mandatory boat inspection prior to every tournament start. All teams are subject to inspection anytime during tournament hours.
RULES AND BAG LIMITS
All fish must be caught live and in a manner consistent to rules and regulations governing said body of water. All rules regarding species to be weighed, bag limits, and minimum size, will be determined by each individual event. Teams will receive rules regarding said event with entry confirmation. Rules will also be posted on the web site for individual events. No boat may come in contact with another boat during tournament hours. Contestants may not pass or receive information, tackle or bait from any other boat during tournament hours. Contestants may not have another boat hold or reserve fishing locations.
Walleye, Sauger and Saugeye will be weighed. The minimum length of any fish weighed will be 15 inches. Teams will be allowed to weigh a maximum of five eligible fish per team at each tournament. Any changes to this will be announced at the rules meeting.
The official ruler will be “The Judge.” Fish will be measured by an official with fish’s mouth closed and tail fanned or squeezed (based on Tournament regulations, but not violating state or local laws).
If a “short” or “long” fish is presented for weigh-in, the biggest eligible fish weighed that day will be disqualified for each non-acceptable length fish presented. If a state or local violation occurs by bringing a “short” or “long” fish to the scale, the team will automatically be disqualified from that tournament.
A .20 lb. deduction will be made for each fish determined to be non-releasable.
At least one team member must accompany the catch to the scale and initial the official weigh-in slip and will receive a copy for their records. In Depth Angling reserves the right to correct any errors written on the weigh slip.
WEIGH-IN
Teams must come to the official weigh-in site by water. Weigh-in slips must be signed by one partner to verify weight. Contestants who return up to 15 minutes late will forfeit 1/2 of their fish weight. Contestants who return more than 15 minutes late will forfeit their total fish weight for that day. Boats within line of sight and off plane at official time are considered on time. You must check-in whether weighing fish or not.
REGISTRATION AND RULES MEETING
Set times for registration and rules meetings will be determined by the tournament director and posted as such. There will be a brief Rules Meeting prior to each event. One team member must be present.
WEATHER CONDITIONS
Tournament officials will only begin tournaments during acceptable 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 permitted to seek safe shelter until weather conditions pass. Cellular phones, CBs or marine radios are allowed for emergencies only.
PROTESTS
The protest must be in writing and accompanied by a $500.00 check made out to In Depth Angling. The protest must be handed to the tournament director within 15 minutes after the scales have closed. The burden of proof will be on the team filing the protest. If necessary, the tournament officials will investigate the protest and employ a polygraph test. If the protest is found invalid, In Depth Angling will cash the $500.00 check, and the team filing the protest will be financially responsible for all costs incurred. If the protest is valid, the disqualified team will be responsible for all costs incurred and the $500.00 fee will be returned to the filing team. All decisions by the tournament officials will be final and without recourse. Protest deemed frivolous will be dealt with in a severe manner. Only tournament contestants can file a protest.
POLYGRAPH-VOICE STRESS TEST/RANDOM OBSERVER
All contestants by signing the entry form agree to submit to a polygraph-voice stress test and the possibility of having a random observer placed in their boat during competition days. Polygraph-voice stress tests will be administered to either or both contestants within a period not to exceed 21 days after completion of event. Prize money and awards will be held pending results of the polygraph-voice stress test. Failure to submit to polygraph-voice stress test will result in immediate disqualification from current and all future In-Depth Angling Walleye Tour events.
PAYOUT AND POINT STRUCTURE
Payout will be 80% of total entry fees paid back to the top 15% of teams entered. One-day events will be worth a total of 500 points. Finishing positions will be awarded in 2 point decreasing increments. Teams not weighing fish will be awarded 50 points for participating. Team of the Year will be based on points received at the top four one-day events. Special awards for team of the Year, only points accumulated with the same partner will be used.
The above rules are not all inclusive in regards to sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In Depth Angling reserves the right to interpret and enforce rule violations not covered above at their discretion.
Questions?
Contact: Jon Jordan – 2004 IDA Tournament Director
[email protected]
, my bad. Man I need a calender. 
they were good though.
BUSTED!!!