WBA Tournament Rules

Tournament Hours
– Nighttime tournaments will begin at 8 PM on Saturday and end at 6 AM on Sunday morning unless otherwise notified by the tournament director. Daytime tournaments will begin at the tournament director’s discretion.

Memberships

– All tournament participants must be a WBA member.

– 16 and older memberships are $20

– 15 and under memberships are free

Registration
– Registration fees are $30 per person for numbers and big 30 division and must be declared at registration.  

– Registration fees are $20 per person for hobby class.

– Entry fee is free per person under 16. No team will be allowed to participate until a registration fee is paid. 1 to 4 person teams only, up to 5 if the 5th is under 16.
– All shooters must be WBA members.
– When arriving at the tournament PLEASE REGISTER as soon as possible.
– Release forms must be signed and on record for each participant of a tournament.
– Registration will close 30 minutes prior to the tournament starting.

Prizes
– The awards for tournaments will be presented at an awards ceremony as soon as possible after the check in at 6AM. Awards will be given according to the following WBA payout schedule:
– Equal payouts for each place for both numbers and big 30.

– (Hobby class funds its own payout)

– 2 to 9 Boats

• 1^st 30%
  • Big Fish 15% | Wildcard 15% | WBA 10%

-10 to 19 Boats

• 1^st 20% | 2^nd 15% | 3^rd 5%
  • Big Fish 7.5% | Wildcard 7.5% | WBA 5%

– 20+ Boats

• 1^st 15% | 2^nd 10% | 3^rd 7% | 4^th 5% | 5^th 4%
  • Big Fish 6.5% | Wildcard 6.5% | WBA 5%

– All percentages based on 100% of entry fees; the WBA percentage goes to fund promotions for bowfishing, as well as fish disposal.

Numbers
– Winners in the Numbers Category are determined by the total number of legal rough fish shot by each team.

Big 30
– Winners in the Big 30 category will be determined by the total weight the teams 30 fish. Of those 30 fish, only 20 may be carp (including grass, silvers, and bighead carp) or buffalo. The remaining 10 “others” must be any other legal species that is not a carp or buffalo.

Hobby Class

– Hobby class is intended for new teams, young teams, less competitive, or less experienced teams. Big 10 format. This class is included in the big fish and wildcard but gets its own separate payout.

– Airboats are not allowed.

Hobby class payouts:

– 1-5 Boats

• 1^st 75%
  • Big Fish 10% | Wildcard 10% | WBA 5%

– 6-19 Boats

• 1^st 35% | 2^nd 25% | 3^rd 15%
  • Big Fish 10% | Wildcard 10% | WBA 5%

– 20+ Boats

• 1^st 30% | 2^nd 20% | 3^rd 14% | 4^th 10% | 5^th 8%
  • Big Fish 6.5% | Wildcard 6.5% | WBA 5%

 Please have your fish sorted and ready to be weighed before getting to the scales. A team’s biggest overall fish will break ties. Teams are responsible for choosing and having their biggest fish weighed.

Big Fish/Wild Card

– Teams may win one, or both, of the Big Fish and Wildcard prizes. Teams may enter just the Big Fish/Wild Card for $25 per boat.

– If a Wildcard fish is also the biggest overall fish, it wins only the Wildcard prize. The next biggest fish then wins the Big Fish prize.

Team of the Year

– Teams will be awarded points for where they place in their category
– Teams must submit a roster prior to the start of the 1st tournament of the year with the names of up to 6 team members.
– To qualify for points, a team must have at least 2 members of which 1 must be the captain or two thirds of said roster on the boat for each tournament
– Points will be awarded based on the place the team finishes during the tournament: Points start at 100 and go down 1 point per place; teams must weigh in or count in order to receive points. Big Fish & Wild Card are worth 1 point. 

– Only WBA sanctioned events qualify for points

– Tie Breaker: Will be determined by most tournament wins. (In case of tie for most tournament wins, a shoot off will be chosen between the 2 teams involved in the tie and will be overseen by officers/reps not involved in the tie.

Penalties

– A penalty of one fish, or 10lbs. per minute, will be assessed to any team returning late, for up to 15 minutes, after 6 AM. After 15 minutes, any teams not reported in will be disqualified. Penalty fish will be removed by the penalized team. NO grace period will be extended in the Big Fish Pot.

– Late teams are disqualified from Big Fish Pots.

General Rules
– Each team member must wear a Coast Guard approved life jacket anytime the boat is running faster than no wake.
– No shooting on tournament waters 24 hours prior to the start of any tournament.
– No baiting or chumming of fish.
– Fish must be taken with a bow: compound, recurve, crossbow, or long bow and a single arrow with a barbed fish point only.
– No arrows with explosives, or other shocking devices will be allowed.
– All arrows must have a line attached to it for retrieval. This line must be attached to a reel on the bow.
– No snares, no dip nets, and no gigs will be allowed in boats. Gaff hooks with single hook may be used for landing big fish.
– All airboats or fan motors must have a suitable shroud protecting the fan blade.
– Alcoholic beverages are PROHIBITED in boats during tournament hours.
– All fish barrels should be labeled with owner’s name and phone number.
– Identification of persons participating is required upon request.
– All contestants must leave with their boat from the tournament site at sendoff. Wade fishing (leaving the confines of the boat) is legal, but all team members must stay within 25 yards of boat or other teammates. Trailering to another public launch on the sanctioned water body(s) is allowed.
– Each team will be allowed the use of only one boat during the tournament. If mechanical trouble requires the use of another boat, that boat must be inspected before leaving the tournament site.
– No un-sportsmanlike conduct will be tolerated. Teams will stay a minimum of 25 yards away from other teams whenever possible.
– All participants must check-out upon leaving the tournament. If leaving early, please leave number plaque in the designated place at the launch site, or specified vehicle stated during the tournament meeting.
– It is the responsibility of tournament participants to know and obey state and local fish, game and boating laws. Any DNR or Vehicle violations issued while taking part in the tournament will result in tournament disqualification.
– Suspected transferring of fish between teams will result in disqualification of all teams involved. At no time should one team’s fish be placed in another team’s boat.

Disqualification
1) Bring to attention of tournament director.
2) Go in front of board (consisting of WBA officers/representatives) with proof of the infraction.
3) A formal protest fee in the amount of $50.00 must be made to officials and posted prior to the awards ceremony. The protest fee will be refunded if the protest stands.
-Cheating will result in expulsion from the club for WBA members. Proof must be indisputable.
-Failure to comply with tournament rules will result in disqualification and entry fee WILL NOT BE REFUNDED.
-The decision of tournament officials will be FINAL

Tournament Directors                                                                                       -Tournament hosts and sponsors will not be responsible for accidents, or lost property.
-Tournament boundaries will be determined by the tournament director. Tournament director will designate floats to mark NO WAKE ZONES at tournaments where safety is a concern.