Bowfishing Tournament Series Rules

All participants will be required to sign a liability release, media release and polygraph release  form. If there are any team members under theage of 18, a parent or guardian signature is required for these forms prior tothe tournament.

General Rules:

1. PRE-Registration will open February 12^th, 2024. ENTRY FEE IS: $175 per team with max 4 person teams. Pre-event tournament sign in starts at 5:00pm at each lake. CASH is preferred
2. Payout is: 25% of total entry fees per event (each lake) with 50% deposited into pool for championship and paid to series Champions at the final lake event. The more teams entered at each lake the greater the payouts.
3.  All teams must be registered, paid and have signed release forms prior to event start to be eligible to compete. Release forms will be valid during the tournament series-(no need for new forms each event if one is already filed for 2024.) Release forms will be emailed to you upon request or available at the lake sign in. Payment can be made over the phone. (Cash is preferred if payment is made during tournament registration at the lake.) Team Captains are responsible for collecting team payment and release forms from team members and ensuring teams are paid in full.
4. Launch time: 8:00pm: Tournament end 4:00am:  Weigh in time: 5:00am.  A mandatory pre-tournament meeting will start at one half hour before launch time at each lake; ALL team CAPTAINS or CO-CAPTAINS must be present.
5. Alvarado Archery Reserves the right to allow or not allow late entries OR revoke entries for any reason. If allowed, late entries will leave last in take-off order.
6. You can have up to 4 team members per event. You cannot have any non-team member onboard during the tournament without tournament director approval. We realize not all team members may be able to compete in each event so you can change team members during the series but only 4 members can compete per event. Teams must assign a captain and a co-captain per team. Either the captain or co-captain must be at the event for the team to be viable (unless ok’d by tournament director under unforeseen circumstances) but the other 3 members can interchange each event. The designated team captain doesn’t have to be the owner of the boat .) Non team members cannot aid with any part of the fishing tournament. NO collaboration with other teams or transferring of fish between teams or boats. This action results in DQ and kicked out of tournament. (Each boat has a designated captain and is considered a separate team.)
7. While we encourage youth to be involved in our event, all teams must have at least one adult team member 18 years old or older. (All participants under 18 must have parent/guardian signatures for liability and media release. Please ask ahead of the event if needed.)
8. Team cancellation requests must be received 72 hours in advance of the start of the tournament for refund. Teams will be refunded tournament fees less 20%. Side pot fees paid will not be refunded.
9. Tie Breaker Individual Events: In the event there is a tie in total points at the lake event, the team that had the heaviest carp species will be declared the winner. If there is still a tie the team with heaviest gar will be the winner. If still tied we will flip a coin to determine the winner for that event.
10. Tie Breaker Series Championship: : In the event there is a tie in total points at the end of the series the team that had the heaviest fish during the series trail will be declared the winner. If still tied the tiebreaker will be the heaviest fish weighed at the final. If still tied the team that fished the most events will be the winner and if still tied the winner will be determined by a coin toss.
11. No Pre-weighing or Re-weighing of fish.
12. Teams depart from & return to the launch ramp designated before the tournament
13. Weigh In: Each team will be given a token with their team number on it. After fishing and returning to check-in, BEFORE cut-off time, team captains must present the token to a staff member at weigh in site before the designated weigh in time (or be in line) to be eligible for weigh-in. Any teams that do NOT return a token before the official weigh-in time may be disqualified. We ask that team members are present at weigh-in to assist weighing fish. Team members are expected to move fish for weighing and are solely responsible for disposing of all fish after weigh-in.
14. If your team forfeits and leaves before weigh-in, one member PLEASE call or text the tournament organizer (817-729-5602) and let him/her know that your team will not be returning for weigh-in. We want all teams to be accounted for after the tournament for safety reasons.
15. Alvarado Archery has the right to change and enforce rules as deemed necessary and has the right to deny entry and/or disqualify any team at any time for any reason as we see fit to preserve the safety and integrity of the tournament.
16.  Failure to comply with tournament rules could result in disqualification and forfeiture of entry fee.
17. Polygraph testing will be on-site and winning team members must pass exam. Randomly selected teams may be polygraphed.
18. All participants are required to sign a liability and media release form at registration or pre-registration.

Boundary Rules:

1.Boundaries: any public waters on the designated lake accessible from a public boat launch.

2.OFF LIMITS: to be determined once lake is chosen at pre-tournament meeting

3. Public boat launch means any boater can use the launch and it is open to the public. (You cannot use a private boat launch or shoot fish in a private pond or lake.)

Fish & Fishing:

1.Legal Species: Any Legal Species by Texas Parks and Wildlife Regulations. Please check the TX regulations directly to be sure this list remains accurate.   Carp & Minnow species, Gar species, and Suckers are legal for this tournament.

2.A Texas fishing license is required anytime you are on the water shooting fish.

3.Winner will be determined by the total weight of their 20 largest fish. NO culling at weigh-in, teams are responsible to have their 20 biggest fish READY to be weighed when it's their turn to weigh.

4.  Largest Carp or Gar species (except alligator gar) will be eligible for largest fish side pots. (side pots are optional) Entry for big fish is $25 per team per species. Payout is 100%

Vehicle, Boat, Transport & Equipment:

1.You must finish the tournament with the same marked vehicle and boat that you started with.

2.Each boat should have proper boat registration numbers and papers.

3.Each boat should have the following safety equipment. Proper running lights, fire extinguisher, horn or whistle, life jackets for each individual in the boat and one throwable PFD. We recommend each team member wear a Coast Guard approved life jacket any time the boat is running faster than no wake.

4.Fan-boats and airboats are allowed. You are responsible for checking local laws/rules regarding eligibility of airboats on the lakes we fish.

5.Trailering will NOT be allowed, you must launch and return from the same official ramp.

6.Please obey speed limits and traffic laws both on and off the water. Any citation called in to tournament staff is the sole responsibility of the violator.

Fish Handling:

1.Only single hook gaffs can be used during the tournament for landing big fish. Nets, snares or gigs are not allowed.

2.All fish must be shot with bow and arrow during the tournament and show evidence of such.

3.Team members may NOT wade in the water to shoot fish. All team members must remain on the boat at all times (unless it is necessary to enter shallow water to dislodge a boat from structure, or any other NON FISHING purpose). You cannot drop team members off on shore to fish from shore or any other structure. All team members must fish from the boat they entered in the tournament.

4.Scouting is allowed up to 24 hours prior to the start of the tournament for each lake. Teams or team members can not "fish", "scout" OR be present on the designated lake after 7:00pm the Friday before the tournament.(So basically, no activity Friday)

5.Fish disposal is the responsibility of each team and must be done by legal means. TEXAS LAW DOESN’T ALLOW DUMPING OF FISH BACK IN THE WATER. (Itis Illegal to return any fish in Texas waters that have been shot with a bow.)

6.No altering fish to add or remove weight. Small fish must be together in one piece. Tournament officials reserve the right to DQ any team suspected of alterations.

Sportsmanship:

1.Please respect teams on the water by not crowding other teams. Do not “leap frog” ahead of teams clearly fishing along a bank. Try to maintain at least 500 yds between/away from teams actively fishing .

2.ABSOLUTELY NO TEAMING UP, NO BUDDY SYSTEM AND NO TRANSFERRING OF FISH FROM ONE BOAT OR VEHICLE TO ANOTHER. THIS IS AN AUTOMATIC DQ AND ELIMINATION FROM THE TOURNAMENT SERIES FOR BOTH TEAMS.

3.Any participant involved in poor sportsmanship, heated arguments or similar behavior will have their team warned or disqualified at Alvarado Archery staff discretion. Any physical altercations by participants will result in the team being disqualified and banned from any future AA Bow fishing events. All involved parties will be asked to leave immediately.

4.Any accusation of a team cheating must be accompanied by a $100 protest fee and concrete evidence of such. Photos, videos, proof of citation etc.  If tournament staff agrees with your protest, the protest fee will be refunded and the accused team will be disqualified.

5.AA Tournament staff will have final decision on all protest claims and complaints.

Alcohol:

1.Alcohol is permitted but is at the discretion of each team. Alvarado Archery is not liable for any alcohol related incidents and reserve the right to disqualify a team with intoxicated members. NO illegal drugs permitted, before, during or after our tournament. If you are perceived under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you will not be allowed to weigh-in and will be disqualified.  Final determination of a disputed claim may be determined by local law enforcement

THAT’S IT! HAVE A GREAT TOURNAMENT!