SALTWATER FISHING TOURNAMENTS
Saltwater fishing tournaments target redfish, speckled trout, snook and other species. Catch and Release tournaments (C&R) promote conservation and a new tournament fishing ethic, but not all saltwater tournaments practice catch and release. Catch and Release tournaments generate and reinforce positive public relation images for tournament sponsors, competitive angling and tournament directors.
Keep alive saltwater fish for weigh-in ensures you the competitive edge when tournament fishing whether you're fishing a Catch and Release tournament or a Catch and Kill tournament.
Why? Because tournament fish weigh more alive than dead. From the moment of death, dehydration and water weight loss begins immediately and that weight loss is insidious. Most importantly, the catch is worth more money alive than dead. The competitive edge is important when you're tournament fishing for money and that weight edge is lost when your fish dies.
Death and dehydration always reduces total body weight and greatest total body weight is what wins fishing tournaments. At the weighmaster's scale, total body weight separates winners from losers in competitive tournament fishing. The longer the fish has been dead, the more total body weight it loses. Lost body weight can mean lost tournaments.
Weighing-in dead tournament fish can be more expensive than the cost and efforts to keep it alive. Without the competitive edge, chances of winning become less favorable as more body weight is lost hour after hour in the ice chest. The primary effect of weighing in dead dehydrated fish may dramatically effect your odds of winning determined by ounce. Every ounce counts when you're fishing competitively.
Releasing the catch alive to fight in next week's tournament gained conservation fame, impressive sponsors and prestige due to Ray Scott's innovative marketing strategies with B.A.S.S. years ago. Some say, Mr. Scott originated the concept of catch and live release tournament fishing in the world of tournament bass fishing. The evolution of tournament fish care began in the early 1970's; fish stringers were replaced with boat livewells. Tournament fish care is dynamic and continues evolving to date for freshwater and now, also for saltwater tournament fishing.
The catch and release marketing concept tremendously impacted the public's image of competitive bass tournament fishing and quickly advanced to other freshwater tournament fishing circuits. Catch and release, practiced by tournament anglers and directed by tournament officials, is perceived by the public and outdoors' writers as actively practicing wildlife conservation only when it works. When C&R doesn't work, the media writes about tournament delayed mortality and tournament fish kills. The perceived public image of fishing tournaments in America is as important these days as conservation of natural resources. In recent years, the evolution of tournament fish care has made tremendous advancements due to new state of the art livewell technology and the efforts of numerous fishery research scientists.
Several innovative coastal saltwater tournament circuits have incorporated C&R rules. Some saltwater tournaments motivate contestants with positive incentives, FREE ADDITIONAL BOUNS WEIGHT for each live fish weighed-in. These novel saltwater tournament C&R rules encourage and reward competitive anglers who make an extra effort to keep their catch alive with positive incentives. The reputation of the tournament circuit is rewarded too, outdoors' writers write about the great job anglers and tournament officials have done releasing the catch alive and unharmed and proud sponsors are recognized for supporting wildlife conservation. Everyone wins when C&R is successful.
Many saltwater C&R tournament circuits do not penalize or punish anglers by deducting weight or points when contestants choose to kill their catch. Contestants who fail or do not desire to keep their catch alive receive no reward or punishment when fish are weighed-in dead.
Paradoxically and unfortunately, most dead fish penalties and punishment rules primarily apply to freshwater bass tournaments, crappie tournaments and walleye tournaments. These C&R rules, reinforced with strong negative incentives that can directly affect your winnings, punish contestants for weighing-in a dead fish by deducting weight or points from their catch, regardless of the angler's efforts to keep his catch alive. Freshwater tournament anglers receive no free bonus weight or free bonus points for weighing-in live fish.
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