RULES & REGULATIONS
Tournament Director: Dwight Keall - 705-492-0077
1.Penalties
At any time the tournament director, may impose a penalty without refund when he deems
appropriate for any violation of the rules, procedures or sportsmanship code.
Penalties for rule violations may include but are not limited to the following:
• Disqualification from the Tournament.
• Disqualification for a specific period of time or a life time expulsion.
*All decisions of the tournament director regarding penalties are final and may not be protested
​
2.Maximum Field
35 BOATS WILL BE THE MAXIMUM FIELD FOR ALL EVENTS
​
3.Tournament Hours
Qualifying Tournaments and both days of the Classic will be from 8:00am to 4:00pm.
​
4.Late Penalty
You will be charged a penalty of .50lbs (1/2 pound) per minute that you are late.
​
5.Boat Inspection
The tournament director may request a boat inspection at any time.
​
6.Eligible Species
Only large mouth and small mouth bass greater than 12” inches in length (tip of tail to tip of
nose) are eligible. A maximum of 5 fish may be weighed in. Weighing in a bass less than 12 inches will result in a .50lb (1/2 pound) penalty, additionally the short fish will not count.
No other species may be retained during tournament hours. Dead fish will count with a .50lb
(1/2 pound) penalty per dead fish.
​
7.Culling
Only five (5) fish of the eligible species are permitted in the live-wells while under power of the main engine. CULL BEFORE YOU MOVE
​
8.Weigh-In Procedure
• Weigh in bags will be provided and must be used.
• Once a bag of fish is presented to the officials at the tanks for inspection, that bag will be
considered final. No fish may be added or subtracted.
• Anglers can weigh in any time after 3pm on both days.
​
9.Re-Weigh
Each team is allowed one (1) re-weigh. The team must keep the (2nd ) second weight regardless of the result.
​
10.Big Fish
Only one (1) fish may be allowed to weigh in. This fish will be weighed first, therefore a culling
tag can remain on for identification. *A dead fish will not qualify for big fish.
​
11.Live well & Fish Care
All boats must have an operational live well.
Culling tags and scales must only be non-invasive clip type (i.e.: non-piercing)
​
12.Cell Phones
• Cell Phones during tournament hours are for EMERGENCY USE ONLY.
• Competitors may NOT use cell phones during tournament hours to gain advantageous
information from third-parties or other competitors. This includes social media, texting,
calling, and email.
*Cell Phones CAN be used at anytime to contact tournament officials
​
13.Transfers
Fish may be transferred to another competitor’s boat as a result of a mechanical failure of a
vessel, provided that one member of the downed vessel stays with the fish and provided that
the boat has its live wells separated. A call to the tournament director is mandatory in this circumstance. Late penalties will apply to this situation.
​
14.Pre-Fish
Competitors must be off the water by 5 pm the night prior to the tournament.
​
15.Insurance
All boats must carry a minimum $2,000,000.00 insurance liability. Proof of insurance must be
presented before fishing the Tournament.
​
16.Eligibility
Two (2) anglers per boat, with the operator having a valid Boaters Card. Both anglers must have a current Province of Ontario fishing license, one being a sport license.
​
17.Only Artificial Lures & Rods
No live bait. Scent or pork rind may be used. Only one rod per angler may be used, having a
bait in the water close to the boat after a cast and making a cast with another rod is a violation of this rule (All baits not in use must be on the deck of the boat).
​
18.Kill Switch
All boats must have a working kill switch which must be attached to the driver when the
outboard is in gear at any speed.
​
19.Life Jackets
All anglers must wear a personal floatation device (PFD) or life jacket at all times while under
power of the internal combustion engine during tournament hours. Please note that a self-inflating PFD does not qualify as an approved floatation device unless it is worn. Therefore anglers are cautioned to have at least 2 conventional PFD’s or life jackets on board if they wish to remove their inflatable PFD while fishing.
​
20.Sportsmanship
All contestants are required to follow high standards of sportsmanship, courtesy and
conversation. Any violation of the sportsmanship code during practice, or tournament may
result in a temporary suspension or expulsion from all future events. Examples of conduct not complying with those standards include, but are not limited to the
following:
• Failure to comply with any of the rules, regulations, guidelines and procedures.
• The use and or possession of illegal drugs or the consumption of alcoholic beverages or
marijuana.
• Failure to comply with municipal, provincial and federal laws and regulations.
• Following/Fishing too close, or any interference to another angler’s day of fishing,
including pre-fishing.
• Abuse of tournament Officials, Sponsors or Volunteers, this includes social media or any
other form of communication.
​
21.Boundaries
There are no boundaries.
**Exceptions:
• No fishing inside the slow zone (9km) on the Sturgeon river at any time of the tournaments,
including after passing the check in boat at the end of the day.
• No Fishing inside Hunters Bay Marina.
• No Fishing inside Bear Creek Bay
​
22.PROTEST/ANGLER’S CHALLENGE
Any protests made by competitors must be submitted to the tournament director by 9pm
following the final weigh-in. The cost to submit a protest is $100.
​
23. THE CLASSIC
Qualification:
• The angler must have paid and fished three (2) of the qualifying tournaments.
• The anglers must have paid the CLASSIC entry fee of $500 (per team) before September
1st 2025.
​
Official Practice:
• Official practice for the Classic will be from September 2nd, 2026 to Friday September
18th, 2026 at 5:00pm.
• During this time competitors can only practice on Lake Nipissing with their CLASSIC
partner, spouse/significant other, and children. For example, you may NOT practice with
a fellow competitor, a past competitor, a guide, or someone with local knowledge of
Lake Nipissing.
• A violation of this rule will be cause for automatic disqualification, without refund.
*The only exception to this rule is for CLASSIC competitors who make their living as a guide on Lake Nipissing or competitors who must be on the water for employment purposes.