January 10-13, 2018 9 2018 Tournament Rules 1. All participants must comply strictly with IGFA rules. The only exception will be in the event of multiple hookups. Then the angler may fight ad- ditional fish from a rod holder. Anglers must fight their own fish unas- sisted. Fish will be disqualified if rod, reel or line is handled by anyone other than the angler while fish is baited, hooked up and fought. 2. No one may retain hold of the leader to hook a fish. The fish must pull drag from the reel. 3. A sailfish release is official when the angler reels the swivel, float or leader into contact with the rod tip and/or the mate takes hold of the leader. Floats must come tight to top of leader at time of release. Release sailfish by cutting the leader. A reasonable effort must be made to cut the leader as close as possible to the mouth of the fish. Breaking the leader by jerking or snatching is not permitted & will disqualify a catch. 4. The intentional abandonment of the boat to fight or land a sailfish is prohibited. All anglers must remain in the boat while fighting fish. 5. Boats must retain all baits (fresh or used) during fishing hours. 6. Marlin releases do not count towards sailfish release points, but will be eligible for special awards. 7. If fish are being fought at “Lines Out” time, the captain MUST report the number of fish hooked up and only those fish, if successfully released, will count. ANGLING RULES 8. The official Silver Sailfish Derby VHF Channel will be announced at the Captain’s Meeting. All sailfish releases (time of release) must be radioed to the tournament score keeper. Each release will be audibly verified on the VHF. It is the responsibility of each boat to have a sufficient VHF radio and/or cellular phone. Tournament standings will be reported on the radio at the start and conclusion of each day. Live scoring via internet will be available throughout the tournament. Also, a scoreboard will be posted at Sailfish Marina daily. 9. If tagging sailfish, care should be exercised in placement of the tag, avoid- ing eyes, gills & stomach. Billfish Foundation Tags will be available at the Captain’s Meeting. 10.Derbyofficialsmaydisqualifyanyentrant/entry/captain/boatforanyrule infractions and will interpret all rules and constitute final authority. Any protests must be submitted in writing immediately to the Derby Commit- tee and MUST be accompanied by a $500.00 non-refundable protest fee. 11. All boats are subject to having an official observer on board at the sole discretion of the tournament committee. 12. All anglers must be properly licensed for fishing in salt water. Anglers, crews and captains fish at their own risk. ANGLER ELIGIBILITY: Open to all except professional anglers, captains and crew. Professional is defined as anyone who has been paid to fish, crew or captain on a fishing boat in the last year (12 months). The Derby Rules Committee reserves the right to determine an angler’s professional status. All entrants must fish on boats officially entered in the Silver Sailfish Derby and must fly the official Derby Pennant. LIMITED ENTRY: Tournament limited to 50 boats. FISHING DAYS: Thursday, January 11th & Friday, January 12th. DEPARTURE: AllboatsmustvisuallycheckoutofPalmBeach(LakeWorth) Inlet each morning between 6:30 a.m and 8:00 a.m. Any boats departing after 8:00 a.m. must visually check out at the Sailfish Marina. You must show your boat number and be audibly confirmed prior to leaving the inlet. All boats must return to Sailfish Marina by water, in the boat you fished on, to submit their daily score sheet by the designated time. BOATS WITH OBSERVERS: Tournament boats that are assigned an ob- server can make arrangements to pick up their observer at Sailfish Marina no earlier than 6:00 a.m. FISHING HOURS: Official “Lines In” is 8:00 a.m. and official “Lines Out” is 4:00 p.m. each day. BOUNDARIES: North: St. Lucie Power Plant (Lat. 27º 20’57.00” N) South: Boca Raton Inlet (Lat 26º 20’8.00” N) DAILY REPORTS: The tournament supplied Daily Report Form must be completed and submitted by boat at the designated Sailfish Marina Dock no later than 90 minutes (1 1/2 hours) after “Lines Out”. Register names of all anglers aboard, whether eligible fish were caught or not. List tag numbers if applicable; note estimated weight and length of released sails; official time BAIT & TACKLE SPECIFICATIONS 1. All anglers are limited to fishing 20 lb. (maximum) test line. The use of backing is permissible per IGFA rules. Leader (any material) is limited to 15 feet including floats/corks. The combined length of double line and leader shall not exceed 20 feet. 2. Tournament boats are allowed to fish a maximum of four (4) lines at any onetime. Thisincludestheuseofbaitrods. Eligiblefish(sailfish,dolphin, etc.) cannot be caught using a bait rod. No wire lines or planers allowed. Downriggers and kites are permissible. 3. Any type of live, dead or artificial bait can be used and are scored equally. The use of natural dead bait teasers/dredges is prohibited. Artificial bait/strip teasers and dredges are permitted. Chumming sailfish with live or dead bait is prohibited. Boats must retain all baits (fresh or used) during fishing hours. 4. All boats are required to fish with billfish approved non-offset circle hooks when fishing with live or dead baits. Any brand non-offset circle hook is permitted. Hooks must not be altered in any manner whatsoever. The use of other traditional hook styles is permitted only when fishing with unbaited artificial lures. of release must be indicated for each sailfish; weigh and record dolphin/ kingfish/wahoo/cobia/tuna at the marina on an official tournament scale. If a boat breaks down, their report may be delivered prior to the deadline by some other boat. The Sailfish Marina is the ONLY official weighing and recording station. The Silver Sailfish Derby is proud to be a sanctioned event in InTheBite Magazine’s Captain of the Year Cup program (COTY). The Derby is a member of the Florida Division. West Palm Beach Fishing Club (WPBFC) member Dale Wills, publisher of InTheBite Magazine, initiated the special award over a dozen years ago in an effort to recognize the talents of professional sport fishing captains and crews, and to stimulate participationintoptournamentsliketheSilver Silver Sailfish Derby a Sanctioned COTY Cup Event SailfishDerby. TheCOTYprogramincludesfivegeographicdivisions: East Coast, Florida, Gulf Coast, Hawaii and International. The COTY competition is based upon a point system determined by a team’s finish in sanctioned tournaments, 500pointsforfirstplace,300forsecondplace, 100 points for third place and 250 bonus points for a championship series win. Kudos to our friends at InTheBite Magazine for recognizing outstanding professionals in the sportfishing industry!