Rules

All anglers entering a tournament are subject to the following rules. By entering the tournament you are agreeing that you have read, accept, and will abide by the rules.

Rules for All Tournaments and Championships

TEAMS: You may enter alone or with a partner of your choice. No more than two (2) persons will be allowed in a participating boat during tournament hours. You may fish with a different partner; however, the same partner must fish 3 of 5 tournaments to qualify for Championship. Each team member must have a membership.
RULES MEETING: One team member must be present at Rules Meeting and remain until the Rules Meeting is dismissed unless approved by Tournament Director for emergency reasons. Rules meeting will be before start time. (time/date is TBA)
WEATHER: In the case of extreme weather/water conditions or National emergencies, Lonestar Crappie Trail shall have the right to postpone or cancel any tournaments with the return of entry fees.
FISHING HOURS: Fishing hours will be posted on the Tournament Information Page and will be announced at the Rules Meeting.
ENTRY FEES/REFUNDS: All entries will be paid in cash at Rules Meeting or the morning of the Tournament before live well check. Lonestar Crappie Trail will not refund or forward entry fees for lake conditions, fishing conditions or bite.
STATE LAW: Teams must comply with all state and boating regulations throughout the entire year, including the use of P.F.D.’s and kill switches. Fishing, boating regulations, and licenses are the responsibility of team members. State fishing laws and boating regulations supersede tournament rules. Violation of state or lake laws is grounds for disqualification.

MINORS: Any minor (under 18) who participates, must make arrangements to have a parent or guardian present at the Rules Meeting to sign a release form or have the release on the entry form signed prior to the tournament to allow a polygraph examination if required by the tournament director.
BIG FISH: Big fish entries are included in the tournament entry. Only one (1) Big Fish entry per team. Only one (1) big fish will be weighed in. Teams will have that fish marked and designated as their big fish at weigh-in.
MEMBERSHIP: Lonestar Crappie Trail membership is required to fish all Lonestar Crappie Trail events. Membership fee is $50 per team member. Failure to have an active/paid membership is grounds for disqualification. Lonestar Crappie Trail reserves the right to refuse and/or revoke memberships without cause, reason and/or explanation and without recourse at our own discretion. Membership does not guarantee the ability to enter a tournament. Lonestar Crappie Trail may deny tournament entry to a member without cause, reason, explanation or recourse.
PAYOUTS: Checks will be given after the tournament after all anglers have weighed in and weights have been recorded. Teams must be present to receive a payout. A team member fishing alone can qualify for payouts and the championship. Payouts pay 1 per 5 teams; Big Fish pays first place.
OFF LIMITS: Tournament waters are off-limits at 4:00 pm the day prior to the start of the competition unless otherwise stated on the Tournament Information page. Anglers must stop fishing at 4:00 pm the day prior to the start of competition, then exit the tournament waters immediately.
FISHABLE WATERS: Fishing within 50 feet of a Marina gas pump or within 50 feet of a competitor’s boat, which is first anchored, is prohibited (Trolling motors must be in up position and anchor rope visible or any shallow water anchoring device must be deployed to be considered anchored). A safe and courteous distance (50 feet) should be maintained when trolling motors are in use. Boats may fish anywhere except areas designated as “off limits” or “no fishing” by local, state or federal officials or as posted on the Tournament Information page or announced at the Rules Meeting. Any violation of off-limits water will result in disqualification. Participants are not allowed to exit the boat to gain access to fishable waters. Teams may enter fishable waters at any designated boat ramp listed on the Tournament Information page or as announced in the Rules Meeting. Trailering is allowed but must be communicated with the Tournament Director prior to trailering for safety reasons.

ALCOHOL: Alcohol beverages are not allowed during the tournaments or during the weigh-in. Use of alcohol or non-prescribed drugs during tournament hours is prohibited and will result in disqualification.
COMPENSATION: No one can be hired, compensated, or offered compensation in any way to fish with you, mark fishing spots for you, or help you gain a competitive advantage in anyway 30 days prior to any tournament.
BOATS: You must fish from a boat. Rubber Rafts, kayaks, and canoes are not allowed. Two-person teams (one boat per team) must stay within 25 feet of each other while fishing. If one team member needs to exit the boat, the other team member may continue fishing as long as the exiting team member does not return to the boat that day without tournament director approval. If a team member begins the day fishing solo, they must finish out the day fishing solo unless approved by tournament director.
POLES: Limit of eight (8) poles per team during tournament applies except where a state limit is set at a lesser number. Teams may use rod and reel combos, hand-held pole and reel combos or hand-held poles.
BAITS: A maximum of two baits per pole may be used during tournament hours if in accordance with local and state laws. Live and artificial bait may be used unless announced differently on the Tournament Information page or at the Rules Meeting.
MOTORS: All tournament boats are required to have a minimum 6 HP or greater motor.
OTHER EQUIPMENT: Underwater cameras during competition are not allowed.
SPOTTING: During tournament hours no one may spot fish for you or mark fishing spots for you.
LANDING FISH: Crappie must be hooked and landed with a rod or pole by team member(s). Crappie must be hooked through the lip or in the mouth. Landing nets may be used.
HOLE- SITTING: No hole sitting by a non-competitor boat during the tournament will be allowed.
LIFE JACKETS: Life jackets or personal flotation devices must be worn at all times while your combustion engine is operating above idle speed. Life jackets must be properly secured and maintain secured until the combustion engine is turned off. Kill switches must be properly attached at all times the combustion engine is on. All State and Local rules and regulations supersede tournament rules.
VOUCHER: A weigh-in voucher will be issued to each registered team at the Registration/ Rules Meeting sign-up/ live well check. That voucher must be presented back to the tournament official at the weigh-in.
SCALES: Scales will be set up and open one hour before the end of the official fishing hours for all tournaments.
LIVE WELL CHECKS: Live Well checks will take place on each tournament morning at the designated Live Well Checkpoint area listed on the Tournament Information page and as announced at the Rules Meeting. Boat # cards will be issued at the Live Well Checkpoint and must be returned at the Official Weigh-In Line. All boat # cards must be returned to a tournament official, even if you will not be weighing in, to ensure all teams are accounted for.
EARLY WEIGH-IN: Teams are allowed one (1) weigh-in on tournament day. Scales will open one hour before the end of the official fishing hours for teams to weigh in early if needed.
FISH: All fish must be brought to the official weigh-in line in a cooler. Coolers must be a minimum of 25 quarts. Failure to bring your fish to the weigh-in line in a cooler will result in disqualification. Fish bags or buckets are prohibited. Teams may weigh in seven (7), live crappie on tournament day. Teams seven (7) crappie must be alive when entering the official weigh-in line. Teams presenting more than seven crappie will be disqualified. Once you have entered the weigh-in line, your fish will be counted and be verified dead or alive by the tournament official. Dead fish will be removed, and you may then continue to the scales for your official weigh-in. Once your fish have been verified alive and entered on the weigh-in voucher, you will then be allowed to weigh those fish, even if one or more die before reaching the scales. The tournament official has sole responsibility for the declaration of dead or alive crappie. No mutilated fish may be weighed. Mutilation is defined as any damage that impairs the fish’s fighting ability. All decisions regarding mutilation will be made by Lonestar Crappie Trail tournament officials. Lonestar Crappie Trail has the right to keep weighed-in fish for further evaluation at our own discretion without explanation or cause.
WEIGH-IN SITE: Crappie must be weighed at the official Lonestar Crappie Trail tournament Weigh-In site. You must check in at the official Weigh-In Line by the announced time on the Tournament Information page or as announced at the Rules Meeting and present your Weigh-In Voucher with Boat # Card. Example: Must be in the Weigh-In Line by 4:00pm if the tournament ends at 3pm. If you make it to the official Weigh-In Line at 4:00:01 or later, then you will be disqualified. The Tournament Director will make the announcement when the Weigh-In Line is closed and the last team in line will have their voucher marked.
TOURNAMENT HOURS: All crappie brought to the scales for weigh-in must have been caught during the tournament hours from tournament waters by the team bringing them to the scales. Tournament hours are posted on the Tournament Information page and announced at the Rules Meeting. Teams will be allowed to be on the tournament waters following the Live Well Check. Trailering is allowed from the Live Well Check. Any additional trailering must be communicated with and approved by the Tournament Director.
LENGTH: All crappie brought to the scales for weigh-in must meet state length requirements for the state in which they are being weighed and may not have any weight enhancements. Any team bringing in illegal crappie to the weigh-in line will be disqualified. A 9” length limit will be enforced on lakes without a length limit.
FINAL WEIGHT: TIES: In the case of a tie for all paying positions at all Lonestar Crappie Trail Tournaments, big fish from each team will break all ties. All ties for all places in the Angler Team of the Year points will be broken by the highest placing team in the State Championship.
AWARDS: Team members must be present at the official weigh-in to be eligible for prizes.

Championships

QUALIFYING: A team can automatically qualify for the Championship by fishing in 3 of the 5 tournaments. You may fish the championship with a different partner, however, the same partner must fish 3 of the 5 tournaments with you.
PRE FISHING: No one can be hired or compensated in any way to fish with you or mark fishing spots for you 30 Days prior to the Championship on the Championship Lake.
TEAM CHANGE: If a qualified team member has sickness, loss of death or other reasonable personal tragedy, the remaining team member may fish the Championship alone. Any qualified teammate can choose to fish solo or with their teammate for the Championship.

Sportsmanship

CONDUCT: In case of any conduct not complying with the standards, Lonestar Crappie Trail shall have the right to refuse any entry application, deny a paid entry application, or revoke a membership without reimbursement of the entry fee/membership fee of a previously accepted application, or to disqualify a team. Unsportsmanlike conduct can be grounds for disqualification if circumstances require and will be at the discretion of the Tournament Director. Unsportsmanlike conduct could result in membership revocation.
PROTEST: Protest must be made in writing to the Tournament Director within 15 minutes following the end of the Official Weigh-In. Protests must cite the rule allegedly broken. Protests must be given to the Tournament Director. Protest must be deemed a legitimate protest by Tournament Director. Both parties may be subjected to a polygraph. All parties involved and all grievances, protests, and complaints shall be handled in house with confidentiality. The Tournament Director’s decision is final in all matters.
COMPLAINTS: Complaints about teams outside of protest times should be made directly to the Lonestar Crappie Trail Tournament Director. Complaints must be in written format. Lonestar Crappie Trail’s decisions in handling complaints is final in all matters.
SPOTTERS/OBSERVERS: Lonestar Crappie Trail shall have the right to place a spotter boat/and/or an observer in the boat with any competitive team at any time during the competition, from the start of competition to the finish. Any refusal will be grounds for disqualification.
BOAT/LIVEWELL/STORAGE: Lone Star Crappie Trail tournament officials shall have the right to at random, board and inspect the boat of any competing members, at any time from Registration until the end of the tournament. Refusal to allow inspection is grounds for disqualification.