Get5Bass.com
2012 Winter Series
Official Rules
1. PREFACE-RULES: These rules will remain unchanged during the Get5Bass 2012 Winter Series. Interpretation and
enforcement of the following rules and regulations will be left exclusively to the Tournament Directors (Terrance
Narveson, Frank Leone, Josh Bradford, Jeremy Risley, and Cody Kemp). Decisions of the Tournament Director and
Tournament Officials shall be final in all matters. PROTESTS MUST BE MADE IN WRITING WITHIN ONE Week of the
tournament in question. Rules are in effect from October 29th, 2012 through February 4th, 2012.
2. ELIGIBILITY: In order to fish the Get5Bass Winter Series, anglers must be members of Get5Bass and abide by rules
of the contest as written.
3. SPORTSMANSHIP: Conservation, care and courtesy must be observed at all times by all contestants. No alcoholic
beverages may be allowed in the boat or used by the competitors during official tournament hours and the weigh-in. No
stimulants, depressants or other drugs (other than those purchased over the counter or prescribed by a physician)
shall be used by any competitor during tournament hours, and the weigh-in.
4. CONSERVATION: All bass to be weighed in must be presented to the director in a weigh-in bag filled with enough
water to sustain the health of the fish through the weigh-in. No team/individual shall possess more than 5 legal bass at
any time (Legal culling is permitted). Possession of more than 5 legal bass will be grounds for expulsion from the
Tournament in question. At no time shall a competitor/team attempt to weigh bass caught during Get5bass Winter
Series competition with another tournament organization or entity, and doing so will be grounds for disqualification from
the tournament in question and the Winter Series Points race.
5. ETHICS: Contestants/Teams may not “seed” or direct others to “seed” brushpiles, bays, weed edges, bridges,
rockpiles, rip-rap etc. “Seeding” will be defined as the releasing of legal bass in specific areas of the lake with the intent
of catching those fish again during the tournament competition hours. Contestants/Teams may not “bait” or direct
others to “bait” brushpiles, bays, weed edges, bridges, rockpiles, rip-rap etc. Baiting will be defined as “The application
of light, food, dog food, fish food, corn, baitfish, crayfish, frogs, toads, insects, etc. to a specific area of the lake in
order to attract baitfish or legal bass to that area. Normal culling practices are allowed (releasing of smaller fish to
increase weight of bag). Legally fishing in areas known to be tournament release sites is permitted (Except in the State
Park Cove on Lake Dardanelle as defined in rule #7) “Seeding” and “Baiting” will be grounds for expulsion from all
Get5bass Winter Series events.
6. TACKLE AND EQUIPMENT: Only artificial lures may be used. All fish must be caught in a legal sporting manner. No
"live bait" or "prepared bait" will be permitted, with the exception of pork strips, rinds, etc. Only ONE casting, spin-
casting or spinning rod and reel may be used at any one time. All other types prohibited. Other rigs as specified above
may be in boat ready for use; however, only ONE is permitted in use at any given time. Each cast must be completed
before another rod and reel may be used. All bass must be caught live and in a conventional sporting manner. Gaffs
may not be used nor be permitted in the boat at any time. Landing nets may be used. Contestants may not use
electronic "bugging" devices, or chemicals during official competition days on the tournament waters.
7. PERMITTED FISHING LOCATIONS: Fishing on the tournament waters is permitted anywhere navigable by boat from
the Launch ramp except: within any area designated by state or federal agencies as a "no fishing" area, in the State
Park cove (Lake Dardanelle - Straight line from tip of state park jetty to upstream side of fishing pier), in the State Park
Marina (Lake Dardanelle - Straight line from rock to rock in entrance), (Lake Dardanelle - Dardanelle Bay Marina, and
in the ANO outlet (Lake Dardanelle) where posted. All Commercial Boat Docks on Bull Shoals, Norfork, and Lake
Dardanelle are also off limits. Anglers may not cast to or hold there boats in any area off limits.
8. SPECIAL SITUATIONS: Contestants must not depart the boat to land fish. Contestants must leave and return to the
official checkpoint by boat. Neither competitor may depart the boat except in the case of emergency or toilet break.
9. Cell phones/Marine Radios: A competitor may not use a CB radio, A VHF band marine radio, a cellular phone, or
any other communication device for the purpose of locating or catching fish during the normal tournament hours.
10. SCORING/POSSESSION: Largemouth bass, Spotted (Kentucky) bass and Smallmouth bass will be counted. Five
fish per Boat may be weighed in each day. The official length limit for bass will depends upon species and lake.
Minimum lengths for each lake will be discussed prior to launch. Bass shall be measured on a flat board with mouth
closed and tail pinched. Bass presented for weigh-in which fail to measure the official length will not be counted and will
cause a 1.00 penalty for each such bass presented to be deducted from the contestant's score. At no time during
tournament hours shall a contestant possess more than a 5-fish limit.
11. PENALTY POINTS: For each legal dead bass presented to weigh-in officials, the competitor shall be penalized 0.50
pounds to be deducted from his daily score. The Tournament Director and his designated appointees shall have sole
authority for accessing penalty points
12. LATE PENALTY: Competitors who are not in the official checkpoint area at the appointed time shall be penalized at
the rate of 1 pound per minute to be deducted from the total weight of his catch that day, including any weight to be
counted toward a "Big Bass" award for each 1 minute he/she is late. Any competitor more than 15 minutes late shall
lose all credit for that day's catch.
13. Points Get5Bass Winter Series "Anglers of Year Award": Points will be awarded to each team fishing a Get5Bass
Winter Series event if they weigh a bass. The winning team from each qualifying tournament will be awarded 50 points,
the second place team will be awarded 49 points, etc. A team weighing a bass will receive a minimum of 5 points. A
team will be defined as two anglers fishing an event. All Teams are allowed one substitution during the qualifying
events, or one of the team members may fish alone. The top 20 teams in each division (and any team fishing at least
3 qualifying tournaments will be invited to fish their division's championship. The Championship will be double points
and at the conclusion of the championship in each division, the team accumulating the most points in their respective
division will win an AOY prize package. Teams substituting anglers for the championship will not receive points, but an
angler representing the team may fish alone and receive points. Teams may fish more than one division, but the points
they earn in each tournament will only count towards the AOY points race in the division in which they were earned.
14. POLYGRAPH: All contestants in the Get5bass Winter Series are subject to a polygraph test. Failure to submit to a
polygraph test will result in immediate disqualification from all Get5Bass Winter Series events. Any contestant who fails
a polygraph or whose results are found to be inconclusive will be disqualified from the Get5bass Winter Series. Any
contestant who has failed a polygraph test in connection with any bass tournament for cheating or whose results are
found to be inconclusive will not be eligible to compete in Get5Bass Winter Series Events.
15. Live Vests: All Anglers must wear a U.S. Coast Guard Approved flotation device while the boats gasoline motor is
running.