Strategy For Tany Tourney

[joefish]

So what would be your strategy if you were to get into these trout fishing tourneys? Unless you feel like your giving away to much info.

I reckon Ill answer my own question since I have never been in one. I reckon I would throw some jigs, maybe try some vertical jig around drops or structure, and maybe troll some raps(if trolling is legal in a trout tourney).

Maybe i come in 10th or last who cares. Maybe I should come down and see.

[Trav]

Deep water structure pinpointing. If your doing it right you can win these tourneys with just 2 nice brownies.

[LASGTA88]

my problem with that is i dont know where those structures are and our boats dont have no finders lol just 4 seats and an outboard 25hp lol

what can i do to find those spots without technology??

thanks.. sorry for hijacking this thread but might be usefull for this guy also

LA

[Trav]

Considering that the cover I am referring to is 20 feet deep or deeper, without graphs you wont be able to.

When I was guiding fly-ins in Canada we used portable graphs. I used the same thing in Panama but there it wasnt such a neccessity. Bass Pro sells a few brands that manufacture them. A decent investment if you do alot of boat rentals where electronics arent part of the equipment.

[LASGTA88]

just what i figured but was worth a try lol cause yeah the boats we rent are BARE boned lol

LA

[john19]

I was wondering how this could be considered a catch and release tournament if the fish has to be kept and then weighed in and then released. Does not seem like a catch and release tournament to me sounds like a catch, keep then release and watch the fish die.

I would think that some one would be able to go with each team like a JUDGE and mesuare the fish and write it down and the winner be determended from total length. To me that is a catch and release tournament.

I would like to know after the tournament how many of these fish will actually make it, I bet there are some that will die. Not to say that in a true catch and relase turnament that there would not be some that died but I bet there will be more in this style of tournamnet. Just a thought

[Phil Lilley]

If you're talking about my tournament this weekend, it is not a catch and release. It is artificial only.

[Trav]

I totally agree with you John! Hard to keep trout and release them alive.

And I have never kept a Brownie for the dinner table. Those little bows are "farm fresh" good though. Haha

Hey Phil, how you gonna make sure that the dough-sopper worm drowners dont infiltrate your tourney? Gonna have Judges like John suggests?

I got a suggestion. Break up the teams and pair them off with people they dont know. Then have the teams weigh in together once they meet at wiegh in.

That way , in effect, they will be policing each other since they will be fishing with competitors. No need for judges then.

Even better. Make everyone fish for themselves and have no teams but still pair them off in random to keep it honost. Thats my kind of tourney.

While I was guiding in Panama, I was hired by the Army CPO at Espinar Aquativity Center to set up weekend tourneys for our troops stationed down there. Names were submitted and in random guys were paired. Actually there were 3 to a boat, but that is the most non-conflictive way to handle a tourney that has money involved.

Funny story on how I got that little side job.

Since my ex wife was active Army there, I was eligable to fish those tourneys. Since I guided the waters, I of course had a severe advantage.

After winning Big Fish and Big Stringer 18 weeks in a row, people sort of dwindled in participation. Got tired of losing to me. So they made a new rule. You can win Big Fish or Big Stringer but not both.

Well, The Big Fish pay out was half of the Big Stringer. So I was throwing back 8 pounders to make sure I got the most money. After about 9 weeks of that, talk got out on what I was doing. I wasnt hiding it either, it was a random select, three man per boat tourney and of course the guys paired with me got 2nd and 3rd everytime. And soldiers have bigger mouths than women in a sewing circle. Probably because of the huge amount of alcohol that was being consumed.

Anyway, they pulled me aside one night after it got around I put back the biggest peacock of my life for the bigger pot. Tried to say I couldnt play anymore. So I went to the Judge Advocate office in Ft Clayton and forced thier hand. All military personel and thier dependants were eligable. So they had to let me fish, cancel the tourneys, or hire me on as Admin for the tourneys wich would disqualify me from participation.

They were gonna cancel the tourneys since they couldnt match my rate of pay as a guide and definatley couldnt equal what I could win from the tourneys. In the end, I took a pitiful 50 bucks a tourney so that my buddies down there could keep thier tourney going. It was one day a week and I figured I can fish anytime where as those soldiers barely had time to fish. I probably wouldnt have made such a stink but they approached me with such a nasty attitude I wasnt about to let them win so easily.

After that I Admined those tourneys for 18 months.

I had a blast, got tons of free beer and was literally a walking legend to the soldiers fishing them because they all knew how I got the job. Or to the least they all were very glad to have me around as long as I didnt fish those tourneys anymore. Haha

[john19]

Phil,

Yes I am refering to the tournament this weekend

Just going on what the rules say I belive it the 3rd rule down.

Artificial baits only. No live bait is to be used anywhere during the tournament. Berkley's Power Bait is considered live and is not allowed. All soft plastic baits are live also and will not be allowed.

This is a CATCH-and-RELEASE tournament. All trout will be released unharmed at the end of the tournament.

No more than eight trout will be weighed in per team.

In the case of a tie, the largest fish of the tying stringer determines the winner. All controversies will be settled by the Tournament Judge, Phil Lilley.

All Missouri Fish & Game Laws will be enforced. Brown trout are required to be 20 inches or longer. To measure a trout legally- shut the mouth and pinch the tail.

Any brown caught weighed in and killed negates any more browns from being counted towards that persons weight for the rest of the tournament.

Creeks and feeder streams - namely Fall, Short, Cooper, Turkey, Coon, Roark, Bee and Bull Creeks - are restricted and may not be fished. No fishing will be allowed within two boat lengths inside these creek mouths. Any violation of this rule will result in disqualification.

Contestants must fish from their boats. Contestants can leave their boats to use a bathroom or rest & warm up at a marina. Absolutely no wading.

Each team will be required to DECLARE where they will fish, above Fall Creek or below Fall Creek. Those declaring above in the trophy area, they will not be allowed to weigh in any rainbows "in the slot" - between 12 and 20 inches. Those declaring below Fall Creek are not to go above Fall Creek at anytime during the tournament.

Anyone cited for any fishing violations by the Missouri Department of Conservation during the tournament will be disqualified. In addition, anyone convicted of said violations will be barred from any future tournaments at Lilleys Landing. Winners may be subject to a polygraph after the contest.

Safety and tournament rules briefing will be held on Saturday, 7:45 a.m. on the dock at Lilleys'. The Missouri Water Patrol may supervise the start. Life jackets must be worn at the start of the contest. Live wells will be checked at each send off.

Teams will leave in flights if necessary. Each flight will have the same amount of fish-time. Late arrivals will be penalized one ounce per minute at weigh in - no excuses. Trout must be weighed in before trailering boats.

No chumming of any type will be tolerated. This means before, during or after the tournament.t the rules say this is a catch and release tournament

[Phil Lilley]

Have to say that or get in trouble with MDC. Well, not really trouble but I did catch it from one guy one year so... trying to appease the masses. Never will happen though.

There are no penalties for dead trout or if any trout are cleaned after the tournament but most are released. Dead trout weigh less than live ones so in that way they are penalized. It's best to keep them alive.

As for cheating- we give polygraphs every 2-3 years to keep everyone honest. It costs us about $300 per pop but it's worth it.

This is a friendly tournament- usually 25 teams. There's very few trout tournaments on Taneycomo- I have a lot of requests to do more at different times a year in which I'm just not interested. It costs too much money and work honestly. That's why you don't see more businesses doing it.