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This is all intended as constructive criticism. I like the tournaments; however, sometimes the logistics (ie. location, desired size and species of fish, etc) make me decide to just go fishing instead of tournament fish. On multiple occasions Matt and I have stayed local and chased big trout or reds instead of registering for a tournament.

That aside, my thoughts below:

Totally agree with Jeff that giving away 15 points for bonus/trash fish (sorry flounder guys) diminishes the AOTY race. You could take 10th in every tournament and still win the points. Giving money, gift cards, etc is fine as the side fish do encourage participation.

Likewise, the schedule looks like folks are scared to chase big trout during the summer, it is all slot fish and reds. I understand the goal for slot tournaments, but I no longer desire to spend hot summer days grinding for slot fish. If you want to keep slot tournaments, then I would recommend deciding how many and picking the months randomly from a hat. Personally, I would rather chase big fish all year; doesn't matter if the goal is 1 big trout, a combo or two reds. I would love a RedTrout Shootout format each month, and fewer fish would be taken to the scales.

Something should be done to generate more socialization. Ramp specific tournaments or changing weigh-ins are options. People used to hang around weigh-ins for food or talk waiting for safe light. Now a lot of participants skip weigh in if they don't have winning fish and there is no morning check in.

Me and Rick talked about it and we both agree about lowering the side pot points and ramp specific tournaments. In the past I remember everybody leaving at the same time at most if not all locations and it does allow for more socializing. It also puts everybody on level playing fields.

I don't fish the tournaments anymore, I just do the cooking for the end of year party. I totally agree with the views that Showman and Trent posted. As for shotgun starts @ Econfina are concerned, I have seen many of them with 30 plus boats and every thing worked out OK. Just my 2 cents. Good luck Everyone.

I don't fish for trout, so don't have a dog in this fight. But since the big girls are spawning mostly in summer( March thru sept), maybe they picked those months to let the big breeders swim free. Not sure if that is the reason, but if so,

You could........ Edit.

I posted an idea then remembered my promise not to.

I see a lot of good points and recommendations for this year, the only thing I have to say is I love the changes, I feel the format is a level playing field for everyone who participates. I feel that having the species and bag limits like they are makes it more competitive because you don’t have the same guys winning month in and month out because they have a couple of honey holes that always produce one large trout and a large red. The way it is formatted everyone on the team is a contributor not just one person.

Thanks to everyone so far for the feedback. Keep it coming!! Maybe we can get Showman and Matt back out there a little more this year to do some more trash talking!!

The bonus points will reduce this year. Just not sure how much yet.

I would like to see a few more red tourneys. Everyone should launch from the same ramp, it gives everyone the same playing field and it lets everyone meet and greet + shooting the bull. (Better for new people) also gives folks the idea of it being a bigger tourney. If you want side pots fine, but the points shouldn't effect team standings for the guys who don't care about trashfish. I would like to see 50/50 trout and red tourneys. Just my 2¢

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Also, how bout a few artificial only tournaments?

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Hollywood wrote:I see a lot of good points and recommendations for this year, the only thing I have to say is I love the changes, I feel the format is a level playing field for everyone who participates. I feel that having the species and bag limits like they are makes it more competitive because you don’t have the same guys winning month in and month out because they have a couple of honey holes that always produce one large trout and a large red. The way it is formatted everyone on the team is a contributor not just one person.

If only it were that easy...really dude? You think that's how it works - one magic honey hole ALWAYS produces all of the big fish? The best anglers I've fished with fish 10-20 spots each tournament and the one that produces this month most likely isn't going to next month. They're just really good at eliminating areas based on the conditions present that day.

My advice would be to keep it simple. We averaged over 25 boats per tournament one year when Pat and I were the tournament directors and we did that by keeping the format the same for each tournament - a one person limit of trout. Most of the tournaments were out of Jerry's Bait and Tackle with zero ramp restrictions and we had participants from Taylor County all the way over to Franklin County. The only ramp tournaments were Keaton in March, Port St. Joe in May, and Carrabelle in September. I'm not even sure that we awarded bonus points. From my experiences as tournament director, people like consistency and they also like to fish for big trout. The argument about keeping big trout is one for another day. Just my .02

caseycook wrote:

Hollywood wrote:I see a lot of good points and recommendations for this year, the only thing I have to say is I love the changes, I feel the format is a level playing field for everyone who participates. I feel that having the species and bag limits like they are makes it more competitive because you don’t have the same guys winning month in and month out because they have a couple of honey holes that always produce one large trout and a large red. The way it is formatted everyone on the team is a contributor not just one person.

If only it were that easy...really dude? You think that's how it works - one magic honey hole ALWAYS produces all of the big fish?

caseycook wrote:

Hollywood wrote:I see a lot of good points and recommendations for this year, the only thing I have to say is I love the changes, I feel the format is a level playing field for everyone who participates. I feel that having the species and bag limits like they are makes it more competitive because you don’t have the same guys winning month in and month out because they have a couple of honey holes that always produce one large trout and a large red. The way it is formatted everyone on the team is a contributor not just one person.

If only it were that easy...really dude? You think that's how it works - one magic honey hole ALWAYS produces all of the big fish? The best anglers I've fished with fish 10-20 spots each tournament and the one that produces this month most likely isn't going to next month. They're just really good at eliminating areas based on the conditions present that day.

My advice would be to keep it simple. We averaged over 25 boats per tournament one year when Pat and I were the tournament directors and we did that by keeping the format the same for each tournament - a one person limit of trout. Most of the tournaments were out of Jerry's Bait and Tackle with zero ramp restrictions and we had participants from Taylor County all the way over to Franklin County. The only ramp tournaments were Keaton in March, Port St. Joe in May, and Carrabelle in September. I'm not even sure that we awarded bonus points. From my experiences as tournament director, people like consistency and they also like to fish for big trout. The argument about keeping big trout is one for another day. Just my .02

WOW, I THINK CASEY IS VOLUNTEERING FOR TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR AGAIN... I "THINK" what Hollywood is trying to say is that certain people put in the same area time after time because that's where there honey holes are. For example, I remember certain people fishing Carrabelle every month when the weigh-in was at Jerry's Bait and Tackle. Ramp specific tournaments help level the playing field. Just my .02

sorifish wrote:WOW, I THINK CASEY IS VOLUNTEERING FOR TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR AGAIN... I "THINK" what Hollywood is trying to say is that certain people put in the same area time after time because that's where there honey holes are. For example, I remember certain people fishing Carrabelle every month when the weigh-in was at Jerry's Bait and Tackle. Ramp specific tournaments help level the playing field. Just my .02

That's a negative, Ghost Rider. I've spent my time in the barrel and have no interest in serving in that capacity again. Being Tournament Director is a thankless job and we all need to make a point of thanking Jimmy and the gang for their hard work at each tournament. I just think we've strayed a bit off course from the days of huge turnouts (and payouts). I can remember one tournament out of Jerry's where we had close to fifty boats...that's unreal for a monthly saltwater club tournament.

I guess my thinking is "You bring your best five and I'll bring mine." If you consistently beat me, I'll try to learn as much as possible from you - where you fished, what you threw, etc. and then I'll go and try to replicate it. It may take a person of their comfort zone, but you don't get better if you don't continue learning.

I've been fortunate to learn from some of the best in this area, Ashley and JR, the Bass Boys, Tommy T and Huey, Showboat, you and Brad, JT (okay, I may be stretching it a bit on this one), etc, etc. At the end of the day, to be successful you have to put in the hard work to learn new areas, find fish, and move as the different areas heat up, but a tournament shouldn't force you to do that. If someone wants to keep banging their head into the wall and go where they're comfortable, let them do it. I also get the argument about not wanting to take a big bay boat in or out of the Econfina on a low tide - a complaint I got in the past at a ramp tournament.

Let's be honest, there's a reason that Ashley and JR win a large percentage of the tournaments they enter regardless of the area, it's simply because they're damn good fishermen and know what to look for. Using the "level playing field" argument is bogus in my opinion because it assumes that the skill level of all competitors is equal when the boats leave the dock.

The club tournaments forced me to explore and learn new areas, not because of the ramp tournaments, but because I wanted to stay competitive.

Ghost Rider.. Good one. Your right, Tournament director is a thankless job and we do appreciate the job Jimmy does. However,we will fish regardless of what new rules Jimmy implements because we enjoy fishing the club tournaments, talking with friends and making new friends. If fishing club tournaments was all about making money from big payouts, I would have quit by now. Don't get me wrong I'm competitive and like to win but its not about the money. Ramp tournaments is what helped me the most, I would have never ventured to Port Saint Joe, St marks, Panacea if the club did not have ramp tournaments. Thanks to the Club my comfort zone has expanded. This is just my personal experience on ramp tournaments.

caseycook wrote:

Hollywood wrote:I see a lot of good points and recommendations for this year, the only thing I have to say is I love the changes, I feel the format is a level playing field for everyone who participates. I feel that having the species and bag limits like they are makes it more competitive because you don’t have the same guys winning month in and month out because they have a couple of honey holes that always produce one large trout and a large red. The way it is formatted everyone on the team is a contributor not just one person.

If only it were that easy...really dude? You think that's how it works - one magic honey hole ALWAYS produces all of the big fish? The best anglers I've fished with fish 10-20 spots each tournament and the one that produces this month most likely isn't going to next month. They're just really good at eliminating areas based on the conditions present that day.

My advice would be to keep it simple. We averaged over 25 boats per tournament one year when Pat and I were the tournament directors and we did that by keeping the format the same for each tournament - a one person limit of trout. Most of the tournaments were out of Jerry's Bait and Tackle with zero ramp restrictions and we had participants from Taylor County all the way over to Franklin County. The only ramp tournaments were Keaton in March, Port St. Joe in May, and Carrabelle in September. I'm not even sure that we awarded bonus points. From my experiences as tournament director, people like consistency and they also like to fish for big trout. The argument about keeping big trout is one for another day. Just my .02

WOW!!! I didn’t realize I would offend you guys, I did not mean to implicate that the guys who win are not great fisherman, they are what I am saying is if I’m in a tournament that I would fish my spots that know to produce fish. so are you telling me that no one hits there “Honey Holes” before they start searching for fish? I know when I’m fishing for fun or fishing in a tournament that are in what I consider my home waters I always hit the same 6-8 spots depending on time of day and tide, that I know produce fish and it is rare that I ever have to look further than that. I feel the schedule does show who the best fisherman are by making us fish waters that we normally wouldn’t fish. Again I apologize if I offended anyone with my comment.