1 Tournaments are only open to NNAC members (adult and youth) who have signed the Club liability waiver form. Guests may fish with members but are ineligible for club awards unless specified for a particular tournament.
2 All tournaments are strictly recreational and no fish entered in any tournament may be sold or offered for sale. Fish may be retained by the angler for personal use only. Exception: See detailed exceptions below for tournaments that include Trophy Red Drum as a target species.
3 Fishing will begin at sunrise unless otherwise specified. For tournament purposes, sunrise is determined by the Astronomical Applications Department of the US Naval Observatory for the location of Kilmarnock VA.
4 Fishing time ends at 4:00 PM. All fish must be weighed on the day caught by 5:00 PM at one of the authorized weigh-in locations. Exception: See detailed exceptions below for tournaments that include Trophy Red Drum as a target species.
5 All fish entered for a tournament may be delivered to a weigh-in marina by water or land delivery by the angler to an authorized marina or land based weigh-in location. Exception: See detailed exceptions below for tournaments that include Trophy Red Drum as a target species.
6 An angler may enter only one fish per species on any tournament day unless otherwise specified for a particular tournament. If multiple entries are received for the same species on the same tournament day, the earliest entry will be used. Later entries will be discarded. An angler is eligible for only one placing per species during each tournament.
7 Fish must be caught by the angler on rod & reel hook & line tackle in a sporting manner and in compliance with tournament rules and State and Federal fishing regulations. Anglers may also use legal hand line tackle including “dummy lines”.
8 Fish will be weighed in pounds and full ounces with partial ounces rounded down. Exception: See detailed exceptions below for tournaments that include Trophy Red Drum as a target species.
9 In the event of identical weights, the earliest fish weighed will be the winner. Exception: See detailed exceptions below for tournaments that include Trophy Red Drum as a target species.
10 Fish entered and weighed will be returned to the angler. Exception: See detailed exceptions below for tournaments that include Trophy Red Drum as a target species.
11 Weather conditions for fishing are at the anglers’ discretion to determine whether to fish or not and anglers accept full responsibility for the safety and comfort of their respective boats and crews.
12 The Club may at its’ discretion postpone, reschedule, or cancel any tournament for any reason.
13 If there is a National Weather Service Small Craft Advisory (SCA) or higher level warning in effect, or predicted to take effect, within the listed zones between sunrise and 12:00 noon, that fishing day will be automatically cancelled.
The NNAC SCA rule applies to the following National Weather Service Zones:
ANZ534 Chesapeake Bay from Drum Point to Smith Point
ANZ537 Tidal Potomac from Cobb Island to Smith Point
ANZ630 Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point
ANZ631 Chesapeake Bay from Windmill Point to New Point Comfort.
A SCA beginning or predicted to begin at noon will not cancel the tournament day.
A predicted SCA that is scheduled to take effect between sunrise and noon will cancel the tournament day UNLESS that National Weather Service designation is cancelled before sunrise.
Anglers are responsible for keeping informed about the weather status. Cancellation of a day during a multi-day tournament will not cancel the tournament. Tournament results and awards will be based upon entries for the non-cancelled day(s). Cancellation of all days during a tournament will result in the entire tournament being cancelled.
14 Anglers may depart from and return to any port of their choosing. There are no central check-in or check-out locations.
15 Area marinas that have been designated the Home Port for a tournament assures participants the availability of necessary facilities and services for a satisfactory outing.
16 Anglers may fish (1) from a charter boat, (2) with a paid guide, (3) from any personal motorized or non-motorized vessel including power boats, sailboats, jet skis, rowboats, jon boats, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards or (4) from shore or wading, public fishing piers or private docks.
17 Fishing boundaries, unless altered for a particular tournament, will be:
a. Tangier Sound
b. The Chesapeake Bay from Hooper Island Light to New Point Comfort/Cape Charles
c. The Potomac River from the Governor Harry Nice Memorial Bridge (Rt. 301) to Point Lookout.
d. The Rappahannock River from Rt. 360 Bridge in Tappahannock to Windmill Point
e. The Piankatank River
f. All tidal bays, creeks, rivers between these points unless otherwise specified.
18 Gift certificates in an amount approved by the Board of Directors for first, second and third place winners for each tournament species will be awarded. An angler is eligible for only one gift certificate award per species during each tournament. The member receiving a tournament gift certificate has a period of one year from the last date of the tournament or expiration date set by the sponsor, whichever is shorter, to redeem the gift certificate. If the member has made a good faith effort to redeem the gift certificate during this period and has been unsuccessful, the Board of Directors will consider replacing the unused gift certificate with one from another sponsor in a like amount. The Board will not consider replacement of a gift certificate beyond the expiration time frames set forth above. It is the member’s responsibility to redeem the gift certificate on a timely basis in the absence of unforeseen circumstances at the time the certificate was issued.
19 Points will be awarded to each member that weighs in a fish at one of the approved weigh stations during the designated tournament. The points will determine the finishing order of the tournament participants. Points are awarded as follows: 5 points for first, 4 points for second, 3 points for third, 2 points for fourth and 1 point for all other fish. Points are cumulated during the year to determine the finishing order for Angler of the Year contest.
20 Additional rules and provisions applicable to individual tournaments are found under the “Tournaments” page. A link each individual tournament description is located on the Tournament Schedule page of the Club Web.
21 The Club Board may revise the rules, structure and content of any tournament or add or deduct tournaments at its discretion.
Trophy Red Drum Exceptions
Trophy Red Drum (Redfish) Exceptions to NNAC Tournament Rules are follows:
1 Catch and Release
Anglers must use extreme care when handling these fish and the fish must be released back to the water as quickly as possible.
2 Measuring Your Catch
Fish will be measured for length only. Minimum size will be greater than 27”. Size limit is in total length. VMRC regulations apply when measuring fish “…Total length means the length of a fish measured from the most forward projection of the snout, with the mouth closed, to the tip of the longer lobe of the tail (caudal) fin, measured with the tail compressed along the midline, using a straight-line measure, not measured over the curve of the body. Snout means the most forward projection from a fish’s head that includes the upper and lower jaw.”
3 Recording and Submitting your Catch
A photo must be taken to show the fish on top of the measuring tape in enough detail to show the entire length of the fish. If the length cannot be clearly determined, it will not be accepted. Additional information included with the photo must include tournament name, angler name, species, date, and time fish was caught. The photo must be emailed to the NNAC email address: fishNNAC@gmail.com no later than the deadline set for a regular NNAC tournament. See tournament rules for the current deadline. Emails received after the deadline will not be accepted.
4 notable features
This will be treated like an additional target species to a specified tournament. Angler of the year points will be awarded. Best of species contest will apply. Tournament rules regarding SCA, fishing times and fishing zone apply. Distribution of awards will follow NNAC Tournament Rules for distributing awards.
In the event of any violation of these rules or the applicable fishing regulations, the entries will be disqualified. Disputes that arise regarding the interpretation of NNAC rules will be resolved with a decision by the Board of Directors.
Northern Neck Anglers Club 