clearlake tournament

[ruger123]

Had a question, watched the clearlake shootout, and one of the top 12 Bill Lowen said he hooked a 5lber on the outside of the mouth and had to release it. I thought that you only had to release a fish that way if you seen the fish on a bed fishing. He said that he hooked the fish on the top of the head with a chatter bait.

[14tommyd]

I was a marshall for the tourney, California law requires that all fish must be hooked inside the mouth.

[Cooch]

I was a marshall for the tourney, California law requires that all fish must be hooked inside the mouth.

That's not true Tommy, read the rules in the other thread by Charley A. above from the DFG Regs. So with you being a Marshall at this event, you can confirm for us, that indeed this implimentation was passed down by Tripp at the meetings? Which would also confirm my suspicion that an official was indeed misinformed and did not read the rule himself!

Certainly, when your bed fishing, there is a high potential to foul hook a fish. BASS and most all tournaments have rules that prohibit the retaining of fish caught ff beds that are foul hooked. If yer fishing a crankbait, jerkbait or chatterbait, as many of those guys up there were, the fish are attacking yer bait, we are not intentionally attempting to impale a fish outside the mouth.

It would be interesting to know from one of the Marshall's from down here on the Delta the week before. I watched all 4 weigh-ins and don't recall a single angler mentioning that he had to turn a fish loose. Did BASS impliment or emphasize the same rule here on the Delta, where it was obvious there was not gonna be a bedding type bite? Or was it directed only at ClearLake due to the potential bed bite?

[tunaman]

As I posted in a thread from the Delta event - James Niggemeyer specifically stated that he had to release a few because they weren't properly hooked inside the mouth... it did happen here at the Delta event.

Roger

[tunaman]

Here's the post:

It's similar to the snagged fish regulation; hook must be inside the mouth.

Speaking of which, and hate to start up the crap again, but did anyone else catch James Niggemeyer own up to the fact that he released several fish on the first day because they weren't hooked 'in the mouth'? Again, not bedding fish but just general fish as per DFG rules? Really refreshing to see a Professional act as such in spite of the cheese on the line.

Roger

Here's the thread:
http://westernbass.com/forum/viewtopic. ... ht=#391916

Roger

[Rattletrapp]

I may be wrong but I thought I saw KVD hook a bass along he back in the Classic and if I remember right, that fish went right into his livewell. I always thought the rule implies only to sight or bed fishing. I am interested in hearing more on this topic!

[BassManDan]

Rattletrapp,

In other states (i.e. Alabama) it is legal for fish hooked outside the mouth to be retained.

CA has different rules, which can be found in the aforementioned CA Freshwater Fishing Regulations

[14tommyd]

to answer your question Cooch, yes. Tripp was adamant about that rule, all fish hooked inside the mouth. He also said it was a California reg.

[SPIKE]

You know I keep reading all these debates on rules that only apply to CALIF. I think if all you CALIF .fisherman don’t stand up and unite you are going to let P.E.T.A. and C.F.G stop ALL your tournaments. Any where else if you throw a Crank Bait and hook a fish anywhere no ones put it back. Unless there are per fishing, it’s to small, or you meat hunting.

[Randy Walker]

If this is indeed a CA Rule, then there are plenty of other circuits out there that I have fished that do say be mindful of hooking outside of mouth "if bed" fishing, but never once have I heard any of them say that other methods of fishing must follow the same rule. If a Rule, why don't all follow? if not a Rule, why does BASS make it so...Kennedy's bag a few years ago would have been bigger if he did not have to throw bag multiple fatties... : )
Sounds like we are not all on the same page...