High School & Middle School Rules last updated 7/10/2024 10:35 AM by WMB

Michigan Middle/High School Bass Circuit Tournament Rules

IMPORTANT: All participants must have a waiver signed by a legal gaurdian before competition: SIGN HERE

Parent or Gaurdian should use the participants information in the form and enter their own name and relation in the co-signer section and then sign their own name in the signature box. A WMB membership is not required. All boat captains require a waiver as well.

Key Updates

  • High School and Middle School events will take place at the same venue, time and dates.
  • Anglers will compete against other teams in their respective division: HS vs HS, MS vs MS.
  • To simplify things, there will be no membership fee for anglers. A small portion of each entry fee will be retained for expenses normally covered by the memberships.
  • Entry fees will be $60 per team for High School and $60 per team for Middle School.
  • Tournaments will run 8hrs

Participation

All participants must be a full-time middle or high school student. Students that are incoming middle schoolers are eligible to fish the middle school circuit, and incoming freshman are eligible to participate at the high school level. All participates must be prepared to prove their eligibility at any event.

Tournaments will be held at the scheduled date, time and location on this website and are scheduled to run 8 hours. Launch time may be affected by sunrise times, weather or other circumstance and therefore will be announced at the ramp prior to take-off. It is the responsibility of the director to announce the weigh-in time prior to take off, however it is the responsibility of the angler to know the weigh-in time. If the angler misses the announcement, they should ask the director prior to take-off or on the water during competition.

There is no membership fee to participate. All members 18 years and older must read and sign liability waiver before participating in any MHSBC, MMSBC or WMB tournament. All members under the age of 18 must have the liability waiver signed by a parent or legal guardian. A signed waiver is considered valid for one tournament season. The entry fee for a regular event is $60.00 per boat for High School and $60.00 per boat for Middle School. $5.00 of that entry fee goes for a big bass pot.

General Rules

The winner of the tournament is determined by the weight of the 5 or less largemouth and/or smallmouth bass. In the event of a tie in total weight, big bass weight will be used to determine the winning team (followed by # of fish). Anglers are only allowed to fish with one line per person at a time. Anglers may only use artificial baits to catch bass during the tournament. Anglers may not intentionally snag fish or troll for fish. The Great Lakes are off limits on any body of water that is connected to the Great Lakes - you may not go past the end of the pier heads.

The resolution of protests will be handled by the director(s) at the time of the protest is presented. All protests must be presented within 10 minutes of the scales closing. MMSBC/MHSBC & WMB requires the use of USGC approved life vest and kill switch lanyards at any time when using the outboard engine. Failure to wear a life vest can result in disqualification. The use of piercing or puncture type cull tags are strictly prohibited during any WMB tournament.

Boat and Boat Operation

Tournament boats will be operated by the 3rd party, non-angler. Middle and High School anglers are not allowed to operate the tournament boat except for the trolling motor at any time during the tournament. It is the boat owner’s responsibility to comply with all state and local regulations and have the watercraft equipped properly with safety equipment. It is the boat operator’s responsibility to know and understand all boating laws, no wake restrictions, high speed boating restrictions, lake speed limits or other similar rules or restrictions. All boats are required to be equipped with a functional live well. No fish baskets or stringers may be used. Homemade or cooler based live wells are allowed if equipped with an aeration or oxiginator system. Boat operators must carry reasonable liability insurance on their vessel.

Teams

  • Teams are a maximum 2 Middle School or High School anglers and a boat operator per boat.
  • Anglers may fish alone or with any partner they wish at any event. Please note, that not fishing with the same partner will affect the point standings for the year end classic tournament.
  • A substitute may fish in place of either teammate, but a team can only use one (1) sub per season.

Tournament Conduct

All state and local laws must be followed by anglers and boaters. Sportsmanship and courtesy will be shown by all teams and boaters towards fellow tournament participants as well as any local fishermen, other boaters, or property owners. Failure to comply can result in disqualification at the discretion of the Director(s). Disqualification will include forfeit of entry fees. Participants are not allowed to use illegal drugs or alcohol during tournament hours.

Boat Operator & HS Anglers

MMSBC/MHSBC encourages the continued learning of middle school and high school anglers. This means the boat operator is able coach and assist the anglers during the tournament. Please see, Boater Operator Do’s and Don’ts for more details on this.

Penalties

Late to Weigh-in:
  • Boats must be stationary or at idle speed within 150 feet of the ramp by the specified return time.
  • There will be NO grace period.
  • There will be a 1 pound per minute penalty
  • Returning to the ramp 5 minutes late will disqualify the days catch
Dead Fish
  • Every effort should be made to keep fish alive.
  • Dead fish will result in a 1/2-pound (8oz) penalty.
  • You may weigh in only ONE dead bass.
  • You may NOT weigh a dead fish for Big Bass
Short Fish
  • All fish must meet or exceed legal size limit.
  • Fish length is determined as the longest length from the mouth to tail, being measured with the mouth closed.
  • Suspect fish, may be bumped on the official measuring stick prior to weigh-in.
  • If the Director bumps a short fish, the short fish and the largest fish of the sack are immediately culled.
Culling
  • A Team’s bag must be culled to 5 fish before the end of official competition.
  • Failure to cull will result in the following:
  • The Team’s best 5 fish bag will be separated
  • The remaining fish will be immediately released
  • 1 fish from the final bag will be culled for each fish over the 5 fish limit – each time culling the smallest fish from final bag.

Points & Scoring

Points are accumulated and tracked per team and are accumulated as follows (per team, per event):

  • Single Event Participation: 10pts
  • Points Per Boat: (see below)
  • 1st Place Finish Bonus: 3pts
  • 2nd Place Finish Bonus: 2pts
  • 3rd Place Finish Bonus: 1pts
  • Big Bass Bonus: 2pts
  • 2nd Big Bass Bonus: 1pts
  • One point per boat will be given based on the number of boats (Number of Boats - (Place + 1) = Points) for example with 11 boats, 1st place receives 11 pts, 2nd 10pts, 3rd 9pts and so on. Zero fish ties and/or last place will be awarded 0 additional points.

Middle School and High School of the Year

School of the Year will be determined by taking the highest average points per whole team.

Example: School 1 has 450 points total, they had 5 teams, 450/5= 90 pts

School 2 has 800 points total, they have 10 teams, 800/10= 80 pts.

School 1 would be school of the year

MMSBC and MHSBC Team of the Year

The Angler of the Year will be determined by the total points earned by team or individual at the end of the regular season events.

Year-end MMSBC/MHSBC Classic Tournament

The end of the year classic is an invite only tournament for the top teams for both middle school and high school. These teams will be determined at the end of the year based on points earned throughout regular season. (please see “TEAMS” section above for more details)

MHSBC Boat Operator Do’s and Don’ts

Boaters are encouraged to:
  • Think of this opportunity and experience as a teaching tournament. We want you to share your knowledge with these young anglers
  • Allow the anglers to make their own choices and own decisions. If they have a plan starting the day let them execute on that plan.
  • Allow the anglers to use the boat’s decks and run the trolling motor. If your anglers are unable or uncomfortable running the trolling the boat operator can do so on their behalf.
  • Help the anglers with any equipment issues.
  • Practice or pre-fish with your anglers if possible or time allows.
  • Try and point your anglers in a direction you think might be productive. Use phrases like, “Have you considered…”, “Have you thought about…”
  • Help your anglers keep track of time and help them not be late to weigh in
Boaters should not
  • Deliberately pre-fish/practice or otherwise act as a surrogate angler
  • Don’t tell your anglers “We are going to fish here, and you are going to throw this.”
  • Don’t fish for your anglers
  • Don’t cast for your anglers
  • Don’t do the work for your anglers
  • Don’t cull your angler’s fish
  • Don’t net your angler’s fish
  • Don’t bag your angler’s fish at the end of the tournament

*For the Middle School boat captains, there is some leniency in “helping” their anglers. We want this to be a positive experience for these anglers as many of them are just learning the ropes of tournament fishing. Please use your judgement on what is acceptable help and what might be considered “too much help” by another team.