First and foremost, our anglers and sponsors allow the Buckeye Kayak Fishing Trail to exist, so be sure to check out this tournaments amazing sponsor list!

Wilderness Systems Fishing Kayaks

Whitewater Warehouse, Dayton, OH

Outdoor Source, Columbus OH

Columbus Kayak, Columbus OH

Loveland Canoe & Kayak Outfitters, Cincinnati OH

 

RULES
*The field is limited to 64 anglers, so be sure to register as soon as possible to reserve your spot!

You can register HERE

 

Cost

Entry fee is $30. $20 of the entry fee is paid back to the competing anglers and 100% of the remaining amount will be used to buy trophy's and prizes for trail stops throughout the year. (See below for payouts and prize structure)

 

Format

Tournament is single elimination; win and advance or lose and go home!

 

Bracket

Anglers will be grouped into a region based upon their location (as best we can).  Once the anglers are grouped into a region they are randomly drawn to determine each match-up.

 

Schedule

There are five rounds of competition. The anglers competing against one another have an entire month to schedule and complete their match-up for each round.

• Round 1: June 1st-30th

• Round 2: July 1st-31st

• Round 3: August 1st-31st

• Round 4:  September 1st-30th

• Final Four: TBD (more details below)

 

How it works

• COMMUNICATION: Anglers competing against each other MUST contact one another by no later than the first Saturday of each month to discuss each of the items listed next....

 

• DATE: In Rounds 1-4 the two anglers have the option to decide on the date they will be competing. A logical decision might be for the anglers to choose an already scheduled BKFT tournament trail stop and compete in the trail stop as well as use it to determine the winner of the head to head match-up. If the anglers cannot agree upon a date it becomes mandatory that the anglers have their match on the 2nd Saturday of the month. (Round 1: June 13th, Round 2: July 11th, Round 3: August 8th, Round 4: Sept 12th)

 

• LOCATION: In Rounds 1-4 the two anglers have the option to decide on the lake or river they want to compete on. If Angler A wants to compete on Lake Lunker or Bronzeback River and Angler B agrees then the location has been determined. If anglers are unable to agree upon a location then a predetermined lake will be assigned to each region. The lake that is assigned to each region will be as close to the anglers in the region as possible. These lakes will be assigned once the 64 person cutoff has been hit so that we know what anglers are in what region.

 

• TIME: The start and end times for the head to head match-up is also determined by the anglers. If they cannot agree it defaults to Start: 7:30AM End: 12:30PM.

 

• SPECIES: The anglers also have the option to pick the species they will be fishing for in their match-up. If Angler A wants to fish for catfish and Angler B agrees then it becomes a catfish head to head match-up. If anglers can't agree it defaults to a Largemouth Bass/Smallmouth Bass/Spotted Bass tournament.

 

• FORMAT: The anglers also have the option to pick the format as long as they both agree. For example if both anglers already agreed that they were fishing for catfish they can also agree that whoever catches the largest one wins. Another example would be whoever catches the most bass over 16” in the allotted time-frame wins. Anything goes as long as BOTH anglers agree and there is a definitive winner. If the anglers can't agree to a format it defaults to the 3 longest fish caught in the allotted time-frame.

 

• BAIT: Again, anglers can determine what they want. If angler A suggests they use live bait and angler B approves then they can use live bait. By default only artificial baits are allowed.

 

• DEFAULTS: If anglers can't agree on one of the items listed above the default is:

  • Location: Lake predesignated for each region (will be as close to the anglers as possible)

  • Date: 2nd Saturday of the month that corresponds with the round.

  • Time: Start: 7:30AM End:12:30PM

  • Species: Bass (Largemouth, Smallmouth, Spotted)

  • Format: 3 Longest

  • Bait: Artificial only

• IF YOU DECIDE ON SOMETHING OTHER THAN THE DEFAULTS BE SURE THAT YOU DON'T MAKE IT TOO HARD!  There has to be a winner, so don't make the species something like musky where it is highly possible neither angler catches anything.

 

IDENTIFIER

Announced at a later date

 

PAPERWORK

Right after the drawing for match-ups a form will be emailed to every angler. For every match-up one form must be completely filled out and signed by BOTH anglers BEFORE the match-up begins. The form will contain agreed upon match details like species, format, etc or the defaults listed above.

 

SUBMISSIONS

Anglers should email the following to buckeyekayakfishingtrail@gmail.com within 3 days of their match:

• Both anglers email any fish that counted towards their match. For instance if Angler A won a match that was whoever caught the most 16”+ LMB they should email a picture for every one of those bass caught. Angler B should also email any of their qualifying catches. All pictures MUST contain the identifier or they will be disqualified.

• Both anglers should also email a picture of the completed match form with both anglers signature. If the form isn't signed by BOTH anglers they risk disqualification. If an angler protests the match-up for some reason they must still sign the form. (See 'Protest' section below)

PRIZES

Prizes are awarded to every angler that advances into Round 2.

• Win Round 1 – The sponsor of your region awards each angler ~$20 prize value

• Win Round 2 - The sponsor of your region awards each angler ~$30 prize value

• Win Round 3 - The sponsor of your region awards each angler ~$50 prize value

• FINAL FOUR – The anglers in the FINAL FOUR will receive some amazing prizes provided by our sponsors...early whispers say that a kayak may be included in the prize pool, so stay tuned!

 

PAYOUTS

• Win Round 2 - $20

• Win Round 3 - $40

• Win Round 4 which gets angler into the Final Four - $100

• Final Four will earn an additional payout according how they place against one another at the AOY Tourney:

  • 1st Place - $100

  • 2nd Place - $70

  • 3rd Place - $50

  • 4th Place - $20

MORE?!?

• Each of the anglers who make the Final Four also receive:

  • A free pass to an invite only tournament at the end of the year. At that tournament the Final Four anglers will not only compete to win the Buckeye Bracket Buster tournament but to also win BKFT's 2015 Angler of the Year! The only other anglers that get invites to the AOY Tourney are the one's who:

    • Place in the top 10 for the final trail standings in 2015

    • Take 1st place at a trail stop in 2015

 

The Angler of the Year Tournament location & date is at a location to be determined, but will take place after the last trail stop (Dayton River Experience in early October). The target date for the AOY tourney will be late October.

 

PROTESTS

REMEMBER, this is all about FUN! Do not “bend” or break the rules so that the BKFT committee has to make a ruling or disqualification. Even if an angler protests the match they must sign the match form. Any match protests should be emailed to buckeyekayakfishingtrail@gmail.com no later than 24 hours after the match. This should be a self policing event and is about meeting new anglers and having fun, so don't break or “bend” rules and make us disqualify any angler(s).

 

BONUS

• Once the anglers are drawn and placed into the bracket to start the tournament anyone can fill out a bracket! The cost is $5 and 80% of the money will be paid out to the people who fill out the top 3 most accurate brackets. (Will be similar to NCAA basketball brackets....ie: 5 points for first round winners selected correctly, 10 points for 2nd round winners selected correctly, etc).

Questions

If you have any questions be sure to send them to buckeyekayakfishingtrail@gmail.com and DO NOT wait until the day of your match to ask a question!  If a question or issue arises during the match ask your competitor and come to an agreement.