1. No one participating in a CAA tournament will fish the tournament waters within the 12 hours prior to the tournament.
2. Captains meeting will be held 15 minutes prior to launch of tournament. Location will be designated by directors of tournament.
3. For all catfish tournaments any species of catfish can be weighed unless otherwise specified.

4. Catfish less than 12 inches will not be weighed-in or count towards total weight.  

5. Anyone caught cheating in a Catfish Anglers Association event will be disqualified and banned from all future tournaments.  
6. Any disorderly conduct at any time during a Catfish Anglers Association event will result in disqualification and possible banning from future events. 
7. Catfish Anglers Association reserves the right to refuse a team’s registration for any reason.  
8. Catfish Angler Association Tournaments are catch and release tournaments. All fish must be able to swim away within 10 minutes. ALL FISH WILL BE RELEASED.  
9. Boats are limited to 8 rods being fished at any given time. Absolutely NO Jug, Limb or Trot Lines. Live-wells are highly encouraged. Stringered fish will have only one 1" (maximum) cut in lower lip.  
10. Entry fees are $50.00 per boat for paid CAA members and a $10.00 fee will be assessed for each non-member angler (Effective 2009 Schedule). Optional big fish $10.00 and trash fish $5.00 pots will be available at all tournaments.  
11. For 5 fish total weight tournaments only 5 fish may be brought to the scales.  
12. For 2 big fish tournaments only 2 fish may be brought to the scales.  
13. For 50 pound target weight tournaments you may bring up to 6 fish to the scale; 5 to try and make the target weight and 1 for big fish. If your big fish is part of the fish you are using to make the target weight then you can only bring 5 fish to the scale. (ex. you have a 3, 10, 10, 10, 15 and a 43 equaling 48 pounds of fish for the target weight tournament plus a 43 pounder for the big fish pot. The 6th fish (43 pound fish) can NOT be used for the target portion of the tournament. In a different example you have a 10 and a 42 pounder. You may bring both fish to the scale for the target weight tournament and you may use the 42 pounder for the big fish pot.  
14. You may remove and add fish for target weight tournaments until your final weight is announced.  
15. Protest should be made within 10 minutes of the last fish being weighed. The tournament organizers will discuss the protest and make a decision. All decisions are final.  
16. In the event of a tie for any place the money will be added together then will be spilt for the winners.  
17. You may fish any part of the water that can be reached from the launch as long as you are back to the weigh-in on time. No trailering unless specifically stated for the event.  
18. All boats involved with Catfish Anglers Association must comply with all rules set by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.  
19. All boats involved with Catfish Anglers Association must comply with Marine rules set by the United States Coast Guard. Any violations of regulations are the sole responsibility of the boater.  
20. Payback will be 90% of entry fee with the other 10% going towards Angler of the Year and Big Fish of the Year monies. Big Fish and Trash Fish pot payback will be 100%.  
21. Safety of people and the fish we catch are the #1 concern. Failure to obey any of the Catfish Anglers Association rules will result in disqualification.

22. All CAA Tournaments Are Alcohol and Drug Free. Any Angler found to be consuming Alcohol or Drugs during a tournament will be immediately disqualified from the tournament and subject to banning from further tournaments as directed by the directors.

Points Standings Rules

1. Official Teams will consist of no more than 4 members designated by the team Captain.  
2. Tournament scoring is as follows: 1^st : 100, 2^nd : 95, 3^rd : 90, 4^th : 88, 5^th : 86, 6^th : 84, and this continues decreasing in 2 point increments. In the event of a tie for any place an equal amount of place points will be awarded.  
3. Membership in Catfish Anglers Association is required to qualify for Team of the Year, Big Fish of the Year and Nomination to fish the Cabelas King Kat Classic.  
4. In addition to CAA Membership Teams must fish a minimum of one half of the tournament schedule to qualify for Team of the Year.  
5. Teams may be represented in an event by two members of the team, the Captain of the team must be one of those members. Teams may be represented by two members other than the Captain only in two events.  
6. Each CAA Team will drop their worst 2 tournaments. One must be in the first half of the season and one must be in the second half.

    

***Catfish Anglers Association Official Rules are subject to change at the discretion of the directors of the organization and membership. Certain rules may be suspended for various reasons during the tournament season.***

Printable Documents

Official Rules
Tournament Schedule 2009
Tournament Registration Form
CAA Catfish Data Collection


Catfish Data Collection Program

    Catfish Anglers Association is currently working to collect data to provide to the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission that will assist them in gaining a better picture of the catfish population within the state. 

    The data being collected consists of Species, Weight, Length and Location. We ask that our members and nonmember anglers collect the data during regular fishing trips and return the data to CAA for compiling and distribution to the NCWRC. CAA will be collecting data during tournaments at the weigh in upon completion of fishing.

    The information can be recorded on the form that is listed under Printable Documents and then either e-mailed to director@catfish-anglers.org, mailed to Catfish Anglers Association Attn: James McKenzie 727 N. Orange St. Coats NC 27521, or presented to the staff at a tournament.