10th Annual IGFA Dania Beach Junior Angler Tournament

The Tenth Annual IGFA Dania Beach Junior Angler Fishing Tournament will be held Saturday, September 16, 2006 . The tournament is for children 16 and under beginning with a rules meeting and kick-off party on Friday, September 15, 2006 beginning at 6 p.m. at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum and conclude with a silent auction, raffle and award ceremony starting at 2pm at the same location. All anglers must be present at the rules meeting to pick up the official score sheets. This tournament is a qualifying event for the 2007 MERCURY / IGFA Junior Angler World Championship , and this year both a freshwater and saltwater angler will qualify. This year the tournament has been modified to be all catch-and-release , but the rules remain simple: lines in the water at 7 a.m. and lines out at 1 p.m. There is no Bimini start, angers can fish anywhere they like and catches do not have to be radioed in. Score sheets must be turned in by 2 p.m. at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum.

Junior Anglers may choose to fish in one of the following divisions; Freshwater, Saltwater Shore , Saltwater Boat, Saltwater Drift Boat. Anglers will be awarded points depending on species and degree of difficulty. Easier fish to catch in the five-point category in saltwater are jacks (crevalle, bar and yellow), snappers (yellowtail and mangrove), red grouper, mackerel (cero and Spanish) and ladyfish. Ten-point fish include barracuda, dolphin fish, grouper (black and gag), king mackerel, mutton snapper and any shark.

Little tunny and greater amberjack are worth 15 points each and 20 points will be awarded for a successful catch and release for each african pompano, sailfish, permit, tarpon, tuna (yellowfin, blackfin) and wahoo.

In the freshwater division, 20 point fish consist of both largemouth and peacock bass. Bowfin or mudfish and any gar or catfish will yield 10 points each and panfish, sunfish or cichlids will earn the angler 5 points a piece.

There's no minimum length for eligible species, but a maximum of five fish of each species can be counted by each contestant. Any other fish are awarded two points each with a maximum of five other fish counting towards points and a minimum of 12 inches in length.

Invitations to the 2007 MERCURY / IGFA Junior Angler World Championship will go to the highest scoring fresh and saltwater angles. Merchandise and trophy awards will go top scoring Junior (through the age of 16) and smallfry anglers through the age of 10 in each of the divisions. In addition stringer awards will be given to an angler in each division who catches the most different eligible species (not including other).

Pre-registration is required. To register, visit please or contact Peter Gaube (954) 927-2628. Deadline to register is at the Kick-off party on Friday, September 15 th at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum. The registration fee is $30 per angler, and includes lunch and refreshments during the awards ceremony, one free drawing ticket and a one year junior membership into the IGFA. The one year membership includes PELAGIC gear hat with IGFA's new Junior Angler logo, membership decal, membership card, a subscription to the quarterly International Junior Angler newsletter, periodic junior world record updates and free admission to the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum.

To register visit click here to download the registration form and fax or mail it to Peter Gaube at the International Game Fish Association, 300 Gulf Stream Way , Dania Beach , Florida 33004 · Fax (954) 924-4333 · If you have any further questions feel free to conatact Peter at · (954) 924-4247 or E-mail: pgaube@igfa.org

Form more information, contact the tournament director, Peter Gaube at pgaube@igfa.org or 954.924.4247.