[MarshCappa]

Originally Posted by Saltheart

I think people expect too much from the big tourneys. The most enjoyable are little tourneys with small prizes (like a commemorative belt buckle) such that winning the prize is meaningless from a monetary view point. Its betweem friends or at least aquaintences and the biggest prize is the pride of having been lucky or skillfull or both that day (or weekend) These pumped up big events bring all the focus on winning big ticket items and that changes it from friendly sport to cutthroat ,lying , cheating, minipulating , do anything to win, fish kills.

The tourneys I have enjoyed the most were 1 day derbies where the cost on entering was like $10, a charity kept most of the money and someone gets a trophy or small value gear for winning. Our own S-B 4 leg tourneys are classic gentlemen's honor , catch and release and maybe you win a reel.

As soon as the prizes get big enough to make it a commercial inviting event, the spirit of sportsmanship gets ruined.

We grilled the original Striper Cup organizers online over the initial rules that promoted a fish kill much larger than the eventual rules that were adopted after the big protests.One thing that many wanted but that the organizers didn't was to not allow anyone with a commercial license to enter. I think that was the biggest mistake. With large prizes and commercial guys allowed to compete it became just another way for guys to earn more money from fish they were going to sell at the market anyway.

To me , the moral is that anything that turns a fishing tourney into more than simple fun between friends is bad for the tourney and participants.

Really well said. I totally agree with your point of view.