Section I. NTBA Mission
Section II. Member Expectations
NTBA members represent the club both on and off the water. While our club is small and relaxed, we believe the following expectations are vital to our success. Our members are expected to;
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Keep your safety and the safety of fellow anglers as a number one priority.
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Strictly adhere to all club rules and the rules set forth by Federal, State and local agencies.
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Promote club fellowship by treating all members with dignity and respect.
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Protect our natural resources through common sense conservation practices.
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Frequently and actively participate in clubs events and on social media.
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Proudly promote our club and our sponsors within the community.
North Texas Bass Assassins Bylaws
Section III. Obtaining Membership
All Membership requests must be made through the new member application link of fishntba.com. Once received, the membership director will asses the application and make contact with the prospective member within 72 hours of application receipt. Final decision to grant membership is at the sole discretion of the membership director.
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All new members are required to fish their first tournament as a trial. The trial will be at no cost to the new member and will exclude them from any payouts for that event only. The member will compete and weigh in just like other paying members. AOY points will be awarded to new members after their trial
event. All trials shall be fished within 45 days of application.
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After the trial event the new member will be directed to join the NTBA social media accounts and set up a member profile on fishntba.com.
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As the NTBA is an amature Bass Club; Professional Guides will not be allowed to fish any tournaments in the state that they are guiding in.
Section IV. Membership Levels
- Lifetime Members
Lifetime membership will be decided by the club administration based on, but not limited to, the following factors; 1)membership duration, 2)tournament participation 3)overall club engagement (i.e. special events)
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Lifetime members are exempt from regular season attendance requirements but must still fish 4 regular season events to qualify for the Club Championship. In addition, Lifetime Members must follow all rules and regulations set forth by the club and other agencies as described in these bylaws. Lifetime membership may be revoked at anytime by the Club President if there is sufficient cause to do so.
- Standard Members
All members will start the club as a Standard Member and will be required to meet the attendance requirements described in section V below.
The NTBA may cap its membership in order to maintain the advantages of a small club.
As with any small club it is vital that individual member participation be consistent.
In order for members to continue their ongoing status in the NTBA we ask for the following:
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1.Event Participation- We are a fishing club and expect that our members show up to fish at most
regularly scheduled events. If members are absent for multiple months consecutively you may be subject the fees described below. (this requirement applies only to Standard Member Boaters)
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2. Re-instatement fee for Standard Members:
The NTBA is a Private Fishing Club who does not charge yearly dues or require members to attend meetings. As opposed to OPEN tournaments our expectation is that members fish a diversity of lakes and not a select few. It's for this reason that we have created the following attendance requirements for Standard Members.
Standard Members are expected to fish at least one tournament every 3 months. In the event that a Standard Member misses three consecutive events or more the following fees will apply upon their return to competition.
3 missed consecutively = 25.00
4 missed consecutively = 50.00
5 missed consecutively = 75.00
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After the 6th consecutive missed tournament the member will be required to re-apply as a new member and will be required to fish another trial.
Good Communication- We all have lives outside of this club and understand that things come up at
unexpected times. We simply ask that you communicate to the group when you are unable to participate in a scheduled event. Timely, frequent and open communication is key to maintaining your status.
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Section V. Participation
Section VII. Liability Waiver
Section VI. Organization
The NTBA will maintain at leadership team consisting a President, Vice-President and Membership Director. All strategic decisions concerning the NTBA will be made by the leadership team who may consult with lifetime members prior to those decisions. Additional, club leadership positions will be added based on need. The process for selecting other leadership positions be decided by the Club President.
Section VIII. Tournament Rules
The following rules will apply to all tournament events unless otherwise specified by the NTBA. All Anglers are required to register for each event on the NTBA Web site at least one week prior to the event. (www.fishntba.com) No Late entries will be accepted.
Official Tournament Rules:All Federal, State, and Local Laws, as well as TP&W (Texas Parks & Wildlife) rules and regulations must be observed. Any violations of the rules by an individual or team will be subject to disqualification by the Administration.
Tournament start/end time will be posted the NTBA private facebook page. Anglers must be in weigh-in line by the designated time. A small grace period can be granted however, members who abuse the grace period repeatedly will be disqualified. Contestants must receive a poker chip from the Tournament Director after livewell inspection and must present their poker chip to be allowed to weigh-in.
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All fish must be of legal length, measured with mouth closed and tail squeezed to produce maximum length. No live bait May be used. Only Artificial baits(including pork trailers) are allowed to be used. Any fish not measuring legal length at the time of weigh in will be disqualified. A 0.5 lb penalty will be assessed for any fish that measures 0.5" or more under the legal length limit. (Note: A courtesy measurement can be done prior to the weigh in but it must be requested by the Angler). A 0.5 lb penalty will be assessed for any dead fish brought to the scales.
No bank fishing or dock fishing will be allowed. Fishing is allowed only on the designated tournament lake. All occupants of the boat must wear a Coast Guard approved personal flotation device while boat is ‘on plane’. All protests must be submitted to the Tournament Director within 15 minutes of the last fish weighed in. The Tournament Director will determine the merit of the protest.The contestant making the protest and the contestant in question will remain at the tournament site until the Tournament Director has reached a decision. Once a decision is made, the matter is closed and will be given no further consideration.
Each contestant must check in and present their entry fee before fishing the tournament. The Tournament Director or his designee must check all Live Wells before you may leave to fish.
No more the 2 adult contestants per Team per Boat. Teams must be determined prior to the tournament.
Upon application to join the NTBA, each prospective member will be required to agree to a waiver of liability. This waiver will release North Texas Bass Assassins (NTBA), its officers, sponsors, agents, any of its members, from any and all damages, claims, thefts, demands, cost, accidents or expenses relating to injury of any persons or damage to any property which may be cause by reason of participating in or in connection with any NTBA Tournament or non-tournament Fishing event.
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Section IX. Tournament Entry Fee & Payout
The standard entry fee for a regular tournament is 50.00 per team. The entry fee for special events and the Championship shall be determined by club administration.
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Tournament payouts will be determined by the number of boats competing at each event.
Payouts can be a combination of cash and prizes and will be as determined as described below:
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6 to 10 Boats = Two Position pay out. 60% for first, 40% for second.
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11 to 25 boats = Three position pay out. 50% for First Place, 30 % for Second Place, 20 for third place.
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25+ = 4 Position Payout. 50% First Place, 30% Second Place, 15% Third Place, 5% Fourth Place
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Big Bass payout will be awarded for the biggest fish in the event over 6lbs. The pot will roll over if there is no winner at the event.
Section X. Club Championship Qualification
Qualification for Championship
All anglers who have fished at least 4 events prior to the Championship may compete in the event.
Championship Bracket
The top 10 AOY finishers qualify for the Championship Bracket(In addition to the previous year Challenger Bracket Champion). Payout of the Championship bracket will be based on the total of all monies collected for the Championship and decided by club leadership. (Sponsors donations may be used to increase the Championship payout but is not guaranteed)
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Challenger Bracket
Members in good standing, who do not qualify for the Championship bracket, may fish the 2 day event in the Challenger bracket. (as long as 4 tournament minimum is met) Payouts for the Challenger bracket will be determined by the club leadership.
In both brackets, the winner will be based on the 2 day total of all fish brought to the scales.
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Section XI. Angler of the Year (AOY)
Calculation of AOY Points
AOY points will be awarded to all members who attend each tournament and are present at weigh in. (If you need to leave before weigh in please let us know and you can be awarded points)
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At the end of the year, the AOY Champion will be decided based on each Anglers 10 best tournament scores. (This assumes a 12 event schedule)
​Single event AOY points will be awarded as follows:
1st Place - 50 Points + Fish weight
2nd Place 49 Points + Fish Weight
3rd Place 48 Points + Fish Weight
(and so on)........
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All members who attend the event and do not weigh in will be awarded 25 attendance points. ​
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Section XII. Inclement Weather
1. If the Tournament Director believes weather to be hazardous during the travel to tournament site, the tournament shall be cancelled on the eve of the contest or sooner and rescheduled as determined by the Club Officers. IF the event is cancelled for the month the Club Officers will determine the points given to all anglers that registered for the event.
2. If conditions become hazardous on the day of the tournament prior to launching, Tournament Director will make the final decision at the launch site immediately before the tournament begins to determine if a tournament will commence as scheduled or if a delay is necessary.
3. If conditions become hazardous during the tournament and all boats have launched it is the discretion of the Member to stay on the water or not.