The following rules shall apply to all BETT tournaments:These rules may be changed by BETT immediately upon notice, to all BETT members.   Interpretation and enforcement of these rules shall be left exclusively to the tournament director and he may consult with the BETT rules committee. In the event of a rules violation the tournament director may impose sanctions as deemed appropriate by him and the committee, including without limitation, disqualification, forfeit of prizes and entry fee and being band from future participation of BETT tournaments/events. In the event of an appeal process the tournament director and the rules committee’s decision will be final in all matters.In the event of a serious violation, the penalties may include the following: 

1. loss of catch for the day (disqualification)
2. disqualification from the entire tournament
3. ban for life from future BETT events
4. any different or additional penalties determined by the tournament director
5. this is a team event, therefore any violation will deem the boat to be disqualified

 RULE 1 – PARTICIPATION – OPEN TOURNAMENT

a) The tournament is open to any participant, irrespective of age, creed, colour or race. 

b) However the management of BETT reserve the right of admission to any participant.

c) Whomever you partner is at the start of the trail (1st tournament), must remain your partner for the rest of the tournament trail. 

d) If your partner cannot fish a tournament with you, you may fish with someone else, but your 5 fish will be for your team score only and his 5 fish for his team score only.  I.e.: you will be competing against each other. 

e) You may fish with someone else other than your original starting partner but you will not get the points, only the prizes if you are in the top five. 

f) BETT reserves the right to change venues less then seven days in advance, by notifying participants via the BETT website. 

g) No partners may practice any venues during the cut off period if he is not able to fish the event with his partner.  

RULE 2 - PRE-COMPETITION CUT-OFF

a) No fishing FIVE (5) days before the Saturday event, effective from the previous Sunday evening.Disqualification will be enforced if there is a breach of this rule.  

RULE 3 - COMPETITION BRIEFING

a) A team briefing will be held prior to the start of each event, outlining any extraordinary situations and any change of rules. 

RULE 4 - USE OF LIVE-WELLS

a) Live-wells of some description, adequate in size to accommodate the boat's limit of fish, will be used on each boat and have an aerated or freshwater supply system.

b) The organising committee will reject live-wells that do not conform to the sports norm. 

RULE 5 - LIVE-WELL INSPECTION

a) Prior to commencement of the competition, all live-wells will be empty. 

b) Hatches for purposes other than live-wells will be opened for inspection, as will coolers and other watertight containers, no matter their purpose. 

c) Inspections will be carried out on and off the water, no more than 30 minutes before the starting time of each of the angling sessions. 

d) Competitors so inspected will not leave their boat unless re-inspected before starting off. 

e) A system of proving that live-wells having been inspected shall be implemented.  

RULE 6 - SAFETY

a) All anglers taking part in Association sanctioned tournaments are obliged to have their boats fitted with kill switches. 

b) Each person on the boat shall wear life jackets at all times while the internal combustion engineis operating. 

c) Standard safety rules pertaining to local waters, including the "rule of the road" (shore on RHS,resulting in counter-clockwise movement) will be observed at all times. 

d) When boats approach ahead, they shall pass with the other boat to the left (port rule) at a distance and speed so that the wake of neither will endanger the other

e) Overtaking in the same direction shall be executed with discretion and the overtaking boat shall maintain its course until well clear of overtaken boat(s). Generally, the overtaking boat should keep to the deep-water side of the other, without endangering boats approaching head-on. 

f) Boats approaching at right angles shall apply the port-rule. The boat with the other on the port(left) side has right of way. The other boat shall alter course and/or speed so as to pass astern of the boat with right of way. 

g) Powerboats shall give way to boats under sail or hand power, irrespective of the right of way. 

h) If, in their opinion, a participant appears to be incapable of operating his boat in a safe manner,the organisers may exercise their right to disqualify such person, in that event. 

i) As from March 2009, all BETT boat owners will have to produce their skipper licenses as well as their certificate of compliance for their boats.  

RULE 7 - SPORTSMANSHIP

a) Competitors will at all times display a high standard of sportsmanship and courtesy to bothfellow competitors and members of the public. 

b) any competitor hurling verbal abuse of any kind to a fellow competitor, committee member or member of the public, for whatever reason and found guilty of such conduct will be band from participation in any future BETT events. 

c) Any competitor, committee member found guilty by the committee or tournament director for fighting or violence of any sort shall be band from participating in any future BETT events. 

d) The above offences will be taken up with SABAA and will be requested by BETT for SABAA to take the same action as we have, due to the fact that we are sanctioned by SABAA. 

e) The principles of conservation will be promoted at all times.   

RULE 8 - INJURED FISH

a) Bass, which are dead, physically damaged, altered, or willfully mutilated, will be disqualified at the discretion of the weigh master, whose decision will be final. 

b) Presenting dead, damaged, altered, or willfully mutilated fish to the weigh master will carry a one-point penalty for each fish concerned. 

c) The introduction of materials or devices that cause an increase in weight/mass of a fish shall be deemed as willful damage and will be just cause for the disqualification of the angler concerned. 

d) Old and/or accidental injuries, which do not cause the fish to be heavier than if it were not injured, will be accepted. 

e) Living fish, that have partially ingested their prey, shall not be weighed until the protruding remains of such ingested prey are safely removed and not count towards the weight.  

RULE 9 - WEIGHING FISH & FISH LIMITS

a) Only the competitor will handle his/her catch to be weighed and presented for scoring. Helpers will be provided but will not handle the fish. 

b) Once a competitor enters a buoyed off area, the fish in their possession become the property of the weigh-master who may also inspect their live-wells at any time. 

c) The daily fish limit will be 5 (five) live fish only, on the boat at any one time, regardless of the statutory (license) limits stipulated in any particular region. 

d) In the event of a competitor having more than the legal limit of dead or alive fish anywhere onhis boat, the angler will be disqualified for that session.  

e) Where there are more than the limit (5) of dead or alive fish present on the boat for the number of anglers (if more than one) on a boat and doubt is expressed as to which angler is responsible for exceeding the limit, all the anglers on that boat shall be disqualified for that session. 

f) Weighing-in at tournaments may take place throughout the day, at the discretion of the organisers. 

RULE 10 - LATE WEIGH-IN 

a) A large enough waiting area shall be provided and marshaled, but your tag must still be placed on the tag board before 3pm regardless. 

b) Cut off time will be indicated visually or audibly from the weigh station. Any competitor rendering emergency assistance to another competitor, which results in his/her late arrival, mayhave his/her catch weighed if he/she provides satisfactory proof of such assistance given. 

c) The tag board systems is utilized for BETT events and if you're numbered tag is not on the weigh station's board by cut-off time 3pm, the boat and its catch shall be disqualified from that event. 

d) emergency assistance does not allow for the following: 

1. Flat batter
2. Running out of fuel

 The tournament director’s cell number will be displayed at the weigh station in case of emergencies.  It is your duty as a competitor to take down the number and call if an emergency arises.The tournament director will inform you of the protocol.   

RULE 11 – FISH CULLING

a) No dead fish will be weighed 

b) No dead fish on any boats.  Dead fish to be returned to the water as soon as it becomes evident. 

c) No culling shall take place in the vicinity of the weigh station or in the waiting area(s), as all culling shall have been completed whilst fishing, to prevent the fish limit being acceded at any one time.  

RULE 12 – SESSIONS

a) An angling day may be divided into discrete sessions at the discretion of the organisers. Each session will be treated as if a new day, with defined start/finish times, live-well inspections, andother applicable provisions as Laid down in these Rules.  

RULE 13 - NO-WAKE AREA

a) A no-wake area will be in force for at least 100 (one-hundred) meters to either side of theweigh-in site and 50 (fifty) meters to the front for the duration of the tournament, with the shoreextremities being clearly marked, and no angling will be permitted in such areas. 

b) All boats within this area will proceed at idle pace below 800RPM so as not to cause a wake.  

RULE 14 - PROTESTS

a) Any protest is to be submitted to the organising committee no later than 15 minutes after the last person weighed-in, verbal or in writing together with names of witnesses (if any).  

RULE 15 - TIE-BREAKING

a) In the event of a tie, the bag with the most fish, followed, if necessary, by the bag containing the heaviest fish, will decide the winner.  

RULE 16 - SCORING SYSTEM

a)      There will be one point given per kilogram or part thereof. 

b)     Your highest eight scores out of nine will count to determine your qualification for the BETT Classic.  

RULE 17 - LURE TYPE TACKLE

a) Angling will be with artificial lures only. 

b) No "live bait" or prepared (organic) bait shall be permitted. 

c) Only one wet line attached to a rod and reel, per angler may be used at any one time. 

d) No trolling will be permitted; i.e. no lure attached to a line may be overboard while the main(outboard) engine is running. 

e) No tethered or hand-line of any description may be used under any circumstances.  

RULE 18 - ELIGIBLE FISH

a) Only live bass measuring 300 mm and over will be acceptable for weighing. The measurement is to be from the outer extremities of the closed mouth to the outer tip of the tail, with the fishplaced on a flat surface.  

b) Any undersize fish presented to the weigh-master will encounter 1 point off the angler’s score,and that fish shall be rejected, but WILL count as portion of the session (daily) limit. 

c) A fish that is "gilling" shall be deemed to be alive, and the final decision is at the discretion of the weigh master.  

RULE 19 - WET LINES

a) No boat may approach closer than 40 meters to another boat, except by mutual consent and in the event of rendering emergency assistance to the occupants of such boat. If an angler allows any one angler into his wet-line radius, then he is obliged to allow any angler into this area. 

b) Fish shall not be transferred to another host for any reason whatsoever other than in the event of a complete mechanical failure. One of the anglers from the immobilised boat shall accompany the catch. 

c) There shall be an arrangement, which shall prevent catches from being confused, without mutilation of any fish  

RULE 20 - METHODS OF ANGLING

a) Angling may only take place with a recognised rod and reel, with only 1 (one) wet line in use at any one time. 

b) A landing net may be used to land fish. 

c) An angler must catch, fight and land the fish, without having to resort to changing the structure to enable the fish to be landed, nor may he leave his boat and enter the water to retrieve a fish caught on undergrowth whilst fighting the fish.  He may however with the assistance of his co angler, retrieve a fish which is caught in the undergrowth, provided he does not leave the boat. 

RULE 21 - PROHIBITED AREAS

a) Anglers shall be disqualified if encroachment is made on out-of-bounds areas, which have been declared off-limits by the tournament director,  water affairs/nature conservation or the dam authorities e.g. dam wall areas, weirs or private property etc.  If the tournament director has put any such areas off limits, it is the duty of an angler to confirm that he understands what is off limits.If no angler asks questions with regard to this, it is deemed that they understand the tournament director and in the event of violation in this rule, the boat will be disqualified. 

b) Anglers shall be disqualified if excessive speed is applied in a no-wake area such as asanctuary, breeding area and/or private property (where this stipulation is a condition of entry to such an area). 

c) An angler may not leave the boat other than at the weigh in station or for emergency. No receiving of items from non-competitors. 

d) If any boat or casting a line is seen in the off limits area, this will be immediate disqualification.  The tournament directors decision is final.  

RULE 22 - ALCOHOL AND DRUGS

a) No member may be under the Influence of alcohol whilst participating in a tournament. The stipulations of National Road Safety rules will apply.

b) The use of illegal drugs or substances (as defined in common law) by contestants during tournaments is prohibited. 

c) Contravention of Rule 22 A. & B. above will constitute a serious offence and will be summarily dealt with, preventing further participation, removing (by force if necessary) the capability to operate a boat or motor vehicle until deemed safe to return such control.  

RULE 23 - POWER OF DISQUALIFICATION

Under ANY of the above rules, the organising committee is empowered to disqualify any competitor, after due consideration of the facts, deemed to have broken these rules at their level and/or apply disciplinary measures as defined in the BETT rules.Committee can make the banning of any angler for serious breach of rules.In the event of a dispute BETT may make use of a polygraph test for both anglers on the boat.