Tournament Rules

Register on CatchStat (jjfishweek.catchstat.com). Forms and fees can also be emailed to info@jjfishweek.com or mailed to Fish Hard Events, 7150 SW 139th St, Miami, FL 33158. Registrations paid at Packet Pick Up must be cash, Mastercard, Visa or American Express (no checks on March 2). Entry fees are non-refundable.

Three coinciding tournaments during JJFISHWEEK 2027: JJBillfish Catch & Release, JJSportfish Weighted, and the Hard Rock Invitational. Teams in JJBillfish may also enter JJSportfish (and vice versa); fish caught in one tournament can count for the other if registered in advance for both. IGFA Rules apply with the exceptions below.

Competition: Thursday, March 4 & Friday, March 5, 2027. Kick Off, Packet Pick Up and Captain's Meeting: Tuesday, March 2 at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Hollywood, FL. Wednesday, March 3 is the pre-fish day. Saturday, March 6 is the Ultimate Gifting Experience (1:00–5:00 PM) and the Closing Awards Bash that evening.

Sailfish, White Marlin, Blue Marlin, Spearfish, Dolphin, Yellowfin Tuna, Blackfin Tuna, Wahoo, Cobia, and Kingfish.

No limit. All anglers must be listed on CatchStat (or provided to officials) before competition starts Thursday, March 4. Substitutions must be reported before lines in that day.

Up to seven (7) lines in the water at any time.

Rod and reel only. Max test line: 20 lb. No electric reels (except kite rods and downriggers). Non-offset circle hooks required. Leader length max 15 ft; combined double line + leader max 20 ft. Up to 2 artificial dredges permitted — no live or dead bait on dredges or teasers.

Omni Sonars are permitted but may not be deployed until Lines-In has been called.

Live bait is permitted; live chumming is not. No dead bait (whole or chunk) for chumming. Bait fishing is allowed but not simultaneously with sailfishing. Any bait removed from a hook must be kept in the boat. Repeated casting/jerking is considered chumming. Glitter (any form) is prohibited.

Permitted with stipulations: once hooked, the fish must be immediately handed off to the angler, who fights it to completion (released, boated, or lost). Hand-off occurs once, at the beginning of the fight. A rod holder may be used to hook a fish but not to fight one.

Officials operate on VHF Channel 74. Reserve the channel for announcements and angler releases. Phone numbers are printed on the back of the boat number card if Channel 74 fails.

All JJBILLFISH boats are limited to Florida-coast waters no more than 35 miles offshore. North Boundary: 26°56.553'N, 79°59.622'W. South/West Boundary: 24°43.876'N, 80°46.238'W. Boats may not exit the boundary while fighting a fish. Keep GPS tracking on; without it, the day may be disqualified.

JJBillfish is a Catch & Release tournament with one optional meat fish. Hybrid payout with a minimum $1 Million guaranteed purse; additional payout accrues based on the number of entered boats. The previous Weighted Division is now its own tournament (JJSportfish), run on the same days but separate from the guaranteed payout. Final prize structure issued at Tuesday Packet Pick Up; guarantor reserves the right to modify until Wednesday, March 3.

No land-based check-out. At the start of each fishing day, video the time and GPS coordinates to confirm you are within the boundary. Initialize every recording device. No lines deployed until inside the boundary.

8:00 AM on both Thursday, March 4 and Friday, March 5. No boats may be trailered to or from fishing locations during tournament hours.

4:00 PM on both Thursday, March 4 and Friday, March 5.

By 6:00 PM each day. Four official check-in / weigh locations: Sailfish Marina (Floating Dock), Bahia Mar Marina (Captain's Lounge), Miami Beach Marina (Fuel Dock), and Ocean Reef Marina Fuel Dock (Members Only). Online check-in via Dropbox is allowed both days — you must text a tournament official a photo of your boat tied up at the dock and a photo of your upload in progress before 6:00 PM. Captains must remain reachable through the evening to provide secondary video evidence if requested.

Officials may alter the schedule for unsafe conditions. Best effort is made for a two-day format; if only one day is achievable the tournament may be reduced to a one-day format. Captains and anglers are solely responsible for deciding whether to fish under given conditions.

Sailfish Marina (floating dock hosted by Michelob Ultra) · Bahia Mar Marina (VERA Motors, near Dockmaster's Office) · Miami Beach Marina (fuel dock, hosted by Tito's Handmade Vodka) · Ocean Reef Club Fuel Dock (Members Only).

The complete 2027 rulebook will be provided at Packet Pick Up and posted at questfortheringfl.com. Email info@jjfishweek.com with any questions.