Snapper Slam 2026 Rules
1.) Registration: This is a 3-day angler fishing tournament for Red Snapper, Mangrove Snapper and Lane Snapper. All anglers may fish 1 day during the May 29 thru May 31, 2026 tournament. Entrants must register on line for the tournament and pay the non-refundable entry fee of $100, no later than 8pm Thursday May 28, 2026. Registration must include angler and boat name. Each angler on a boat must be registered. A copy of the tournament rules will be posted at the registration web site. All anglers (or boats if chartered) must be properly licensed.
2.) Tackle & Equipment: Electric reels are not allowed. All tournament fish must be caught on rod and reel. The use of cast net or sabiki’s for bait is allowed prior the 06:00 am lines in time.
3.) Fish Species & Requirements to be weighed in: Eligible fish - Red Snapper, Mangrove Snapper and Lane Snapper. Each angler can weigh 1 fish of each species. All catches must be legal per current state and federal rules.
4.) The winners will be determined by the angler with the highest total weight which caught all three species. If anglers do not catch 3 species, then combined weight of two and then one species determine the winners. In the case of a tie, the first angler to weigh in is the winner. Cash prizes will be awarded for 1st thru 3rd place anglers in total weight. Eighty percent of entry fee collected will be awarded as follows 50% to first, 30 % to second and 20% to third.
There will be three tournaments within a tournament, one for largest fish of each species. Entry fee is $25 each species and is collected at registration. Payout is winner take all minus 20%.
5.) Tournament Rules: The weighmaster reserves the right to hold and examine internally and externally any fish weighed in as a tournament catch to determine if the fish is eligible for an award. All fish must be fresh and kept in consumable condition. Any fish that has unnatural material in or on it will be disqualified. No mutilated/half eaten fish will be allowed for weigh-in. The tournament committee will determine if a fish is mutilated. **PLEASE REMOVE ALL HOOKS, LURES AND LINES BEFORE TAKING YOUR FISH OFF THE BOAT!
6.) All anglers may fish 1 day during the May 29 thru May 31st tournament. Anglers MUST declare their fishing day by 8pm the night prior by texting the registered angler’s name to 386-868-8759. Anglers must leave and return via Ponce Inlet. There will be no check out time prior to the start of fishing. Boats may leave Ponce Inlet at 12:01 am on declared fishing day. No fishing lines in the water before 6:00 am. Eligible fish must be caught during tournament hours on a vessel that leaves and returns via Ponce Inlet.
7.) Weigh-In: The Weigh-In will be held at Halifax Sport Fishing Club located at 3431 S Ridgewood Ave, Port Orange, FL 32129. The Weigh Station will be open from 4:00-6:00 pm on all 3 days tournament days. All anglers must be in line no later than 6:00 pm. If you don’t have fish to weigh on the fishing day you declared, please check in anyway. If we have not heard from you and are unable to reach you by 8:30 pm, the US Coast Guard will be notified of a potential missing vessel. It is important for the tournament to know that each boat is back to port with all participants present and accounted for. Send us a text to 386-868-8759 with Boat and Angler name and let us know you made it in safely or we will call your emergency contact and/or the Coast Guard if not heard from!
8.) All fish considered for awards must be weighed in at the official weigh-in station at Halifax Sport Fishing Club located at 3431 S Ridgewood Ave, Port Orange, FL 32129. All fish must be caught during tournament hours. Awards will be presented at Halifax Sport Fishing Club on Thursday June 4th 2026 at 6:30 pm at the start of Lady Angler’s Tournament’s captains meeting
9.) Disqualification: If any boat is ticketed by an enforcing authority during tournament hours you will be disqualified. However, as safety is of prime importance to the operation of the tournament, exceptions may be granted by tournament management for Emergencies. All boats must remain under their own power and fuel supply for the entire fishing day. A special exception could be granted to a tournament boat lending aid to a distressed boat.
10.) Protest: All protest must be presented in writing to the tournament director at the weigh-in station on the day of the alleged infraction, prior to the closing of the weigh-in station on the day it occurs. A $500.00 cash deposit, refundable if the protest is upheld, must accompany the protest. Tournament management will make all decisions, and their decision is final. If the protest is not upheld, then such deposit will be forfeited to the tournament. Polygraph: Participants in the tournament are subject to a polygraph at the request of Tournament Management. Failure to take or successfully pass such an examination may result in testing the Boat Captain; a second failure results in automatic disqualification of the team. This is at the sole discretion of tournament management.
If you have any questions, contact Jim Cecelic at 757-748-2101, or tournaments@hsfc.com. Check for updates on Facebook.