RowRide Youth Angler Tournament

Official-ish RowRide Youth Angler Tournament rules

These are the kids / RowRide rules.

1. A separate free tournament

RowRide is a separate tournament from the adult boat tournament. There is no entry fee. Youth Division awards are decided at weigh-in.

The Youth Division trophies are host-funded by Tournament Host and do not come from paid side-pot money.

2. Who can enter

Open to youth anglers — anglers 17 or younger whom a parent or legal guardian has registered. Kids can use a parent's email. They do not need their own account. Parent login is the login.

3. How kids register

Kids register only on the RowRide form. Kids enter RowRide on their own. Boat registration is a different product — they are not added to a boat roster. Kids register individually — each child is an individual angler, not a named youth team. One kid per form submit. Parents with more than one child register again for each kid.

4. How kids fish

• Kids may fish from land or by boat. Registering for RowRide does not put them on a $300 boat roster.
• If they tag along on someone's boat, ask the captain or guide first — guides often prefer no more than four anglers. They are still not added to that boat's roster.
• When a youth angler is fishing from a boat, an adult should be on the boat.

5. What they compete for

Registered youth anglers compete for three host-funded Youth Division awards:

• Biggest Redfish — 1st Place
• Biggest Speckled Trout — 1st Place
• Biggest Trash Fish — 1st Place

A youth angler may only win one Youth Division award. If the same kid brings in the biggest redfish and biggest trout (or any two), they take only one award and the next eligible angler takes the other so the fun spreads around.

At the scale: start with the heaviest qualifying fish in each category. If one kid would win more than one award, they keep the award they win by the most — usually their heaviest fish, or the one with the biggest lead over second place. Each leftover award goes to the next heaviest qualifying fish in that category from a kid who has not already won. If two fish in the same category weigh the same, the one weighed first wins. If it is still a toss-up, the Weighmaster decides, and that call is final.

A qualifying fish must be legal, caught during tournament hours, presented whole and accepted by the Weighmaster. Official results come from weigh-in, not from AI Livewell estimates.

The youth angler must personally hook the fish and land it. Adults may help with safety. The child needs to do the fishing.

6. What they do not compete in

• Kids do not take one of a boat's 1–4 adult fishing seats and do not change the $300.00 boat entry.
• Kids do not compete in the adult main stringer or main pot.
• RowRide kids do not count on a boat team's paid side pots, even if they fish from a registered boat that entered those pots. To enter a paid side pot, they buy in on their own RowRide registration — $50 per pot. The free RowRide base stays $0.

7. Licenses

A Texas fishing license and saltwater endorsement are generally required for 17-year-olds. Younger children generally do not need a Texas fishing license. Check current Texas Parks and Wildlife Department rules.

8. Weigh-in

RowRide uses the same official scale, Weighmaster, and 2:00 p.m. weigh-in deadline as the adult boat tournament at Boatmen’s Bar and Marina. There are no exceptions to that deadline.

9. The final word

Everyone must behave safely, honestly and respectfully. The Weighmaster has final authority over species, condition, measurement, and official weight. All decisions are final.