Starts: Monday, October 14, 2024 & Ends: Tuesday, December 31, 2024

The 2024 Winter Lionfish Throw Down is a Lionfish hunting tournament held throughout the State of Florida waters. Our goal is to encourage the culling of Lionfish through the winter months to mitigate the damage done by Lionfish all year long.

Please read all the rules and instructions before registering.

The $35 registration fee is non-refundable.

Your registration includes a specially designed event rash guard and the ability for each registered participant to win one of the prizes for the top 5 harvesters and entry into the monthly raffle based on the rules for the raffle.

Event shirts are being processed to be shipped.

THROW DOWN TIME LINE
  • Registration opens: Tuesday, October 1, 2024
  • Submissions begin: Monday, October 14, 2024 @ 12 Midnight
    • All Fish must be caught on or after October 14, 2024. (NO previously caught or frozen lionfish will be accepted)
  • Submissions end: Tuesday, December 31, 2024 @ 11:59PM
  • Raffle Drawings: October 31, 20024 / November 30, 2024 / December 31, 2024
PRIZES

1st Place (Grand Prize): One (1) winner with the most Lionfish harvested.

2nd Place: One (1) winner with the 2nd most Lionfish harvested.

  • DIVE RITE TransPac XT Package w/ Rec XT Wing ($859 Value)
  • ZooKeeper Swag Bag (Hat / Rash Guard / Gloves) ($110 Value)

3rd Place: One (1) winner with the 3rd most Lionfish harvested.

4th Place: One (1) winner with the 4th most Lionfish harvested.

  • KOAH 45” Standard Fatback Speargun ($655 Value)
  • ZooKeeper Swag Bag (Hat / Rash Guard / Gloves) ($110 Value)

5th Place: One (1) winner with the 5th most Lionfish harvested.

Throw Down winners will be contacted via email at the conclusion of the tournament.

RAFFLE PRIZES
  • There will be five (5) raffle prizes given away each month.
  • The raffle prizes will be announced at a later date, but each prize will have a minimum value of $50.
  • The raffle will be held on the last day of each month (October 31st / November 30th / December 31st ).
  • Any registered participant who submits one fish in any month will be entered into the raffle for that month.
  • All raffle prizes will be shipped to the winners at the address on the registration documents within Five (5) days of the drawing.

*Trip qualifications:

    • The prize can only be used by the registered winner and is not transferable to any other person.
    • Winner must be 18 years or older.
    • The prize cannot be exchanged for cash value.
    • If the winner cannot go on the trip, the prize will be forfeited.
    • The winner must have a valid passport that doesn’t expire prior to October 2025.
    • Travel documents must be provided within 10 days of the announcement as the winner to show eligibility to travel abroad. (On or about January 10th, 2025)
RULES
  • SAFETY FIRST!
    • It can’t be said enough that NO fish or prize is worth your life.
    • Plan your dive – dive your plan.
    • Check your air consumption and if applicable, decompression times OFTEN.
    • Reports of any unsafe diving practices shall disqualify the participant. NO Exceptions!
    • Be mindful of the reef and other marine life. Do not damage the reef in any way.
  • Participants should be aware of all recreational saltwater rules and regulations that may apply in the State of Florida. Learn more at https://myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational/.
  • The Throw Down is an individual tournament and submissions should reflect that individual participate’s catch. Commercial harvest is greatly appreciated but will not qualify.
  • The “identifier” must be clear and only used for that day’s catch picture. Doctored photos will be denied, and the participant will be disqualified.
  • Only legal means of capture in areas allowing use of those gear types will be allowed. All existing federal, state, and local laws must be followed. All State and Federal laws will be strictly enforced.
  • Lionfish may be taken by spear, hand net, slurp gun or hook and line. No chemicals, traps or other collecting mechanisms are allowed.
  • Protective gloves should be worn when handling lionfish. Participants are encouraged to carry a safety kit for first aid purposes.
  • All entrants agree to allow Derby officials, ZooKeeper (The LZK Group, LLC) and event Sponsors/supporters to take and use photos for media and promotional purposes.
  • In the event of a tie, the winning Angler/Shooter will be determined by the earliest submitted entries to the Fishing Chaos app.
  • Anyone found violating Derby Rules by the Derby Officials will be disqualified from receiving any Derby prizes and prohibited from entry in any future derbies.
  • Decisions of the Derby officials are final.

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR CATCH

  • Each morning all registered participants will be emailed an “identifier” for the day. Reference it in photo(s) submitted on that day.
  • After harvesting the Lionfish, line up the fish and code word.
  • Snap a picture.
  • In the Fishing Chaos app click “Submit Catch”.
  • Report the number of fish in the picture.
  • Upload the photo for approval.
  • You will receive a submission confirmation email and then a second email once your submission is approved.

PLEASE NOTE:

  • If the Lionfish cannot be counted in the picture, the submission will be denied.
  • If the daily identifier is not visible, the submission will be denied.
  • All lionfish must be in whole condition (no missing heads or tails).
  • If the picture is a duplicate or doctored, the submission will be denied.

Submissions will be reviewed and approved or denied by a highly experienced third-party fishing tournament and judging service. 

Update 12/2/2024

There have been some questions regarding the submission of the photos for the 2024 Winter Lionfish Throw Down. The following is intended to make sure all participants are clear on the submission rules.
 
  1. You must submit the photo of your catch containing the code on the same date as it was taken and as the date for that code. This means you cannot take a photo today using today’s code and submit it on a later date (tomorrow or any later date). This would be considered backdating the submission, which would allow for the same fish to potentially be used for multiple days.
  2. You cannot make multiple submissions on the same date. You can only make one submission per day, and that submission must contain the code for that day (date). This, too, eliminates the possibility of using the same fish in multiple submissions.
Lastly, as a reminder, the daily code must be clearly visible in the picture, and the fish must be laid out so that they can be counted in the photo. If either of those criteria is not met, that photo/submission could be disqualified.
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