Tim Horton's weight was DQd on day 1 of the Smith Lake Bassmaster E50. He was cited for a violation of BASS Rule 2 (ii). The applicable part of that rule states:

"During both the official practice and the tournament, a competitor may not have the assistance or advice of anyone for the purposes of locating or catching bass, nor enter the tournament waters with anyone who has been on the tournament waters during the off-limits period including, but not limited

to, a professional guide, state or federal wildlife agency employee, or any other person deemed an "expert" on these tournament waters by the Tournament Director, unless they are a competitor in the tournament."

BASS tournament director Trip Weldon, prior to blast-off, re-briefed the field that observers – who pay a fee to ride with pros during Elite 50 events – are not competitors and hence, cannot assist the pro in any way. Horton's observer held a bush while Horton sight-fished to a bass, which was a clear violation of the rule as described by Weldon prior to blast-off.

In BassFan's day 1 coverage of the Smith Lake E50, it quoted Horton as saying, " My observer was sitting in the back of the boat while I was fishing and grabbed a branch to get it out of his face. I didn't think anything of it."

BassFan obtained that quote minutes after Weldon made his decision, and regrettably did not ask the right questions – in part because all the facts were not yet in place. Horton later noted he was reeling from the devastating news, and BassFan did not obtain the full story. He recently clarified the events that led to the DQ.

The root of the problem, according to him, is he never heard the rule clarification – due to loud music and engine noise.

Weldon's Decision Clear

BassFan spoke with Weldon about the DQ. " He was DQd for violation for that part of Rule 2 that says – and I'll just read you part of it – 'competitors cannot have the advice or assistance of anyone for the purpose of locating and catching bass.'"

Weldon said he received a protest from another pro and observer, who were eyewitnesses to the infraction. As part of his investigation, he contacted Horton's observer – Steve Knight from Georgia.

"Two other competitors came to me and said Tim asked his observer to pull the boat back by that bush, and I asked his observer, 'Did he ask you to hold onto the bush while he was sight-fishing for a bass?" He said yes.

"That gives him (Horton) a competitive advantage. As I explained to Tim, in sight-fishing, boat control is a vital part of that. Sometimes anglers will sit on a fish for hours. So boat control is vital."

Weldon also noted he clarified the rule prior to blast-off because E50 observers are of a different nature than Tour non-boaters.

"I stressed that because observers are not competitors. When you read that part of Rule 2 it says, 'unless by another competitor.' The observer's not a competitor. Yes, I re-briefed that and announced it (Wednesday) morning, as a matter of fact, before take-off."

Horton Couldn't Hear

Horton doesn't argue that he was in violation of the rule as interpreted by Weldon, but does take issue with the way the rule was clarified and the distinction between an observer and non-boater.

"I was fishing for a bedding fish that would not get on the bed unless I got right in the middle of some overhanging trees," he said. "I asked my partner, since he was sitting right by a limb, if he could hold onto it. He said, 'Is that legal?' and I said yes. I said yes based on the history of an incident with another competitor.

"In a (past) Tour event a non-boater sent a letter to the tournament director stating his dissatisfaction of paying an entry fee just to hold onto a boat dock while his pro partner fished for a bedding fish.

"The tournament director investigated the story to see if the pro told the non-boater he could not fish. He found out the non-boater was sitting down anyway and the pro said, if you are going to just sit, would you mind holding the boat? The pro was not DQd and the fact that the non-boater was holding the boat was not an issue."

Horton said such an instance leads him to question the application of Rule 2. For instance, he noted that BASS routinely leaves its Tour-event non-boater fields a few entries short, in case a pro gets sick. Those slots are typically filled with observers on tournament day. In his eyes, that leaves a gray area – where observers and non-boaters may hold the boat in Tour events – and he feels Rule 2 was written to avoid local-information gathering, not on-the-water boat-holding.

"This is why I do not buy the Rule No. 2 story. We cannot get info or assistance from a non-boater just as we can't from an observer. But in those Pro-Am events, there are always a few observers that are not competitors. So where is the (clear) difference on who can hold the boat or not?"

The difference at Smith, however, was that not every E50 competitor had an observer.

"When I asked Trip about this (the non-boater/observer distinction), he said there were some anglers by themselves (without observers at Smith), and it would not be right for an observer to hold a boat and someone else not have the same opportunity."

On the morning re-briefing, he said: "The announcement of the rule was made in the morning before blast-off. There was loud music playing and engines running which made it difficult to hear.

"I did not hear the announcement, and if my observer did, I'm blown away that he didn't tell me, and it makes me wonder why he asked if it was legal. Rick Clunn, Edwin Evers, Kelly Jordon, Alton Jones and many other anglers also told me they did not hear the announcement."

Daily Changes

In pro bass fishing, it's common for the tournament director to announce rule tweaks and clarifications – especially off-limits clarifications – at the pre-tournament meeting. Rule re-briefings and changes are less common on tournament days, but often occur under the instance of dangerous weather or conditions.

"I think the rule Trip announced was legit, since not everyone had an observer," Horton said. "Also, the pro and observer that filed the protest did the right thing since they heard the announcement.

"I just don't see how I can be DQd over something I didn't hear. At a prior (BASS) event on the Potomac River, the anglers were told at blast-off in the morning not to pass each other in the fog. Clark Wendlandt was protested for passing other competitors. However, Clark told the tournament director he didn't hear the rule that morning, and he wasn't DQd.

"I greatly respect Trip Weldon and the job he does. However, at any event, let alone an elite-level event, a rule should never be announced unless the tournament director, without a doubt, has everyone's undivided attention."

Notable

> Horton was in 4th-place prior to having his weight DQd. He finished the tournament 50th.

> The Top 10 in the final E50 points will qualify for both the 2005 and 2006 Bassmaster Classics. Horton, however, has already qualified for both since he was 17th in the Bassmaster Tour points (the Top 17 in the Tour points qualify for both Classics).

> A website reported Horton had his observer hold a pushpole while he fished. Horton told BassFan he had no pushpole in the boat.