Would like to hear some opinions on what folks think of 3 fish limit for tournaments vs 5 fish. I personally favor the 3 fish limit. To me it is a good way to help protect our fisheries. I am sure we all agree that hauling fish around the lake in a live well is pretty stressful to them, so, just makes sense if you are only keeping 3 for the weigh-in, for a large tournament that is a lot less fish being stressed. Our club has gone to a 3 fish limit for all tournaments and we have not noticed any difference in the competition.

What do y'all think?

I'm for 5 fish limit.

3 fish would be good in the summer heat.

It really doesn't matter. Your out there fishing all day and hauling the fish all day hoping to get that really big fish. Whether your weighing in three or five, they are still in the live well till the last minute. Personally I'm for the 5 fish limit.

I hate a 3 fish limit

I vote 5 fish for "trails"-- (points)
if one day, one time, 3 is OK with me..

3 fish for summer, 5 fish for cooler weather. i only like it on the working mans tournies, as i feel it gives solo competitors a chance of competing with teams.

Logic seems to dictate that 3 fish is better for the fish than 5 fish. But surely there has been some studies done on fish mortality in live wells and after release. Any scientists running around out there. It seems that it puts the advantage towards guys who look for "big bites" as they may only need 3 or really 2, forget culling up just swing for the fences every time out.

I sat 5 fish when fishing Club, or Trail.

When fishing working man tourny I say 3 fish instead of Big fish.

For summertime fishing, it may not make so much difference if you're only catching dinkeroos, but if you are in a big fish lake (e.g., Choke, Falcon, Amistad)it makes a big difference whether your fish will live to see another day at the end of a tournament. Our club either goes to the team format (5 fish in the boat)or 3 fish each on individual competition tournaments, and many other clubs are also going to the 3 fish limit in the Summer, as well. You don't need to be a scientist to know, I've seen the results of too many (big) fish in the livewells, and it's not pretty. It's the responsible thing to do!

Its easier to overcome a weight deficit from a big fish with a 5 fish limit. It allows you to catch up. In 3 fish tourneys its too lopsided if a hawg is weighed in. I also think that 5 fish awards consistency over luck.

My BassCat livewells can handle 5 fish very easily. So crowding wouldn't be an issue at all.

The same problem exists for 3 fish just like they would with 5.

Exactly, you don't need to be a scientist to know that if your not taking the precaustions to keep your livewell cool all day, it don't matter if theres 3 or 5.

Heres the biggest factor, not all boats are created equal in livewell capacity.

Lotta smaller models only have aeration and no recirc.

Why did the Elite series experience so many dead fish?? Biggest and best boats,live-wells,additives, and that was in the spring.

Personally whatever the lake limit allows is the best way. Here in CO. allot of the clubs do "paper" tourneys and allow you to weigh fish smaller than the legal limit. On a tough day you can get beat by someone who caught a limit of 12" bass when you caught 2 or 3 "true" keepers.

That's my opinion as well. Our club fishes 3 fish tournaments, in order to give "more people a chance to win" since it only takes one good fish sometimes to get in the money. I prefer rewarding consistency over luck. Show me the guys who can catch five good keepers on a tournament day, those are the better fishermen.

A high percentage of fish at the WFL tournament a week or two ago on Amistad died. Gave 'em to a local club for a fish fry. What a shame. The main cause was that the fish were caught in deep water and were not phizzed (sp?). The bottom line is that we all need to do what we can individually and collectively to protect the resource. Hauling fish around in a livewell all day in the summer leads to high mortality rates. So lowering the limit in the summer should be considered.