Flatsmasters™ - Florida's largest backcountry tournament series

Flatsmasters™ REDFISH SERIES

Presented by

Flatsmasters™ 2012 Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor

Event #1 03-10-12
Event #2 05-12-12
Event #3 06-09-12
Event #4 07-21-12
Event #5 08-25-12
Event #6 09-15-12
Championship October 20-21, 2012

2012 Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Official Entry Form

2012 Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Official Rules

Register Now- Click Here!

Flatsmasters™ 2012 Redfish Series- Tampa Bay

Event #1 03-24-12
Event #2 04-21-12
Event #3 06-02-12
Event #4 07-28-12
Event #5 08-18-12
Event #6 09-22-12
Championship November 3 & 4, 2012

2012 Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Official Entry Form

2012 Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Official Rules

Register Now- Click Here!

Entry fees for 2012 will be $280 + state sales tax ($300) per tournament which will include free food and a huge raffle at the Captain's Meeting before each event. For 2012, teams that register in advance will receive limited edition Flatsmasters™ T shirts at for each event. A late fee of $25 will be charges for any payment made within one day of the tournament.

All anglers will still be required to pay membership dues of $25 + state sales tax ($26.75) per year. As in 2011, teams will receive their boat number in the order we receive your payment for each event, and you may pay for up to 6 tournaments in advance. Boat #1 will be awarded from a free raffle at the Capt. Meeting.

Fish Four events and qualify for the Flatsmasters Championship Tournament. Captain may not be substituted throughout the year, anglers may hava alternates throughout the year. In the Championship Tournament, all anglers must have participated in at leat one regular season event on that team to participate in the Championship Tournament.

The Championship will feature a 20' Cobia Bayboat with Yamaha engine for the grand prize provided by Maverick Boat Co., Yamaha Outboards,and Ingman Marine.

There will be a new lover entry fee for the Championship- $280 + state sales tax ($300)

Registration is open now- Payments may be made online, by mail, or in person at Laishley Marine in Punta Gorda or Capt. Ted's Tackle at Ingman Marine in Port Charlotte.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

WILD RIDE ON TAMPA BAY!

REDFISH SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP- TAMPA BAY

With a successful inaugural season almost in the books in Tampa, mother nature decided to get in on the action during the first ever Flatsmasters Redfish Series championship on Tampa Bay. A stalled cold front to the north combined with a tropical low to the south, made for some very unsettles weather on tournament day. Winds in the 20-25 knot range pummeled the final teams in their pursuit of just 2 more legal reds to weigh in for the year. With 19 teams qualified and only 13 teams checking out in the morning it was certainly anyones tournament to win.

Several teams quit early and waited it out in the marina until the 3:30pm Weigh-In festivities began. At the close of fishing there were only 6 teams with redfish and the suspense began!

Team Reds & Tails with Ben Nelson and Ray Hitson hit the scales first with an impressive 12.81lb total weight. The next two teams had light weight, and then Team Winhouse with Jason Anzulewicz, Krsta Tucker, and Olivia Brito brought up to beautiful reds but fell just shy at 12.68lbs. Team JMI Flooring with Jason McMahon and Kris Howell tipped the scales at 12.62lbs. But when Team Flatwater with Rusty Jewett, Rick Maddox, and Tim Jacobsen brought their two fish on stage the topped everyone with a Championship winning weight of 13.47lbs. A extraordinary feat with the conditions at hand!

So the first season of the Tampa Redfish Series in the books! Look for the Redfish Series to return to Tampa Bay in 2012! Schedules and registration will be available in late November 2011. Be sure to tell your fishing friends about the Flatsmasters in Tampa Bay.

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Championship- Final Results

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Championship- Photo Gallery

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES - CHARLOTTE HARBOR - CHAMPIONS CROWNED !

Congratulations to Team Marsh Works Tackle

Tom Fisher, Brian Ziegler, Buzzy Hayes

Winning Weight- 14.23 lbs.

Winners of Cobia 21' Bayboat with F150 Yamaha

Special thanks to Maverick Boats, Yamaha Outboard, & Ingman Marine and all of our 2011 sponsors!

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Championship Final Results

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Championship Photo Gallery

JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED!

The final regular season tournament of the year for the Redfish Series-Charlotte harbor divisiontook place on August 27th at Laishley Crab House. With Team Snatchmasters already locking up the Team of the Year Race at the last event, teams were fishing for position and starting numbers for the Flatsmasters Championship. With everyone's eyes on Hurricane Irene earlier in the week, it was time to focus on redfishing. With a very stiff southwestly wind, 49 teams competed in this final regular season contest. winds and high tides made fishing tough but several teams were able to put quality fish on the scales. Seven teams cracked the 13 lb. mark with a little of a pound seperating 10th place from second place.

The only team to put up a pair of 7+ lb. redfish was Team Doc Planer (Dill, Planer,White) who topped the leader board with 14.87 lbs. They were rewarded with $3,250 in prize money and settled into third place for the year.

Team McGee/Kraft/VanDemark took second in the tournament with 13.57lbs. and finished second for the year behind Team Smatchmasters (Tillett,Howell)

The Flatsmasters Championship for the Charlotte Harbor division is scheduled for September 24th at the Laishley Crab House. 54 teams have qualified for the Championship where some lucky team will take home a brand new Cobia 21' Bay boat with Yamaha Engine valued at over $30,000. Every qualified team has a shot at the Championship as all teams revert to zero weight and points for this one day shootout to determine this year's Flatsmasters-Charlotte Harbor Champions!

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Event #6 Final Results

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Event #6- Photo Gallery

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor- Final Points Standings

FLATS MAFIA PUTS A DOUBLE HIT ON THE TAMPA REDFISH SERIES

The final leg of the inaugural season of the Tampa Bay Flatsmasters Series was held August 20th out of the Hula Bay Club in Tampa. 20 teams competed with 8 teams still in the hunt for the Team of the Year Title.

Going into the final regular season event Team One Touch Direct(Beers,McCaig,Major) was in the lead for the TOY honors but 7 other teams all had a shot at taking the title. With big weights posted in last month's event in Tampa, it was a safe bet that it was going to take huge weight to win the final regular season event. First, Team Flats Mafia Southside(Martin,Garrison,Lopez) weighed in with a solid 14.13 lbs., then a couple of teams later, Team Flats Mafia Northside(Sanchez,Copson,Bentancourt) hit the jackpot with the heaviest weight of the year, with their 2 redfish topping the scales at 16.79 lbs! Team Oakley(Pickles,GIbbs,Marchitto) made an effort with their 2 reds totalling 14.47 lbs., but no one would touch FM Northside and with their First Place finish took the 2011 Team of the Year title with 389 points out of a possible 400. Team FM Southside came in second for Team of the year with their 386 points, followed by Team One Touch Direct who settled for third place.

With the Team of the Year race settled. teams can concentraton the Tampa Bay Championship which scheduled for October 8th at The Hula Bay Club. 19 Teams are qualified for the Championship event and a chance to win a portion of over $7000 in prize money!

In the Championship, all teams are equal with the heaviest weight taking home the championship honors!

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Event #6 Results

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Event #6 Photo Gallery

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Final Points Standings

TEAM JMI FLOORING SETS TAMPA RECORD WITH 16.04lbs.

As the inaugural year of the Tampa Redfish Series gets closer to the Championship several teams are setting up to fight for the Team of the Year crown!

10 teams are mathematically still in the race for Team of the Year with everyone chasing Team One Touch Direct (Beers,McCaig,Major) who are holding down the top spot with 383 points. Team Flats Mafia Northside (Sanchez,Copston) moved into 2nd place in points after their fine 2nd place showing in event #5. Several other teams need to win the last event to have an outside chance. One team that moved up considerably is Team JMI Flooring (McMahon,Howell,Manning) who set the single tournament weight record for Tampa weighing an impressive 16.04 lbs. With the last event of the regular season on August 20th, teams have one last chance to make their move for TOY honors. The starting lineup will also be set on how teams finish for the season so a lot is riding on this last event.

The first ever Flatsmasters Tampa Bay season will come to a conclusion on Oct 8th when the Grand Champions will be crowned for Tampa Bay!

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Event #5 Results

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Event #5 Photo Gallery

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay Points Standings after 5 Events

TEAM MARSH WORKS TAKES EVENT #5!

TOUGH TIDES AND HOT WATER MAKE FISHING TOUGH!

The 5th leg of the Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Division was held at Laishley Crab House on July 23rd. July tournaments are always tough because of the hot temperatures, the hot water temperatures and sometimes even tough tides. This July tournament was no different. An early morning tide left anglers no water to fish in the afternoon plus 90 + degree water to deal with during the heat of the day. Several teams struggled to bring in 2 redfish, while others managed 2 keepers to keep their points standings alive. As we get closer to the September 24th Championship, teams are grasping for every point they can earn to improve their position in the standings. A total of 34 teams entered 64 redfish weighing a total of 342.39 lbs!

7 pound redfish were hard to come by with only 4 big reds weighed in. Several teams worked hard to get close to 14 lbs. with Team Absolut Vodka (Liscum, Hickox, Rowan) hitting 13.51lbs. Team Towboat US-Charlotte Harbor (Potts, Buckner, Magnano) eased into second place with 13.82 lbs., but Team Marsh Works Tackle (Fisher, Ziegler, Hayes) crossed the 14 lb mark to take first place with 14. 07 lbs!

There is one event left in the Charlotte Harbor Division on August 27th at Laishley Crab House and one last shot for teams to qualify for the finals on September 24th where someone will take home a brand new 22' cobia Bay Boat with Yamaha F150 Outboard valued at $30000!

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Event #5- Results

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Standings after 5 Events

Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor Event #5 Photo Gallery

TAMPA BAY REDFISH ANGLERS SCORE!

The fourth leg of the Tampa Bay Division of the Flatsmasters brought out 24 of Tampa's redfsh teams to compete in a summer red duel. It all kicked off on saturday morning with threatening thunderstorms looming on the horizon, but as the sun climbed in the sky the storms dissapated into a few passing rain showers. This cloud cover definitely helped the fishing as 18 of the 24 teams weighed in.

Several teams crossed the 7 lb mark and even one team, Team Young Boats (Franco,Rogers,Fritsch) hit the 8.37 lb. mark with their big red. But they were all unable to back it up with a second big fish. In all six teams were able to put up 12 lb + weights. Team Flats Mafia were the big winners of the day with both of their teams in the top four. Team Flats Mafia Northside (Sanchez,Copston) scored 4th place with their 12.53 lbs. Team Oakley (Pickles,Gibbs, Marchito) crossed the 13 lb mark to take 3rd place with 13.39 lbs. Team Flatwater (Jewett, Maddox, Jacobsen) edged them out to land 2nd place with a solid 13.46 lbs. The big winners were Team Flats Mafia Southside (Martin,Garriso,Lopez) who weighed 2 solid redfish to secure the victory with 13.75 lbs. For their efforts they collected an $1800 First Place Check.

After four events in the new Tampa Division, the points race is heating up. The Team of the Year will receive a free entry into the championship on October 8th valued at $500. Team One Touch Direct (Beers, McCaig, Major are in the lead with 382 points out of a possible 400. Right behind them in second is Team Flatwater with 380 points. The Team of the Year is determined by the best four finishes out of a possible six tournaments.

The next event in the Tampa Bay Division is scheduled for July 30th at the Hula Bay Club in Tampa.

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay- Event #4 Results

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay- Standings after 4 Events

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay- Event #4 Photo Gallery

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES- CHARLOTTE HARBOR EVENT #4

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor- Event #4 Results

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor- Standings after 4 Events

2011 Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Charlotte Harbor- event #4 Photo Gallery

TEAM TOWBOAT US DRAGS 2 GOOD ONES TO THE SCALES!

CHARLOTTE HARBOR DIVISION

The largest field of teams so far this year showed for the third installment of the Flatsmasters Redfish Series on Charlotte Harbor. 65 teams tried their luck and skill to capture two perfect slot sized redfish in this one day, all baits event. With a late season front coming through on friday, the fish were bound to be a little mixed up. But many teams got right to it as several teams posted solid weights. Many teams reported either short fish or plenty of over sized reds. As the weigh in progressed a few teams managed to creep up into the 14 pound range, Team Miller Lite (Lowery,Klum,Farr) broke the 14 lb. mark with a pair of good reds, but were edged out by Team Martin Septic Service(Tanksley,Daughtry,Johnson) with 14.20 lbs. Team Snatchmasters (Tillett,Howell) out of the Tampa Bay area finished strong again this tournament with a third place finish at 14.32lbs.

As the weigh in wound down it looked like their would be no 15 lb bag limits. But Team Hubcap and Wheel (Riddell,Oeschger, Marks) took the lead and crossed the 15 lb. mark with an impressive 15,01 lb limit including a great 7.67 lb redfish. However, at the very end of the weigh in Team Towboat US with Kyle Potts, Chris Magnano, and Brandon Buckner took the top of the leader board with a 7.51 lb and a 7.69 lb. pair of reds totaling out at 15.20 lbs. That was enough to take the win in the third installment of the most popular redfish Series in Florida and a first place payout of $4,250. It also moved Team Towboat US into the top 15 in the Team of the Year standings.

Now with 3 events in the Charlotte Harbor division complete, Team Snatchmasters is sitting on the top of the Team of the Year race with an impressive 294 points out of a possible 300. Right behind them is Team McGee/Kraft/VanDemark with 281 points. However there is still plenty of fishing left to do this season with three remaining events in the schedule. The next event on Charlotte Harbor is scheduled for June 11th at Harpoon Harry's in Fishermen's Village. Registration is available online at flatsmasters.com or at Laishley Marine in Punta Gorda or Capt. ted's Tackle at Ingman Marine in Pt. Charlotte

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES-CHARLOTTE HARBOR- EVENT #3 RESULTS

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES- CHARLOTTE HARBOR- PHOTO GALLERY

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES- CHARLOTTE HARBOR- STANDINGS AFTER 3 EVENTS

GREAT DAY ON THE BAY!

The second leg of the Flatsmasters Redfish Series on Charlotte Harbor was held on March 12 at the Laishley crab house in Punta Gorda. Cool morning conditions gave teams a challenge early but as the sun rose in the sky the bite turned on on the bay. Another great performance by our Flatsmasters anglers as several teams weighed fish over 8 pounds. Team Gator Water(Perry,Mahle,Steck) kicked things off with an 8.38lb monster to take the early lead and held the lead for quite a while while most teams settled in the 11 to 12 lb. range. That was until Team Coors Light/Turbo Prop(Smith,Hadley,Gross) put a 8.12 lb.er on the scales followed up with a 6.38 lb. red to take the lead with 14.50 lbs. With so many average redfish being weighed in it looked like the would be the big winners until Team Cheney Brothers(Ball,Civitella,Wester) filled the scales with 14.69 lbs. of redfish including a 8.33lb. beast what was enough to take over the lead and take home the win!

Another record number of anglers competed in the second installment of the popular Flatsmasters Redfish Series and the crowds were out in force to cheer on their favorite teams. A total of 178 anglers competed on 64 teams. They caughed, weighed, and released a total of 63 reds. For the second tournament in a row there was a 100% release rate as the Flatsmasters weigh in system and release boat worked perfectly to take great care of our Charlotte Harbor redfish.

The next event in the Charlotte Harbor Division of the Flatsmasters Redfish Series is scheduled for May 7th at the Laishley Crab House in Punta Gorda. It's not too late to join in the excitemet of the Redfish Series as teams who enter the remaining events starting with the May 7th event can still qualify for the Redfish Series Championship on September 24th, 2011.

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES- CHARLOTTE HARBOR DIVISION EVENT #2 RESULTS

FLATSMASTERS REDFISH SERIES- CHARLOTTE HARBOR DIVISION EVENT #2 PHOTO GALLERY

TAMPA REDFISH SERIES ROUND #2

The 2nd leg of the Flatsmasters Redfish Series was held April 16th at the Hula Bay Club in Tampa. High winds made fishing tough, but 24 teams hit Tampa Bay in search of 2 perfect redfish. Much beeter weights crossed the scales in this second Tampa event, much better than event 1 back in february when the temps dipped into the 30's at the start. several teams were able to hit the 7 lb. mark with one of teir redfish but couldn't back it up with the second fish. The team that came the closed to having a apair of 7 pounders was Team Break Away(Diax,Diaz,Martinez) who totaled out at 14.65 lbs. They bested the second place team by almost a full pound when Team Mystik Lubricants(Witt,Delagarza) could only manage 13.76 lbs. Sold weights doninated the top 10 places with 11.67 lbs. taking the tenth spot. The Flatsmasters Redfish Series- Tampa Bay is a new series which is growing streadily with each event. Look for the Next Tampa Flatsmasters on June 4th. These professionally managed tournaments are like nothing else available on Tampa Bay. New anglers and teams are always welcome. Use the link below to read more about the Redfish Series.