By Corley-Ann Parker '20

 

Texas Sea Grant is offering a new weighmaster training program to help interested Texans with becoming weighmasters at sportfishing tournaments.

At fishing tournaments, weighmasters ensure the accuracy of fish measurements, help identify and confirm fish species, and enforce tournament rules. With a large number of fishing tournaments being held in Texas, there is a community-wide need for well-trained, knowledgeable weighmasters along the coast.

Texas Sea Grant’s weighmaster training program will equip interested individuals with the skills and knowledge required to become successful Texas weighmasters through a combination of lectures, practical experience, and a final exam.  

The course will take place online via Zoom on Monday, May 23, 2022, and Tuesday, May 24, 2022, from 6 p.m. to 8 pm CST. Attendance on both dates is mandatory.

The course costs $75 per attendee, and scholarships may be available for those unable to pay the registration fee. Students and veterans will receive a discount.

A fishing background is not necessary, but participants should have an interest in recreational fishing and/or an interest in supporting this industry or their community by working at fishing tournaments in their area.

Texas Sea Grant first offered this program in the 1980s in partnership with the Tournament Directors Foundation of Texas. Marine extension agents would organize workshops and conduct training sessions in their respective counties.

The new weighmaster training program will use materials developed by experts at Texas Sea Grant and Texas A&M University.

Upon completion of the new training program, attendees will receive:

• A certificate of completion stating they received the required training on the weighmaster’s role, fish identification, fish freshness, the weigh-in process, and other relevant topics
• Supplies for working fishing tournaments such as protective gloves and a tape measure
• A logbook to keep a record of each tournament they assist at
• Several printed and electronic Gulf of Mexico fish and shark identification guides, including copies of Saltwater Fishes of Texas fish identification guide
• Copies of all training materials

For more information and to register, visit tx.ag/weighmaster or reach out to Texas Sea Grant fisheries specialist, Alexis Sabine at asabine@tamu.edu.

 

Media Contact: Sara Carney '13, communications manager, Texas Sea Grant, scarney@tamu.com, 713-435-9585.