I've lived on the Chowan my whole life and seeing him go under that Mexico rd bridge I KNEW what was coming and I got so hyped for him. I heard one report that he was given the okay by the tournament director not just "an official". Which if that's so, it is even more ridiculous and I agree with you, that should have been the final word. But I guess when it's all said and done Garmin and Lowrance don't make no money off of an angler sinking his boat to get into some uncontested backwater. I'm a scoper myself, but if the anti FFS crew ever wanted a target to rally behind, it should be this. My man went full old school and was in contention to possibly win and they cut my man's legs out. This definitely tainted an awesome event for me a little bit. It always seems to be something with MLF, and as you said the chowan turned out to be no different.
lets clear this up by the way GREAT video!!! 1. getting out the boat to gain access to waters is against the rules 18. 2. if he would of had a switch to drain his boat then none of this would of happen ok to his point zack 110% wrong on the tournament director or the person who said it was ok to do so what should of happen is zack keep his catch then after tournament over then said we look at this and for the future we will change the rule to be more clear sad that this happen
He won last week. I think it'd be stupid of him to seek legal counsel as they could just kick him off the tour. I doubt there is a union for the tour fishermen like baseball, football and basketball. He definitely should be pissed and complain but I wouldn't take it far enough to lose my spot on the MLF tour.
yeah this is a ridiculous comment. what’s he gonna do, go spend his yearly winnings on a court case that won’t go anywhere? just take the money and keep it pushing. it sucks but court here would be a terrible move
Its not my primary, however, I am a big bowhunter and mainly only bowhunt. I do occasionally take it but have never harvested anything with it yet. Now my Hoyt has knocked many down
If he was given permission by an official, it should be case closed. I am like you on this, and I fished my share of tournaments on Chowan and Roanoke during the late 80's and early 90's. I was really excited watching these professionals fishing my old fishing grounds.
I was fishing the chowan on Saturday and ran into some of the pros. I was the one who picked Zack for the win and was shocked when that happened to him on Sunday. Thought I was on my way to getting a new rod & reel combo from you.
Agree! But who was the official who said he could should be answering the question! The MLF official that said yes maybe wasn’t the authority on the question! Call the tournament director? Totality insane! If giving the ok he’s fish should count!
I agree once you are given permission there should be no controversy it should be a done deal and no matter who complained it should be the permission was given and therefore there is no way to take those fish catches from him had he had the automatic drain plug in the boat there would have been nothing said so what is the difference he only pulled the drain plug did not push or pull his boat from the water he should have been able to keep those fish and probably caught many more
I agree with you and after watching the knockout round I thought he had the winning pattern and if he wouldn’t have caught so many Saturday I truly think he would have won if he would have let it rest and finished top 10. No pressure in the area.
When did they give him the ok to get outta the boat and get in the water? A lot of tournaments you can’t leave the boat, Lisa Town head of bassmaster told JT Tompkins he couldn’t get outta the water so I don’t see how. I feel it shouldve been a stiffer penalty Trey Mckenny sit for 2 hours I think when GMan turned him in. 💯
Im not exactly sure but I have heard he was told beforehand. Anglers are aloud to get out the boat to land a fish but only incur a 3 minute penalty. Its a very grey area it seems
Hard for me to believe a tournament official told him he could do that. Now with that being said. IF indeed an official told him that than MLF has bigger issues. I did hear that someone told him he could that. if the rules state you can not get out of your boat to me it's pretty much cut and dry
It was the tournament director that gave him the ok, Zack went directly to the Tournament Director and ask him if it was okay to get out and pull his plug.
@kevinvaughan2570 Kevin if the Director told him he could do it the Zack should get his weight back and tournament director fired AND barred from running any other tournaments
Tournament Director told him that he could, the Tournament Director recieved a phone call on championship day telling him that Zack wasn't allowed to do that. The TD has no backbone and didn't stand behind his word to Zack, he needs to give back the weight and do the right thing.
Did his boat official ok this or a tournament official?? I love the format, but some of this is getting ridiculous. I had a boat like this, I could lean over the transom and remove the plug under water with an adjustable wrench and reinstall it. Could he not have done that? Either way the ruling sucks
The MLF app talks about everything Zack Birge did right by going under bridge into the shallows and catching Bass from left to right but the DQ incident is nowhere to be found anywhere in the Tournament report. I think it should’ve been included if it was a legit DQ which for a lot of us it wasn’t. What a shame, I thought it was such a cool watching Zack doing what he did. Scott Martin got also DQ at Harris Chain in the BassMaster for casting over some poles over a canal that did not have any signs of private property or no fishing. Strange judgement of the rules.
He called the MLF tournament director and got the OK to do what he asked. The problem is these directors get calls from someone ( more likely Garmin, Lowrance, or Hummingbird) else after the fact, and then they change their minds after the Pro does what he was given permission to do. This is totally unprofessional from the Director of MLF. Once you (the director of the tournament) have given permission to a pro and the boat official (who was on the boat hearing this discussion) after a conversation. If the pro carries out actions in accordance with the director's permission, the director should not be able to renege on their discussion with the pro, especially when the pro does exactly what he discussed with said Director. This decision basically cost Mr. Birge the championship of the tournament, and if I were him, I would sue Boyd Duckett for the winnings that should have been his. Then Mr. Birge should leave MLF and return to BASS because Boyd Duckett, who is ruining this league, will blackball Mr. Birge like he did James Watson, and Duckett should be fired as the CEO.
This may be the unfavorable comment! Anglers, you have to get a copy of the rules and read them yourself, or have the copy on hand for reference! TRUST NOBODY when you are vested into an endeavor that is your lifeline! Is it wrong? No doubt! That is why we need to educate ourselves. If?! He knew the rules? He would not be in this mishap!!!!!
I agree, once he had permission from the official, he should have been good. And if the official was wrong, and it looks like he was, the fisherman should not have to take the penalty, the official should. Not sure what can be done to an official for a bad call , but it’s definitely not in the fisherman. I watched Defo’s live stream and he got out his boat to push it backwards, the official was gonna penalize him but Defo talked his way out of it and kept fishing. 🤷🏼🤷🏼. That particular official was a local and not the normal official as I have seen before. Maybe that was the case with the other fisherman, idk.
Two things. If they used air boats. They wouldn't need to get out of the boat to leave the body of water for another location. 2nd... Tournaments typically have a map of the boundaries. Was the area included in the map?
I loved the original MLF cup events. But since they started the Bass Pro Tour MLF has been managed about as well as the Titanic was captained. I have refused to watch all year until this tournament. Had to watch as I am moving up that way this summer. And I swear MLF has done and pulled another one.
I remember watching him pulling his plug and thinking man i dont think MLF is gonna like that. I thought it was cool to see. No one really knows what was said btw Zack and the rules official though except for them. Maybe more will come out about it.
True.....no official statement has came out on either side. It was said that Zack asked beforehand and was given the ok. If thats the case, then this was handled wrongly
Agreed. And he should know the rules before just doing something like that in a tournament, I think it’s still BS, but rules are rules, you can’t bend them for one angler.
If there is an option on certain boats to remotely manipulate the drain plug, then everyone, regardless of whether they have the option, should be able to manipulate their drain plug. If he was told by an official that he could do so, that's probably what the official was thinking as well.
Did you hear JT mention Fishing Boat Docks excessively? He gets it andand loves to push boundaries but when he started naming what structure was being used to catch fish and he said boat docks over and over I was laughing.
The main problem I hear is that he checked with officials and ok’d if he was detailed on what he was doing. May not have been detailed enough to the official so we need to know exactly what discussion was done between the fisherman and official and research this before a decision was made. I am sure there is more to the story always is. People like to talk about this and does not have all the facts again it is always opinions the facts only.
Very unprofessional decision. It reminds me of when I was a kid. My buddy and I would trade something then before the day was over, one of us say I don’t want to trade and get called an Indian giver
I feel that if they are going to give the official that much authority, his decision should be upheld. #FBD will probably say he should have called the tournament director, in which case they shouldn’t have boat officials.
I see both sides. Here’s the rule as I see it: 18. COMPETITORS MUST REMAIN IN BOAT: a. During the event days, MLF Anglers cannot leave the boat to make the boat more accessible to fishing waters. Then there’s this: 10. IN-BOAT MLF OFFICIAL’S ROLE: g. Rules decisions made by an MLF Officials are considered final, unless an MLF Angler chooses to submit a written protest to the MLF Tournament Director.
I am not 100% certain yet but from what I have heard it wasn't just any tournament official it was the tournament official, I am hearing it was the TD that gave the ok. If that is true I think all the anglers need to be a little scared. You may come in one day and find out the decided to ban the Damiki rig while you were out fishing and 90% off you fish have been DQed. If an angler does the right thing and gets a decision from the TD that can't change. Barring any new info that we currently don't have I think MLF really screwed up big time with this one.
If he had permission to do it and they did this I’m done with the mlf. I’m tired of all these gray areas in professional sports. It either ok or it’s not. You can’t get butt hurt cause the guy behind him didn’t think about doing it first. They’re messing with someone’s paycheck and that doesn’t sit right with me.
Maybe he should have plugged the livewells, turned the pumps on and let them overflow into the boat. Same result without getting out. Either way I disagree with the tournament officials, he should have been fine doing that, I was never an MLF fan anyway. I also didn't like what BASS did to Keith Poche last year when he went over the levy on Toledo Bend, he never left legal tournament waters.
Why didn’t he reach down behind his boat motor and pull his plug. Without getting out of his boat . I know he was as given permission by the mlf official but they could be wrong. And in this case they penalized Zack B. 7 fish. My take on this situation.
Hey Kevin, I’m not sure if you seen the update but they reinstated Zack seven Fish. So he ended up in seventh place not 8th. This is a step in the right direction, but this situation should’ve never happened. It totally messed up the rest of the day of his fishing right when he was making a move to the lead he could have won this tournament possibly. But at least MLF saves a little bit of face year by doing the right thing they just should’ve done the right thing to begin with, regardless if they misunderstood what he was asking, they gave him the OK to do what he did once you do that you gotta live with it can’t screw the guy over during the tournament
Correct...if Zack just did it on his own without asking, thats one thing. But when you are given the Ok to do something by an official that changes it all
Refs make calls in football and basketball that get over turned upon review. If this was shown on live stream the tournament officials should have called immediately to tell him there was a problem before letting him fish on after he went under the bridge. That is a mistake by MLF. I've never heard of doing this before but could you fill your live wells and get the boat sunk enough ? MLF should have review officials sitting in front of monitors where they can see every camera on the water during the tournament.
The livewell weight isnt enough to do it. Basically you have to let it fill up enough so the whole boat sits lower in the water. We call it sinking the boat
Official screwed up. The fact that he had to manipulate the boat is wrong and he knew what he was doing skirted the rules. I agree that he got screwed by the official.
My opinion: if he discussed with official prior to getting out of boat and pulling his plug, he should not have been DQ'd. MLF should have disciplined the official, not Birge. If he did not talk to official- then he should be DQd.
Well you do have a point, but on the other hand if its a written rule he, as a pro angler, is required to know those rules regardless of what the official tells you! Defoe knew the rules and when the official questioned his exit from the boat, he explained the rules to the official!! Just sayin'....
HORRIBLE CALL BY MLF!!!! Zack should be compensated in some form of fashion, also the official shouldn't get paid/and or not be able to officiate again... this is what he does for a living and for it to be snatched from him like that is complete BS!!!!
Wasn't even the official, the tournament director okayed it which supersedes the boat official. It's bogus. The reason is because, on a podcast, Zach said somethings about the recent ongoings in MLF that he didn't agree with. That rubbed a certain someone the wrong way and now it seems a certain someone is trying to take it out on Zach. #FishBoatDocks
It seems like either another pro or someone with special interests made a big deal about it, and the official who gave him the go ahead wasn't above whoever got called on the pay grade scale. It's absolutely ridiculous, and I really hope that this isn't how things are done where you got another jealous pro or someone who has an invested interest calling the shots on a big tournament like this.
Yea it definitely should be looked into further.....ok means ok. Whether it the official in the boat or director. It should be at their discretion at that moment and it cant be changed after the fact
Certainly, a mistake was made by the official. I have been a boat official before, and I am aware of the rules concerning what happened and would have called the tournament director before I gave my boater the ok. It only takes a minute to verify a rule if there is a question and I have done that before. Very unfortunate and avoidable.
What official? If the Tournament Director told him to do that, that's one thing. If the guy in the boat told him to do it. Then both are wrong. All they do is call out weights and give 2 minutes penalty.
It is insane they handled it this way. They cost him a chance to win. The tournament director ok'd it. Who made the call to make the TD change his decision?! Zach made it clear what he was doing and why he was doing it. Once OK'd there is no going back period. He put it on the trailer and left after he found out they changed their minds. His whole day was ruined. This is MLF trying to save face.
I agree 100% that they should not have disqualified his catch. Sad to say, but I am getting less and less interested in watching pro fishing events, and it's mostly because of stuff like this happening.
You maybe right it's nice to see some anglers other than Wheeler doing well in these tournments. Seems like Zach Birge was trying to fish some hard to get to areas instead of just livescoping all day.
Is he points winner in standings by long ways yes. The three competitors in the minor league fu€K:ng tour are wheeler Connell and gill. In my opinion I believe Gill is light years ahead of anyone I’ve ever seen or heard talk. The dude is super young and just look at his finishes
Exactly, not last time but time before. Several angler's went to the back of Tom Jack Creek on Jordan lake. Got out of their boat's to push over sand bar
I agree if the MLF official says okay then I say it's ok I getting to the point of not even watching MLF anymore because it's getting pretty crappy of a fishing League
Official trained to weigh fish. Probably not familiar with the full rule book. Should have called the actual tournament director. He was out of the boat. End of story
well, He suppose to be professional. but he is not because he called the official. Then this happen. IF he is professional he wouldn't call official. He need to rethink and find a way how to win this tourney. Find another spots and he would have won instead call official. Fishing on the lake and calling official is too risky. He got disqualified but that suck!
FBD!!! If you get the ok from a tourney official/director then he is good to go. But they have to protect their golden boys. This is one of the many reasons I stopped watching MLF.
The problem is, this exact specific scenario isnt stated in the rules. That is why he asked up front....its a very grey area which can be interpreted multiple ways
Not fair, they should not interpret a rule that is as vague as that one is after the fact. He did not advance his boat at all. They should have let his catch count and if they want to change the rules after the tournament then so be it. Sucks for Zach and all the anglers dealing with the morons running MLF.
MLF… they’re full O’ 💩! Always something. Lump their nonsense with all the anglers (all the ones complaining) complaints and general rule bending on both major tours and I’m about fed up. Why bother watching… Jersey shore meets bass angling!
Does anybody remember when Keith poche jumped out of the boat and walked over a dock to get a big fish he caught on the other side. And they only penalized him I think 8 minutes for that. I remember when Adrian avena jumped out of the boat and swam down to a brush pile to get a fish that was hung up. Again just a few minutes penalty! Did not zero either one of those guys weights. That's BS !!! MLF is a JOKE ..in the words on James Watson .#FISHINGBOATDOCKS
@@GunnFishTV me too I'm a huge fan of Keith and his style of fishing and getting where they live. His off the grid stuff is cool as hell! Exactly how I grew up fishing. An Adrian is a straight hammer.. I was just pointing out 2 times where anglers left the boat completely and one even got out of the boat and walked on a private dock.. and they were just penalized for MINUTES not THEIR CATCHES!!! .. MLF is a circus. But look who the ringleader is.. ✌️
Alton Jones Jr. and Mark Rose have also, as well as Keith Poche on another occasion at Lake Fork. Wonder what would have happened if Zack had a different rod sponsor?
I've lived on the Chowan my whole life and seeing him go under that Mexico rd bridge I KNEW what was coming and I got so hyped for him. I heard one report that he was given the okay by the tournament director not just "an official". Which if that's so, it is even more ridiculous and I agree with you, that should have been the final word. But I guess when it's all said and done Garmin and Lowrance don't make no money off of an angler sinking his boat to get into some uncontested backwater.
I'm a scoper myself, but if the anti FFS crew ever wanted a target to rally behind, it should be this. My man went full old school and was in contention to possibly win and they cut my man's legs out. This definitely tainted an awesome event for me a little bit. It always seems to be something with MLF, and as you said the chowan turned out to be no different.
Great comment!! I agree 100% ....if he was told it was Ok then it shouldn't have been changed at all.
Has nothing to do with Garmin or lowrance it’s Boyd Duckett calling and using his power. Read between the lines
Everyone in the top 10 were in position to win, best finish he could do was 5th, just shut the MLF down and make everyone happy
I agree with you. If you are officially giving the ok, you should be good.
Agree 100%
I mean then let’s have no official review for any flags during the Super Bowl or Daytona 500. I disagree. The officials are not the end all be all.
@@JohnnyJenkinsif the officials are in charge of making sure things run smoothly, they should know every aspect of the tournament
Did he tell the judge he was getting out of the boat , tournament director says no
@@JohnnyJenkinsthe tournament director is
lets clear this up
by the way GREAT video!!!
1. getting out the boat to gain access to waters is against the rules 18.
2. if he would of had a switch to drain his boat then none of this would of happen
ok to his point zack
110% wrong on the tournament director or the person who said it was ok to do so
what should of happen is
zack keep his catch then after tournament over then said we look at this and for the future we will change the rule to be more clear
sad that this happen
Exactly. If there is a grey area to a rule then it shpuld side with the angler. If the official says its ok then that should be final
I wish he'd seek legal counsel. Need to hold these people accountable for their poor leadership.
He won last week. I think it'd be stupid of him to seek legal counsel as they could just kick him off the tour. I doubt there is a union for the tour fishermen like baseball, football and basketball.
He definitely should be pissed and complain but I wouldn't take it far enough to lose my spot on the MLF tour.
Just shut down the MLF and make everyone happy
yeah this is a ridiculous comment. what’s he gonna do, go spend his yearly winnings on a court case that won’t go anywhere? just take the money and keep it pushing. it sucks but court here would be a terrible move
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing,”
If you give the man the OK to do that , they should not DQ him. Thats wild! Not Cool!
I agree
Agreed. on another note is that recurve ion the wall your primary hunting weapon?
Its not my primary, however, I am a big bowhunter and mainly only bowhunt. I do occasionally take it but have never harvested anything with it yet. Now my Hoyt has knocked many down
Hertford N.C and hunt and bass fish.i hunt with a recurve only.
I agree and also agree with your statement that there is a lot of controversy going on in the tournament organizations all together.
I agree with you on this call for sure. The MLF should’ve dealt with the official not Zack. His fish should’ve counted.
I agree with you 100 percent he was given the ok by an official he should not have be dq
💯 agree but he did walk across the stage on the final day on MLF live after show.
If he was given permission by an official, it should be case closed. I am like you on this, and I fished my share of tournaments on Chowan and Roanoke during the late 80's and early 90's. I was really excited watching these professionals fishing my old fishing grounds.
It was super cool for sure
I was fishing the chowan on Saturday and ran into some of the pros. I was the one who picked Zack for the win and was shocked when that happened to him on Sunday. Thought I was on my way to getting a new rod & reel combo from you.
Agree! But who was the official who said he could should be answering the question! The MLF official that said yes maybe wasn’t the authority on the question! Call the tournament director? Totality insane! If giving the ok he’s fish should count!
I agree once you are given permission there should be no controversy it should be a done deal and no matter who complained it should be the permission was given and therefore there is no way to take those fish catches from him had he had the automatic drain plug in the boat there would have been nothing said so what is the difference he only pulled the drain plug did not push or pull his boat from the water he should have been able to keep those fish and probably caught many more
I agree with you and after watching the knockout round I thought he had the winning pattern and if he wouldn’t have caught so many Saturday I truly think he would have won if he would have let it rest and finished top 10. No pressure in the area.
This was ridiculous! He was given the ok an so this is on MLF! I agree with you gunny!
It’s not the Anglers fault! I would be furious!
When did they give him the ok to get outta the boat and get in the water? A lot of tournaments you can’t leave the boat, Lisa Town head of bassmaster told JT Tompkins he couldn’t get outta the water so I don’t see how. I feel it shouldve been a stiffer penalty Trey Mckenny sit for 2 hours I think when GMan turned him in. 💯
Im not exactly sure but I have heard he was told beforehand. Anglers are aloud to get out the boat to land a fish but only incur a 3 minute penalty. Its a very grey area it seems
Hard for me to believe a tournament official told him he could do that. Now with that being said. IF indeed an official told him that than MLF has bigger issues. I did hear that someone told him he could that. if the rules state you can not get out of your boat to me it's pretty much cut and dry
It was the tournament director that gave him the ok, Zack went directly to the Tournament Director and ask him if it was okay to get out and pull his plug.
@kevinvaughan2570 Kevin if the Director told him he could do it the Zack should get his weight back and tournament director fired AND barred from running any other tournaments
Tournament Director told him that he could, the Tournament Director recieved a phone call on championship day telling him that Zack wasn't allowed to do that. The TD has no backbone and didn't stand behind his word to Zack, he needs to give back the weight and do the right thing.
Did his boat official ok this or a tournament official?? I love the format, but some of this is getting ridiculous. I had a boat like this, I could lean over the transom and remove the plug under water with an adjustable wrench and reinstall it. Could he not have done that? Either way the ruling sucks
The MLF app talks about everything Zack Birge did right by going under bridge into the shallows and catching Bass from left to right but the DQ incident is nowhere to be found anywhere in the Tournament report. I think it should’ve been included if it was a legit DQ which for a lot of us it wasn’t. What a shame, I thought it was such a cool watching Zack doing what he did. Scott Martin got also DQ at Harris Chain in the BassMaster for casting over some poles over a canal that did not have any signs of private property or no fishing. Strange judgement of the rules.
Yea it seems like things are interpreted differently from tournament to tournament. I dont understand it
He called the MLF tournament director and got the OK to do what he asked. The problem is these directors get calls from someone ( more likely Garmin, Lowrance, or Hummingbird) else after the fact, and then they change their minds after the Pro does what he was given permission to do. This is totally unprofessional from the Director of MLF. Once you (the director of the tournament) have given permission to a pro and the boat official (who was on the boat hearing this discussion) after a conversation. If the pro carries out actions in accordance with the director's permission, the director should not be able to renege on their discussion with the pro, especially when the pro does exactly what he discussed with said Director. This decision basically cost Mr. Birge the championship of the tournament, and if I were him, I would sue Boyd Duckett for the winnings that should have been his. Then Mr. Birge should leave MLF and return to BASS because Boyd Duckett, who is ruining this league, will blackball Mr. Birge like he did James Watson, and Duckett should be fired as the CEO.
This may be the unfavorable comment! Anglers, you have to get a copy of the rules and read them yourself, or have the copy on hand for reference! TRUST NOBODY when you are vested into an endeavor that is your lifeline! Is it wrong? No doubt! That is why we need to educate ourselves. If?! He knew the rules? He would not be in this mishap!!!!!
If the official told him he was good then he’s good. Totally ridiculous he was penalized. I would seek legal counsel on that decision.
I agree, once he had permission from the official, he should have been good. And if the official was wrong, and it looks like he was, the fisherman should not have to take the penalty, the official should. Not sure what can be done to an official for a bad call , but it’s definitely not in the fisherman. I watched Defo’s live stream and he got out his boat to push it backwards, the official was gonna penalize him but Defo talked his way out of it and kept fishing. 🤷🏼🤷🏼. That particular official was a local and not the normal official as I have seen before. Maybe that was the case with the other fisherman, idk.
Yea not sure but I definitely believe this is a bad call!!
Two things. If they used air boats. They wouldn't need to get out of the boat to leave the body of water for another location.
2nd... Tournaments typically have a map of the boundaries. Was the area included in the map?
This was an allowable area to fish
I loved the original MLF cup events. But since they started the Bass Pro Tour MLF has been managed about as well as the Titanic was captained. I have refused to watch all year until this tournament. Had to watch as I am moving up that way this summer. And I swear MLF has done and pulled another one.
I remember watching him pulling his plug and thinking man i dont think MLF is gonna like that. I thought it was cool to see. No one really knows what was said btw Zack and the rules official though except for them. Maybe more will come out about it.
True.....no official statement has came out on either side. It was said that Zack asked beforehand and was given the ok. If thats the case, then this was handled wrongly
Agreed. And he should know the rules before just doing something like that in a tournament, I think it’s still BS, but rules are rules, you can’t bend them for one angler.
If there is an option on certain boats to remotely manipulate the drain plug, then everyone, regardless of whether they have the option, should be able to manipulate their drain plug. If he was told by an official that he could do so, that's probably what the official was thinking as well.
Did you hear JT mention Fishing Boat Docks excessively? He gets it andand loves to push boundaries but when he started naming what structure was being used to catch fish and he said boat docks over and over I was laughing.
Yea it was pretty funny lol
The main problem I hear is that he checked with officials and ok’d if he was detailed on what he was doing. May not have been detailed enough to the official so we need to know exactly what discussion was done between the fisherman and official and research this before a decision was made. I am sure there is more to the story always is. People like to talk about this and does not have all the facts again it is always opinions the facts only.
I like it Kevin!!! 🤓 Keep on them!!! 🤠
Very unprofessional decision. It reminds me of when I was a kid. My buddy and I would trade something then before the day was over, one of us say I don’t want to trade and get called an Indian giver
I feel that if they are going to give the official that much authority, his decision should be upheld. #FBD will probably say he should have called the tournament director, in which case they shouldn’t have boat officials.
I see both sides. Here’s the rule as I see it:
18. COMPETITORS MUST REMAIN IN BOAT:
a. During the event days, MLF Anglers cannot leave the boat to make the boat more accessible to fishing waters.
Then there’s this:
10. IN-BOAT MLF OFFICIAL’S ROLE:
g. Rules decisions made by an MLF Officials are considered final, unless an MLF Angler chooses to submit a
written protest to the MLF Tournament Director.
Yep rule 10 is pretty cut and dry. The Decision was made and should be final
I am not 100% certain yet but from what I have heard it wasn't just any tournament official it was the tournament official, I am hearing it was the TD that gave the ok. If that is true I think all the anglers need to be a little scared. You may come in one day and find out the decided to ban the Damiki rig while you were out fishing and 90% off you fish have been DQed. If an angler does the right thing and gets a decision from the TD that can't change. Barring any new info that we currently don't have I think MLF really screwed up big time with this one.
Awesome video man 🔥🔥🔥🎣🎣🎣
If he had permission to do it and they did this I’m done with the mlf.
I’m tired of all these gray areas in professional sports. It either ok or it’s not. You can’t get butt hurt cause the guy behind him didn’t think about doing it first.
They’re messing with someone’s paycheck and that doesn’t sit right with me.
Maybe he should have plugged the livewells, turned the pumps on and let them overflow into the boat. Same result without getting out. Either way I disagree with the tournament officials, he should have been fine doing that, I was never an MLF fan anyway. I also didn't like what BASS did to Keith Poche last year when he went over the levy on Toledo Bend, he never left legal tournament waters.
That was wrong. Thanks for sharing . I didn't get to see it. I'm at the lake.
If it happened exactly like you described I would submit his catch was legal!
Why didn’t he reach down behind his boat motor and pull his plug. Without getting out of his boat . I know he was as given permission by the mlf official but they could be wrong. And in this case they penalized Zack B. 7 fish. My take on this situation.
Hey Kevin, I’m not sure if you seen the update but they reinstated Zack seven Fish. So he ended up in seventh place not 8th. This is a step in the right direction, but this situation should’ve never happened. It totally messed up the rest of the day of his fishing right when he was making a move to the lead he could have won this tournament possibly. But at least MLF saves a little bit of face year by doing the right thing they just should’ve done the right thing to begin with, regardless if they misunderstood what he was asking, they gave him the OK to do what he did once you do that you gotta live with it can’t screw the guy over during the tournament
I saw it got reversed!! Im ready to hear Zacks statement
I 100% agree with you
Hopefully he goes to the opens next year
I would agree with the DQ if the official would not have given him the okay but since he did the DQ is wrong
Correct...if Zack just did it on his own without asking, thats one thing. But when you are given the Ok to do something by an official that changes it all
Refs make calls in football and basketball that get over turned upon review. If this was shown on live stream the tournament officials should have called immediately to tell him there was a problem before letting him fish on after he went under the bridge. That is a mistake by MLF. I've never heard of doing this before but could you fill your live wells and get the boat sunk enough ? MLF should have review officials sitting in front of monitors where they can see every camera on the water during the tournament.
The livewell weight isnt enough to do it. Basically you have to let it fill up enough so the whole boat sits lower in the water. We call it sinking the boat
Official screwed up. The fact that he had to manipulate the boat is wrong and he knew what he was doing skirted the rules. I agree that he got screwed by the official.
if he was told by a official it was fine its not his problem thats on them
We have technology he should have called the tournament director on speaker phone explained what he wanted to do .that's my opinion
My opinion: if he discussed with official prior to getting out of boat and pulling his plug, he should not have been DQ'd. MLF should have disciplined the official, not Birge.
If he did not talk to official- then he should be DQd.
Ya that wasNOT right at all…. I was there and was wondering what happened to him….
I was out on the water with them and learned something new🤔😉🤫
What if you have to take a leak , you cant even get out of the boat , that sounds insane
I wondered what the hell happened. I was watching it live and left for about an hour and half and saw Birges weight and swore it was higher than that.
Well you do have a point, but on the other hand if its a written rule he, as a pro angler, is required to know those rules regardless of what the official tells you! Defoe knew the rules and when the official questioned his exit from the boat, he explained the rules to the official!! Just sayin'....
They should reprimand the official. He stayed within rules guidelines and should never have his fish DQ'd.
It's sad to see this , but it's been going on for a while, they just need to shutdown MLF Bass Pro needs to somehow put a stop to it;;;;;;
I guess he should have just Fished Boat Docks..... MLF is a dumpster fire.....Zack is a good dude too. Hope he makes his way back to BASS.
HORRIBLE CALL BY MLF!!!! Zack should be compensated in some form of fashion, also the official shouldn't get paid/and or not be able to officiate again... this is what he does for a living and for it to be snatched from him like that is complete BS!!!!
I agree
Wasn't even the official, the tournament director okayed it which supersedes the boat official. It's bogus. The reason is because, on a podcast, Zach said somethings about the recent ongoings in MLF that he didn't agree with. That rubbed a certain someone the wrong way and now it seems a certain someone is trying to take it out on Zach. #FishBoatDocks
It seems like either another pro or someone with special interests made a big deal about it, and the official who gave him the go ahead wasn't above whoever got called on the pay grade scale. It's absolutely ridiculous, and I really hope that this isn't how things are done where you got another jealous pro or someone who has an invested interest calling the shots on a big tournament like this.
Yea it definitely should be looked into further.....ok means ok. Whether it the official in the boat or director. It should be at their discretion at that moment and it cant be changed after the fact
Certainly, a mistake was made by the official. I have been a boat official before, and I am aware of the rules concerning what happened and would have called the tournament director before I gave my boater the ok. It only takes a minute to verify a rule if there is a question and I have done that before. Very unfortunate and avoidable.
Very true
What official? If the Tournament Director told him to do that, that's one thing. If the guy in the boat told him to do it. Then both are wrong. All they do is call out weights and give 2 minutes penalty.
My understanding is the actual Tournament Director told him it could be done. The full story may never come out though
I agree 100%
I guess they just forgot about Kieth poche getting out and pushing his boat all over the place during heavy hitters.
It is insane they handled it this way. They cost him a chance to win. The tournament director ok'd it. Who made the call to make the TD change his decision?! Zach made it clear what he was doing and why he was doing it. Once OK'd there is no going back period. He put it on the trailer and left after he found out they changed their minds. His whole day was ruined. This is MLF trying to save face.
I agree with you. It definitely changed his day and changing the decision really changes nothing
Absolute bs. Like a cop telling you YES you can fish there. Then arresting you after you make a cast.
I agree 100% that they should not have disqualified his catch. Sad to say, but I am getting less and less interested in watching pro fishing events, and it's mostly because of stuff like this happening.
Maybe Boyd (FBD) was afraid he might finish ahead of his boy Wheeler (ABW)! BPT will not be in around in two years……😮
@swsexton1829 buddy please. You think Wheeler needs help from tournament officials to win? He's a beast on the water. No need for jealousy.
You maybe right it's nice to see some anglers other than Wheeler doing well in these tournments. Seems like Zach Birge was trying to fish some hard to get to areas instead of just livescoping all day.
Doesn"t seem like i ever see Wheeler fishing the creek or backwater areas much during tournments on live broadcasts. How bout you?
I don't know why you are attacking Wheeler? Did he win? Did he come in second? Was he third? Nope
Is he points winner in standings by long ways yes. The three competitors in the minor league fu€K:ng tour are wheeler Connell and gill. In my opinion I believe Gill is light years ahead of anyone I’ve ever seen or heard talk. The dude is super young and just look at his finishes
That’s wrong if the official gives the ok that should be it
Just let the guy fish! He went out to win and got screwed by MLF.
If this Truely was a sponsor intervention to reverse an official ruling, seems to me there could be some anti
trust implications in play.
Mighty fishy isnt it?
If the MLF official gave the okay ans Zack did according to instruction it's on the official not the angler.
Another example of a Boyd duckett power trip man. Unbelievable.
Yep for sure
Seven fish? He would have won it, right? If anything, he should've only got a 4 min penalty. Just like anyone else gets if they leave the boat.
I think everyone needs to stop watching, liking, etc…..anything BPT #FBD
Mlf wrong if official gave the ok
Also ive seen poche in heavy hitters out of his boat pushing it ..if you given the ok by official you should be good
Exactly, not last time but time before. Several angler's went to the back of Tom Jack Creek on Jordan lake. Got out of their boat's to push over sand bar
I agree if the MLF official says okay then I say it's ok I getting to the point of not even watching MLF anymore because it's getting pretty crappy of a fishing League
Official trained to weigh fish. Probably not familiar with the full rule book. Should have called the actual tournament director. He was out of the boat. End of story
Moral of the story, the pros can’t trust these “one week” officials,…….call the director
Mlf was wrong for doing that. If official said it was OK then Mlf should be talking to the offical
well, He suppose to be professional. but he is not because he called the official. Then this happen. IF he is professional he wouldn't call official. He need to rethink and find a way how to win this tourney. Find another spots and he would have won instead call official. Fishing on the lake and calling official is too risky. He got disqualified but that suck!
Well I’m glad they removed the dq, he got his weight bacl
I think he should appeal it. Due to the rule he was in the right.
Sadly the lawsuit probably cost more than what he lost - catch 22 of the legal system
It's bullshit!! MLF should write him a check
Mlf was screwed up and wrong about this so unfair they gave him the ok
Lack of professionalism from MLF side. How was the official trained?
FBD!!! If you get the ok from a tourney official/director then he is good to go. But they have to protect their golden boys. This is one of the many reasons I stopped watching MLF.
Zack has a copy of the rules. He was wrong in this case, whether the official told him it was ok is irrelevant
The problem is, this exact specific scenario isnt stated in the rules. That is why he asked up front....its a very grey area which can be interpreted multiple ways
No the rule is you can not get out to pull the plug.
I would be suing mlf!
Going to hear different opinions, bottom line he got a partial DQ, let it go
My rule is this
. If you have to ask you shouldn't do it.
Not fair, they should not interpret a rule that is as vague as that one is after the fact. He did not advance his boat at all. They should have let his catch count and if they want to change the rules after the tournament then so be it. Sucks for Zach and all the anglers dealing with the morons running MLF.
Thats robbery, he wouldve definitely won more than he did after they said it was ok. Bassmaster should've came here instead of mlf
thats bullshit I agree with you
MLF… they’re full O’ 💩! Always something. Lump their nonsense with all the anglers (all the ones complaining) complaints and general rule bending on both major tours and I’m about fed up. Why bother watching… Jersey shore meets bass angling!
Does anybody remember when Keith poche jumped out of the boat and walked over a dock to get a big fish he caught on the other side. And they only penalized him I think 8 minutes for that. I remember when Adrian avena jumped out of the boat and swam down to a brush pile to get a fish that was hung up. Again just a few minutes penalty! Did not zero either one of those guys weights. That's BS !!! MLF is a JOKE ..in the words on James Watson .#FISHINGBOATDOCKS
I like them both but I remember!
@@GunnFishTV me too I'm a huge fan of Keith and his style of fishing and getting where they live. His off the grid stuff is cool as hell! Exactly how I grew up fishing. An Adrian is a straight hammer.. I was just pointing out 2 times where anglers left the boat completely and one even got out of the boat and walked on a private dock.. and they were just penalized for MINUTES not THEIR CATCHES!!! .. MLF is a circus. But look who the ringleader is.. ✌️
Alton Jones Jr. and Mark Rose have also, as well as Keith Poche on another occasion at Lake Fork. Wonder what would have happened if Zack had a different rod sponsor?
If youre given the okay..then there should be no DQ
MLF continues to be a shit show. Can’t wait for this to just end