The iAngler Tournament System

The "iAngler Tournament System" (www.ianglertournament.com) is a comprehensive system for the operation and management of Fishing Tournaments. The system also collects vital angling data for marine research. The "iAngler Tournament" mobile application allows anglers participating in registered fishing tournaments to log their catch data while still on the water.

How It Works

The iAngler Tournament system has two components - the Web Portal and the Mobile Application. The web portal is used to handle all aspects of tournament management:

The web portal is used to handle all aspects of tournament management:

The mobile application is used by the tournament participants and remote viewers.

During tournaments, the anglers use the mobile app to photo their catch and record basic information while on the water. The catch record is immediately transmitted to the web portal for review by the Tournament Director (if there is an active internet connection). The transmission takes seconds. If an internet connection (usually cellular) is not available, the catch record is saved for transmission later.

The Tournament Director is immediately notified when an angler logs a catch. He can review the catch photo and information, then accept or reject the submission. Accepted catch records are immediately scored and posted to the Live Leaderboard. Anglers are immediately notified, via email and within the app, when a catch record is rejected. The rejection notice contains a message from the Tournament Director on why the record was rejected. If possible, the catch record can be corrected and resubmitted.

The iAngler Tournament system allows Tournament Directors to very quickly finalize tournament results. The tournament audience also is increased by allowing online monitoring of the leaderboard.

Why Use iAngler Tournament

Tournament managers love the simplicity of the system. Setting up a new event is simple and can be customized to the current format of most tournaments. (Catch-photo-release events are perfect!). Anglers find the system very fast and easy and appreciate that their catches are visible on the web 'real time' so their friends and family back home can keep tabs on their day. It also allows for quick release within seconds of the catch, which is great for the fish. Researchers and scientists are particularly excited, as this opens up a new 'data playground' for them to assess fish dynamics and habitat needs. Best of all, tournaments can be easily designed to pin-point data needs of a particular fish or region.

If you currently run a fishing tournament and you could use a little extra marketing plus simplify the process of the event, iAngler-Tournament is for you. If you are an angler who fishes tournaments, iAngler-Tournament will be your 'one stop shop.' All events in the system are fitted into the Angler Action Program database, ensuring every data point collected is used for fishery research and science. Each user's personal data is protected - no one but you see your fishing spot, whether you are a guide or recreational angler.

Conservation and  “Trash Tournaments”

Earlier this year, we enhanced functionality in the system to support "Trash Tournaments". For these tournaments, individuals and/or teams can submit photos of trash collected on the waterway or beaches. The scoring can be based on "Count" (number of pails or bags of trash) or "Weight" (actual weight) of trash collected. A "Live Leaderboard" can be used to display current scoring. Random drawings can also be conducted using the database of trash submitted.

We have been providing support for the "Fishing" and "Trash" Divisions of the CCA Florida STAR Tournament for the last four years. Last year, 6500 anglers participated in the tournament and over 1,400 five-gallon pails of trash were collected from the waterways. Prize winners for the Trash Division were selected via random drawings.

April 22, 2020 is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. We are currently working with CCA Florida to conduct a state-wide Trash Tournament from April 18th to April 25th. Earlier this year, we partnered with the CCA Florida team to host a state-wide cleanup event for "World Oceans Day" (http://ianglertournament.com/cca-florida-trash-tournament-world-oceans-day). The eight-day trash tournament had 96 participants and collected 298 bags of trash off Florida waters and beaches. Additional Trash Tournaments are being scheduled in Puerto Rico, Bermuda, and other locations in the United States.

Citizen Science and Research

 The iAngler Tournament System has been used by multiple conservation organizations, educational institutions, and state agencies to engage citizens and agency personnel in collecting data for vital research.  Recent projects have included the following:

Jacksonville University, Marine Science Research Institute: “Spring 2019 River Reefs Tournament” 

Two artificial reefs were constructed in the St. Johns River in December 2014 by the City of Jacksonville (COJ) in partnership with the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA). These river reefs are named the CCA Reef and the George Holt Reef and mark a new chapter in reef deployment in northeast Florida. The objective of the project is to monitor the growth and health of the two new reefs and determine if this is something we can implement all over the state of Florida. As part of the project, we are hosting this tournament as a way to get the public involved and spread more awareness of the two new reefs. It is also a way to collect as much data as we possibly can.

Audubon Florida, Florida Everglades Restoration Program: “Apple Snail Research Project” 

Apple Snails are a non-native invasive species of freshwater snail from South America. They are very common in the pet/aquarium trade as a display species. When some people want to break down their aquaria, they dump unwanted pets into local water bodies, like bayous, creeks, lakes, and ponds. Because of this, Apple Snails have become a part of aquatic eco-systems across the South, especially in Florida. They can be rather harmful to eco-systems where they have been introduced, eating up much of the native water plants. Biologists working on the invasive apple snail problem need data on locations of clusters of eggs - of both native and non-native snails.  The iAngler Tournament System is being used to collect critical data on the native and invasive Apple Snail species. 

Outdoors – Competition, Conservation, Research

The functionality supporting "Trash Tournaments" and "Research Events" is now being moved to a new application dedicated to those functions.  The new application, "Outdoors - Competition, Conservation, Research", will be available in February 2020.

The “Outdoors” mobile application will be an enhanced version of the iAngler Tournament mobile application.  These changes will also be incorporated in the iAngler Tournament mobile application.

Tournaments