Storylines: Haynes Disqualified

Last-minute rules violation forces the ledge expert to the sidelines

Five minutes may have cost Randy Haynes the chance at another eight and a half hours of fishing Sunday, the final day of the Walmart FLW Tour presented by Quaker State on Pickwick Lake.

Haynes spun a hub on his motor after making one last five-minute stop before check-in. To try and make it in on time, he hopped in the boat of FLW Senior Editor Kyle Wood, which is against tournament rules and prompted a disqualification.

“Per Rule 13, an angler can only get a ride in with another contestant or be towed in in their own boat,” Tournament Director Bill Taylor says.

The pertinent part of Rule 13 reads: In the event of equipment failure or emergency the tournament director must be notified as soon as it is safe to do so. There are then two permitted methods of returning to the check-in: (1) by both paired anglers (or the angler and marshal) remaining in their boat and being towed by water, or (2) with permission from the tournament director, by one or both paired anglers (or the angler and marshal) entering the boat of another tournament contestant.

Making the matter worse is Haynes reportedly had around a 20-pound bag, which would’ve placed him in roughly third place heading into the final day of competition on his home lake.

According to his marshal, Sims Meredith, Haynes began his final run back to check-in at roughly 2:20 p.m., shortly after catching his largest fish of the day. Haynes had caught his fish far down the lake, toward the Pickwick Dam, and leaving at that time should’ve allowed him to make the 3:15 p.m. check-in. It actually gave him extra time, and when he realized he had an extra few minutes to spare, Haynes made the decision to stop and throw a couple casts at a rock wall. The wall was around 1.2 miles from check-in according to Wood’s GPS.

After making a couple casts, Haynes started the motor back up and promptly spun his hub at 3:13 p.m. Roughly a minute later, according to Meredith, Haynes flagged down Wood, who was on his way back in after doing on-the-water coverage.

Wood says Haynes asked him if it was legal for him to get in his boat, to which Wood replied that he didn’t know the rule. Haynes immediately jumped in Wood’s boat, holding a net full with his fish.

“It was a do-or-die moment,” says Wood. “At that second, what do you do? You make a quick decision.”

Wood and Haynes made it to check-in at 3:16 p.m. That’s when Haynes called Taylor to check on the ruling; finding out it was, in fact, against the rules.

Visibly upset and shaking his head at weigh-in, Haynes said he didn’t want to talk about the incident.

“Haynes did keep saying he wouldn’t have made it in anyways if I hadn’t helped him,” says Wood.