Tournament Talk September/October 2024

WASTE KNOT WINS $3.7M AT WHITE MARLIN OPEN

The team on the Waste Knot walked away with a boatload of cash at the 51^st White Marlin Open, winning nearly half of the $8.59 million prize pool with a 77.5-pound white marlin caught at the tournament.

The tournament was challenged with rough seas and the threat of a tropical storm that extended the tournament by a day but it still drew 318 boats. The catches were solid, with three boats having million-dollar-winning fish.

Ven Poole from Raleigh, North Carolina, aboard the Waste Knot, caught the winning white marlin, earning an impressive $3,699,630.67. Noah McVicker from Ocean City, Maryland, fishing on the Billfisher, landed a 76-pound white marlin worth $1,797,119.13.

The blue marlin division saw a stunning 897.5-pound catch by Lance Blakemore of Horseheads, New York, on the Stone Cutter, which earned him $520,374.07. Phil Key from Millers Island, Maryland, aboard Moore Bills, brought in an 894-pound blue marlin, winning $410,936.89. Hershel Martin of Montross, Virginia, on Bobojo, with a 789.5-pound blue marlin that earned $112,704.77.

In the tuna category, Rob Jones from Cincinnati, Ohio, fishing on the Blue Runner, dominated with a 220.5-pound catch, securing $1,007,012.32. Jeff Green from Cape May, New Jersey, aboard Warden Pass, claimed second place with a 193.5-pound tuna, earning $154,046.73, while Dante Soriente of Little Egg Harbor, New Jersey, on MJ’s, also caught a 193.50-pound tuna, taking home $147,046.31.

The wahoo category was led by Ian Horowitz from North Wales, Pennsylvania, who landed a 70-pound wahoo aboard American Lady, winning $68,594.09. In the dolphin category, Patrick Field from Stuart, Florida, aboard Catch 23, took first place with a 32.5-pound dolphin, earning $64,594.09, followed by Andy Geldmacher of Westminster, Maryland, on Double Nickel, with a 31-pound catch, earning $2,409.09.

In the Billfish Points Division Bobojo claimed the top spot among boats with 1,033 points, followed by Sequel with 980 points, and Taylor Jean and Catch 23 each finishing strong with 770 points.

In the Release category, Sequel topped the leaderboard with 980 points, while Taylor Jean and Bobojo followed closely behind with 770 points each.

 Hershel Martin, aboard the Bobojo, was crowned the WMO Grand Champion, leading the tournament with an outstanding performance and 753.17 points. In the female angler division, Kelly Weber on MaxBet claimed the top spot, followed by Heather Jaworski on Judge and Jackie Tenuto on Sequel.

REDEMPTION RULES BLUEFIN BONANZA

Capt. Isaac Molt and the crew of Redemption captured the Casco Bay Cup in South Portland, Maine, and first place in the 2024 Casco Bay Bluefin Bonanza with a 635-pound bluefin.

The tournament was reduced from four days to three this year by changes to regulations by NOAA Fisheries, which manages highly migratory species like bluefin tuna, said Bluefin Bonanza president and tournament director Bob Humphrey.

In second place was Amy Lynn and 19-year-old Capt. Bobby Strong, with a 612.5-pound fish landed in the waning hours of Day 3. Capt. Keith Jordan of Bailey & Bella took third place with a 610-pound fish, the largest on Day 2. Fourth place went to Capt. Max Bogdonovich and Bogsea with a 591-pound fish.

In fifth place was Molly Jane and co-captains Kurt and Erik Christensen with a 576.5-pound fish. Molly Jane also took the trophy for highest cumulative weight for 2 fish totaling 1,152 pounds. That total also secured their win in the inaugural Gulf of Maine Grand Slam.

In total, there were 31 fish caught among the 59 boats participating.

New this year, the Gulf of Maine Grand Slam is a cooperative effort between the Bluefin Bonanza, the Bluefin Benefit Battle and the Bailey Island Fishing Tournament. Anglers who participated in all three  tournaments accumulated points based on total weight.

Proceeds from the tournament go toward community college scholarships for students enrolled in trades and marine science programs, internships for students working at the University of Maine’s Pelagic Fisheries Lab at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) and an endowment with the University of Maine Foundation supporting bluefin tuna research led by Dr. Walt Golet at GMRI.

For more information, check out the Casco Bay Bluefin Bonanza on Facebook and Instagram and visit: www.bluefinbonanza.org or email bluefinbonanza@gmail.com.

TEAM ANGLER WINS MONTAUK CANYON CHALLENGE

The crew of the Angler took home the Dave O’Halloran Grand Champion trophy for most points overall at the Montauk Canyon Challenge, besting the field of 78 boats as the tournament presented by SI Yachts, set a record for number of boats and prize money.  Since 2017, the MCC has nearly doubled the amount of boats and tripled prize money. This year also saw a record amount of Junior and Female anglers, respectively. 

Internal Fixation landed the largest tuna overall and won the sonar division with a 234-pound bigeye.  Natalia landed the largest tuna in the non-sonar division with a 194.4-pound bigeye.  Celtic Pride landed the largest yellowfin with a weight of 103 pounds. 

In the Outboard division, Fishues took the largest tuna with a 127.4 bigeye followed by Lil Crum with a 96.4 yellowfin.

The full results: Heaviest Tuna Non-Sonar: 1. Natalia 194.4 bigeye, 2. Canyon Bound 171.6 bigeye; Heaviest Tuna All Boats: 1. Internal Fixation 234 bigeye, 2. Angler 174.2 bigeye; Heaviest Yellowfin Non-Sonar: 1. Celtic Pride 103.6, 2. Miss Maggie 102.6; Heaviest Yellowfin All Boats: 1. Scylla 98, 2. Internal Fixation 97; Heaviest 3 Yellowfin Stringer Non Sonar: 1. One More 267.4, 2. Ragnar 245.8; Heaviest 3 Yellowfin Stringer All Boats: 1. Scylla 286.8, 2. One More 267.4; Heaviest Longfin: 1. KAOS 58.8, 2. ADHD 54.6; Heaviest Bluefin: 1. One Love 49.6, 2. Two Docks 21.8; Heaviest Mahi Mahi: 1. Angler 27.2, 2. Overtime 21.4; Heaviest Wahoo: 1. Valor 23.6, 2. Ragnar 15.4: Heaviest Trifecta – yellowfin, longfin, mahi: 1. ADHD 147.2, 2. Three G’s 127.8; Billfish Points: 1. Scylla 600, 2. Internal Fixation 300; Heaviest Tuna  Outboard: 1. Fishues 127.4 bigeye; 2. Lil Crum 96.4 yellowfin; Heaviest Yellowfin Outboard: 1. Lil Crum 96.4, 2. ADHD 75.6; Heaviest Mahi Mahi Outboard: 1. ADHD 17, 2. Wharf Rat 6; Junior Angler: 1. Sara Horowitz 135.8 bigeye, 2. Gavin Vaccarro 98.2 yellowfin; Female Angler: 1. Sara Horowitz 135.8 bigeye, 2. Madeline Harland 129.6

“Our MCC team thanks all the crews, captains and sponsors for another great tournament,” tournament director Chris Squeri said. “We can’t wait to keep making improvements.  Our captains meeting was packed and we celebrated a great week of fishing with a fun filled awards dinner under the big tent at the Montauk Yacht Club.”

DOGS BOLLOCKS WINS BLUE MARLIN WORLD CUP

For the second year in a row, a new payout record was set in the 2024 Blue Marlin World Cup one-day tournament. Dogs Bollocks, a 54 Hatteras fishing out of the Cape Verde Islands, boated an 845-pound blue to take home a combined purse of $1.27 million.

Ron Kawaja, the founder of Pelagic Gear, was on the rod for the winning catch. Stuart Simpson was at the helm. The team’s fish, which measured 126 inches long with a 70-inch girth, was fooled by a Vi-per Bonze Lure. Dogs Bollocks won both the World Cup and the Big Blue Challenge divisions in a field of 162 teams competing in the tournament’s 40^th anniversary event.

Dogs Bollocks is sharing a portion of its payout with two local deckhands, both of whom intend to use their share of the prize money to build houses and to send their kids to college, tournament officials said.  

The Blue Marlin World Cup is a one-day fishing tournament conducted globally. Only blue marlin weighing more than 500 pounds are eligible.  Competing teams fish in their respective time zones from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 pm. Entries are weighed on certified government scales and verified in their respective locales.

Sorted, fishing out of Madeira, reported an early morning catch weighing 557 pounds. Laura Russell, competing aboard Debatable with Team Hit & Run, weighed a 636-pounder while fishing in the Bermuda Billfish Blast. Big Deal, also fishing in Bermuda, weighed a 673-pound blue late after a four-hour fight.

Two historic giant blue hot spots were well represented among this year’s fleet. Bermuda boasted 49 teams, followed by 42 in Hawaii and 20 across the Gulf of Mexico. Madeira and Cape Verde fielded 18 and 17 teams, respectively. In addition to Bermuda and the United States, teams fished from Portugal (Madeira and Cape Verde), The Bahamas and Senegal.

TEAM COASTAL INK PRINTING WINS U-MIAMI TOURNAMENT

Team Coastal Ink Printing captured the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame & Museum’s 2024 Celebrity Fishing Tournament in June.

The team was fishing aboard the Sea Senorita with Capt. Casey Yaworski at the helm. Tyler Webb from Tavernier, Florida, caught a 42.8-pound bull dolphin. He and anglers Kendra Paulson of Tavernier, Emalee Taylor of Clearwater, Florida, and Alissa Keiler of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, took the title with a three-fish total of 52.4 pounds, securing them a $7,000 first-place check and a trophy, and Tyler Webb’s catch earned him the Top Male Angler award.

Capt. Brian Cone’s Contagious claimed second place with a three-fish total of 31.0 pounds. Brothers Don and Richard Deleon along with Bruce Marchetti all from Miami, Florida, weighed in fish of 18.0 and 6.0 pounds along with a 7.0-pounder caught by junior angler Andy Cone of Tavernier who won the Top Junior Angler award. The team also won the Big Three division and the Bucket of Bucks trophy and a check for $6,569.

Anglers Devon Hannah from Marathon, Florida, Karel Lewis from Little Torch Key, Florida, with RJ and Joshua Lewis of Summerland Key, Florida, weighed three fish at 12.9, 7.1 and 5.1 for a total of 28.1 pounds to win third place. The team was fishing aboard Capt. Resse Lewis’ Natural II and came in second in the Big Three division and third in the Bucket of Bucks winning $3,338 and the third-place trophy.

GONE FISHING WINS LADIES DOLPHIN TOURNAMENT

The team on Gone Fishing won the Florida Keys Elks Lodge’s 10th Annual Ladies Dolphin Tournament in Key Largo in June, beating out 30 other boats for the title.

Capt. Brian Barrus had anglers Robyn Frick and Sherri Santese of Tavernier, Florida, and Aimee Anderson from Key Largo, and they weighed three fish totaling 17.6 pounds.  They received first-place tiaras and trophies, along with a large travel bag full of prizes from local merchants and a check for $3,000.  Capt. Brian received a Pasta print and Mate JR took home a new fishing rod and reel.   Sherri’s 10.3-pound dolphin was the largest of the tournament, netting her a $1,000 check along with some gifts.

Shake & Bake team Waffle Crappers were second, as anglers Ashley Fernandez and Elizabeth Keeskes from Key Largo with Mari Cortez of Tavernier weighed in three fish with a total weight of 17.2 pounds and won $1,500.

Capt. Scott Veath with Mates Bear Veath and Sam Allison led anglers Jolene Allison and Christina Veath from Tavernier to third place with a three-fish total of 15.5 pounds to win $1,000.

Victoria Puente, 15, from Miami, fishing with Capt. Jim Puente and Mark Aiken on the Bottom Line, weighed in a 3.8-pounder to take home the top Junior Angler honors.