This weeks captain profile is Devin Potts on the 66 Spencer Sea Mixer. Captain Potts finished the 2014 season ranked #2 with 1850 Cup points.

In Captain of the Year Cup news the Bisbees wraps up this week in the International Division and in the Contender Florida Division Ed Dwyer’s Billfish Tournament in New Smyrna is taking place however the 11 boat field does not meet the 12 boat minimum Captain of the Year Cup points criteria.

The Winner’s Circle

2014 Captain Profile Capt. Devin Potts, Sea Mixer

Boat/Power: 66-foot Spencer, CAT C-32 ACERTs

Wins to Date: Orange Beach Billfish Classic, 1st Place Big Fish, 500 Pts; Cajun Canyon Billfish Classic, 1st Place Big Fish, 500 Pts.

Tackle: Shimano Tiagra reels, custom rods

Capt. Devin Potts has caught some big blue marlin so far this year, even rebounding after losing a big fish in the Cajun Canyons Classic to land one even larger on the following day. Here are some of his keys to success in the upper Gulf of Mexico.

In The Spread

“In a perfect world I’d live-bait with blackfin tuna on the riggers—a big one on one side and a medium-sized one on the other—and a big hardtail on the downrigger or back on the center rigger. We’ve had so much grass this year that it’s been tough to fish the downrigger though so most of the time we just have our baits in the riggers. We’re running them on Shimano Tiagra 80Wides spooled with 130-pound Dacron and a topshot of 100-pound Momoi clear. When we’re trolling, it’s a mix of lures from Moldcraft, Pakula, Polu Kai and a few others with a mullet dredge on one side and a squid chain on the other. We’re pulling everything around eight knots looking for fishy water.”

Technique

“We have caught our big fish this year live baiting but we have not abandoned trolling—we still troll a lot when we’re checking out the conditions at a rig,” Capt. Potts says. “We’ve spent the last week and a half upgrading our pump system so that we can hold more live bait though so hopefully that will help keep us fishing and not eating up so much time catching and keeping bait. Our bites have been right at daylight and dark so it’s important that you’re in the right spot and fishing during those times.”

 

Capt. Devin Potts, Sea Mixer, 1850 Points

• Orange Beach Billfish Classic, 1st Place Harvest, 500 Pts.
• Cajun Canyon Billfish Classic, 1st Place Harvest, 500 Pts.
• Gulf Coast Blue Marlin Grand Championship, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.
• Gulf Coast Triple Crown Champion, 250 Pts.
• The White Marlin Shootout, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

For Captain of the Year Standings Click Here  

For Captain of the Year Gulf Standings Click Here