Bluewater Movements, April 14—Record Breaking. That’s the best way to describe the 2022 Final Sail tournament weekend in Miami on April 6-9, 2022. 479 releases across a 41 boat fleet and the top 5 teams combined released 121 fish! Going into Final Sail, all eyes were on the five teams in contention to win the coveted burgundy jacket and this year Michael Jordan’s Catch 23 team was in the mix, going neck and neck with Contender One/Costa. Throughout the two day long competition, stakes and tensions ran high with a $600,000 purse and burgundy jackets on the line, two teams would emerge victorious at Miami Beach Marina on Saturday.
It would be Captain Scott Stoky and team Still Right on their 39’ Contender leading the pack with 29 total releases, setting a new tournament record and taking home the title of Final Sail Champions 2022! Still Right got off to a hot start on Friday finding the fish early and it never stopped! Releasing 18 sailfish on Friday would win them the Early Bite Friday as well as the Tier 1 & 2 Day 1 Dailies for a total of $45,225 in winnings on Day 1. The hot streak continued into Saturday releasing an additional 11 fish bringing their two day total to 29 releases! In addition to the calcutta’s won on Friday, team Still Right also won 1st place overall, Self Centered 1st place, Leaderboard 1st place, High Rollers Club 1st place, Charity Calcutta, The Big Easy 1st place, 3rd place Tier 1 Daily Day 2, for a grand total of $172,420!
Captain Quinton Dieterle, aka ‘Q’, and his crew on Contender One/Costa entered Final Sail with the series lead for the world champions title in competitive sailfishing. However, after a slow start on Friday releasing just 6 sailfish Captain Stetson Turney and Catch 23 took a commanding lead in the series and the battle for burgundy. Saturday would be an entirely different story for Contender One/Costa. Champions are often defined by how they respond from adversity and Day 2 of Final Sail was the ultimate testament to the championship pedigree of the Contender One/Costa team. At one point, it was as if every release called in over the VHF in the JL Audio radio room was from Boat #18, Contender One/Costa.
They released 12 fish on Day 2 before noon, added two more in the hour to follow and released five in the last thirty minutes of fishing to finish with 19 releases on Saturday. Those 19 releases earned them the 1st place finish for the day and catapulted them to the top spot for the series with 25 total releases, surpassing Catch 23 for the coveted Burgundy Jacket and legendary title of Quest For The Crest Champions 2022! In addition to their new burgundy wardrobe, Contender One/Costa also took home a hefty paycheck! Finishing in 2nd place overall, 1st place Tier 2 Daily Day 2, The Big Easy 2nd place, 1st place Tier 1 Daily Day 2, Early Bite Saturday, and Quest TNT Series 1st place for a grand total of $107,550!
On another noteworthy finish to close Day 2 of fishing in Final Sail, Captain Richard Peeples and team Seraphim released 9 sailfish in the second half of the day to win the high stakes Release Roundup jackpot and a stout $88,300 payday! Not to be overlooked, the Final Sail beneficiary, Fishing for Muscular Dystrophy (FFMD), won big too. Thanks to the generosity of anglers and other fundraising efforts throughout the tournament, Bluewater Movements was able to present them with a check for $8,025! To learn more about their mission, visit www.fishingformd.com.
All three legs of the Quest for the Crest Sailfish Series saw strong fishing from start to finish. 245 fish were released at Leg 1 Operation Sailfish, followed by 382 releases at Leg 2 Sailfish Challenge, and Final Sail with 479 releases brought the series total to a record setting 1,106 releases for the season!
Quest for the Crest Series Results:
- Contender One/Costa – 87 pts
- Catch 23 – 79 pts
- Native Son – 65 pts
- Irish Twin – 58 pts
- TB Sportfishing – 56 pts
Full Series Results – https://www.bluewatermovements.com/tournaments/sailfish-series/standing/
MORE FINAL SAIL RESULTS:
Gator One: Meatfish Aggregate 1st Place, The Grand Daddy, Top Wahoo (59lb), Top Cobia (27.3lb), Big Fish Bonanza 1st Place, Dynamite Daily Day 2 1st place, Big Three 1st place – $32,920
Sandman: 3rd place overall, Tier 1 Daily Day 1 2nd Place, Tier 2 Daily Day 1 2nd Place, Top Female (Sandra MacMillan), Master Angler (Robbie Ramirez) – $29,555
FFMD: Non Pro Division 1st Place – $2,500
Fish Tales: Small Boat Stash 1st Place, Small Boat Division 1st Place – $3,500
Full Tournament Results – https://www.bluewatermovements.com/tournaments/sailfish-series/final-sail/results/
SAVE THE DATE!
Attention all meatfish teams! If you like fishing for Dolphin, Wahoo, Kingfish, Tuna and Cobia, then you will love the format of the Pompano Beach Saltwater Circuit. The first of three legs, the Saltwater Shootout returns May 12-15th, 2022! More information can be found by visiting, https://www.bluewatermovements.com/tournaments/summer-series/shootout/
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