Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament Announces New Omni Directional Sonar Guidelines

Manteo, North Carolina, April 12, 2022—Heading into its 39^th year of competitive sport-fishing out of Oregon Inlet North Carolina, PCBT continues to provide exceptional fishing opportunities and an even playing field for all of its participants.

“Pirate’s Cove is blessed to be located right down the road from Carolina’s most innovative boat builders so naturally we support new technology in the marine industry,” states Tournament Director, Heather Maxwell. “When we sat down and really considered our release rate of 98 percent and that the participation of our charter fleet has been paramount to our success over the years, the Board of Directors realized it had to get creative with accommodating the Omni Directional Sonar.”

Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament will offer a split entry on all but the Base Category and the Meatfish Category for all tournament boats in 2022. Non Omni Directional Sonar boats can expect to pay approximately $15,500 across the board with an additional $1,000 to enter the charity Lay Day Tournament. Boats that plan on deploying an Omni Directional Sonar at any time during fishing hours will enter separate categories with additional fees totaling just over $25,000 including the charity event.

“The increased fees for the Omni Sonar boats allows for a more substantial purse for those boats,” says Chairman of the Board of Directors, Curtis Colgate. “Our overall prize money is estimated to reach well beyond last year’s $1.2 million dollar mark while presenting an exceptional purse to both divisions.”

The 37^th Annual Alice Kelly Memorial Ladies Only Billfish Tournament, which is the largest lady angler only competitive sport-fishing event in the world, will not allow Omni Directional Sonar to be deployed during the event. “We want our ladies to have every advantage in fishing,” says Maxwell. “But at the same time our field of boats is so diverse and only a precious few have Omni Sonar. I truly believe that all of our crews will be happy to fish hard, the old fashioned way for the ladies!”

Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament, Inc. is a non-profit corporation that accepts grant applications for local charitable distributions which topped $80,000 in 2021. The Alice Kelly Memorial Ladies Only Billfish Tournament raises upwards of $50,000 annually for local cancer patients and the Annual Sheep Dog Veterans Challenge raises awareness and much needed funds for vets and first responders in Dare County and beyond. Tournament Week kicks off on August 13, 2022. For more information contact PCBT at 252-305-3610 or visit www.pcbgt.com