Captain of the Year Home

2018 Standings

Capt. Brent Gaskill, Builder’s Choice, 800 Points

• Marina Casa de Campo Open, 1st Place, 500 Pts.
• Custom Shootout, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Cookie Murray, Auspicious, 800 Points

• Marina Casa de Campo Open, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.
• Bermuda Billfish Blast, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Brian Speedy, Miss Victoria, 750 Points

• White Marlin Roundup, 1st Place, 500 Pts.
• Abaco Diamond Series Champion, 250 Pts.

Capt. Jerry Owens, Playmaker, 750 Points

• Bermuda Big Game Classic, 1st Place, 500 Pts.
• Bermuda Triple Crown, 250 Pts.

Capt. Brooks Smith, Uno Mas, 700 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 2, 1st Place, 500 Pts.
• Production vs. Custom Shootout, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.
• Sea Horse Anglers Club Billfish Tournament, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Jimmy Werling, Plane Simple, 600 Points

• Custom Shootout, 1st Place, 500 Pts.
• Baker’s Bay Invitational, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. David Fields, Hit N Run, 600 Points

• Abaco Beach Blue Marlin Tournament, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.
• Sea Horse Anglers Club Billfish Tournament, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. John Bayliss, Tarheel, 550 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 2, 300 Pts.
• Los Sueños Signature Series Winner, 250 Pts.

Capt. Scotty Bob Jones, Wire We Here, 500 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 1, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Keith Banks, Caliente, 500 Points

• Quepos Billfish Cup, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Warner Porras, Gunsmoke, 500 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 3, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Ed Dwyer, Bear Trap, 500 Points

• Baker’s Bay Invitational, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Ricky Spikes, Free Spool, 500 Points

• Production vs. Custom Shootout, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Kevin Paul, Lo Que Sea, 500 Points

• Abaco Beach Blue Marlin Tournament, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Jason Walcott, Bad Daddy, 500 Points

• Abaco Beach Blue Marlin Tournament, Heaviest Marlin 603 lbs., 500 Pts.

Capt. Ty Valli, Reel Quest, 500 Points

• Bisbee’s East Cape Offshore Tournament, 1st Place, 500 Pts.

Capt. Drake Sawyer, On Location, 300 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 1, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Ben Horning, Fish Tank, 300 Points

• Quepos Billfish Cup, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. David Mesen, Geaux Fly, 300 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 3, 2nd Place

Capt. Cory Gillespie, Lai Day, 300 Points

• White Marlin Roundup, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Ryan Higgins, Viking 80, 300 Points

• Baker’s Bay Invitational, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. James Barnes, Reel Lax, 300 Points

• Production vs. Custom Shootout, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Jeff Kosiba, Asian Pearl, 300 Points

• Abaco Beach Blue Marlin Tournament, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Michael Farrens, Just A Dog, 300 Points

• Bermuda Billfish Blast, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Albert Miller, C’est La Vie, 300 Points

• Bermuda Big Game Classic, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Pete Zook, Sea Striker, 300 Points

• Sea Horse Anglers Club Billfish Tournament, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Roberto Marques, Reel Gold, 300 Points

• Bisbee’s East Cape Offshore Tournament, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.

Capt. Victor Julio Lopez, Tag Team II, 100 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 1, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. John Brennan, Game Plan, 100 Points

• Quepos Billfish Cup, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Rhett Bailey, Intents, 100 Points

• Marina Casa de Campo, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Jon Duffie, Agitator, 100 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 2, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Tyler Anderson, Jaruco, 100 Points

• Los Sueños Signature Series, Leg 3, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Gene Lebron, Three Times L, 100 Points

• White Marlin Roundup, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Russell Sinclair, Wave Paver 77, 100 Points

• Custom Shootout, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Pat Kannan, Waste Knot, 100 Points

• Bermuda Billfish Blast, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Danny Hearn, Blank Check, 100 Points

• Bermuda Big Game Classic, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

Capt. Juan Jose Abaroa, Karma 3, 100 Points

• Bisbee’s East Cape Offshore Tournament, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.

 

2017 Winner Capt. Russell Sinclair,
Wave Paver, 77′ Bayliss

Capt. Russell Sinclair,
Wave Paver, 77′ Bayliss
Homeport – Port Canaveral, Florida 

2150 Points: White Marlin Roundup, 1st Place, 500 Pts.; Custom Shootout, 3rd Place, 100 Pts.; Custom vs. Production, 2nd Place, 300 Pts.; Custom vs. Production, Heaviest Marlin 358 lbs, 500 Pts.; Abaco Beach Blue Marlin, 1st Place, 500 Pts; Abaco Diamond Series Champion, 250 Pts.

Captain Russell Sinclair is no stranger to the winner’s circle. The 2017 award is Sinclair’s second piece of Captain of the Year hardware. Sinclair’s trophy room will now have to accommodate the 2017 plaque and his 2015 edtion. With 2,150 points on the year, Captain Russell is also the winner of the Overall Rankings for the Captain of the Year Cup.

Sinclair’s performance was such that the International Division race has been decided for much of the year. His 2,150-points result from: White Marlin Roundup- 1^st place, Custom Shootout- 3^rd place, Custom vs. Production Shootout- 2^nd place and heaviest marlin, Abaco Beach Blue Marlin Tournament- 1^st place and an Abaco Diamond Series Championship. Sinclair won the division by an incredible 950-point margin.

Beyond being a highly intuitive fisherman, Sinclair’s perspective and approach to fishing makes him a pleasure to speak with. When asked about what made his 2017 special, Sinclair’s response is telling. “I wish I could tell you we had some special Chinese lure or something that caught everything,” he says with a laugh. “There wasn’t anything like that at all… We just kind of landed in the right areas and stayed there the longest. It didn’t happen every day, but some of them. There was nothing out of the ordinary for us, we just happened to win some tournaments.”

In describing his approach to fishing, Sinclair talks of his method of landing in the right spot. “If you’re fishing every day getting two bites and everyone else gets one bite, you are going to do well. That’s kind of how it turned out for us last year,” Russell says thoughtfully. “If you do that enough, there are going to be days that don’t turn out so well. But luckily that didn’t happen to us so often.”

Sinclair credits Garrett Van Orman, a key member of the Wave Paver crew, with clutch discovery. “In 2015, we had a great year. We won a lot of tournaments and I won Captain of the Year. In 2016, we didn’t do anything. 2017 was another phenomenal year for us,” Sinclair explains. What could account for the difference?

“Right before we went to the Bahamas last year, Garrett Van Orman discovered that we had a floating strut. He rebuilt the strut and floated it back into place right before tournament season.” In describing the impact of this discovery and repair, Sinclair is direct. “Garrett deserves credit for getting the hum back to something that attracts fish when you drive over them, instead of scaring them off. In 2016, we didn’t have many fish at all to the back of the boat. Last year, the majority of our fish came from the chains or closer to the boat.”

Just as 2017 has treated Sinclair and the Wave Paver well, the future too is bright.  Jr Davis, the owner of the operation, took delivery of a new 77’ Bayliss in August. According to Sinclair, “We haven’t really put the new boat through the paces yet. We fished the Pirates Cove tournament and then shipped it to Nantucket.” The operation’s 2018 plans include a summer tournament fishing regimen followed by a southerly jaunt through the Virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic.

Sinclair credits the wave Paver team for much of the operation’s success. The boat’s anglers include Jr Davis (owner), Steve Davis (Jr’s son), James McNab and Steve Glasscock. Running the cockpit are Doug Southworth, Garrett Van Orman, and Bryan Boyle.

In spite of Captain Russell Sinclair’s reluctance to seek the limelight and the humility with which he describes his success, his second Captain of the Year Award is definitive proof of his prowess at the helm. From all of us at InTheBite, congratulations on the International Division victory and winning the World Wide Rankings.

Past Winners:

2014 Capt. Rob Moore, Fa-La-Me, 1650 Pts.
2015 Capt. Russell Sinclair, Wave Paver, 1950 Pts.
2016 Capt. Victor Julio Lopez, Tranquilo, 2100 Pts.

2017 Capt. Russell Sinclair, Wave Paver, 2150 Pts.

Sanctioned Events:

• Los Suenos Signature Billfish Series, Leg 1
• Quepos Billfish Cup
• Los Suenos Signature Billfish Series, Leg 2
• Los Suenos Signature Billfish Series, Leg 3
• Los Suenos Series
• The Masters Tournament
• Marina Casa de Campo Open
• White Marlin Roundup
• Custom Shootout
• Casa de Campo International Blue Marlin Classic
• Production vs. Custom Shootout
• Abaco Diamond Series
• Abaco Beach Blue Marlin Invitational
• International Cap Cana Billfish Shootout
• Baker’s Bay Invitational
• Bermuda Billfish Blast
• World Cup
• Bermuda Billfish Release Cup
• Bermuda Big Game Classic
• Sea Horse Angler’s Billfish Tournament
• Bermuda Triple Crown
• Bisbee’s East Cape Offshore Tournament
• USVI Open, Atlantic Blue Marlin “Boy Scout” Tournament
• San Juan International Billfish Tournament
• Los Cabos Billfish Tournament
• Bisbee’s Los Cabos Offshore Tournament
• Bisbee’s Black & Blue Marlin Jackpot Tournament
• Aruba Caribbean Cup
• Flor de Cana International
• El Salvador International

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