Photo courtesy Leonard Bryant Photography
Cabana, Canyon Lady, Showtime/Remix: Weekend Tournament Winners
Palm Beach Inlet Boat Gallery
InTheBite’s New Sportfishing Tournament Series is open for registration. 5 Divisions | Over 90 Events East Coast | Gulf Coast | International | Hawaii | Florida
January 16, 2021—Check out the gallery of some of the finest sportfishing fishing teams returning to Palm Beach inlet. Most of the vessels are competing in the Operation Sailfish tournament. Scroll to the bottom for a new video showcasing the incredible speed of these modern-day machines as they return from the competition.
Miss Texas Wins Silver Sailfish Derby, Waterman Wins Pelican Yacht Club Invitational
Photo courtesy West Palm Beach Fishing Club
Silver Sailfish Derby
First Place Most Releases Overall: Miss Texas
Second Place: Priceless
Third Place: Doing It All/Hardway
2020 Captain of the Year Winners Global Rankings
A total of 153 captains around the world scored at least 100 points in one of the 95 ITB-sanctioned events held in 2020. Consisting of five divisions— Florida, Hawaii, International, Gulf of Mexico and East Coast—InTheBite’s Captain of the Year Cup is one of the most prestigious awards in sportfishing, becoming more globally recognized as the sport continues to expand its reach.
2021 InTheBite Champion’s Cup: What to Know
Since 2003, InTheBite’s Captain of the Year Cup has celebrated the most successful tournament captains. It is still the world’s only quantifiable metric that ranks captains across five separate and geographically diverse tournament divisions – Florida, Hawaii, International, Gulf of Mexico and East Coast.
New for 2021, we are introducing an optional paid entry winner-takes-all prize format awarding teams with the most division points, heaviest marlin, and most sailfish releases. Registered teams can compete in as many InTheBite sanctioned tournaments or divisions as they choose. Each division will be scored independently.
84 Years of Sailfishing off the Palm Beaches
Photo courtesy West Palm Beach Fishing Club
West Palm Beach Fishing Club, Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2020—The venerable West Palm Beach Fishing Club (WPBFC) will again host the ‘World’s Oldest Sailfish Tournament’, the Silver Sailfish Derby on January 7th and 8th, 2021. The prestigious offshore tradition attracts some of the best anglers, captains and crews in the sport to the Palm Beaches each sailfish season. The tournament fleet is limited to 50 boats.
InTheBite Editors’ Top Story Picks for 2020
As we say goodbye to 2020 and look to 2021 with hope and excitement for new things to come, we can’t do this without looking back at the significant stories of the year. Our editors curated the top five stories that had a significant impact for us and our readers. These are the features that motivated, educated and took us away to wide open waters for the time we were reading. We hope you enjoy.
1. How the New Texas State Record Came to Be
In a very direct sense, the pending new Texas state record bluefin tuna was a victim of the coronavirus.
Whether or not fish can actually catch this disease, who the hell knows, but the trip that resulted in greasing the biggest bluefin in the history of the Lone Star State was the result of being cooped up in the house awaiting the virus to run its course. Captain Robert Nichols, who runs the Rock Mama, a 55’ Hatteras based out of Galveston, Texas was gracious enough to tell us all about this fish of a lifetime.
2. Two-Minute Warning: Pay Scale
So many times, I’m asked about how much a captain should get paid. Sometimes, I’m asked by the captain and sometimes I’m asked by the owners. There seems to be no rhyme nor reason on what a captain should or shouldn’t make.
Back in the day, there was an unwritten rule that a captain should make a grand per foot. I don’t know who came up with that…but it was ignorant.
3. The 2019 Captains of the Year
The InTheBiteCaptain of the Year Cup presented by Hatteras is the world’s foremost competition for professional sportfishermen. The world’s only quantifiable metric for comparing the tournament success of captains, winning an InTheBite Captain of the Year Award is a major achievement. The Cup is composed of five divisions that span the sportfishing world: East Coast, Florida, Gulf Coast, Hawaii and International.
We look back on the 2019 winners who pushed past challenges, beat the odds and showed us what it takes to be the best.
4. Steering You Straight: The Scoop on Steering
What type of steering system do you have? While most sportfish crew would answer hydraulic, there are many variables today that differentiate the design, components and operation of a vessel’s steering system. Learning about your boat’s system can assist when it comes time for maintenance, ordering repair parts and performing bleeding (more about this later).
5. Four Captains, 20 Tips for Better Live Bait Fishing
Live bait is both the best bait and the worst bait. Nothing entices a fish to bite better than a wriggling and writhing forage fish dangling from the hook. Nothing gives anglers more trouble than catching, keeping and rigging livies. That’s right, you can’t live with live bait, and you can’t win without.
Hope Town Tournament Raises More Than $200,000 for Hurricane Dorian Relief Efforts
Photo courtesy Endless Imagery
The 1st Annual Hope Town United Sailfish Tournament raised more than $200,000, which will go toward rebuilding the Hope Town Primary School, constructing the new Abaco Community Care Center and restoring Elbow Cay residents’ homes destroyed by Hurricane Dorian.
Native Son, Sur Reel, Vintage Take First in Recent Tournaments
Photo courtesy Endless Imagery
Hope Town United Sailfish Tournament
First Place: Native Son with Capt. Art Sapp
Second Place: No Regrets with Capt. Garrett Graue
Third Place: No Choos with Capt. George Brittain
Champagne Lady, Ty Me Up and Southern Ground Take First in Florida Tournaments
Champagne Lady. Photo courtesy Fish Heads of Stuart “The Quickie”
Fish Heads of Stuart “The Quickie”
- 1st Place: Champagne Lady with Capt. Josh Chaney
- 2nd Place: Lo Que Sea with Capt. Mike Brady
- 3rd Place: Game Changer with Capt. Bryce Garvey
