InTheBite

Final Results: 25th Anniversary 2019 Hatteras Village Offshore Open

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This year marked the 25th Anniversary for the Hatteras Village Offshore Open with Top Dog, captained by Ryan Knapp and a new boat to the tournament, taking 1st place. They released a Blue Marlin on Day 1 and cemented their win with 2 more Blue Marlin releases on Day 4 and weighed a 455.5 lber. They walked away with $30,047.50. Marlin Gull placed 2nd and Sea Toy, last year’s winner, finished up in 3rd. 29 boats fished this year and everyone had a great time as they competed for a $160,395 purse.

This year’s tournament proved quite exciting with some quality Blue Marlins being brought to the dock:

‐ Day 1: Wall Hanger ‐ 563.9 lbs. (Captain Gray Blount/Angler Chris West)

‐ Day 2: Marlin Gull – 507.7 lbs. (Captain Kenny Midgett/Angler Josh Brown)

‐ Day 2: Piracy – 655.9 lbs. (Captain Chris Russell/Angler Curtis Struyk)

‐ Day 4: Top Dog – 455.5 lbs. (Captain Ryan Knapp/Angler Kyle Dickerson)

Piracy was the top money winner walking away with $56,780 earned on their 655.9 lber. $24,650 of it was earned in Level 4 – Biggest Blue Marlin and the other $32,130 was earned in Level 7 – Additional Biggest Blue Marlin, which was a new level in the HVOO this year which payed out for both 1st and 2nd at a 60%/40% split and cost $3,000 to enter. Wall Hanger took home 2nd place in Level 7, winning $21,420, plus another $5,950 for having the most release points on Day 3.

In Level 3 ‐ Meat Fish Division, Hatteras Fever II took 1st in the Dolphin category with a 44.4 lb. Dolphin and 2nd went to Sea Toy with a 38.6 lber. Outlaw took 1st in the Wahoo category with a 21.7 lb. Wahoo and Release took 2nd with a 16.1 lber. No yellowfin tuna were weighed in. Daily Billfish Release winners were Top Dog (Day 1 & 4), Sea Toy and Wall Hanger and Daily Meat Fish winners were Tuna Duck, Hog Wild, Sea Toy, Hatteras Fever II, Outlaw and Release. Total numbers for the tournament included 4 Sailfish Releases, 2 White Marlin Releases, 10 Blue Marlin Releases and 4 boated Blue Marlin.

The tournament again this year had some great sponsors including the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau as a Grand Slam Sponsor, and Atlantic Packaging and Bonze Lures as Blue Marlin Sponsors. White Marlin Sponsors included Western Branch, Gregory Poole, Bayliss Boatworks, Jernigan Oil, Bray’s House Moving, Flying Fish Ink and Carolan’s Bay Shore Construction. Point Click Fish joined us with their Mobile Command Center and Bonze Lures who was new to our tournament came with their trailer which featured a great display of their lures, hooks, shirts, cups, etc. and were all for sale. Mark your calendars for next year and plan to get in on some awesome Hatteras Billfish Action– May 12 – 16, 2020!!!

www.hvoo.org

Final Results: 2019 White Marlin Roundup

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The 4th  annual White Marlin Roundup, was again based out of the beautiful Abaco Beach Resort & Boat Harbour Marina, was held April 10-13, 2019.   There were 25 registered boats and the weather forecast was perfect, light winds and calm seas.

The first day of fishing was beautiful and the 77’ Bayliss, Wave Paver was off to a great start as they released 6 white marlin, for 1950 points.  Plane Simple a 70’ Spencer finished the day in second place with 3 whites for 975 points.  In third, was the Lo Que Sea with a 2 whites and 1 blue marlin for 800 points.

The real catch of the day was caught on The Chaser as they boated a white marlin to weigh in! As the crowd gathered around the weigh station, The Chaser backed in with an extra large white marlin in the cockpit.  Angler Nick Locuv stood close by as he marlin was hoisted and the scales showed “129” pounds  For the day there was 18 whites, 4 blue marlin and 8 sailfish released, along with the one big marlin that was weighed!

On day two with the same calm conditions, Wave Paver maintained their lead on the fleet by releasing 5 white marlin increasing their lead on the fleet. The Lo Que Sea added to their total by catching 4 whites to get them into second place overall and the Plane Simple dropped down to 3rd place. There was a total of 22 whites, 2 sailfish and 2 blue marlin caught on day two.

On day three, the final day of fishing, the Plane Simple got red hot and put the pressure on the Wave Paver by catching 4 white before noon.  Wave Paver fought back by catching 4 that afternoon while Plane Simple caught 3 more that afternoon too.  The 7 white marlin that the Plane Simple caught, put them well into second place, and Lo Que Sea ended up in third place.  At lines out it was the Wave Paver winning this event for the second time in three years.

With 33 whites, 5 sailfish and 3 blue marlin caught on day three, it brought the three day total to 71 whites, 15 sailfish and 9 blue marlin!

All competitors gathered to honor the winners during the awards presentation at the beautiful Abaco Beach Resort & Boat Harbour Marina!  The Ken Ullberg trophy for the Top Boat award went to Wave Paver and her owner Jr Davis!  They also claimed many awards, including two top dailies, , the jackpot for the overall winner, Top Captain & Crew and even the largest Mahi of 39.5 pounds as they took home a big check of  $149,740.  The Top Captain & Crew went to Captain Russell Sinclair, and crew members Cody, Garrett, Ryan and Doug.

Plane Simple took second place, earning them a prize of $55,080.  Third place went to the Lo Que Sea awarding them $20,880.

Angler Nick Locuv and The Chaser took home a check for $40,400 for the largest white marlin.

The top angler was Scott Glasscock on the Wave Paver. Scott caught 9 white marlin.  The Top Lady Angler was Laura Russell on the Hit n Run!  The largest tuna and wahoo was caught by Steven Staclings on the Jichi and they took home a check for $19,500.

We look forward to seeing everyone again at next year’s tournament, to be held again at the Abaco Beach Resort & Boat Harbour Marina.  The dates will be April 15-18, 2020.  See you all there!

Builder’s Choice Wins Sixth Annual Casa De Campo Blue Marlin Classic

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In a tournament marked by rough seas and windy squalls Captain Brent Gaskill from North Carolina guided his team aboard the 64’ custom Jarret Bay to a comfortable victory during the three days of fishing in the prestigious Casa de Campo International Blue Marlin Classic 2019, first leg of the Dominican Billfish Triple-Header Series.

But, “it was not as easy a victory as some might think” said a smiling Captain Gaskill. “We had to work very hard and travel far for the win” he added referring to the standings after day one. They stood in third place at the end of the day edged out based on time of the last release by the winners of the daily, the team aboard another Jarret Bay, Mama Who from Mississippi, and the Brazil-Venezuela team aboard the 72’ Merritt, Business Stinks.  All three teams had released two blue marlin on that first day.

However, the leader situation was quickly resolved on day two when Builder’s Choice released two blue marlin within the first hour after lines in and added a third in the afternoon that day winning the daily while Mama Who and Business Stinks had no releases for the day. “After day two we never looked back” said a proud Harris Huddle, Builder’s Choice owner and winner of the Top Individual Angler Trophy who incidentally was followed by his team mate, Dominican Luis Selen, who earned the Second Place Individual Angler Trophy.

Top Team – Builder’s Choice

When the dust settled at lines out on the third and final day of competition the Team/Boat standings stood with Builder’s Choice in First Place with a three day total of seven. blue marlin releases, Mama Who in Second Place with a total of four blue marlin releases and Business Stinks in Third Place with two blue marlin releases.  Coincidentally the same three teams/boats had finished first, second and third the previous year but in a different order with Mama Who as the winners.

In the individual angler standings as already mentioned Top Angler was Harris Huddle followed by Luis Selen in Second Place both aboard Builder’s Choice and in Third Place was Mama Who’s Trey McMillan.  Top Lady Angler for the second year in a row was Mama Who’s Elaine ‘Lainey’ Jones.  Teams and Individual anglers took home a small fortune in cash awards and sponsor luxury prizes.

Top Angler Harris Huddle, Builder’s Choice.

We gratefully thank our Title Sponsors Casa de Campo Resort & Villas as well as our very gracious hosts Marina Casa de Campo for their hospitality.  Save the date for the 2020 7th Annual Casa de Campo Blue Marlin Classic when the tournament will take place will take place April 1st thru the 5th.  Don’t miss it!

Final Sail Results– Team “Showtime” Wins the Burgundy Jacket

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1st place in Final Sail and Quest for the Crest Champions – Showtime Captain Nick Carulo $214,720 won in Final Sail and $271,800 overall won in the Quest

Miami Beach, Fla. (April 7, 2019) – The stakes were high, and the pressure was on for the 37 teams competing off Miami Beach in Final Sail, the grand finale of the 2019 Quest for the Crest Sailfish Series. The tournament opened with a kickoff party at the DoubleTree Grand by Hilton that included a casino fundraiser to benefit the tournament’s charity, Fishing for Muscular Dystrophy (FFMD). The combined efforts of the teams and the casino night enabled Bluewater Movements to present FFMD with a check for $5,000 to help them on their mission to cured MD. [Read more…]

Final Results: 2019 Los Sueños Signature Triple Crown Billfish Series

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Fish Tank was the clear and undisputed Series Champion of the 2019 Los Sueños Signature Triple Crown, finishing with an almost unbelievable 17,400 points (144 sails, 6 marlin). Kudos to the team and especially to Laura Jessen who, despite a broken foot, released 6 sails this tournament alone and 34 sails over all three legs!

Los Sueños Resort and Marina, located at Playa Herradura on Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast, held the third and final leg of its sixth annual Los Sueños Signature Triple Crown billfish series, presented by Chantilly Air, March 27-30, 2019. Forty seven of the best and most competitive teams came together to release a total of 1,234 billfish over three days.

Going in to this event, the reports were that fishing was slow with 3-6 fish a day being average. We were pleased to see the teams find the fish when the radio went off with an early bite on Day 1 and ended with a nail-bite inducing finish on Day 3. With 100 points awarded for each sailfish release and 500 points for each marlin release, marlin always end up making a difference for the podium finishers. After all the scorecards were reviewed, a three-leg Triple Crown total of 3,945 billfish were released (3,820 sails and 125 marlin) – or 444,500 points achieved by the 51 teams that participated this year, 38 of which were registered in all three events. [Read more…]

Second Consecutive Year–“Builders Choice” Wins Marina Casa De Camp Open

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LA ROMANA DOM. REP.

March 18th 2019

For the second consecutive year, the North Carolina team wins the Marina Casa de Campo Open fishing tournament. The crew and anglers aboard the Builders Choice are champions of the third version of the Marina Casa de Campo Open, organized by Marina Casa de Campo and directed by Robert “Fly” Navarro.

The team aboard the Cabana (Fenwick Island, DE) won second place and the team aboard the Auspicious (Palm Beach, FL) won third place. Elaine “Lainey” Jones (Mama Who) won the Lady Angler category. The tournament ended with 21 Blue Marlins and two White Marlins released for 23 Billfish released in the two days of fishing.

The MCDC Open had 12 sport fishing boats competing, all the participants and guests enjoyed the various activities that started with a welcoming cocktail in the Casa de Campo Yacht Club, home of the perpetual tournament trophy.

On the first fishing day, 12 Blue Marlins were released, out of which five were released by the champions, followed by Cabana with two Blue Marlin releases and Fa-La-Me with one Blue Marlin and one White Marlin. The first day of the tournament ended with a BBQ at the Yacht Club accompanied by good music.

The second fishing day had lines in the water at 8:00AM; fishing began with a Blue Marlin double, released by Shark Byte at 8:50AM. Cabana released a Blue Marlin at 11:56AM, which automatically positioned them in second place. The three Blue Marlins released by Auspicious were released in the afternoon and placed them in third place, the last one being released just an hour before the end of the tournament.

The awards ceremony was celebrated in La Romana Country Club with a fabulous dinner and an after party with a live band and a DJ.

Marina Casa de Campo would like to extend its gratitude to all the participants and sponsors of the event. Next year the tournament will be held from March 12th-14th with more interesting novelties that will make this tournament a must during the 2020 Casa de Campo Fishing Season.

Team Seraphim Wins 2019 Jimmy Johnson Billfish Championship

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KEY LARGO, Florida Keys — Team Seraphim of Ocean Reef, led by Captain Jerry Pohl of Miami, Florida, tallied 12 sailfish releases to take top honors at the two-day Billfish Championship, a main event of the Jimmy Johnson Fishing Championship Week that ended March 9 in the Florida Keys.

The Seraphim team earned $405,000 in overall prize money for the victory, as well as authentic, custom-designed Jimmy Johnson’s NBC Championship rings for each team member. [Read more…]

Final Results: Leg Two of the 2019 Los Sueños Signature Triple Crown

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Triple the number of billfish released during Leg 2 compared to Leg 1 of the tournament series.

 Los Sueños Resort and Marina, located at Playa Herradura on Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast, held the second leg of its sixth annual Los Sueños Signature Triple Crown billfish series, presented by Chantilly Air, February 27 – March 2, 2019. A total of 45 of the world’s most competitive billfishing teams comprised of 214 individual anglers challenged each other over three days of fishing. The Los Sueños Triple Crown Series is a catch and release tournament which awards 100 points per sailfish and 500 point per marlin release.

Fishing is always amazing at Los Sueños, but it was exceptionally good during this second leg of the three part tournament series. During Leg 1 in January, the 44 participating teams released 648 billfish over three days, or 15 fish per boat. This time around, with 45 boats competing, this number was passed by 3:15 pm on Day 1! It was sailfish bite all the way, with a total of 2,063 billfish released, translating to an average of 46 fish per boat.

[Read more…]

Sailfish Challenge Final Results: “Native Son” Takes the Win

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Native Son Wins Sailfish Challenge with Walk Off Release

Four boats make it to final round of $314,000 Release Round Up

Pompano Beach, Fla. (Feb 26, 2019) – Nothing short of exciting and unpredictable with a 52-boat fleet, 466 anglers, 3 inlets and 2 days of competition, the 16th annual Sailfish Challenge was one for the books. The tournament opened with an amazing kickoff party hosted at the International Game Fish Association, charitable beneficiary for the tournament. Within these two-days a total of 427 sailfish were released from Palm Beach down to Miami, with a majority of the boats fishing from Palm Beach to Jupiter. The record setting bite got off to a hot start at lines in on day 1 and stayed steady until the end of the tournament with multiple boats hooked up each day all the way through lines out.

Competition was stiff and the stakes were high with a $639,220 total purse and the $314,100 Release Round Up on a tight line, the first number drawn Friday morning was 1. 29 boats advanced to the second round. At noon on Friday the second number was pulled and coincidently it was number 2. 19 boats advanced on two round 3 where it would take 4 releases or more to make it to the final round on Saturday afternoon. 5 boats made the cut and were only a few hours and 5 more releases away from a $314,100 winner-take-all payday! Native Son, Double Diamond and Chips Ahoy Too all got the closest, each releasing 3 fish a piece in the final round, however the 5-release mark was not met.  Native Son went 3 for 6 in the final round, however it was not meant to be. With no winner, the massive jackpot rolls over into the Final Sail tournament in Miami on April 3-7 where it is expected to reach $350,0000!  [Read more…]

Final Results: 56th Annual Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Tournament

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De-Bait-Able takes the Win in a Field of 39 Boats

The 56th Annual Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Tournament was held January 23 to 26, 2019 in the Palm Beaches.  This year an additional fishing day was added to the format giving teams the choice to fish any two. With two days of near ideal conditions, and a much-anticipated bite pushing into the area from the north, teams were rewarded with steady fishing.  After the entire field of top competition teams taking a lay day on Thursday, all 39 boats hustled to release 180 sailfish on Friday and Saturday, The prize, a purse in excess of $352,000, the prestigious and beautiful Buccaneer Cup trophies for the top three boats and anglers, and bragging rights for placing in one of the oldest and most enduring billfish tournaments in the world. Add to that the knowledge that the tournament proceeds benefits the Recreational Fishing Alliance and The Billfish Foundation, there was a lot at stake.

Courtney Bowden, currently in her sixth year at the reigns of the Buc Cup, did a spectacular job running one of the best organized and classiest billfish tournaments on the coast. Along with her team of volunteers, including staff from TBF and RFA, she has made the Buc one of the most exciting and talked about tournaments of the season.  The comradery displayed by the teams in attendance proved to everyone that the Buc is most definitely back!

The 56th Buccaneer Cup opened with the Captains meeting on Wednesday held outdoors at the recently completed Tiki Bar at the Sailfish Marina.  The meeting was sponsored by the Viking Yacht Company and HMY Yacht Sales.  Robert “Fly” Navarro emceed the meeting and went through the rules which included a few changes in 2019 to give the teams more flexibility and fishing options.  The meeting included raffle items provided by the long list of tournament sponsors included such as items as Engel Coolers filled with goodies, Costa del Mar sunglasses, Maxel Reels, Tsunami rods and lures, Caza Offshore knife kits and gear donated by Atlantic Marine Electronics (AME), AFTCO, Hi-Liner Offshore Tackle, Grand Slam Sport Fishing, Outrigger Yacht Products, and Mustad.

The competition teams made the unanimous decision to lay on Day One, opting to fish Friday and Saturday which, based on the forecast, held the best conditions of the three available fishing days.

Day Two opened with grey skies, and light east winds and a strong bite with 14 sails being released within the first hour.  Martha D called in the first release of the tournament just 17 minutes after lines in at 8 AM.  The live baiters seemed to have the edge as Old No. 7, and De-Bait-Able took an early lead, but dead baiters Polarizer and Krazy Salts also made runs to claim the top spot for the day and the Calcutta dailies.  By lines out, Old No. 7 racked up 10 releases on live bait for 2,000 points, followed closely by De-Bait-Able just 200 points off the leader. The top dead baiters filled out the leader board with Polarizer and Krazy Salts in the 3rd and 4th spots aided by a late bite that saw six releases in the final 30 minutes of fishing before lines out at 3:30.

Day Three saw a drop in the wind and accompanying slowdown in the action, but the live baiters continued to push their advantage.  Based on radio chatter, fishing was best in a small area to the north of Jupiter Inlet.  De-Bait-Able, with Capt. KJ Zeher at the helm, put on an astonishing clinic the final day amassing a total of 4,200 points by lines out bringing their two-day total up to 21 sailfish releases and leaving the competition in their wake.

Tournament staff utilized Reel Time Apps for accurate, up-to-the-minute scoring that was available to teams and tournament enthusiasts by simply downloading the free app. The program was linked to the official radio room computer scoring team and updated minute-by-minute allowing teams to follow the leader board throughout each fishing day. At tournament’s end the radio logs were matched against the boat’s catch logs and Reel Time Apps and then verified by video confirmation.

The winning boats were De-Bait-Able on top, Old No. 7 securing second place, with Sandman just 200 points behind in third. The competition was a nail biter between the top boats and was capped by a great run by Wrapped-Up breaking out of the pack in the final hour of the tournament trying valiantly to catch the leaders.  In addition to several Calcutta categories, Old No. 7 also won the Charity Calcutta which includes an entry fee to the 2019 Buc Cup.  They have been a regular in the tournament the past few years and no doubt the crew will be back next year trying to top their second-place finish.

The top angler trophies went to Bill Bryan on the Old No. 7 in first, beating Chris Weaks on the De-Bait-Able in second by time (both had 1,400 points), and Sandra MacMillan on the Sandman taking third as well as the Top Female Angler, which was also a tie broken by earliest catch.

The Buccaneer Cup Tournament cash award for the Most Points on Live Bait ($10,000) went to the De-Bait-Able team, which pocketed $110,800.  Most Points on Dead Bait ($10,000) went to Polarizer, the team receiving a check for $66,610 in total purse for their win. The InTheBite Top Captain loving cup was awarded to Captain KJ Zeher, who skippered the De-Bait-Able to victory.

New for 2019 and created in memory of a long-time participant in the Buccaneer Cup, the Walter Johnson Award trophy for the largest meat fish went to the Bertram 61 for their 34-pound dolphin landed on Day 2.  Pat Healey explained that the award was created as a posthumous honor that recognized his love of catching meat fish, and for his contributions to the development of the MTU engine, which has become the standard in sportfishing boats, during his tenure as the top executive at Johnson & Towers.

The awards banquet was held at the Sailfish Club of Florida and sponsored by MTU Marine Power, Florida Detroit Diesel Allison, and Johnson and Towers.  The awards dinner was emceed by Robert “Fly” Navarro.  Pat Healey, President of Viking Yachts and member of the RFA Board of Directors, presented Ellen Peel of the Billfish Foundation with a $5,000 check to aid the organization in its ongoing efforts to advance the science used for billfish management and assessment.

This event would not be possible without the generous  support of its  sponsors including MTU Diesel, Florida Detroit Diesel Allison, Johnson & Towers, Viking Yachts, HMY Yacht Sales, Yamaha Outboards, Jupiter Beach Spa & Resort, Contender Boats, American Custom Yachts, Akzo Nobel-Interlux Paint, Seakeeper, Garmin, Cummins Marine Power, American Venture Boats, Bahama Boat Works, Christi/Travelers Insurance, Atlantic Marine Electronics, American Fishing Wire/Hi-Seas, Release Marine, Viking Service Center, The Buccaneer Marina & Resort, Reel Time Apps, Sailfish Marina, and Outrigger Marine Products.

We look forward to seeing all our teams and more next year for the prestigious 57th Buccaneer Cup where we can make sportfishing history again.