Jensen Beach, Florida - At the end of day one of the Yamaha Professional Kingfish Tour in Jensen Beach a pair of 50’s adorned the top of the leader board. I reminded the large spectator crowd and our webcast viewers that it was only halftime and watch out for the teams who weighed fish in the thirties or low forties tomorrow. This was after all an aggregate tournament. It was the truth and while I certainly didn’t want to jinx the teams at the top, I did try to encourage the crowd to come back or tune in on Saturday and see the results.

What I wasn’t aware of is they were going to witness one of the greatest weigh ins we’ve ever been a part of on the eastern seaboard.

Friday got everyone’s adrenelin pumping. Arik Bergerman, John Smith Sr., Paul Rogers, and Brian Hasson, were early to the dock and presented Bobby Flocken, the official SKA weigh master, with a great 52.10 right at 3 PM. The Caliente, a Mercury powered Fountain, had the early lead and the fish to beat! Day 1 Spectators

“We were on a mission this weekend, to make a statement that we could fish in this class and we did just that,” said Rogers. No one can argue with him!

We weighed a couple other kings before the Conched Out, a Mercury powered Conch, slid up to the Four Fish Marina dock. Corey, Ryan, and Gary McBride, plus Greg and Chase Haskins and David Kalil, brought a beautiful 50.74 to the stage.

It was a great fish but not as great as the story. They had a double header hook-up off the kite. One of the team members grabbed the rod but as he did the second reel exploded. He did the right thing by passing the first rod to 9 year old Chase. He continued to fight the second fish to the boat while Chase did what he was to do, keep pressure on the first fish and work him to the boat. The second fish came in the boat, a 25 pounder. All eyes then turned to Chase who had his king near the boat. You can only imagine what happened when the team discovered Chase had the 50, but only sent words of encouragement. Chase mastered the challenge and joined the exclusive 50 pound club for 2009.

The team was in second place as the scales closed on day one.

At ten o’clock on the second and final day of the tour event, the Richmond Hill, Georgia, team of Kelly Clements, Tracy Shaw, Ellis Phillips, Michael Mosley, and Rusty Rogers, came to the weigh in dock early after calling me and getting permission. They knew it was High Fivelegal to come to the dock with permission but they would have to sit on the boat till the scales opened.

At 3 o’clock the entire On The Brink team came to the scale. “It should go somewhere between 55 and 58 pounds,” one of the team members shouted out. It did, 58.58, the biggest king we’ve seen this year on the trail. You cam imagine the excitement.

That fish coupled with the 38.87 scaled by the Mercury powered Fountain team gave them a comfortable 97.45 two fish aggregate but for the rest of the afternoon stayed fixed to the front of the stage watching each boat come in and weigh their fish.

“We had her in the boat by 8:30,” said Clements. “It took Michael twenty five minutes to get her to the boat after nearly dumping the reel.”

The team was fishing at the Zoo, a popular area south of Jensen Beach.  “We were working an area a hundred to hundred and fifty feet,” Clements added. “This was the biggest fish we’ve ever caught!”

Ellis Phillips was the Pro Top Senior Angler for this event. “I’ve been fishing with the SKA since it started and this was the biggest king I’ve ever seen. I couldn’t be happier or prouder.”

The wait was long and tedious. One more 50 came to the scale by a Pro boat but there were also two scaled from Division teams fishing the Francis Langford tournament, held in co-junction with the Pro event.

The first day’s leaders came in but could not challenge On The Brink. The Caliente weighed a 26.19 to move to sixth overall with a two fish aggregate of 78.29. Conched Out had a 24.83 to move to eighth with 75.57 points.
Winning Fish
The big win for the On The Brink came to fruition and with it the celebration befitting a Pro Tour victory. We congratulated them as did most of the other teams fishing the Pro Tour. They won $40,000 for their victory, a host of Raymarine Electronics, plus picked up $10,000 cash plus  more prizes in the local Francis Langford event. That’s a great weekend and one they will never forget. We congratulate them!

We must also promote the On The Brink sponsors which help them to attend events on the tour. They are Southern Alarm / Brinks Authorized Home Security Authorized Dealer, AT&T’s Real Yellow Pages, and Gordon’s Storage.

 Now what did these nice fish do for them in the overall Pro Tour scheme of things? Conched Out was fourth going into the second event and stayed right there. On The Brink went from twentieth to second, and Caliente went from twenty-fourth to tenth. I’d say that was a superb effort for these teams but what about others in the top ten after Key West?

Conrad Lau, Dell Williamson, and Rocky Cusack fishing Koolau, earned third in the event with two nice kings, a 38.18 and a 45.32  for a third place tournament finish and an 83.50 pound aggregate. That coupled with the two fish aggregate from Key West of 73.59 moved them into the overall Pro Tour lead. This seasoned team fishing a Mercury powered Fountain this year needs a good Fourchon event and then we might to be able to predict this years contenders for the title but they’ll be in the hunt, won’t they?

 Mark Maus has been on the Tour for many years and has always done well. This year is no exception. Thanks to a great 53.41 caught on the second day coupled with a 34.79 on day one, it gave Team Simrad, Maus, Sean Edmunds, Doeling Granberry, and Jeff Worn, a great second place in the tournament. A second place 88.20 two fish aggregate was nothing to sneeze at, plus it moved the Mercury powered Yellowfin team into the top ten overall for the season. To go from thirty fourth to ninth in one event says a lot about this talented team and captain.

“We fished Juno the second day and literally stayed in the same area all day,” explained Maus. “We had a good bite the first day off the Breakers but on day two we found the water had cleared up, the wind had died, and there was no current. We moved to Juno immediately.”
boats
Their 53.41 came to the boat at ten o’clock. That one king squarely put them in contention for the title. Mark knows Fourchon, Golden Isles, and Little River very well. This definitely could be his teams title to win.

Everyone knows how good the McMullan family is in the Carolinas. If Brant, Barrett, and Rube enter an event chances are they will take some money home. After a fourth place finish in the Jensen Beach event with a 40.45 and a 40.76, 81.21 aggregate, this may be the spoiler for all the other teams fishing the tour.  They went from twenty third to seventh in the standings and their winnings will help them continue on to Fourchon.

 The family owns Ocean Isle Fishing Center (the name of their Yamaha powered Yellowfin) in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, a very popular resort area. Brant produces several tournaments / events from this facility during the year plus two, the Jolly Mon’s, are SKA sanctioned. The summer Jolly Mon is knocking on the door at being the Carolinas number one event in attendance. It certainly is the most fun to fish!

If you were to ask Dan Upton if he wants to win the Angler of the Year title, he’s just smile. Of course he does. He and team mates have been oh so close but this could be their year!

They picked up fifth in the Jensen event with a nice 78.95 aggregate, scaling a 42.82 on day one and a 36.13 on day two.  The Mercury powered Donzi team, Team Donzi, moved from seventh to fifth in the overall standings and are only a hair out of first. In fact the difference between first and sixth is only seven pounds.

Fishing the team is two time National Champion Jack Wood, Ken Upton, and David Heavenridge.

Earning seventh was Stuart Fitzgerald, Kathie Stuart, and Don Lamb, fishing the Mercury powered Fountain, Mad Gaffer. They scaled a 42.81 on day one, then backed it up with a 34.06 for a 76.87 aggregate. They moved from eighteenth to eighth in the overall standings. Kathie went on to earn Top Lady Angler honors for this event and is only twelve points behind Kim Bain Moore for Top Female honors in the overall points race.

The 2006 Angler of the Year, Ron Mitchell and his team of Will Geraghty, Carl Carder, David and Brad Butler, plus Rick Stockwell, picked up ninth with two mid thirties, a 36.35 and 36.51. Their 72.86 aggregate kept them in the hunt for another title.

“We’re still third in the standings,” said Mitchell.  “Less than a pound out of first. Have you ever seen a race so close? Can’t wait for Fourchon!”

The Kajun Sportsman earned the tenth and final money spot in the event. Joey Toups, Jon Stevens, and Panky Christen caught a 27.70 on day one, then scaled a nice 43.20 on day two for a 70.90 aggregate. The Sportsman boat is a Yamaha powered Contender.

Anthony Toups is the owner of the boat but elected to stay on shore this weekend and help the SKA with scoring and other functions. He is the Tournament Director and host of the third leg of the Yamaha Professional Kingfish Tour June 4th thru 6th in Fourchon, Louisiana.

This was a great event. Between the Pro event and the Divisional tournament, six fish is the fifty pound range and sixteen kings in the forties were scaled. This just may have been the best tournament on the east coast in the history of the SKA!

Thanks to the Pros and the Divisional fisher people who made this event so successful!