It was good to be first at the 29th annual Swansboro Rotary King Mackerel/Bluewater Tournament.The first king mackerel boat registered, was the first to the weigh station, and ended up first in the tournament.

 

The husband and wife team of Burt and Margaret Ferebee from New Bern, fishing aboard the Second Catch, won Saturday’s tourney with a smoker that tipped the scales at 33 pounds, 10 ounces.The winning fish earned the Ferebee’s a payday of $25,000.“We caught him around 9:30 this morning fishing around the Papoose,” said Burt. We thought the scales opened at 12, so we fished a little more, caught a few dolphin, and headed for the scales.”Margaret caught the tourney winner in what she described as less-than-ideal fishing conditions.“It was nice in here, but sloppy offshore,” she said. “There were some nice sized ground swells.”

 

Capt. Miles Bunn from Wilson, fishing aboard the Rod Hog, finished second with a king weighing 23.58 pounds.Wilson’s catch earned him the second place prize, a Bayrider 2060 skiff, Yamaha motor and trailer, worth $21,500.

 

When the scales at the Hammocks Beach State Park weigh station closed at 5 p.m., there was one blue water boat with a blue marlin.The Mega Bite had a blue on board and was heading back to the Big Rock Weigh Station in Morehead City.This year’s tournament drew a field of 123 king mackerel boats and 43 blue water boats.

“The weather leading up to the tournament was bad, so we got lucky,” said tournament director Jim Davis. “The weather was pretty nice and we had a lot of fish weighed in.”