Anglers eager for summer's biggest event

QUIET BEFORE THE STORM … OCEAN CITY TODAY/CHRISTINE CULLEN Sport fishing boats line the docks at Sunset Marina in West Ocean City Tuesday. The marina is a popular docking location for boats fishing in the White Marlin Open tournament Aug. 3-7 where anglers compete for millions of dollars in prize money catching white and blue marlin, tuna, shark, dolphin and wahoo. (July 31, 2009) The 2008 White Marlin Open will be difficult to top in the records department, but as tournament director Jim Motsko knows, anything can happen in bluewater sportsfishing.

As the 36th annual event gets under way, several hundred anglers on hundreds of boats will be thinking exactly that.

Although participation was down by 96 boats last year, 300 did enter the tournament and more than $2.3 million in prize money was awarded to the winners. There were several highlights of the 2008 Open.

It was only the second time in the 35-year history of the event that there was a first-place tie in the white marlin division. On the first fishing day of the Open, West Ocean City resident Tommy Hinkle brought an 81- pound white marlin caught aboard the Fish Whistle to the Harbour Island Marina scale.

West Ocean City resident Tommy Hinkle earned $956,275 for the 81-pound white marlin he reeled in during the 2008 tournament. It was large enough to win 12 of the previous 16 tournaments. On the final fishing day, Roger Mooney of Timonium, Md. and the Hatterascal crew watched as the numbers on the scale fluctuated, finally resting on 81 pounds. The only other time there was a tie in white marlin category was in 1989 when Al Bednarik and Dennis Neus both caught 69-pounders.

Hinkle received a check for $956,275, while Mooney took home $199,575. Hinkle and his team chipped into more of the added entry money calcuttas, including the Level E, Heaviest White Marlin Winner Takes All. Mooney and his fellow Hatterascal anglers only entered into Levels A-D for marlin.

Spectators also got to see a gigantic blue marlin. Robert Lockwood of South Amboy, N.J. caught a 935.5-pound blue marlin fishing aboard Last Run. It was the second largest blue marlin weighed in tournament history, only 6.5 pounds shy of the Open and state record of 942 pounds, which was set in 1989 by Dr. Jim Daniel.

WMO director Jim Motsko It was also the first time in Open history that the top three dolphins weighed more than 50 pounds. The 67-pounder Stephen Lewis of Ocean City hooked aboard M.R. Ducks was the second largest in 35 years. It weighed 4 pounds less than the record set by Jeff Rice in 1986.

The first White Marlin Open took place in 1974 with 57 boats registered and a guaranteed $20,000 in prize money. Motsko said his goal this year is to have one more boat than there was in 2008. Fuel is the major expense per boat and prices are at least $2 less per gallon than they were at this time last year.

"Fuel prices have more of a direct affect than the economy on tournament participation, although the economy is more of a concern in the country than it was last year," Motsko said. "I think we'll still go up from last year."

Approximately 65 percent of the anglers who fish the tournament return each year. Motsko said last week that preregistration was about the same as it was in 2008, but as anglers do every year, most wait in line to register the weekend before while keeping an eye on the weather to make sure they have good fishing conditions. Final registration will take place at Harbour Island Marina on 14th Street and the bay, Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. and Sunday, beginning at noon.

Motsko said anglers continue to spend more per boat, which, in turn, increases the total amount of prize money paid. The base entry fee is $1,050 per boat, which makes teams eligible for $50,000 in guaranteed prize money. There is no limit to the number of anglers on each boat.

There are 15 added entry divisions/calcuttas, ranging in cost from $50 to $5,000 to enter. The cost to go all-in is $14,450 (not including base entry fee). For a team to win $1 million or more for the first place white marlin, it must be entered in the Level E Winner Takes All ($5,000 entry fee).

Motsko said it takes a combination of luck and skill to catch a white marlin. First, captains and anglers have to know how to find them. From that point on, there is a fair amount of luck involved in whose bait draws in a big fish, because Motsko said, "the fish don't know who's an experienced angler and who's not." Anyone can get lucky and that's why the Open so popular, he added. Novice anglers have won the tournament before.

Teams may fish anywhere within 100 nautical miles of Ocean City, but certain areas hold favor. Motsko said most boats will head to Poor Man's Canyon, which has always been a productive area for large fish. The Baltimore, Norfolk and Washington Canyons have also produced their share of winners.

Motsko said to win money in the white marlin division this year, fish will have to weigh at least 80 pounds. The odds of catching anything bigger than the 935.5- pound blue marlin last year are slim, Motsko said, but added, "you never know." To have a chance in the blue marlin division, Motsko said fish will have weigh around 700 pounds.

Each boat is eligible to fish three of the five tournament days. Boats can leave from the Ocean City inlet, Indian River inlet in Delaware, Cape May inlet in New Jersey and, for the first time, from Wachapreague, Va. Organizers said this will ease the cost of travel, lodging and boat dockage. It will also free up slips in Ocean City.

But no matter where they tie up for the night, all boats will be searching for the same things: white and blue marlin, tuna, wahoo, dolphin and shark. Cash prizes are also awarded for billfish releases.

Motsko said the estimated payout to the 2009 winners is $2.5 million, possibly more depending on participation. During the last seven years, more than $16 million has been awarded. Weigh-ins will take place daily at Harbour Island from 4-9:15 p.m. and are open and free to the public.

WHAT: 36th annual White Marlin Open fishing tournament WHEN: Monday-Friday, Aug. 3-7 WHERE: Weigh-ins, 4-9:15 p.m. daily at Harbour Island Marina, 14th Street. Weigh-ins are free and open to the public FOR INFORMATION: Call 410- 289-9229

BY THE NUMBERS: z 57: Number of boats that participated in the first White Marlin Open in 1974. In 2008, 300 boats registeered for the 35th annual tournament z $1,050: Cost of base entry fee (this fee makes boats eligible for $50,000 in prize money) z $14,450: Amount (not including base entry fee) to enter into all 15 added entry levels (or calcuttas) z $2.5 million: Estimated prize money to be awarded in 2009