I've been lucky to cover two summertime billfish tournaments for Sport Fishing Magazine. The first was the big event in mid-August down at Pirate's Cove Marina in Manteo, North Carolina. There, a sailfish caught in the final 5 minutes of fishing helped Country Girl (home ported at Pirate's Cove) the top prizes.
The following weekend, the Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament staged out of Rudee Inlet. Fewer than half of the 84 entered boats fished on the event's first day, which saw less than desirable conditions. That day, however, delivered the fish of the tournament to Cuttin' Up, a Virginia Beach-based boat. The 612.5-pound blue marlin was enough to see the crew through to the overall points win.
Beyond giving fishing crews and opportunity to pocket some serious month, the tournaments also raise many thousands of dollars for local charities.
Here are links to those stories.
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