Mount Pleasant-based boat releases blue marlin on back-to-back days
The only boat to release a blue marlin on back-to-back fishing days was Caramba, giving them 1,200 Governor’s Cup points and the title at the 43rd Georgetown Blue Marlin Tournament this past weekend.
The 39-boat fleet fished back-to-back days on Friday and Saturday, May 28 and 29, after taking a layover day on Thursday due to rough ocean conditions. Bob Faith of Mount Pleasant owns Caramba, based out of Toler’s Cove Marina, and Captain Dale Lackey is at the helm.
While crewmember Ryan Riggs handled the blue marlin release on Friday, Faith got into the mix on Saturday. Friday’s blue marlin came up to eat the flat line and got hooked up on an Penn 80 reel, and when she got to the back of the boat the unofficial measurement was 104 inches, one inch shy of being a legal to keep fish in the S.C. Governor’s Cup Billfishing Series. Blue-marlin releases are worth 600 points apiece.
Saturday’s blue marlin surfaced behind the flat line at 9:30 a.m. but would not eat, so Faith fed her a ballyhoo pitch bait and got hooked up on a Penn 50 reel. The fight lasted about 20 minutes, and the smaller fish was estimated to be 300 pounds before being released.
“We had other billfish in the baits but could not get them to eat, but the action at the Georgetown Tournament has been hot,” Faith said.
Finishing second place was Daymaker, owned by Mark Daniels of Georgetown and based in the home port, which finished with three billfish releases and 700 points. Capt. Jay Weaver’s crew released a sailfish on Friday, and then followed that up with releasing a sailfish and a white marlin on Saturday. White marlin releases are good for 300 points and sailfish releases are good for 200 points.
Game On, owned by Sea Hunt Boats of Lexington and captained by Bubba Roof, finished third on the strength of its blue-marlin release on Friday. Kelli Roof released the blue marlin, earning her the outstanding female angler award.
After two Governor’s Cup events, Game On and Caramba are tied atop the overall points standings with 1,450 points.
The 2010 S.C. Governor’s Cup Series consists of five events, with Georgetown being the second leg. The fleet at Georgetown finished with 13 total billfish releases: six blue marlin, three white marlin and four sailfish.
The next event in the Series is the brand new Carolina Billfish Classic on June 24, which is scheduled to break new ground by fishing out of three ports in Georgetown, Charleston and Hilton Head.
The Christy II took home two of the outstanding catches in the meatfish division with angler Poe Ratterree of Spartanburg bringing in a 63-pound wahoo on Saturday, and owner Steve Godfrey reeling in a 12.4-pound blackfin tuna on Friday.
Outstanding dolphin honors went to angler Miles Herring and his 31.4-pound mahi mahi caught aboard Daymaker on Friday. The youth angler award went to Taylor Gaton for her 18.6-pound dolphin caught on Friday while fishing onboard Due Course.
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