(* Denotes a Class of 23 Team)

South Brunswick Win Falls to Lightline Team
Sticky Business Wins SKA Class of 23
Sam White, Southern Kingfish Association
September 4, 2000

South Brunswick Islands, NC—One of the oldest adages in tournament fishing is that you should fish where the fish are, and not where they are not. Jim McSwain followed this rule, and came away with the big win during the South Brunswick Isles King Classic.

"I wanted to head for Carolina Beach," McSwain reported. "But [fishing partner] Marty Fulford said the fish were on the beach, and I mean on the beach!"

Early Sunday morning, the Lightline team headed out of Lockwood Folly Inlet, charting a course for a spot known only as Big Hill, right off the beach in only 15 to 20 feet of water. Shortly after 9 AM, the outrigger line went off and their biggest fish of the weekend was solidly hooked after nailing a plain Jane menhaden rig.

"We were literally in the surf when the fish hit," McSwain said, "so I powered up and headed after him. He went straight offshore just like the big ones do. My son Keith was on the rod for over an hour before we were able to boat him."

A big squall hit just after they had the fish aboard, so the team spent the remainder of the morning dodging rain before heading to the scales to weigh their prize. The 34.80 pound king mackerel would be large enough to give the Lightline team their first big win of the season.

Jeff Morris captained the Package Deal to third place behind non members on the Liquid Asset. Morris felt that the Shark Hole would hold some good-sized kings, so they headed for the 65 foot hard bottom. "We had pretty good action all day," Morris reported. "In fact, we released a sailfish and boated a 20 pound king as part of a doubleheader about 45 minutes before the big king hit."

Their 33.15 nailed a pogy behind a white duster skirt on the downrigger in 78 degree water. "That fish only made one long run, then laid up on the surface," Morris said later. "We initially thought it was a shark judging by the run, but it turned out to be a nice king--it was a pleasant surprise."

Since the team was running low on bait, they decided to call it a day and were waiting for the scales to open later in the afternoon. "This is our first good tournament finish of the season, and we're looking forward to later on this fall," said Morris.

Mark Moore and Mark Stacy put the Grouper Nancy into fourth overall in the South Brunswick tournament with a 33.10. Moore elected to fish the 410/510 on a tip from a friend who had located the fish there earlier, and the tip paid off big for the Wilmington restaurateur. "We caught and released probably 25 fish that day," Moore reported. "They were really snapping out there, but most were only about 15 pounds or so."

Their thirty-plus hit a ribbonfish down 35 feet in 65 feet of water, the second half of a double header for the team. "Mark [Stacy] was fighting one fish when that one hit, so I put the rod in the rocket launcher so we could work on his," Moore said. "With only two people on board, it's tough when you have multiple hookups. In fact, Mark said that mine would be a thirty plus, and when he rolled up at the boat, he was right."

After boating the first fish for Stacy, Moore then turned his attention to his rod. Forty minutes later, their big boy came aboard the OMC-powered HydraSports. "I really want to thank Johnson Marine and HydraSports for their help this season," Moore said in closing.

Charles Bowden, Danny Phelps and Billy Hines teamed up to put the Mercer Marine's Joint Venture in sixth overall behind non members on the Twister in fifth. They elected to fish the popular 30/30 area, but went strikeless all day. "That fish was our only bite, and he hit just after 3 in the afternoon," Bowden said. "We had talked about leaving at 3:30 on the radio anyway, and luckily we did leave at 3:30 but we had that fish aboard."

Their 30.25 pound king hit a ribbonfish down 35 feet in 75 feet of water. Angler Billy Hines fought the fish for over 20 minutes in the rough seas before Danny Phelps was able to sink the gaff and bring the nice king aboard the Mercury-powered Donzi. "Johnny Mercer at Mercer Marine deserves a lot of credit for his help this year," Bowden reported. "He's our major sponsor and he deserves the recognition for this top ten finish. With any luck, we'll make it to the Nationals."

Bryan Everett's Sticky Business was the SKA's top Class of 23 boat for the South Brunswick tournament, boating a 30.15 pound kingfish on the Yamaha-powered Mako. Everett, Richard Ward and Neil Bradshaw placed seventh overall in the event.

Final Standings

1.LIGHTLINE.......................................34.8 Cobia/Yamaha Jim McSwain Keith McSwain Marty Fulford Bobby Barnhardt 2. Liquid Asset................................34.10 3. PACKAGE DEAL.................................33.15 Contender/Yamaha Jeff Morris Parker Dudley Larry Dudley Ragan Dudley 4. GROUPER NANCY.....................................33.10 HydraSport/Evinrude Mark Moore Mark Stacy 5. Twister...................................32.25

6. MERCER MARINE’S JOINT VENTURE.............................30.25 Donzi/Mercury Charles Bowden Billy Hines Danny Phelps 7. * STICKY BUSINESS..........................30.15 Mako/Yamaha Bryan Everett Richard Ward Neil Bradshaw 8. HOLY MACKEREL...........................29.80 Mako/Evinrude Tim Carter Keith Jones Johnathan Sheffeld 9. JOY STICK...................................28.65 Fountain/Mercury Wayne Hill Robyn Hill Rhett Dickson 10. FISH BOWL...............................28.35 HydraSport/Johnson Fred Johnson Bill Hewett

Shallotte Inlet Classic Falls to Dragg'n Bait
Sam White, Southern Kingfish Association
Interviews by George Summerlin
August 21, 2000

Shallotte, NC—Now in its second season as an SKA-sanctioned tournament, the Shallotte Inlet Classic has proven to be a popular event with the fishermen. This year, the event boasted 105 boats in the SKA field, up significantly from last year.

Phillip Hooks' Dragg'n Bait team emerged as the winner on the second day of the tournament aboard the brand new Mercury-powered SeaVee boat. "We just got the boat ready for the tournament on Friday morning--what a way to break in a new ride!" Hooks reported.

The team thought there would be good fish located at the Jungle, a popular live bottom reef in about 65 feet of water offshore of Ocean Isle Beach. The Dragg'n Bait battled the four-to-six foot seas en route to the Jungle before deploying a mixed spread of live menhaden (pogies) and ribbonfish on a temperature break from 78 to 80 degrees.

Their largest kingfish of the day hit a pogy fished on the long topline before making one long initial run on the surface. They fought the fish for a short while until Hooks could make a slashing gaff shot and bring their prize aboard. After releasing several other smaller kings and boating a number of dolphin (mahi), they decided it was time to leave the spot for the run to the weigh in site at Shallotte Inlet Marina. At the scales, the smoker kingfish would weigh 38.25 pounds, giving the team their first win of the season.

The only team in contention to bump the Dragg'n Bait was Bill Slaughter's Mojo Riser. They also came to the scales on Day Two with a good fish they bagged at the 30/30 in 90 feet of water. "We had several nice fish on," reported the captain, "but two of them got bitten by either barracuda or sharks during the first day. This one made several long runs, almost spooling the reel in the process." The big king nailed a pogy fished at 40 feet deep on the downrigger before fighting doggedly for 15 minutes. It would be their only kingfish during the second day of the tournament, but it would be enough to take second place honors overall at 38 pounds even. They were just one-quarter of a pound off the lead--a mere four ounces separating them from the tournament's top spot. Ounces count in tournament fishing for king mackerel!

Third place in the Shallotte tournament fell to the Dig It team. They were leading the event after the first day of fishing with a 36.25 boated at the Jungle. "We decided to work a little edge that looked like it might hold some fish," reported captain Tony Carroll. "All our good bites were on ribbonfish down on the downriggers--in fact, that's what the biggest one ate." The team reported no problem locating and catching a good supply of live pogies beforehand, but those only produced hits from small dolphin during the day. All the other kings were smaller than their 36 and were quickly released to fight again. The Dig It III is a Yamaha-powered Contender.

Earl Clewis and Stanley Rehder on the Yamaha-powered Regulator Live Wire are one of the most experienced teams fishing today in southeastern North Carolina, and that experience paid off yet again with a fourth place finish in Shallotte. They decided to fish for a winner at the River Channel in 42 feet of 78 degree water. A good strike on the medium flatline baited with a large pogy announced the arrival of their best fish of the weekend. "He really burnt down the drag on the first run," Clewis said. "Stanley was the angler on that one." After the first long initial run, the kingfish paused briefly before making a series of shorter bursts in an attempt to elude the team. "We had a pretty good day. Every king we caught was over 20 pounds," Clewis reported later.

David Irving's Movin' Out was the top boat in the Class of 23, placing fifth in the tournament. Since fifth paid out more than the Class money, he remained in that position in the tournament's final standings. Irving fished the second day of the event solo, finding himself at the Jungle attempting to jig up bait in the 4 to 6 foot waves. "The big one hit a pinfish in the propwash," Irving reported. "It was tough out there fishing by myself, having to fight and then gaff my own fish, but it worked out pretty well." He continued to fish, releasing a half-dozen smaller fish before heading in.

Since Irving's finish was worth more in the regular tournament, that opened up the top spot in the Class of 23 for Mark McKeithan's Trade Mark. His team was able to bag a 29.60 at the Jungle for the class win. Marilyn Bunce was the tournament's Top Lady Angler on the Early Riser, and Jake Godwin continues to do well in the Junior Angler standings, winning Top Junior on the Rawhide.

Final Standings

1. DRAGG’N BAIT............................38.25 SeaVee/Mercury Phillip Hooks Kristen Ashley Tim Rooks 2. MOJO RISER...................................38.00 Contender/Yamaha Bill Slaughter D. Logan 3. DIG IT III.........................................36.25 Contender/Yamaha Tony Carroll Lonnie Jones Lonnie Jones III Greg Carroll Steve Nordan 4. LIVE WIRE.............................35.20 Regulator/Yamaha Earl Clewis Stanley Rehder 5. MOVIN’ OUT...............................32.30 Cobia/Yamaha David Irving	6. OVER KILL..................................31.60 Blackfin/Mercury Doug Armstrong Don Rellutz Jeff Yandle 7. OBSESSED.................................31.35 Fountain/Mercury Jeff Lee David Blalock 8. MOON DOGGIE..................................29.30 Contender/Mercury Billy Emmart Mark Emmart Maurice Emmart 9. SCOOTER BUG.....................................28.60 Island Runner/Evinrude Mack Aman Ryan Aman
Final Standings Class of 23
1. Trademark........Mark McKeithan     2. Casper..........Rudy      3. Croom Bird Dog.............Steve Gore
Junior Angler Jake Godwin Lady Angler Marilyn Bunce Gore T-top Earl Clewis Yamaha Dean Spatholt

Big Duck Tops Snead's Ferry Tourney
Sam White, Southern Kingfish Association
Interviews by George Summerlin
August 14, 2000

Snead's Ferry, NC—Gerald Currin, Stacy Mills and Marty Moore made a crucial decision based on their collective years of fishing experience, and that decision led them to the win at the Snead's Ferry Rotary Club King Mackerel Tournament.

After boating a 30.15 pound kingfish on Day One to be in contention in the event's aggregate format, they took note of the moon phase. "The moon has an awful lot to do with determining when the fish are feeding," Currin said later. "We decided on the way to Snead's Ferry to stop and catch pogies right then, and pen them up at the house. That way, we could be one of the first boats out to the spot the next morning, without having to stop for bait."

The Big Duck team fished 16 miles off the East Slough bouy in 65 feet of water the first day, putting a 29 pounder in the boat right off the bat. "The fish hit the first line in the water," Currin reported. "So at least we had one to weigh. Then we sat there for the rest of the day until finally, the 30.15 hit a ribbonfish after all the other boats had left." But the crew still felt the bite was very early, so they stuck with their plan of catching bait the day before in order to be back over the live bottom first thing the next morning.

"We knew the bait wouldn't be quite as fresh if we kept it overnight, but it was still best to be early, we thought. So we got there and put the lines out at 6:10," said the proud captain. "We had a 37.17 come up and hit a pogy on the top, midway back in the spread." A twenty minute fight ensued, after which the fish was gaffed and pulled aboard. Both treble hooks immediately fell right out onto the deck of the Yamaha-powered Contender--the slightest amount of slack in the line and the fish would have certainly been gone, along with their chances for success. Currin said, "After that, I called Mike [Williams] on the Release and he showed up there. The bite pretty much shut down after we caught ours, though. It's real enjoyable to finally win one, with the level of competition being what it is today." The Snead's Ferry win landed the Big Duck team just over $45,000 for their efforts during the two-day tournament.

Second place fell to another Yamaha-powered boat, Brant McMullen's Carolina Contender. Brant had his father Rube and new bride Amy aboard for the weekend, choosing to run far to the south to his home waters off Ocean Isle Beach. "We ran about 100 miles south to the Jungle both days," Brant said. "The first day we had several good fish on, including the 36.98. They all hit pogies on top, nothing was down deep." Brant also reported that the bite seemed to be around noon. Day Two found the team again returning to the Jungle, but this time they only had two hours to fish. "We had a couple smaller fish before nailing a 27.99 off a pogy on the downrigger at 10:30," Brant said. "Then we picked up and ran with the fish, making the 2 PM weigh in with a little time to spare. It's great to share a great tournament experience with your family," he added. McMullen is tournament director of the Jolly Mon and Fall Brawl SKA tournaments, and also runs charters out of Ocean Isle Beach in his spare time.

Third place in the tournament and first in the SKA Class of 23 went to another top family fishing team, Burt and Margaret Ferebee on the Second Catch. They also nailed the biggest fish of the tournament, a 44.10 pounder, on the 23-foot Contender. Ferebee elected to fish the P-Buoy in search of a winner during the first day of the tournament. "At first the fish acted like a shark," he told Summerlin at the dock. "Then, when Margaret put a little pressure on him, he made one long run away from the boat." The big king hit a single pogy on the downrigger set at 30 feet before Burt could successfully gaff the smoker and bring him aboard. They continued to fish a while longer, catching several smaller kings and releasing a monster of a sailfish estimated at 100 pounds on light tackle. Ferebee also reported that bait was relatively easy to find in the morning, making that chore somewhat easier.

Yet another family team found fourth place overall. Brad and Linwood Clark, aboard the Team Donzi boat Thumpin', proved that they are still capable of being competitive in any tournament they choose to enter. The father and son team were able to scale a two-day, two-fish aggregate of 55.09 pounds. They were followed by Mike Williams and Gordie McAdams on the Release with 53.77 pounds. Williams also chose to fish off the East Side near where the Big Duck had located the big kings. Their 40.93 pounder fell for a ribbonfish thirty feet down on the downrigger shortly after noon. Mike grabbed the rod as the fish ran off 200 yards of line before coming to the surface, where Gordy was able to sink the gaff in his shoulder and heft him over the gunwale.

Final Standings (Two Day, Two Fish Aggregate Format)

1. BIG DUCK................................67.32 Contender/Yamaha Gerald Currin Marty Moore Stacy Mills 2. CAROLINA CONTENDER..............64.97 Contender/Yamaha Brant McMullen Amy McMullen Rube McMullen 3. *SECOND CATCH.......................62.46 Contender/Mariner Burt Ferebee Margaret Ferebee 4. THUMPIN.........................................55.09 Donzi/Mercury Linwood Clark Brad Clark 5. RELEASE...........................................53.77 Contender/Yamaha Mike Williams Gordie McAdams

6. * QUEEN MARY II..................................48.02 SeaCraft/Mercury Rusty Cutshaw Jay Ellingsworth Phil Woolard 7. * STARFISH...................................45.67 Kencraft/Mercury Charles Cone Dale Cone 8. SEA DRAG’N...........................................43.75 Privateer/Mercury Al Morris Kim Morris Brent Bunn 9. KINGZILLA....................................43.27 Ranger/Mariner Sam Honeycutt Amanda Honeycutt 10. THREE STOOGES AND CHERYL. ................42.77 Mako/Mercury Larry Warren Cheryl Warren Jimmy Wright

Top Contender Tops the Jolly Mon
Sam White, Southern Kingfish Association
July 3, 2000

Conditions: One Day Tournament
Winds: East Northeast, 15 kts.
Seas: 2-4 ft. increasing to 4-6 ft. by afternoon
Temp: mid-80s

Ocean Isle Beach, NC—When Coker Metcalf eased his 27-foot Top Contender to the weigh-in dock, I could tell the team had a good fish aboard. Metcalf, John Koonce, Rick Metcalf and Kenny Long were proudly wearing their new team shirts and they had their fish ready for a quick photo shoot before heading off to the scales.

They actually had two nice kings aboard, but had to make a quick decision as to which one was going to the scales. They chose correctly, with their biggest king weighing in at 33.06 pounds. "We thought there would be some good fish off the Jungle," Metcalf said. "Just a hunch, but it paid off for us today." The Top Contender would be the highest finishing SKA boat in the tournament, placing third overall in the near-300 boat field. Their biggest kingfish hit a toplined pogy just after 11 AM, leading the team on a merry chase before coming to the boat. "He never made a long run," angler Metcalf said, "just short, strong bursts. He would go out then stay deep. It took me about 45 minutes to get him in range for John to gaff."

Bill Dunaway and Allen Pressley finished fourth overall and were the second highest placing SKA team aboard the High Voltage. They scaled a 30.13 pound kingfish during the one day event to put the Johnson-powered Fountain 31 into the top five.

Fifth place in the Jolly Mon fell to one of the most experienced tournament kingfishing teams on the circuit--Dieter Cardwell and Mike Lundy on the Evinrude-powered Wellcraft, Tideline. After numerous top tournament finishes in the past few seasons, including a second place during the 1999 Hardee's tournament, Cardwell and Lundy are off to a strong start in this year's competition. They had heard reports of big kings holding on the, ahem, tideline at Masonboro Inlet.Lundy grabbed the rod as Cardwell manned the helm of the 30-foot Scarab. The team quickly got on top of the fish to prevent it from pulling a quick Houdini and disappearing into the depths. Ten short minutes later, their 30.06 pounder was aboard.

The Fish On, an Evinrude-powered Marlin captained by Rick Miller and crewed by Andy and Boyce Broadwell, finished seventh overall in the tournament. They were followed by the Reel Young in eighth place.

Once again, Tournament Director Brant McMullen has done an outstanding job with the Jolly Mon. He stresses a fun, relaxed and easy-to-fish tournament, and the fishermen have responded. This year's 300 boats broke all records for participation, and he deserves the credit for his dedication to the sport and hard work in making this a success. The next tournament in the SKA's Division Two will be the 9th Annual Snead's Ferry KMT, to be held August 11-13 in Snead's Ferry, NC. For more information, contact Dale Powell at 910-327-3953. And for a complete recap of the Jolly Mon, see the upcoming issue of Angler Magazine, the official publication of the Southern Kingfish Association.

Final Standings

1. BACKSPIN.......................36.38 2. TENSION TAMER.........................35.75 3. TOP CONTENDER.......................33.06 Contender/Yamaha Coker Metcalf John Koonce Rick Metcalf Kenny Long 4. HIGH VOLTAGE................................30.13 Fountain/Johnson Bill Dunaway Allen Pressley 5. TIDELINE..................................30.06 Wellcraft/Evinrude Dieter Cardwell Mike Lundy

6. SEASTRIKE.....................................29.13 7. FISH ON.........................................28.25 Marlin/Evinrude Rick Miller Andy Broadwell Boyce Broadwell 8. REEL YOUNG...................................28.19 Contender/Yamaha Freddie Travis Danny Young Mark Jallup Trey Young 9. WILD BILL...................................27.00 Donzi/Mercury Bill Hopkins Jerry Hopkins Sarah Hopkins Jerry Berrier 10. MOON DOGGIE..................................26.44 Contender/Mercury Billy Emmart Maurice Emmart

SKA WELLCRAFT JUNIOR ANGLERS 1. Trey Young..........Reel Young      2. Rock Wells..........Rock Candi      3. Kevin Ryan..........King Size