(* Denotes a Class of 23 Team)

Deuces Wild Scores Big in Ft. Pierce!
Jack Holmes, Southern Kingfish Association
May 8, 2000

Ft. Pierce, FL— Andy Colson's Dueces Wild ran south on the second day of the Fort Pierce Kingfish Open and found a 45.3 pounder in dirty water close to the beach. The Georgia Contender team not only won a new 18' Wellcraft boat, Mercury outboard, and Loadmaster Trailer, but went from 20th place in the final Division 10 tournament to third. On board was Colson, Steve Cunningham, Gary Ryals, Lee Rodenberry, and Daniel Colson. The teams going to the big show!

A local boat finished second with a nice 37.9.

Dick Russell went fish-less the first day also but put his wife Chrissy on a good fish, 36.8, on day two to finish third in the tournament. He also gave Robalo a big divisional win, clinching the Class of 23 with a three fish aggregate of 100.8. That agg would have placed him third in 24 and over division.

Finishing fourth was the Pilgrim with a 36.1. This is the same team of Keith McCullan, Paul Johnson, and Butch McCoy that scaled a 49 pounder the week before.

Rounding out the top five was Todd Veal's Sea Ducer from Georgia. He nailed a 35.3 pounder which brought him up considerably in the points race. Another Georgia boat, Fish Fever won the division with 114.7 points. The team of Ed and Shawn Mecchella, Clark Drury, and Mike Whitman caught a 35.1 to finish sixth in the tournament and add a couple of points to seal their divisional win.

The Woithe family, Bobby, Bruce, Craig, Susan, and Bob finished second in the division with a 108.2 aggregate.

Kelly Hogan won the junior angler division in the tournament and went on to win the junior class in the division with a two fish agg of 69.7.

Final Standings

1. DEUCES WILD....................45.3 Contender....Yamaha Andy Colson Steve Cunningham Gary Ryals Lee Rodenberry Daniel Colson 2. Marine Max....................37.9 3. THE BRUTE....................36.8 Robalo....Mercury Dick Russell Chrissy Russell Sy Syslo Danny Syslo 4. PILGRIM....................36.1 5. SEA DUCER....................35.3 Contender....Yamaha Todd Veal Tom Whittingslow Wylder Williams

6. FISH FEVER....................35.1 Wellcraft....Mercury Ed Mecchella Shawn Mecchella Clark Drury Mike Whitman 7. YAHOO....................34.2 Contender...Yamaha Pat Cazaubon David Reddick III Willie Cazaubon David Reddick Jr. Joe Bardy Jeff Brown 8. Reef Chief....................33.5 9. BLUE RUNNER....................32.8 Contender....Yamaha Chris Blackwell Mark Blackwell Becky Blackwell Fred Davis Christian Springsteen 10. Idle Hour....................32.7

64.2 Pound Smoker Wins Mako / Seacraft King Classic!
Jack Holmes, Southern Kingfish Association
May 1, 2000

Stuart, FL— It's a great feeling, winning a tournament, but when that win is combined with a feat few fisherpeople ever accomplish, then it's very, very special. That's what happened to Jim Midelis, Mike Doyle, and Bobby Taylor this past weekend as they found and caught a 64.2 pound king mackerel to win the Mako / SeaCraft Smoker King Classic in Stuart, Florida. They not only won the inaugural event but caught a king in the 60-pound class, something only a handful of people have ever done in the 10 year existence of the SKA. To add to their excitement, they were given the keys to a new 21' Mercury powered SeaCraft, complete with a Loadmaster Trailer, for their victory.

They found the behemoth in 90 feet of water off the Jupiter loran tower late in afternoon on the events first day. It ate a live greenie. They arrived back at Sand Spirit Park, the tournament site, with only five minutes remaining before the scales closed.

A local boat, the Pilgrim, earned second place honors with a 49.4.

The Fully Involved, with Brian Cablish and Joe Waters on board, earned third on the strength of their 48.2 pounder caught on day one. They were fishing north of Stuart in 65 feet when the king engulfed a live blue runner. Tied to 12 pound test line, the battle took a while but earned the team $4,000 plus an armful of prizes.

Fort Lauderdale's Dick Russell put his wife Chrissy on a good fish Friday, a 45.6, and it held up to give them 4th in the tournament, first in the Class of 23, and top lady angler honors. He moves to the top of the field in the small boat side of Division 10.

The Sure Thing rounded out the top 5 with a 44.5. Jim Walukiewicz Sr. nailed the big fish on the first day and knew he had a winner. In most events that would be fact, however the bite was so good this weekend that not only did that big sixty pounder come in but seven more kingfish in the forty pound range hit the scale. Fishing has never been better than this.

Kelly Hogan won the junior division with a 42.3 aboard the Irish Jig.

Final Standings

1. PEELED BACK....................64.2 Jim Midelis Bobby Taylor Mike Doyle 2. PILGRIM....................49.4 3. FULLY INVOLVED....................48.2 Hydra Sport....Mercury Brian Cablish Joe Waters 4. THE BRUTE....................45.6 Robalo.....Mercury Dick Russell Chrissy Russell Danny Syslo Sy Syslo 5. SURE THING....................44.5 Paramount....Yamaha Jim Walukiewicz Sr. Jim Walukiewicz Jr. Shawn Walukiewicz Robert Ward Jessie Pfifer

6. IRISH JIG....................42.3 Contender....Yamaha Michael Hogan Geoff Ouatraro Kelly Hogan 7. FISHY BIZNES....................42.1 Thunder...Yamaha Bud Randall Ray Lequerique 8. SAKE....................41.6 Mako...Yamaha Neil Nix Danny Marscue Veronica Nix 9. SUNDANCE MARINE....................39.5 Donzi....Mercury Brent Bowman Debbie Reiland Steve Sawed 10. KAT'S RIVAL....................36.6 Cape Horn....Yamaha Frank Langdon

Offshore Adventure's 46.7 Leads Field in Miami!
Jack Holmes, Southern Kingfish Association
April 3, 2000

Jim Oliver came to the Captains meeting to sign up for the tournament and the SKA. Little did he know that the gesture will probably change his fishing life forever. With partner Pete Slack, the Boca Raton, Florida, resident walked away with the tournaments top prize, a 21' Contender boat, Yamaha Outboard, and Loadmaster Trailer, when they scaled a 46.7 pound king on the events first day. They were fishing north of the inlet in 100 feet of water.

Ed Mecchella's Fish Fever clinched the tournaments second slot with a 44.5 caught on the first day. "We had to take the Wellcraft home with a full tank of fuel," said Mecchella. "Fishing was superb and we were never more than five miles from the inlet. Ed's son Shawn had a sailfish hit a bait just seconds before the big king ate a deep trolled bait. Clark Drury picked up the rod and the rest is history. "Fishing was just great," added Mecchella.

Luis Urbay, Nolbert Rodriquez, Livan Urbay, and Alex Aladro fishing their 26' Sea Vee, Rabbit's Foot, nailed third with a 42.2 also caught on day one. "We fished off Haulover," said Urbay. "Everyone going out the inlet seemed to turn south so we decided to be different and head north." It obviously was the right decision.

Fourth place fell to George Mitchell and Yamaha's Bill Burke. "What a great two days fishing," said Burke. We had sailfish, kings, dolphin, and others. It doesn't get any better than this and we got a check." They had a 39.3 pounder caught on day two.

The Woithe family rounded out the top five with a 39 pounder. "My brother had the lead in the Sarasota tournament on day one," explained Bob Woithe. "We just had a snake on the leaderboard. I just couldn't let him get one bigger than us." They found him on day day two just five miles north of the cut fishing the reef line.

The Hot Rods finished sixth with a 38.1 while Ambitious was seventh nabbing a 37.6. Rounding out the top ten was Kattitude in eighth, Fren-Z ninth, and the Dusky 33 tenth.

In the class of 23, a local boat, Ripsnorter, posted the biggest fish, a 29.8. Johnny Gay's Team Freespool earned second with a 16.2 and Dick Russell's Brute third.

Tournament participants found seas three to five feet, sunny skies, and temperatures in the 80's for most of the event.

For the complete tournament story see the May edition of Angler Magazine, the official publication of the Southern Kingfish Association.

Final Standings

1. OFFSHORE ADVENTURE....................46.7 Sea Vee 25/Mercury James Oliver 2. FISH FEVER....................44.5 Wellcraft 302 Scarab/Mercury Ed Mecchella Shawn Mecchella Jim Conway Clark Drury 3. RABBIT'S FOOT....................42.2 Sea Vee 26/Yamaha Luis Urbay Nolbert Rodriquez Livan Urbay Alex Aladro 4. SNAKE DANCER....................39.3 Contender....Yamaha Bill Burke 5. THE REEL WON....................39.0 Contender 31/Yamaha Bob Woithe Sr. Bob Woithe Sue Woithe	6. HOT RODS....................38.1 Contender 31/Yamaha Albert Castro Jeff Archer 7. AMBITIOUS....................37.6 Contender/Yamaha Mark Malazia Bob Nemson 8 KATTITUDE....................36.7 9. FREN-Z....................35.9 Bertram 25/Johnson J. Corcoran J. Ingram Dennis Plant Mike Baker 10. DUSKY 33....................33.5 Dusky 33/Evinrude Bouncer Smith Ralph Brown Mike Brown Dale Workford
Final Standings Class of 23 1. RIPSNORTER....................29.8 2. TEAM FREESPOOL....................16.2 Wellcraft 23/Mercury Johnny Gay Tim Imka Jim Ross 3. THE BRUTE....................13.9 Robalo 23/Mercury Dick Russell Chrissy Russell Sy Syslo Danny Syslo
SKA WELLCRAFT JUNIOR ANGLERS 1. Ricky Raleigh Jr.     2. Michael Smith     3. Jason Ingram

Second Annual Greater Miami KMT Drops Anchor in Miami
Sam White, Southern Kingfish Association
March 1, 2000

ST. AUGUSTINE, Florida—The Second Annual Greater Miami King Mackerel Tournament will drop anchor in Miami Beach on March 31st through April 2nd, 2000. Promoted and sponsored by the Southern Kingfish Association (SKA), this prestigious event offers a top prize of a brand-new Yamaha-powered Contender boat and Loadmaster custom aluminum trailer, a package valued at over $36,000. "We're expecting to have a great event this year," said Jack Holmes, executive director for the SKA. "This is a great location for a kingfish tournament, and we're offering some top-notch prizes. We expect some outstanding fishing this time of year--it's a great opportunity for the local fishermen to really shine." The event will pay out through ten places, and the top prize is guaranteed. Prizes will be awarded on the basis of a team's single largest king mackerel landed during the two-day event.

In addition to the tournament's standard pay-out, there is a separate prize structure being offered for boats that are 23 feet or less in length. This corresponds with the SKA's new small-boat division, called the Class of 23. "Over the years, we've noticed that a lot of the competitors were tournament fishing from smaller boats, and wanted to offer them a way to qualify for the SKA National Championships without having to compete with fishermen in the bigger boats," Holmes said. The top three boats in the Class of 23 are vying for an extra $3,000 in cash, and are still eligible to win additional cash and prizes in the general tournament.

This year's tournament also offers a bonus to those who choose to compete in the Greater Miami Billfish Tournament, to be held the following weekend. Points will be awarded based on your team's finish in both events, with the boat with the most points winning the prestigious Contender Cup. Both tournaments are open to the general angling community.

Registration for the Greater Miami King Mackerel Tournament begins at 4 PM Friday, March 31st at the Miami Beach Marina tournament site. The captain's meeting will be held at 7:30 that evening. Saturday, April 1, will see the competing teams checking out at 6:30 AM and returning to Miami Beach Marina by no later than 5 PM for the weigh-in. Check out is the same on Sunday, but the teams must return by no later than 3 PM in order to weigh their fish. The awards presentation will begin at approximately 4:30 PM Sunday. Dockage is available through Miami Beach Marina by calling (305) 673-6000. The host hotel is the Doubletree Grand--their number is (800) 858-3920. For more information, or to receive a tournament brochure and entry form, call the Southern Kingfish Association at (904) 827-1400.

Predator Holds on for Win at Hog's Breath Tournament
Sam White, Southern Kingfish Association
January 30, 2000

KEY WEST, Florida—Danny Roberson, Rick Carrie and Robert Barris held on for the win in the 4th annual Hog's Breath King Mackerel Tournament, taking the event's top prize of an Evinrude-powered Wellcraft boat and aluminum trailer back to their home port of Panama City Beach, Florida. The team boated a whopping 53.4 pound king mackerel on the first day of the two-day tournament, then sat at dockside on Day Two waiting for a larger fish to materialize. Though several other teams challenged the Predator's lead, none could top their monster kingfish on Sunday, giving the team the win. "I can't believe that it was big enough to hold up today," team captain Danny Roberson said. "The weather cleared up and the big fish really turned on today. With so many good teams on the water, I'm amazed that a bigger fish didn't show up." Their prize was valued at $20,000, in addition to the team's winnings in the Yamaha Professional Kingfish Tour.

Several other teams gave the Predator a run for their money on Sunday, though. The first boat to the dock was the Seminole, Florida-based Hannon's Cannon, captained by Kevin Hannon. Normally a top competitor on the west coast of Florida, Hannon came to Key West in search of big kingfish. They scored a 52.8 pounder on the second day of the tournament to place second by less than one pound behind the Predator. "We fished about 20 miles west of here," Hannon reported. "The fish hit a big hardtail about 9:30 in the morning, then fought for about 30 minutes before we could put him in the boat." He credits Key West local guide Steve Lamp for helping the team locate their second place fish.

Another local boat, Steve Rodger's Spear One, placed third in the tournament. Rodgers boated a 52.4 pound kingfish on Saturday that held up for the team once the weigh-in closed on Sunday.

Deerfield Beach, Florida's Jimers team captured the top "23 and Under" award for boats 23 feet or less in length. Johnny Gay's Team Freespool, home ported in Merritt Island, Florida, won second in the small-boat class, followed by Dick Russell's Brute from Dania, Florida.

Barbera Woithe was the tournament's Top Lady Angler aboard The Reel Won based in Placida, Florida. Trey Young won Top Junior Angler for the Reel Young team out of Kennesaw, Georgia.

The next tournament in the Southern Kingfish Association's Division Ten is the Greater Miami King Mackerel Classic, to be held March 31-April 2 in Miami, Florida. For more information on the SKA Mercury Tournament Trail, contact the Southern Kingfish Association (904) 827-1400 or email sokingfish@aol.com

Final Standings
Boat Name, Captain's Name, Home Port, Single Big Fish Weight

1. Predator, Danny Roberson, Panama City FL, 53.4 2. Hannon's Cannon, Kevin Hannon, Seminole FL, 52.8 3. Spear One, Steven Rodger, Key West FL, 52.4 4. Marsh Harbor Marina, David Van Lent, Belleair Beach FL, 51.3 5. Cool Water, Chris Garcia, Key West FL, 48.0	6. Hog Heaven, DuWayne Crofton, Tampa FL, 46.6 7. Wahoo, Richard McRae, Rockingham NC, 44.3 8. Angling Pursuits, Joe Bruce, Fernandina Beach FL, 41.1 9. Smokin' Deal, Chuck Butler, Kennesaw GA, 40.6 10. Out of Control, Jimmy Garrett, 40.4
Final Standings Class of 23 1. Jimers, Jim Ingalls, Deerfield Beach FL, 24.2 Team Freespool, Johnny Gay, Merritt Island FL, 23.4 The Brute, Dick Russell, Dania FL, 18.4
TOP JUNIOR ANGLERS Trey Young, Reel Young, Myrtle Beach SC, 32.2
TOP LADY ANGLERS Barbera Woithe, The Reel Won, Placida FL, 38.5