12TH ANNUAL LOADMASTER TRAILERS SUNCOAST KINGFISH CLASSIC
TREASURE ISLAND, FL
NOVEMBER 9-10, 2002
By: Jack Holmes

John Smith found himself and his team, John Smith II and Todd Ferguson, in a very enviable position, on the leader board with a 34.56 after the first day. “We went back to the same spot on Sunday, our famous fall hole,” said the Captain of the Et Tu Brute. “We were in 80’ of water both days. Our first fish ate a blue runner on the downrigger, Sunday’s on a flat line 150’ back.” At the scale, weighmaster Butch Ellsworth proclaimed the king 40.24, the biggest fish of the day much to the delight of the large spectator crowd, second place in the tournament.

Second place SKA boat fell to the Never Satisfied with Tim Wooten behind the helm. “We went to the hard bottom on Saturday but no luck,” said Wooten, excited to have finished fourth in the tournament. “On Sunday we went to a reef off Clearwater in 53’.” Their 35.76 ate a blue runner on the surface. “I want to thank Dan Hockett for the info he gave us,” the Captain added. The Never Satisfied is a Yamaha powered Contender with Doug Boling and Doug Clark onboard.
Dave Travis who fishes the Bay Pines Marina Mako, also known as the Ocean Waves Sunglass boat, finished third SKA boat, seventh in the tournament. Together with Rob Campbell, the pair picked the Skyway Bridge on Saturday as the right spot to find Mr. Big. “We were real excited when the a nice king hit a threadfin herring trolled in the prop wash at 8am,” said the captain. “We were under the bridge.” The king peaked the scales at 33.52. On Sunday the team went to the 90’ hole but could only find small fish.

Eric Beers found his 19’ Cobia, Sumorada, in eighth place on the strength of a 32.88 while Ralph Imbriani put his Robalo, The Money Pit, into tenth with a 32.80.

The top lady and top junior came from a non-member however the top SKA junior came from David Heavenridge’s Top Gun.

The top SKA boat in Class of 23 fell to the Sumorada. Fifty-six boats weighed fish on Saturday while only 36 weighed on Sunday.

A local team of weekend warriors won the event and went home with a 30’ Mercury powered Dorado complete with a Loadmaster Trailer.

Final Standings

1ST ANNUAL 3 BROTHERS FISHING COMPANY
SUNCOAST KINGFISH CLASSIC
"La-Perla Top SKA Boat at 3 Brothers...Indian Rocks Beach KMT"
HOLIDAY INN HARBORSIDE - INDIAN ROCKS BEACH, FL
NOVEMBER 2-3, 2002
By: Jack Holmes

Randy Keys and Jimmy Hasson are no strangers to the winner’s circle. In fact the pair won the National Championship when the Nationals were held in St. Petersburg in the mid nineties. The duo ran their Yamaha powered Donzi after a flip of the coin to the 90’ hole. Keys won the toss, Hasson wanted to fish offshore. We’ll never know if they could have bettered a 42 pounder offshore but Key’s choice did earn them second place honors. “We caught a couple of good point fish however we really wanted to do even better,” said Keys. “About 2:15 I put out a big blue fish on a long flat line. Five minutes later she hit.” They made short work of the fight, picked up, and headed for the scales.

“ I told my partner, Warren Williams, we were going 23 miles to a spot where I caught a few good fish a couple of days ago,” said David Heavenridge, captain of the Top Gun. “We had six to eight foot seas but my new Mercury powered Donzi cut them down to size.” After catching a few small kings David was having second thoughts; time was running out. They picked up and ran to a spot 13 miles offshore, good hard bottom. We caught a small fish and as they were re-baiting the 38.32 fifth place fish hit the shotgun line. Twenty minutes later they were on the props, scale bound.

Sixth place fell to the third SKA boat, Humdinger, captained by Jr. Baker. “We worked several spots off John’s Pass and Clearwater but could only manage a few small fish,” said the Hydra Sports captain. “I told my crew time was running out. I was going to a spot that I fished in the spring in 42 feet of water.” The team knew that if they wanted to make the scales, 3:45 was their drop dead time. At 3:25 a 35.60 smacked a blue runner trolled 30 feet below the surface on a downrigger. The fish cleared the gunwale at 3:40, was placed in the insulated fish bag, and the boat headed for the scales. Mission accomplished. On board was Sherri Baker, Steve Deloache, Marc Collins, and William Fawcett.

Seventh place fell to Mark Goodwin’s Economy Tackle with a 34.08. This was not the best outing for SKA members but you have to know that this was a one day tournament. Given most tournaments are two day events our members that didn’t do well on day one usually rally and fill up the spots on day two. One day events need more homework and preparation otherwise lady luck takes over.

Final Standings

2ND ANNUAL GRAND OLE OPRY KMT
TREASURE ISLAND, FL
MAY 4-5, 2002
By: SKA

The Class of 23 was designed to reward those who compete in tournamentsusing smaller boats. As fishing boats got larger and larger, owners of these smaller boats felt that they couldn't compete, they didn't have the fishing range, and rough weather really took them out of the picture. They had a point and most Tournament Directors agreed and put some money aside from the prize pool to reward these competitors.

At the 10th Annual Miller Lite Suncoast Kingfish Classic in Treasure Island, Leo Plenski won that Class of 23 money but also picked up the tournaments big check after scaling a 47 pounder on Sunday. "Leo came over to the SKA trailer to do his points, "explained SKA Tournament Director John Zalud. "I pointed out to him that his hat was looking pretty bad so he bought a new one. "As he left he told John he'd see him at the dock with a big one.

He certainly was correct. "We couldn't find a fish on Saturday so I went to an old spot 40 miles north of John's Pass, a big hard bottom area in 65 feet of water, explained Plenski. "The big fish ate a runner trolled on the surface". After a 35 minute fight the 23 foot Sunbird names Hi Caes was on it's way to the scales at Gators on the Pass. As Zalud got ready to take a team picture with the winning fish, the crowd could hear Plenski say, "It was the hat John, the hat did it. "Everyone else believes that it was his time. The right place, the right bait, and expert techniques. The 23 foot boat? Well, just remember the fish don't know what size boat you own!

A 23 foot Hydra Sports named Tempest Fin snared second place with a 41 pounder. How's that for a one two punch? Kirk Annis and Mike Wallace are having a great spring season, now in control of the Class of 23 Division with a three fish aggregate of 84.44.

They too couldn't find a fish on Saturday and had to hustle on Sunday. "We found some good water temperature 25 miles south of the Pass, "said Annis. "We worked thru several smaller fish, releasing them in the hopes a bigger one would soon hit a bait. "It did, it hit a blue runner trolled 28 feet below the surface in 60 feet of water. Back at the dock they discovered their good fortune. Third place fell to a non member.

The C-Hunter needed that second day also to capture a good fish and get on the leader board. "We ran to a spot about 11 miles off the beach, "Rick Cook, the teams Captain and Frank Quinto told Zalud. "We got there at 7:40 and by 8:05 the 36.88 was in the boat. "Rick's 10 year old son Zack fought the fish to gaff. We've seen a lot of 10 year olds do this however Zack had a cast on his right hand to protect his broken wrist. He explained that the fish spooled 300 yards of line when it hit a big runner trolled 70 feet back on the surface. Zack naturally won the events Top Junior honors.Jason Seizer rounded out the events top five aboard his Contender, Final Round. Together with Gary Seizer they scaled a 32.80.

While fishing on Saturday proved difficult for most competitors the leader board ended up very respectable. From sixth place thru 11th place it took a 32 to 30 pound king to reach the board. Greg Campbell finished sixth aboard his Cape Horn, Minus One, with a 32.40. Captain Larry Hoffman worked his Donzi, Team Gators, into seventh with a31.92. Rob Siler nailed eighth with a 31.12 while Tony Longworth ran his Pro Sports into tenth with a 30.72.

The Gotta Go weighed a 20.08 to wind up the spring Division Six in first place with a 91.58, three fish, aggregate. Fifteenth place is 57.54 and held by Geoffrey Everhart, Jr with just two fish on his side of the ledger.The fall run of kings on the Gulf Coast should be great and I suspect a lot of anglers will be trying to buy a new hat from John.

Final Standings

2ND ANNUAL GRAND OLE OPRY KMT
CLEARWATER, FL
APRIL 20-21, 2002
By: SKA

Mother Nature gave the west coast and out of town anglers one of the best weekends we've seen this year. Maybe too good. Based on last years performance by Marcus Kennedy's Kwazar, fishing the middle grounds and coming in with the prize winner, a horde of boats opted for the same game plan but found flat seas and very little fish.

"We couldn't find a good fish on Saturday," said Miss Treated's Captain, Larry Galan. "We ran to an old spot we've fished 25 miles south of John's Pass. We only got one bite but it was the one we were looking for. "Fishing in 35 feet of
water, the 41.34 pound king ate a blue runner and slid over the gunwale at 1:45. With a 3 o'clock check in deadline, Galan, fishing with Ron Galen and Phil Cleary, cranked the powerful Mercury's on his Pursuit and headed for Clearwater and the Grand Ole' Opry Tournament site at Coachman Park where they took over the tournament lead after weigh master Butch Elsworth officially recorded their weight. The trio pocketed over $43,000 in cash plus received the keys to a new 21' Yamaha powered Contender with a Loadmaster Trailer from Central Marine.

Galen is on a roll this year having finished second in the Perico Harbor tournament a week earlier. He also won the Treasure Island Tournament in the fall of 2000.

John Akers ran his Yamaha powered Century, Mutual $Fun, to an area 30 miles north of Clearwater on Thursday and Friday to pre fish and obviously liked what he saw however he needed both days in the tournament to find the money fish. "We caught our king on the last blue runner we had in the bait well, "he explained after scaling his second place 37.36 pound fish. "We also caught a 26 and 33 pounder before the big fish hooked up. "John fishes with Jeff Robinson and Phil Voelkel.

The first days leader, John Molfetto, fishing his Class of 23 Hydra Sports, Legend, fished in 45' of water in the same hole he bagged a 31 pounder last weekend. "This was our only bite. She ate a big blue runner trolled on the surface around noon,"said Molfetto as he and Frank Breedlove posed beneath the tournament scale for the media. Their 36.80 earned third place honors plus moved them into the Division 6 Class of 23 lead with 67.6 pounds.

Paul Lokey's boat, War Party, can usually be found on Division 6 leaderboards and this divisional event was no exception. Paul and his teammates, Pat O'Connell and Larry Spencer couldn't find a fish on day one either so on to plan B. "We went to the famous Rube Allen, "said Lokey. "We didn't see a fish until 11:55 and that was a sailfish that swam under the boat, but just a couple of minutes later our money fish hit a blue runner on a short surface line. We used number 2 wire and went to number 6 hooks because the water was so clear. "At weigh in they discovered their 36.64
would earn them fourth place honors.

Giving the SKA a clean sweep for the Opry's top five was Clyde Keen's Mom's Worry. "I like to fish small hard bottoms, explained Keen. "We fished a spot I like about 30 miles west of Clearwater. We found a lot of fish there on Saturday but no good ones. "They returned to the same spot on Sunday and were rewarded for their persistence when their first bait deployed in the morning, a blue runner, enticed a 35.60 king. The team consists of Terry Johnson, Jake Fulmer, and Phillip Jordan. Sixth, seventh, and eighth place fell to non SKA members all with fish in the 34 pound range.

Joe Verilla's 33.82 earned Ron and Morgan Kein and George and Stanley Garrastazu ninth place. They fish the Mercury powered Intrepid, Team Creative.Randy Rochelle has to be the luckiest Captain on Florida's west coast. He fishes with four lovely ladies, Leiza Fitzgerald, Jeanne Reeves, April Hoaglan, and Marilyn Healy, who can put a hurtin on the kingfish stocks. With a team name of Gotta Go Fish Find Hers, this outing saw them nab tenth place with a 33.36 and moves them into second place in the Division with 71.5 points. They won the Perico Harbor event the week earlier. Way to go.

In other notables, Richard Yant, an SKA member for several years fished his very first tournament and walked away with a thirteenth place with a 32.8. Eddie Lawrence caught a 28 pounder to finish 34th. On board with him was Shawn Price, a seven year veteran defensive tackle for the Buffalo Bills and now playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs. From North Carolina came Gary and Elizabeth Unger to finish 15th aboard their Fountain, In The Red.

Final Standings

8TH ANNUAL MERCURY OUTBOARDS SUNCOAST KINGFISH CLASSIC
PERICO HARBOR MARINA - BRADENTON, FL
APRIL 11-14, 2002
By: SKA

There are a lot of good kingfish holes off Florida's west coast and most of the fishermen know the majority of them. It's just a matter of where you pick on any given tournament day as to whether your favorite hole is holding a good king or one big enough to get you a good payday. Randy Rochelle, fishing his Mercury powered Caravelle, Gotta Go, picked the right spot, found a 38 pounder, and collected the 8th annual Mercury Suncoast Kingfish Classic at Perico Harbor Marina in Bradenton, Florida, top prize. "We fished about five miles south of Tampa Bay," said the proud captain. "We had two fast fish, then the big one hit. She hit a blue runner trolled 25 feet down. "Fishing with Rochelle was Leiza Fitzgerald and Jeanne Reeves who garnered the Top Ladies Trophy.

Larry and Ron Galan and Phil Cleary fished north of John's Pass in 42 feet of water aboard their Pursuit, Miss Treated. "She ate a blue runner on the surface mid morning," explained Galan. The scale read 37.62 which moved them into a solid second place finish.

Team Fountain thought there magic hole would be miles and miles from the tournament site. "We made the big run on Saturday but found no fish, "said the boat captain, Mark Maus. "On Sunday we went south of New Pass and fished in 70 feet of water. "Their third place fish, a 36.14, ate a blue runner trolled on the surface and took over 45 minutes to come over the gunwale. Fishing with Maus are Lynn Taylor and veteran anglers Tom and Levi Butts.Devocean's Scott Routh earned fourth place honors with a 35.22. "We got ours about 6 miles out of SRQ on a big runner at 8:30 am, "said Routh. Someone on the team, Mark Liebman, Tres Ludwig, and Brent Klein, obviously picked the right spot.

Humdinger really picked the right hole. "Our first line in the water produced our 32.76, said captain Jr. Baker who fishes with his wife Sheri. They were fishing about 13 miles north of New Pass and for their right decision collected fifth place honors.

Tampa Bay Angler . Com had a great tournament. They not only bagged the tournaments sixth spot but won the Class of 23 with a real nice 32.20. While most of the other trophy fish were caught in the morning, Captain Lenn Zikkle
reports that their fish came in the boat at 2:15. They were fishing off the beach south of New Pass and their king also succumbed to a blue runner. On board the winning boat was John McLay, Mike Muar, and Kevin Fredericks. John Molfetto's Legend was another Class of 23 boat that found themselves in the tournaments top ten, seventh, then picked up bonus money for second place in Class of 23. With Frank Breedlove and Mike Gaby they scaled a 30.8.Reef Raft earned third in the 23 foot class with a 26.68.

Morgan Kein and Stanley Garrastazu won the junior angler honors fishing aboard the Team Creative Intrepid captained by Joe Verilla. They also earned seventh place in the tournament with a 30.80.

Mike Marmo earned ninth with a 30.86 aboard the Lady Marmalade.Once again anglers learned that when you run to some favorite numbers on the GPS it doesn't mean you're going to find anyone home. But when your pick proves you made the right choice this day, life sure does seem better and so does your bank account.

Final Standings