PRO   DIV 1   DIV 2   DIV 3   DIV 4   DIV 5   DIV 6   DIV 7   DIV 8   DIV 9   DIV 10   DIV 11   DIV12

Hooligan Boasts Double Win in Swansboro…
…Posts Largest King and Largest Aggregate
by Ian Warner

Captain Winslow and the Hooligan team dominated Swansboro Memorial Day weekend by bringing in the largest king on Saturday to win the main competition: a 26.32-pounder. Not satisfied, the team went back out Sunday to land a nice 18.36 king to take the top aggregate position as well, a great double win. Right on Hooligan’s heels were King of Kings with a 25.04-pounder and Sea Rat with a 22.82 pound king for third.

The 25th Annual King Mackerel Blue Water Swansboro Rotary Tournament opened for king mackerel fisherman May 27th with the traditional Captain’s meeting and fishing the 28th and 29th. Over 135 boats took advantage of the weekend’s beautiful weather to go out and try to find some of North Carolina’s first kings of the season. With the King Mackerel Tournament, the inaugural Ladies Golden Reel Tournament, and the Blue Water Tournament, there was truly something for everyone at Swansboro’s well-organized event this Memorial Day weekend.

Their sixth year fishing the SKA, the Hooligan team of Captain Joe Winslow, Fred Coyne, and Alan Ambrose is a very consistent team with eight tournament wins under their belts. While the 26.32-pound king is definitely not the largest the team has ever landed, it was the largest they’ve managed in the Swansboro event, a tournament traditionally won with small kings. ”We were excited when we put it in the boat,” said Joe, “and very surprised that it held the leaderboard for two days.”

Fishing aboard the 31’ Yamaha powered Yellowfin, the team set out Saturday with high hopes and bait found the night before. “Alan and I had given up on looking for bait, but Fred saved our butts and found some pogies,” reported Joe. They decided to fish off Frying Pan Tower “in deep water” and managed their tournament-winner early both days. “The fish we caught today (Sunday) bit at the exact same time as the big one Saturday, 8:45 GPS,” said Joe. They also caught both kings on downriggers fishing a temperature break. “We lost a big fish to a wire bite today,” one of only two bites the team had on Sunday. Still the team managed to bring in an 18.36-pounder that day, a fish that would have landed them in the money by itself, and their two fish aggregate took the top spot in that category as well. Their double victory was worth over $17,000 to take home to Sunset Beach, NC.

Captain Greg Cundiff on the King Of Kings took second with a 25.04-pound mack. Fishing a 23’ Yamaha powered Kencraft, Cundiff and Don West hail from Sophia, NC. This team had a good 23-pounder late in the game here last year, but couldn’t make it back to the scales in time. This winning king was the first one the team has managed to weigh in at this event in the five years they’ve fished it. King of Kings pulled the fish in early, about 9:30, fishing close to South Carolina Beach. She took a pogie on top on a line about 75 feet out. “We hooked the fish, ran her down, and got her in the boat in 15 minutes,” recalled Cundiff. “Everything worked like clockwork for once.” This will be a team to watch out for in the SKA this year. “We going to try to fish four full divisions this year,” reported Cundiff.

Last year’s second place winner, Captain Mitch Yates of the Sea Rat, landed a 22.82 to take third this year. Their eighth year with the SKA, this Winston Salem, NC team fished hard both days, with a Saturday 19.80-pound king that positioned them in fifth place going into the second day’s fishing. Captain Yates, Junior Yates, Wendell Scott, Chris Burelson, and Chris Burelson Jr headed their 31’ Yamaha powered Contender south near Frying Pan tower as well, and fished a temperature break they found there both days. On Sunday after landing a teens-fish, the 22.82-pound king hit a long line pogie at about noon. The team tried for another hour to find a larger king, then headed the Sea Rat north and made the 70-mile run back to the scales. Their third place win was good to earn Chris Burelson Jr. Top Junior Angler honors in his first kingfish tournament, a great way to start his angling career. “I’d just like to thank the Ambrose family in Carolina Beach for putting us up here every year, and Yamaha outboards, Southeastern Elevator, and Jones Brothers Marine for their sponsorship,” stated Yates.

Captain Ben Ybanez and the Cedar Point, NC Open Wide team gaffed a 22.10-pound mossback on Friday for fourth. Ybanez, Tony Fincher, and John Parks also managed a 21.88 on Saturday and were just edged out by Hooligan with a 43.98 aggregate. This veteran team found both fish at the same spot, fishing a wreck in 120-feet of water at a temperature break 47-miles offshore, and landed both on pogies on top. “Every time we would drop our bait below 20-feet we would get AJ’s,” reported Ybanez. “We caught 20 AJ’s to our three kings on Friday, and 15 AJ’s to our four kings Saturday,” he continued. The win didn’t come without some last-minute excitement aboard their 31’ Yamaha powered Cape Horn. “We had a battery die on our starboard motor and had a 52-mile run back to Bogue Inlet. We ran on a single motor at 30 miles-an-hour and we just made it back with seven minutes to spare,” recalled Ybanez. Still, their 22-pounder was good to keep the team in the money. “Id like to thank Yamaha, Sitex Electronics, Avet Reels, and Blackberry Marine for their support,” concluded Ybanez.

Captain Henry Moore aboard the 31’ Yamaha powered Contender Bobcat brought in a 21.74 to earn a fifth place victory to take home to Clinton, NC. Captain Moore and Rusty Smith caught this king fishing southwest of the weigh-in at Frying Pan Tower in 90 feet of water. Like the other kings caught in this area, Moore’s mossback hit a ribbonfish on a downrigger set at 70 feet. “We had some help from other Contender boats in the area,” stated a thankful Moore.

Sixth place was taken by Captain Victor Tompkins of the First Strike from Jacksonville, FL.

Hot Rod had a good showing, landing a 19.38-pound king to take seventh place. Captain Brett Barnes and son Alan fished their 25’ Yamaha powered Contender hard both days, and brought a heartbreaker back to the scales on Saturday: a fat king that would have most likely taken the tournament if a passing shark hadn’t decided on an easy snack. Their Sunday king was still good to earn Alan second place Junior Angler honors, and the team also brought in a nice third place 26.08-pound cobia to help make up for their mangled mack.

The NC Sportsman team took eighth place with an 18.38-pounder. Captain Ty Conti and Mike Webb fished a sub boat, Getnit, and are looking forward to getting their Mercury powered Donzi back on the trail.

Ninth place went to the Raleigh, NC team Tsunami. Fishing a 31’ Yamaha powered Contender, Captain Kirk Whorf and Van Parrish landed an 18.14 for the position.

Fishing the 31’ Yamaha powered Contender Release, Captain Mike Williams rounds out the top ten. Hailing from Clayton, NC, Williams, Gordon Dunn, and Quinn Morris landed a 17.74-pounder for the spot.

The Jacksonville, NC team Miss Mercy took 11th with a 16.92-pound king. Next was King Krazy from Nashville, NC. Captain Ronald Sanders and his crew landed a 16.50-pound mack to earn Dylan Sanders the third place Junior Angler spot.

Captain Randall Edens fished his Yamaha powered Contender Reel Greedy to 13th with a 15.22-pounder, and Captain Todd Matthews utilized the same boat/motor package to take 14th with a 15.20 aboard The Right One…Baby! Finally, Reel Culture rounds out the top 15 with a 14.78.

Right behind those teams Captain William McLamb landed a 14.22-pounder aboard On The Fly to take second place in the Class of 23’. McLamb, Kris Gardner, and Al Davis earned 16th place overall honors to take home to Raleigh, NC. Local Captain Frankie Winberry of Winberry Farms landed a 13.80-pound mack for third place honors in the Class. Fishing a Yamaha powered Key Largo, Winberry, Billy Parkin, Monty Bush, and Colton Bush landed the 18th largest king.

Swansboro Final Standings
Largest King
1. HOOLIGAN 26.32
Yellowfin/Yamaha
Joe Winslow
Fred Coyne
2. KING OF KINGS 25.04
Kencraft/Yamaha
Greg Cundiff
Don West
3. SEA RAT 22.82
Contender/Yamaha
Mitch Yates
Junior Yates
Wendell Scott
Chris Burelson
Chris Burelson Jr.
4. OPEN WIDE 22.10
Cape Horn/Yamaha
Ben Ybanez
Tony Fincher
John Parks
5. BOBCAT 21.74
Contender/Yamaha
Henry Moore
6. First Strike 21.14
7. HOT ROD 19.38
Contender/Yamaha
Brett Barnes
Alan Barnes
8. NC SPORTSMAN 18.38
Donzi/Mercury
Ty Conti
Mike Webb
9. TSUNAMI 18.14
Contender/Yamaha
Kirk Whorf
Van Parrish
10. RELEASE 17.74
Contender/Yamaha
Mike Williams
Gordon Dunn
Quinn Morris
11. Miss Mercy 16.92
12. KING KRAZY 16.50
Contender/Yamaha
Ronald Sanders
Barry Wilson
Michael Sanders
Dylan Sanders
13. REEL GREEDY 15.22
Contender/Yamaha
Randall Edens
George Edens
Jeremy Newton
14. THE RIGHT ONE…BABY! 15.20
Contender/Yamaha
Todd Matthews
Brad Sewell
Ben Beasley
Brandon Beasley
Brandon Sewell
15. Reel Culture 14.78

Top Aggregate
HOOLIGAN 44.68
Class of 23’
1. KING OF KINGS 25.04
2. ON THE FLY 14.22
Pathfinder/Yamaha
William McLamb
Kris Gardner
Al Davis
3. WINBERRY FARMS 13.80
Key Largo/Yamaha
Frankie Winberry
Billy Parkin
Monty Bush
Colton Bush
Top Junior Anglers
1st Chris Burelson Jr. Sea Rat
2nd Alan Barnes Hot Rod
3rd Dylan Sanders King Krazy