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NO EXCUSE LEADS SKA BOATS IN JACKSONVILLE… Reels in 40-Pounder at Boater’s World T.O.C. by Ian Warner

Captain Michael Crosby landed a 40.99-pound slab at the Boater’s World Tournament of Champions on July 30th, fresh from his second place finish in the aggregate competition at the Bell South tournament at the same marina, taking second place and leading his SKA competitors. No Excuse narrowly missed first, displaced by non-member Quality Express’ king by only .39-pounds.

Everyone agreed it was truly a great day for fishing, with phrases like “they were just jumping in the boat,” and “couldn’t fit her in the bag” overheard throughout the day. Over 120 boats brought kings to the weigh-in. “The water was calm, everything was working well. It was just catching fish and taking them to the dock,” smiled No Excuse’s Captain Crosby. This veteran team from Waycross, GA has been fishing the Mercury Tournament Trail for six years now, formerly on the boat Shark Attack, and presently on their 33’ Mercury powered Donzi. They decided to head to native waters, and fished 13 miles off Cumberland Island. Free-lining pogies in 45- to 50- feet of water and chumming hard their winner nailed its breakfast in the prop wash early. Their smoker was off to the races, spooling 150 yards of line in moments. She was a fighter, and it took Michael and Casey over 35 minutes to pull her to the side of the boat. Like most other boats, it was catch and release all day, but there’s always the story of the one that got away. “We had another one on that might have been even bigger, but it tail whipped the line,” reported Crosby. Still, their 40.99 was good for a $4,000 check, second place overall, top SKA honors, and Top Junior Angler honors for Casey Crosby. Less than a half-pound from the $12,000 first place prize, Crosby related what had probably been running through his mind since he saw how narrowly they missed the margin: “That fish spit up a quart of chum when we got her to the boat.” Hindsight is always 20/20, but you know that’s still got to hurt. Non-member boat Willy Gator took third with a 39.87.

The father and son team of Paul and Paul Gallup was the second place SKA team, taking fourth overall with a 38.14-pounder aboard Cycodad. Their second year in the SKA, this Orange Park, FL team decided to try their luck at the Red Top, the same spot both the first place 41.38 and third place 39.87 were found. Trolling their 24’ Yamaha powered Skeeter in 30 feet of water around a dozen nearby boats this team had their winner hit early at 8:30, nailing a ribbon 10 feet down. Junior Angler Paul grabbed the rod, and got her to the boat in 20 minutes. “I knew all along we would be in it,” the younger Gallup confidently reported, and with the pressure off the crew settled in for a great, but not leisurely, day of fishing. “We couldn’t keep the rigs in the water fast enough,” smiled Captain Gallup. “We had a big 80- to 100-pound tarpon on, too,” he continued, “the fish were just going crazy out there.” This was Cycodad’s biggest king and best finish in competition, and earned them a check for $3,000 as well as second place Junior Angler honors for Paul.

Foul Hooker is the next boat up, rounding out the top five with a 37.03-pounder. Captain Richard Iwanicki, David Tennyson, Cheyenne Pacetti and Keadie Higginbotham fish a 31’ Mercury powered Yellowfin out of St. Augustine, FL, and experienced the same incredible bite that most teams reported. “It was just great, a truly awesome bite,” smiled David. “We had fish skying in our prop wash,” added Keadie. “It was the most fun I’ve had fishing in a long time,” continued David. Fishing to the south in 42 feet of water trolling ribbonfish on the bottom and livies on top their winner came early. “Our good fish came on a double hook-up, and they both went in different directions,” reported David. Both he and Keadie grabbed rods and expertly managed the difficult pair of fish to the boat. They found they had a good 20’s fish and their big one that would weigh 37.03 pounds at the scales. Ribbons proved to be a favorite bait of the day. “We had 12 ribbonfish and they were all taken,” reported David. Their fifth place fish would earn them a check for $2,500, SKA Top Lady Angler honors for Keadie Higginbotham and Cheyenne Pacetti, and places this team in third place divisionally headed to Ancient City.

The local Jacksonville team Beer Money is next in line, landing a 35.44 for sixth place. Captain Chris Stephens, Jerry Richardson and Joey Kaylor fish a 25’ Johnson powered Hydra-Sport, and are currently leading Division 5 heading to the final tournament in St. Augustine. Seventh place went to Captain Jeff Parsons, Wayne Cone, Danny Shore, and Mike and Jared Hurst on the Final Approval. Fishing a 32’ Mercury powered Donzi out of Jacksonville Beach, this crew landed a 35.02-pounder for their position as well as third place Junior Angler for Jared.

Rebel Express reeled in a 34.57 for eighth place. Captain James Smith, Jake and Noah Fulmer and Carson Smith fish a 34’ Mercury powered Fountain out of St. Augustine, FL. Credit Line is up next, with Captain Russ Russell and Jimmy Sholar gaffing a 33.38 for ninth place. They fish a 31’ Yamaha powered Jupiter out of St. Augustine as well. Another St. Augustine boat, Jaw Breaker, rounds out the top ten with a 33.29-pounder. Captain Joe Noda and Jimmy Adelsperger nailed the king on their 24’ Yamaha powered Sailfish.

Captain Tyler and Billy Patterson took 11th place on the Snatch-Um with a 31.93. Next up was Captain Ron Bagley’s Bag Limit with a 31.42-pounder. Traveller secured 13th place for Captain Bob Johnson with a 31.38, and Low Pressure’s Captain Ritch Mabry reeled in a 31.21 for 14th. Captain Rocky Warpool rounds out the top 15 with a 31.13-pounder aboard his 23’ Yamaha powered Polar, Damage Inc.

Leading the Class of 23’ with a 36.53-pounder are Captain Richard Geiger and Rex Wyatt on the Wave Buster, a 19’ Mercury powered Pro-Line, fishing their home waters of Jacksonville. A veteran SKA member since 1994, this team is on fire, recently winning the aggregate competition at the Bellsouth tournament the previous weekend. The team had their lines wet by 6:45 at the Southeast Hole and lost a 15-pounder. They took it as a sign and decided to make a move. “I had a game plan to fish just one spot, but we mixed it up and it worked for us,” reported Geiger. Mix it up they did, moving first to Nassau, then to 9-Mile, then off the piers, and then to the Chumhole. But it was at 9-mile that their new plan paid off, trolling at a depth of 70 feet their smoker nailed a ribbonfish at 11:25, and they quickly got her in the boat. Even with a 36-pounder in the bag the team kept fishing, but they couldn’t top that weight. Top Honors in the Class earned Geiger and his team $2,000, and positions them at the top of the Class in Division 5. This team will be virtually impossible to knock down, leading the Class of 23’ by over 20 pounds and with a 30-pound drop-fish, look to see these guys enjoying a free ride to Biloxi come November.

Mojo Risin earned second place in the Class of 23’ with a 34.34-pounder. Captain David and Josh Sutherland and John Endress caught their winner about as early as you can. Arriving at their spot 12 miles east of the scales in 68 feet of water the team began to deploy their bait at 6:55. “We just had the first line in the water and were putting the second one out when she hit,” reported Sutherland. Their smoker nailed a shotgun pogy and Josh quickly grabbed the rod. “She acted pretty weird for a king, just stayed down there pretty deep,” he continued. Josh got her to the side of Mojo Risin and they knew they had a big one. “But then, they always look bigger in the water,” confided Sutherland half-jokingly. They got her in the boat and there were celebrations all around. “It’s a great feeling when you have a big one in the bag that early.” The team managed 33-, 27- and 25-pounders all before 9 a.m., but just couldn’t beat that first fish. The Jacksonville team earned $1,500 for their smoker.

Third place in the Class boats went to Captain Charles McGarity’s Cayjen Con. Fishing a 23’ Mercury powered SportCraft out of Neptune Beach, FL, McGarity and Wayne Scarbourgh, Jr. earned a cool grand for their 33.31-pounder. Next up is J.L. Lee’s 21’ Yamaha powered Contender, Waverider. Fishing out of Fernandina Beach, FL, Lee and Vic McFalls gaffed a 32.16 for the position. Captain W.K. Parker and Hugh Robinson round out the top five in the Class with a 30.54 aboard Salt Shaker.

All agreed it was a great day’s fishing and a great tournament. With over 150 competing, Tournament Director Jack Homes increased both the prize payout and places paid, upping the ante on the $10,000 grand prize to $12,000 and adding money the whole way down the line, drawing more than a few cheers at the awards ceremony. With Division 5’s finale drawing near, and many teams looking to land that slab necessary to get them to Biloxi, anglers can only hope the bite continues come Ancient City.

Boater’s World Final Standings
1. Quality Express 41.38
2. NO EXCUSE 40.99
Donzi/Mercury
Michael Crosby
Casey Crosby
3. Willy Gator 39.87
4. CYCODAD 38.14
Skeeter/Yamaha
Paul Gallup
Paul Gallup
5. FOUL HOOKER 37.03
Yellowfin/Mercury
Richard Iwanicki
David Tennyson
Cheyenne Pacetti
Keadie Higginbotham
6. BEER MONEY 35.44
Hydra-Sport/Johnson
Chris Stephens
Jerry Richardson
Joey Kaylor
7. FINAL APPROVAL 35.02
Donzi/Mercury
Jeff Parsons
Wayne Cone
Danny Shore
Mike Hurst
Jared Hurst
8. REBEL EXPRESS 34.57
Fountain/Mercury
James Smith
Jake Fulmer
Noah Fulmer
Carson Smith
9. CREDIT LINE 33.38
Jupiter/Yamaha
Russ Russell
Jimmy Sholar
10. JAW BREAKER 33.29
Sailfish/Yamaha
Joe Noda
Jimmy Adelsperger
11. SNATCH-UM 31.93
Contender/Mercury
Tyler Patterson
Billy Patterson
12. BAG LIMIT 31.42
Fountain/Mercury
Ron Bagley
13. TRAVELLER 31.38
Strator/Johnson
Bob Johnson
Keith Lane
14. LOW PRESSURE 31.21
Contender/Yamaha
Ritch Mabry
Jerry Cloer
15. DAMAGE INC. 31.13
Polar/Yamaha
Rocky Warpool
Ron Roberson
Louis Terrell

Class of 23’
1. WAVE BUSTER 36.53
Pro-Line/Mercury
Richard Geiger
Rex Wyatt
2. MOJO-RISIN 34.34
KenCraft/Mercury
David Sutherland
Josh Sutherland
John Endress
3. CAYJEN CON 33.31
SportCraft/Mercury
Charles McGarity
Wayne Scarbourgh, Jr.
4. WAVERIDER 32.16
Contender/Yamaha
J.L. Lee
Vic McFalls
5. SALT SHAKER 30.54
Wellcraft/Mercury
W.K. Parker
Hugh Robinson

SKA Top Lady Angler
Cheyenne Pacetti & Keadie Higginbotham Foul Hooker
SKA Top Junior Anglers
1st Casey Crosby No Excuse
2nd Paul Gallup Cycodad
3rd Jared Hurst Final Approval