>>read more Mercury Trail stories<<

Clearwater, Florida – The stage was set for excitement at the Division 6 finale, the Pro Marine / PAL Kingfish Tournament May 19th and 20th. While the battle for the Division 6 lead was still up in the air with less than 15 pounds separating the top five teams, smart money was on a shoot-out between the top two boats, Penny Wise and Team Pro Marine 2 / Wise Guy, who were only separated by .09 pounds. It was a safe bet; Penny Wise and Wise Guy landed the top two kings of the day. But Captain Jack Penny’s Penny Wise would prove to be the victor of the tournament by landing a 41.96.

“It turned out to be a day at the Middle Grounds,” reported Captain Penny. He and Ken, Stevie and Patty Dellane had run their 36’ Yamaha powered Contender 123 miles to the spot, and were having a good day of it. “We already had a nice king in the mid to high 30’s, then at 2:10 a blue runner on our downrigger set at 30 feet was hit,” recalled Penny. Ken grabbed the rod and the team soon had a good 40-pounder in the boat. With such a great king on board it was an easy decision to head back, and at the scale the big girl would go 41.96 pounds. There were still a lot of boats to weigh, but that king could not be knocked down the leaderboard, and at the tournament’s conclusion Penny Wise had sealed the deal. That 41-pounder proved to be worth a check for $10,000 to take home to St. Petersburg Beach, Florida. In addition, Penny Wise swept the SKA categories, with Patty, Stevie and Jack taking Top Lady, Junior and Senior Angler awards, respectively. A great multiple win, congratulations Penny Wise.

Not able to find the smoker king that they wanted, Captain Richard Fabrizi and Team Pro Marine 2 / Wise Guy still managed a 34.34-pounder to take second place. “We had pretty much the same story as Penny Wise. We made the run to the Middle Grounds and already had two high 20’s in the bag when the big one hit,” reported Fabrizi. “We were even hooked up at the same time as Penny Wise, our king came on a cigar minnow at 2:10,” he continued. Ryan Farner took up angling duties as Brian Brandano waited with the gaff, and the team soon had their 34-pounder in the bag. They headed their 38’ Mercury powered Fountain straight in, and at the scales their 34.34 would prove to top the leaderboard, for about 5 minutes. Six boats later the Penny Wise knocked them down one spot, earning Fabrizi and team $5,000.

The Middle Grounds was definitely the spot to be this tournament, a fact Captain Robert Snibbe and the crew of the Native would attest to. Captain Snibbe, Matt Tarrance, Evan Kerstein, Jerry Solouskoy and Doug Henriott made the 123-mile run in their 34’ Mercury powered Fountain, and found it one smooth ride. “The conditions were just great for everyone who made the run,” reported Fabrizi. The team already had two good fish in the high 20’s when their big girl hit at 1:50, snatching a blue runner on the surface. Native made short work of the king, and at the scale she would prove to weigh 34.08 pounds, narrowly missing second by a quarter-pound. Their best fish in this Division, the 34-pounder brought the Native up in the standings to fourth in the Open Class.

Captain Tom Shaffer and Dave Blanchard teamed on the Spectre Sportfish to secure the fourth place position. “We got some great information from a good friend and ran to a spot 70 miles southwest,” reported Schaffer. The team had one small king on the boat with time ticking away when they finally got their shot at 2:15. Trolling in 90 feet of water a blue runner 55 feet down was taken, and Blanchard stepped up to the plate. He maneuvered the king to the boat as quickly as possible, and soon had their 34’ Mercury powered Spectre racing back to the docks. At the scale their king would tip the needle to 31.83 pounds, a solid fourth place finish. “I’d like to especially thank Spectre Boats. It wouldn’t have been possible without them,” said Shaffer.

The Blue Runner On Top rounds out the top five with the last king in the 30-pound range. Captain A.J. McLauchlin III, Frank Quinto, A.J. McLauchlin IV, and Kevin and Kerry Reardon teamed on the 36’ Mercury powered Yellowfin and made the big run to the Middle Grounds. “We were out there with the group,” reported McLauchlin, “and everyone’s fish came at the same time.” Trolling in 128 feet of water, their king hit a blue runner on top just after Penny and Fabrizi had hooked up. The pressure was on as Quinto grabbed the rod on the team’s only fish of the day, but he earned his keep and brought the king within gaffing distance and the team was soon racing back to the weigh-in. Their only king of the day would prove to weigh 30.10 pounds, earning this St. Petersburg, Florida team fifth place.

Captain Kevin Grissinger landed a 29.55 on the Marshall Law to take sixth place as well as jump from 15th to sixth in the Divisional standings. He and Perry Warner fish a 27’ Yamaha powered Contender out of Belleair, Florida. Seventh place fell to Captain Tony Morrison’s Ocean Waves team. He and Rob Campbell and Dave and Tim Travis hooked a 28.68-pounder on their 25’ Mercury powered Hydra-Sport. The Clearwater boat Pocket Change is up next with an eighth place 27.50-pound king. Captain Mike Masters nailed it on his 34’ Honda powered Legend.

Captain Kevin Hannon brought a 27.46 to the scales on the ProMarineUSA.com / Hannon’s Cannon, two top ten finishes for Pro Marine in their own tournament; you know they have to be pleased. Captain Hannon, Steve Rowley, Shannon Armstrong, Rick Cook and Joe Springer nailed that king on their 34’ Yellowfin powered by Yamaha, Mercury and Evinrude motors. Size Matters rounds out the top ten with a 26.77-pounder. Captain Patrick Mathews out of Clearwater and Marty Mayes teamed on the 31’ Suzuki powered Yellowfin for the victory.

A 26-pounder was good to take top honors in the Class of 23’ for Team Sea Craft, their best finish to date. “We had pre-fished Tampa Bay and caught some nice kings,” reported Captain Harvison Hunt. He and Jack Vasilaros were trolling the 23’ Suzuki powered Bayliner in 38 feet of water in the Bay when a ladyfish on the downrigger set at 25 feet was hit. While they had already had four small kings, Vasilaros could tell when he got behind the rod that this fish was better, and when they got her in the boat the estimate was confirmed. At the dock Team Sea Craft’s king tipped the scale at 26.12 pounds, and by the conclusion of the weigh-in this Clearwater team was named champion of the Class of 23’.

It was a tight race for the top position in the Class, with Yellow Bird right on Team Sea Craft’s tail, posting a 26.07-pounder. Captain Keith Thomas and Charles Lane took their 20’ Yamaha powered Polar 13 miles west of Anna Marie to a spot called the Jack Hole. It was a long wait for the team, but at 3:30 their only king of the day hit a white bait in 48 feet of water. Lane took control of the mackerel and soon had her flopping at his feet. Their single king of the day would prove to be worth second place honors for this St. Petersburg team.

Rounding out the top three in the Class of 23’ is the Bandit, the Bonnell family boat. This team has been on fire all year and the numbers certainly reflect it. While their 23.57 would only be worth third in Class, they can’t be mad, it was the smallest king they’ve caught this year! Those final 23 points propelled them to the triple-digit mark, a 100.37-pound three-fish aggregate, leading the Class by nearly 30 pounds. It should also be noted that with that fish Bandit is not only leading the Class of 23’, but also the Open Class.

All teams were pleased with the very well run Pro Marine / Pinellas PAL Kingfish Tournament, a great new event on the Division 6 tournament schedule. With a long hiatus before the Division ender in November, it’s a safe bet you’ll see more than a few of these highly competitive boats as Division 5 starts up at the Kingbuster 400 in June. Northeastern Florida anglers beware!

Pinellas PALFinal Standings

1. PENNY WISE ...................................... 41.96
Contender/Yamaha
Jack Penny
Ken Dellane
Stevie Dellane
Patty Dellane

2. PROMARINEUSA.COM/WISE GUY ...... 34.34
Fountain/Mercury
Richard Fabrizi
Ryan Farner
Brian Brandano

3. NATIVE ............................................. 34.08
Fountain/Mercury
Robert Snibbe
Matt Tarrance
Evan Kerstein
Jerry Solouskoy
Doug Henriott

4. SPECTRE SPORTFISH ........................ 31.83
Spectre/Mercury
Tom Shaffer
Dave Blanchard

5. BLUE RUNNER ON TOP ....................... 30.10
Yellowfin /Mercury
A.J. McLauchlin III
Frank Quinto
A.J. McLauchlin IV
Kevin Reardon
Kerry Reardon

6. MARSHALL LAW ................................. 29.55
Contender/Yamaha
Kevin Grissinger
Perry Warner

7. OCEAN WAVES ................................... 28.68
Hydra-Sport/Mercury
Tony Morrison
Rob Campbell
Dave Travis
Tim Travis

8. POCKET CHANGE ................................ 27.50
Legend/Honda
Mike Masters

9. PROMARINEUSA.COM/HANNON’S CANNON ... 27.46
Yellowfin/Yamaha, Mercury, Evinrude
Kevin Hannon
Steve Rowley
Shannon Armstrong
Rick Cook
Joe Springer

10. SIZE MATTERS ................................. 26.77
Yellowfin/Suzuki
Patrick Mathews
Marty Mayes

Class of 23’

1. TEAM SEACRAFT ......... 26.12
Bayliner/Suzuki
Harvison Hunt
Jack Vasilaros

2. YELLOW BIRD .............. 26.07
Polar/Yamaha
Keith Thomas
Charles Lane

3. BANDIT ....................... 23.57
Bluewater/Yamaha
Jeremy Bonnell
Vernon Bonnell
Matthew Bonnell
Sandy Bonnell
Chris Bonnell

SKA Top Lady Angler

Patty Dellane ............................... Penny Wise

SKA Top Junior Anglers

1st Stevie Dellane ........................ Penny Wise
2nd Tanner Zellmer & Zack Luz ..... Reel Knotty
3rd Ryan Parrish .......................... Top Down