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Dauphin Island, Alabama - The 74th edition of the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo is in the record books with David Rogers, Jr., J.J. Gilmore and Jason Andrews heading up the King Mackerel Division with a 59.50 caught on Saturday.

The Rodeo committee made several changes in the King Mackerel Division this season in an attempt to bolster this Division. It needed help as numbers have been dwindling over the past few seasons. Was it the jackpot ticket cost? Obviously so, as numbers went up from about 120 teams to over 170 this year. Then they broke the classes down, Open and Class of 23’. With less money coming in, payouts were less this year, however rodeo officials vowed to raise the prize money for next year and the SKA agreed to added support. Contender has already pledged a 23-foot center console with twin 150 hp Yamaha's as the top prize for the overall tournament.

The tournament started with an above-average Friday. Participants weighed five tarpon, a rodeo record tuna and gray snapper and a non-member scaled a 58.77 kingfish to lead the Open division's king jackpot. It stayed that way until David Rogers, Jr. came to the rodeo docks on Sunday morning. “We caught her at 6:30 last night but couldn't get back to the scales before seven last night,” said an excited Rogers. The Quietus team said they had a good one, but it wasn’t until Dr. Bob Shipp, the rodeo's weighmaster, pronounced 59.50 that the celebrating commenced. The Quietus, a 23-foot Mercury powered Yellowfin, had the lead and the $10,000 tournament prize. “Thank God we signed up for the open class, it's where the money was,” added Rogers. The team took a “Fishin’ The Trail” cameraman with them on Friday and gave the SKA plenty of exciting footage as the team caught lots and lots of fish. In fact, they weighed a 45.34 and a 42.51. They then went back to the same spot on Saturday and came up with the winning fish.

Aaron, Melissa and Alicia Wells and Melissa's father Bob Wyres did the same thing, took a cameraman on Friday on their 23' Mercury powered Fountain, Purse Snatcher, and caught a lot of fish. They came back to the scales with a 24-pound ling, a 34-pound wahoo and a 25-pound barracuda. Their king, however, only weighed 25 pounds. Aaron and the team won this event last year with a 60.92 and know the sweet smell of victory so out they went on Saturday. “We fished all morning, caught lots of kings, in fact they wore us out, but none were that big,” said Wells. “We wanted to take a break and maybe catch some bottom fish so we tied up to a rig. I had a ladyfish we caught while bait fishing so I set it our on a drift line, just in case. No sooner had I put the rod in the holder than it exploded. With the boat tied to the rig we had little room on the clock. By the time we set up the chase I was down to 15 yards left on the spool.” The team was fishing 60 miles south of the island in 160 feet of water. On the second pass by the boat Melissa set the gaff on what later would become the third place king, a 53.45.

David Van Lent's In The Rough team came to the scales on Sunday and scaled the only other 50-pound king in the event, a 51.22, good for fourth place. “We fished both sides of the Mississippi River the past two days,” said Van Lent, who fishes with his wife Rosemary, Jeff Hall and Robbie and Aaron Gesquiere. “We saw a lot of fish but it wasn't until four o'clock on Saturday that this big one hit a blue runner in 100 feet of water.” They weighed in on Sunday. David and his team won the coveted Angler of the Year title in 2000 and Rose has won numerous Divisional Lady Angler titles plus Lady Angler of the Year.

John Nailling's Jig-A-Low rounded out the top five in the Open Class, scaling a nice 49.97, the biggest in this team’s career.  The Yamaha powered Contender team of Chad Parker, Doug Lambert and Judd Tompkins were fishing in 140 feet of water 52 miles from Dauphin Island. “It was pretty green water, the same place we've been fishing all week,” said Nailling. “About ten o'clock she hit a hard tail, Chad picked up the rod and we had her in the boat in no time. This is pretty exciting for us; we were beginning to think we couldn't catch that big one. Now the monkey's off our back.”

It should be noted that Marcus Kennedy's Kwazar earned sixth overall in Open Class but Mark doesn't fish just for kings in the Rodeo. He goes after the overall master angler award, no money, just bragging rights for being the best. He's won it several times but not this year. But look at what he scaled: King 49.17, Blackfin Tuna 25.28, Gag Grouper 18.00, Amberjack 75.76, Snowy Grouper 49.70, Blue Runner 5.56 and 4.39, plus numerous species in the most unusual category.

In the Class boats Cecil Capp's Sea Hagg team, hot off a big win in the Pensacola tournament, won this grand daddy of the upper Gulf events with a 48.44. With Capps on his 23-foot Yamaha powered Contender was Earl Burbridge, Gerry Rucker, Landen Rucker and James Doole, and Landen secured the third place Junior Angler award with that fish. I wonder who has won more events in the Gulf, Capps or Marcus Kennedy?  Both have put together great teams.

Get Layed made it onto the leaderboard with a 44.68 good for second place. This nice king, weighed on day one of the three day event, moved the team into fifth place overall in the Division standings. Captain Fred Watkins, Jr., Ken Jansen, Todd Gardner, Doug Horton and William Watkins fish a Yamaha powered Contender.

Third and fourth place went to non-members.

Fifth place was won by Mark Poche's Deuces Wild team who scaled a 41.34.  On board were A.J. Silbernagel and Michael Silver. The Mercury powered Sea Fox team is in a solid seventh place in the Class with one more fish they can add to their total.

Benton Crump caught a 40.14 aboard his dad's Yamaha powered Contender, Rocketman, to earn sixth place. Harry Crump, Chris Bouden and Benton Crump work hard to keep the team within striking distance of winning the Division.

Jamie Mixon's 37.95 was enough to pick up ninth for the Got Salt? and Philip Mosley ran his Pro Kat named The Waterways into tenth with a 34.62.

The Alabama Deep Sea Rodeo is produced and managed by the Mobile Alabama Jaycees. Each year hundreds of hours go into the planning and execution of the event. No, it just doesn't happen. The all-volunteer staff is committed to putting on a great event not only to earn money for local charities and other endeavors, but also to continue a 74-year tradition of the event itself. This is the largest saltwater tournament in the country and the people of southern Alabama should appreciate everything the Jaycees do for the community. I believe they do by the great attendance numbers we've seen over the years.
This year the rodeo set a record for number of participants in the Roy Martin Junior Anglers event, 1518 (also the largest saltwater kids tournament in the country). 3013 anglers in the general tournament, 179 in the king jackpot, 43 in big game, and 55 in the spanish jackpot. Our hats are off to all the Jaycees and the great job you do!         

Alabama Final Standings

1.   QUIETUS................................ 59.50
      Yellowfin/Mercury
      David Rogers Jr.
      J.J. Gilmore
      Jason Andrews

2.   Reel Wild.................................. 58.77

3.   PURSE SNATCHER................... 53.45
      Fountain/Mercury
      Bob Wyres
      Aaron Wells
      Melissa Wells
      Alecia Wells

4.   IN THE ROUGH........................ 51.22
      Contender/Yamaha
      David Van Lent
      Rosemary Van Lent
      Jeff Hall
      Robbie Gesquiere
      Aaron Gesquiere

5.   JIG-A-LOW............................. 49.97
      Contender/Yamaha
      John Nailling
      Chad Parker
      Doug Lambert
      Jubb Tompkins

6.   KWAZAR................................. 49.17
      Contender/Yamaha
      Marcus Kennedy
      Max Williams
      Tyler Kennedy
      Robert Young
      Doug Mallonee
      Brett Rutledge

7.   CROWN TIME.......................... 48.00
      Fountain/Mercury
      Jim Stewart
      Hunter Stewart
      Sean Thibodaux
      Lacie Jo Broussard

8.   Midnight Rider........................... 47.69

9.   INTENSE................................. 47.52
      Contender/Yamaha
      Neal Foster
      Tim Berger
      Robby Montgomery
      Andrew Montgomery

10. TRISHA ANN........................... 46.56
      Contender/Yamaha
      Starnes King
      Trisha King
      Heather Grahn
      Mike Wallace

CLASS OF 23

1.   SEA HAGG............................... 48.44
      Contender/Yamaha
      Cecil Capps Jr.
      Earl Burbridge
      Gerry Rucker
      Landen Rucker
      James Doole

2.   GET LAYED............................. 44.68
      Contender/Yamaha
      Fred Watkins Jr.
      Ken Jansen
      Todd Gardner
      Doug Horton
      William Watkins

3.   Naner Puddin............................. 44.13

4.   Profishunt................................. 43.35

5.   DEUCES WILD......................... 41.34
      SeaFox/Mercury
      Mark Poche
      A.J. Silbernagel
      Michael Silver

6.   ROCKETMAN............................ 40.14
      Contender/Mercury
      Harry Crump
      Judson Crump
      Chris Bouden
      Benton Crump

7.   Backlash................................... 38.68

8.   Gotcha...................................... 38.00

9.   GOT SALT?............................... 37.95
      McKee Craft/Evinrude
      Jamie Mixon
      Drew Mixon
      Drew Stroud
      Micha Mixon

10. TEAM WATERWAYS/............... 34.62
      THE GOOD STUFF
      ProKat/Suzuki
      Philip Mosley
      Phil Mosley
      Angela Mosley

SKA CYPRESS COVE MARINA JUNIOR ANGLERS

1.   ALECIA WELLS........................... PURSE SNATCHER
2.   TYLER KENNEDY......................... KWAZAR
3.   LANDEN RUCKER........................ SEA HAGG