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TEAM YO-ZURI WINS HOG’S BREATH!
Fischer Takes Home New 23’ Contender

by Ian Warner

Two 60-pounders christened the SKA 2007 Tournament Trail at the season opener, the Hog’s Breath / Murray Marine Kingfish Tournament. Presented by Contender boats and Evinrude outboards, a fleet of 164 boats arrived for a chance at winning the grand prize: a 23’ Contender powered by twin Evinrude E-Tecs on a Continental trailer valued at $60,000. While the weather was less than optimal, Captain Ozzie Fischer and Team Yo-Zuri persevered through the rough conditions to weigh their largest kingfish in competition and take home that brand new Contender.

“Actually, we spent more time at the dock than we did out on the water,” said a smiling Fischer at the awards ceremony. Indeed, the team was the first at the docks on Saturday, kicked back and relaxing while their brethren were out getting pummeled.

Heading out Saturday morning after check-out, Fischer and his team of Ozzie Lessinger, Miles Meredith, Chris Rush and Christian Fischer were planning on making the run to the Tortugas, but after ten miles of running decided to change plans. “I told my team, ‘Remember, this is supposed to be fun,’” said Fischer, and he headed the 31’ Yamaha powered Yellowfin to a spot inside of the Tail End Buoy. After only 30 minutes of fishing Team Yo-Zuri already had a 33-pounder in the box and they started redeploying their lines. “As soon as we put the first line out it got hit and she spooled pretty much the entire line. She nailed the Yo-Zuri pink hybrid line with Yo-Zuri pink fluoro leader,” reported Fischer. With Lessinger on the rod the big king ran herself out with four big runs, and after some quick celebrations that were just as quickly silenced, Team Yo-Zuri was on plane back to the scales. Enjoying a relaxing afternoon in the sun Fischer and his team were the first to weigh, and that “61.78 pounds!” from Jack Holmes announcing the event had to make the wait worthwhile.

“History tells you that you need a 60-pounder to win in the Keys,” said Fischer, “after last year I knew this fish was good, but I also knew it could be beat.” You know Fischer was remembering Lured Away’s day two 66-pounder that won the 2006 event, but he and his team decided to play the odds and sit it out on Sunday. “I hate to say it, but we were praying for bad weather. We knew it would keep these guys from making the run to the Tortugas,” continued Fischer. Fischer's prayers were answered as the morning's forecast called for winds gusting up to 25 mph and seas swelling from six to eight feet. In response, the tournament committee decided to open weigh-in early, allowing teams getting beat up to get off the water as soon as it started getting sporty.

Team Yo-Zuri’s gamble paid off, and Captain Ozzie Fischer’s 61 pounds of kingfish proved to be worth a new $60,000 Contender. In addition, that 61-pounder named Christian Fischer the tournament’s Top Junior Angler, setting him up a very successful year in the Junior Angler race. Christian was awarded a check for $1,000 from Economy Tackle for top honors. That’s quite an accomplishment for a green team. “It’s funny because, besides me, none of my crew ever fishes kings. Counting the members on the boat we have over 60 tournament wins from tarpon and the redfish tour, but only one of them had ever caught a kingfish.” Beginners luck? Whatever you believe, watch out for Team Yo-Zuri on the 2007 Tournament Trail, Fischer’s crew has the kingfishing bug now, and they’re heading to Division 11 next.

Two non-members swept the next spots. Captain Jimmy Johnson’s Double J team landed the only other 60-pounder of the event, a 60.51, to take the second place prize of a new Evinrude E-Tec outboard. This local team was fishing the Tail End Buoy and hooked up at 9:30 with a blue runner on top. The Nail Head, Captain Johnny Walker’s team, landed the largest Sunday fish, a 53.54-pounder to take home $5,000. Fishing only 10 miles away near Sand Key at a bar that ranges from 40 to 112 feet, their winner also hit a blue runner on top.

Like the vast majority of the teams, Captain Skip Chandler and the Twin Vee team caught their big king on Saturday, a beautiful 50.87-pounder. Chandler was joined by Kadri Benton and Damon Wilson on the 29’ Suzuki powered Twin Vee. “It’s a brand new crew, I couldn’t be more pleased,” beamed Chandler at the awards ceremony. Heading out on day one the Twin Vee team decided to fish the Banana Bar Ledge in 90 feet of water. “We had a fish hit a blue runner on the downrigger at 10:00 that we fought for over an hour, but it never turned its head. We figured it probably wasn’t a king so we put the screws to him and popped him off.” Then, a little after one o’clock their smoker came calling. “She was a tough fish. She took about 200 yards of line on the initial run, and by the time we got turned around, she had taken the reel down to probably 50 yards of line.” Kadri Benton was the angler on deck, and once the team got an eye on the king and saw what a hog they had they really got down to business. “Seeing what a big fish it was we eased up on the drag a little bit and tried to finesse her more than horse her to the boat.” Keeping their cool, Kadri maneuvered the 50-pounder to the waiting gaff, and Damon Wilson ended the fight with a clean shot. “He did an excellent job. The fish didn’t bleed an ounce, which was the best thing, because Long Overdue was only .01 pounds behind us.”

With a 50-pounder in the bag the team made the easy decision to head to the docks, and at the end of Saturday’s fishing Twin Vee was sitting comfortably in third place. “With the forecast calling for six to eight feet and 25 to 25 mph winds we decided to put Sunday to a vote,” reported Chandler. With a three-to-one vote the Twin Vee team decided to rest on its laurels and was dropped down to fourth overall after Nail Head landed that 53-pounder. With 50 points on the board and $4,000 in the bag, watch for Chandler’s team to be fishing hard this season in Division 10 in their run for the Nationals, they’ve already got one great start.

Captain Phil Cottrell and Paul Prystash on the Long Overdue have the next 50-pounder, a 50.86, narrowly missing fourth place overall to take top Class of 23’ honors. This team is no stranger to landing huge kings; Cottrell held the North Carolina SKA record until Andy Hinton broke it in 2002. Fishing a 23’ Mercury powered SeaCraft, Captain Cottrell headed just west of the Marquesas Rock and was working at a depth of 130 feet when that whopper struck. “We’d only been trolling about 20 minutes when it hit, and it ran straight under another Class of 23’ boat, Strictly Fishing, that was fighting another fish. They had their fish straight up and down, and with our king right under their boat we couldn’t maneuver around them,” reported Cottrell. Letting the drag go the team watched as the smoker pulled off three quarters of the spool before Strictly Fishing and the Long Overdue could get their lines untangled. Then Prystash’s line got tangled in an old lobster pot. “It was an old one without a buoy anymore, and after three or four minutes of untangling the rotten rope I got him back up and down again,” continued Cottrell. Cottrell finally got the hog to the surface, and when he did the fight was over, the king was thoroughly exhausted by the long ordeal. Top honors in the Class earned the Long Overdue a check for three grand and presented the team with a new dilemma. “We said if we caught a good fish we’d have to go to Miami, so we might have to make the trip down from North Carolina now,” smiled Cottrell. “I’m just very appreciative of Strictly Fishing, without them it would have never happened. I’d also like to thank Mercury Marine and Outback Marine for their continued support.”

Captain Brett Clarke and Team Spectre / Silver Bullet round out the Open Class top five with the last 50-pounder, a 50.09. Captain Clarke was joined by Aaron and Steve Salvant on the new 34’ Mercury powered Spectre. “We really like the Spectre a lot, now we can compete speed-wise,” grinned Clark, relating that the triple Mercury 275s were getting a top speed around 68 mph. Utilizing that speed the Silver Bullet team was one of the first at their spot west of the Tail End Buoy. By 9:00 the team already had a solid 30-pounder in the boat, but at 9:15 things really started cooking for the team. Their 50-pounder eyed their goggle eye on the surface and the next thing the team knew a silver torpedo was skying with their goggle eye between its jaws. After a nail-biting 20-minute fight Captain Clarke sunk the gaff into his largest kingfish to date, and the fifth place $3,000 prize was his. Heading to Marco Island next, watch for Team Spectre / Silver Bullet to tear them up in Division 11.

Captain Paul Poirier and Dan Simoes teamed on the Gamefisher for one spectacular weekend. Fishing a 34’ Yamaha powered Venture, Captain Poirier found a big 47.90 on Saturday to earn $2,500. “We were fishing down toward the tower, about 35 miles away,” reported Poirier. Trolling in 80 to 120 feet of water, their 47-pounder hit a blue runner on top at 11:30. Dan angled to fish to Paul’s waiting gaff in under 15 minutes, but the team wasn’t done there. They went on and hooked up another 35-pounder, then tragedy struck.

“We were reeling in one that was even bigger than our 47-pounder when we watched his tail get bitten off by a shark,” grimaced Poirier, “when we got to the scales we weighed the half that was left and even that much went 33 pounds.” That’s a heartbreaker, but the team didn’t let it get them down. The Gamefisher headed out to the Coalbin Rock, approximately 20 miles away, and pulled another good 45-pounder out of the Key West waters at 10:30 on Sunday. That second king hit a blue runner on top while trolling at 130 feet. “We’re trying to qualify and get into the Pro Division next year,” reported Poirier. If this team is already landing aggregates like this during their first tournament, it’s a safe bet this team will be among the elite next year. Watch for the Gamefisher in Miami and Stuart next as they continue their quest for qualification.

Captain Tommy Mulligan and the Wound Tight team rounds out the SKA top five, landing a 47.15-pounder for eighth place overall. Captain Mulligan, Jim Scharfschwerdt and Junior Angler Matthew Scharfschwerdt fish a 32’ Mercury powered Donzi, and they headed it west to make the long run. Arriving at their spot 55 miles later and setting up in 120 feet of water at 9 o’clock, the Wound Tight was immediately rewarded. “It hit the first bait in the water. Jim had put a blue runner back, and as soon as he put the rod in the holder it went off,” reported Mulligan. Jim’s hand shot back to the rod, and he quickly worked the big king to the Donzi and Tommy’s waiting gaff. With a 47-pounder in the boat the team didn’t stop there, and they reported catching another 40-pounder that was unfortunately mauled by a shark or barracuda, some good mid-30s and multiple schoolies. A rough two and a half hour ride home was rewarded with a seventh place finish on the board for day one.

The Wound Tight braved the elements on Sunday trying to better that 47-pounder, and they came close. “We opted not to go as far because of the sea conditions,” said Mulligan, who started the team off at the Banana Bar. The team had multiple teenagers, but couldn’t find a king worth keeping. Making a move to the Coalbin Rock proved fortuitous as a nice 41-pounder snatched a ribbon run deep. “On Saturday we couldn’t get anything to look at a downrigger,” related Mulligan, “but every fish on Sunday came on the downrigger.” While that 41-pounder wasn’t quite enough to displace their big 47.15, it was still some great consistent fishing, and it earned Matthew Scharfschwerdt second place Junior Angler honors and a great electronics package from Bethel Marine Electronics. “I’d just like to thank Team Donzi, Raymarine Electronics, Bethel Marine Electronics and TR-1 Autopilots for their continued support on the trail. We couldn’t do it without them,” said Mulligan.

Captain Randy Crabtree’s Vamoose is up next with a 47.10-pound king for ninth place and a $1,250 payday. Captain Crabtree was joined by Roy Boone and John Crosby on the new 36’ Mercury powered Invincible, and they found their king, like most, on Saturday. Captain Jon Gundlach and Bud Randall round out the tournament’s top ten. Fishing a 34’ Mercury powered Yellowfin, The Natural, Captain Gundlach weighed a 46.07 on Saturday to earn $1,000.

Naples, Florida’s Captain Andrew Gunn and the Wiltshire Fishing Team round out the four-figure spots, earning a cool grand for third place in the Class of 23’ with a 34-pounder. “We’ve got a boat full of Captains,” related Captain Gunn, “Cooper Cordin and Will Geraghty both run charters out of our area.” The experience paid off for this team, as they were one of few to land a Sunday fish and move the leaderboard. Fishing the Animal Farm on Saturday the team experienced a heavy bite with multiple double hook-ups, but couldn’t better a low 20-pounder.

Heading the 23’ Yamaha powered Contender out Sunday into the approaching front, the team decided to fish closer to home and headed to a spot locally known as the Monkey Jungle, about 11 miles from checkout. Geraghty reported that the conditions were looking “very fishy,” with good bait presence, working frigates and a 73-degree water temperature, but they couldn’t scare up a bite. After a long wait the short line finally sang, Geraghty grabbed the rod, and the fight was on! With a squall line approaching fast the team knew time was of the essence, and Captain Gunn sunk the gaff home at the first opportunity. At the scales the king would go 34.38 pounds for third place Class honors. Watch for this highly experienced team to be making waves in the Class of 23’ race in Divisions 10 and 11.

Captain Doug Miller led the Miller Tyme to an 11th place Open Class finish with a 45.72-pounder. Miller was joined by Monty Peters and Brian Black on the 36’ Yamaha powered Contender. Team Yellowfin, led by Wylie Nagler, took 12th place on the strength of a 45.53-pound king. Mark Liberman, Kevin Barker and Trae Ross rounded out this team that fishes a 31’ Mercury powered Yellowfin.

A 45.15-pounder was good for 13th place for the Perfect Foursome, a 34’ Yamaha powered Fountain. Captain Ken Harris, Billy Green and C.J. McLaughlin teamed for the finish. Captain Chris and Walt Thomas and Marsad Quraishi fished the Hold’em Hook to a 14th place finish. They hooked a 44.95 on Thomas’ 34’ Mercury powered Fountain. Angler of the Year Captain Ron Mitchell and the Bandit team round out the top 15. Joined by Ty Cobb and Rick Stockwell, Mitchell navigated his 36’ Contender to a 43.18-pounder on Sunday.

With the 150 boat requirement filled, tournament directors decided to add an extra place of payment, and Captain David Heavenridge and Team Spectre Yanmar / Top Gun filled the spot with a 42.50, earning an unexpected $700 bonus. Heavenridge was joined by Ron and Morgan Kien on the 37’ Yanmar powered Spectre for the finish.

In the Lady Angler race Angie Wallace took top honors on the Minnows and Monsters. She and her team weighed a 40.49-pounder, and she received a $1,000 check courtesy of Salty Marine. Rounding out the Junior Angler top three was the Spiced Rum III’s Freddie Joseph. Freddie and the team pulled in a 40.94-pound king to win a bonus electronics package from Bethel Marine Electronics. Congratulations, all.

As always, Tammy Murray and the Murray Marine staff and volunteers were working hard all week to raise money and awareness for the Wesley House Family Services and the Inez Martin Child Care Center. Serving the Florida Keys, Wesley House promotes and enhances the safety, well-being and development of children by educating, supporting and meeting the needs of families. Over $4,500 was raised by food concession at the tournament and the charity raffle and auction held at the Appreciation Party Saturday night.

The Hog’s Breath / Murray Marine Kingfish Tournament is perhaps the perfect way to start of the SKA year. While the weather didn’t cooperate as fully as we may have liked, no one can debate that Lee Murray and his staff put together one incredible, smoothly-run event with plenty to do and a great atmosphere. If you’ve never been to this tournament in the Keys, you’re really missing out. Make plans to enjoy this event next year, you won’t regret it. 

1.   TEAM YO-ZURI..................................................................... 61.78
      Yellowfin/Yamaha
      Ozzie Fischer
      Ozzie Lessinger
      Miles Meredith
      Chris Rush
      Christian Fischer
2.   Double J................................................................................ 60.51
3.   Nail Head.............................................................................. 53.54
4.   TWIN VEE............................................................................ 50.87
      Twin Vee/Suzuki     
      Charles “Skip” Chandler
      Kadri Benton
      Damon Wilson
5.   TEAM SPECTRE/SILVER BULLET......................................... 50.09
      Spectre/Mercury
      Brett Clarke
      Aaron Salvant
      Steve Salvant
6.   GAMEFISHER....................................................................... 47.90
      Venture/Yamaha
      Paul Poirier
      Dan Simoes
7.   Advance Roofing.................................................................... 47.39
8.   WOUND TIGHT..................................................................... 47.15
      Donzi/Mercury
      Tommy Mulligan
      Jim Scharfschwerdt
      Matthew Scharfschwerdt
9.   VAMOOSE............................................................................ 47.10
      Invincible/Mercury
      Randy Crabtree
      Roy Boone
      John Crosby
10. THE NATURAL...................................................................... 46.07
      Yellowfin/Mercury
      Jon Gundlach
      Bud Randall
11. MILLER TYME....................................................................... 45.72
      Contender/Yamaha
      Doug Miller
      Monty Peters
      Brian Black
12. TEAM YELLOWFIN............................................................... 45.53
      Yellowfin/Mercury
      Wylie Nagler
      Mark Liberman
      Kevin Barker
      Trae Ross
13. PERFECT FOURSOME.......................................................... 45.15
      Contender/Yamaha
      Ken Harris
      Billy Green
      C.J. McLaughlin
14. HOLDEM HOOK.................................................................... 44.95
      Fountain/Mercury
      Chris Thomas
      Marsad Quraishi
      Walt Thomas
15. BANDIT................................................................................ 43.18
      Contender/Suzuki
      Ron Mitchell
      Ty Cobb
      Rick Stockwell
16. TEAM SPECTRE YANMAR/TOP GUN..................................... 42.50
      Spectre/Yanmar     
      David Heavenridge
      Warren Williams
      Ron Kien
      Morgan Kien

      Class of 23’

1.   LONG OVERDUE.................................................................. 50.86
      SeaCraft/Mercury
      Phil Cottrell
      Paul Prystash
2.   Loop A.................................................................................. 37.61
3.   WILTSHIRE FISHING TEAM.................................................. 34.38
      Contender/Yamaha
      Andrew Gunn
      J. Cooper Cordin
      Will Geraghty

SKA Top Lady Angler
Sponsored by Salty Marine
Angie Wallace............................................................................. Minnows and Monsters (40.49)

SKA Top Junior Anglers
Sponsored by Raymarine Electronics
and Bethel Marine Electronics

1st Christian Fischer.................................................................... Team Yo-Zuri
2nd Matthew Scharfschwerdt........................................................ Wound Tight
3rd Freddie Joseph...................................................................... Spiced Rum III (40.94)