See Legs Bigeye Caps Breakout Tuesday at White Marlin Open
After rough seas limited Monday’s opening-day fleet to only 17 boats, the 53rd Annual White Marlin Open came alive Tuesday as 255 of the tournament’s 334 registered boats headed offshore.
Monday’s 6- to 9-foot seas produced only three fish at the Harbour Island scales, all tuna, leaving every other division without a qualifying catch. Tuesday brought a much different picture, with crowded scales, a strong billfish bite and a late-arriving bigeye tuna that changed the tournament’s projected payouts.
The tuna action began at 4:05 p.m. when Kevin Patane of Queenstown, Maryland, weighed an 81-pound bluefin aboard HaloRick 2.
At 5:20 p.m., Reel Blessed of Ocean City moved into first place with a 91.5-pound bluefin caught by Jordan “Jordy” Mitchell of Forest Hill, Maryland.
Ocean City Boats Dominate Day One Despite Rough Offshore Conditions
Day one of the White Marlin Open is in the books, and while rough offshore conditions kept much of the fleet at the dock, a handful of determined crews made the run and were rewarded with some impressive catches.
Leading the tuna division after the opening day is Full Service, an Ocean City boat, with a beautiful 84-pound tuna caught by Mike Freiji from Fallston, MD. Close behind is fellow Ocean City boat Talkin Trash with an 81.5-pound tuna caught by angler Dan Caiola from Frederick, MD followed by another Ocean City contender, Game On, rounding out the top three with an 80.5-pound tuna from angler John Friedmann from Middletown, DE.