BGFA News & Events
IGFA Offshore World Championship-Day 1 Results
IGFA Offshore World Championship-Day 1 Results
For Immediate Release:
Contact Dan Jacobs, 407-405-0102 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 407-405-0102 end_of_the_skype_highlighting; dan.jacobs@bonniercorp.com
Returning Champs Jump to the Lead on Day One of the IGFA Offshore World
Championship
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico - The winners of the 2008 IGFA Offshore World
Championship jumped to the lead on Day One of the 2009, 10th anniversary
edition of the tournament hoping for back-to-back titles in the highly
coveted event. The striped marlin action kicked into high gear and the
2008 champions, including Robert Collins, John Timura, Kenny Longaker,
Scott Salley and Taylor Walsh released five striped marlin on the day to
move to the top of the leader board. With the marlin bite just a few
miles off shore of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, the 43 teams in the event
released more than 70 billfish on the day.
Salley and Walsh both released two marlin for their team while
Longaker released one to help the returning champions take the lead.
Following behind the 2008 champs in a close second place for the day was
the team representing the Presidential Challenge of Guatemala. Team
members Ebby Hall, Gary Tarpley, Michael Huling and Michael Viveiros
caught three sailfish and two marlin on the day to score 1,200 points
and secure second place. The team found a concentration of sailfish just
after 10 a.m. and all of their sailfish were caught within 10 minutes of
each other. The bite kept them busy, but they weren't alone.
Sitting in third place at the end of Day One was Sean Mendonca,
Derrick Tardieu, Mark Vilain and Clint Quong Sing, of the International
Marlin Madness Game Fish Tournament of Trinidad and Tobago. Sean
Mendonca caught an 800-plus-pound blue marlin off the waters of Trinidad
and Tobago in 2008 to set a new junior world record in the event, and
brought his good luck to Cabo as his team released three marlin for
third place on the day.
Rounding out the top five spots for the opening day action of
the IGFA Offshore World Championship were the Bermuda Anglers Club
International Light Tackle Tournament and the Torneio De Marlin Azul de
Rio De Janeiro, both with 700 points respectively.
The bite continued to rage as teams prepared for Day Two and all
teams were still in the hunt for the title of world champions. The
all-release billfish tournament represents the largest international
field of competitors in the world of offshore sport fishing. To qualify
for the Offshore World Championship teams must first win one of 120
qualifying tournaments held around the globe. With such a wide
international field of competitors, the Offshore World Championship has
earned the title of the "Olympics" of offshore fishing.
For the first time in the history of the IGFA Offshore World
Championship, the scoring is broadcast live online. Follow all of the
action by visiting www.igfaowc.com and clicking on "live scoring." Each
catch is posted online immediately after release so viewers can keep up
to date on all the action.
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