White Marlin Open is a wrap

The 51st annual White Marlin Open is a wrap.

Known as the largest and richest billfish tournament in the world, this year’s Ocean City Md., one-day-longer event featured an overall purse of $8.5 million.

Saturday was the final day of competition after officials added extra fishing to the five-day regular schedule because of foul conditions – some caused by Tropical Depression Debby.

This year’s Open featured 318 teams from up and down the East Coast and, according to officials, 62 teams hit the water for the final day.

Because of Debby and a lingering cold front, hundreds of white marlin were caught. Dozens of blue marlin, plenty of bigeye – even a bluefin – and even a few wahoo were boated.

Fish in each division must meet a required length before they can make the scales and then they must reach a weight minimum to qualify for the leaderboards.

Some fish come to the scales inches and ounces shy.

Teams must pay entry fees into each of the divisions to qualify in them. To increase the winnings, teams must also pay into a variety of levels for things like daily catch, release scores and so on.

In fact, the release division – where teams earn points for caught then released fish – is arguably the hottest in the event. Sequel out of Beaufort, N.C., won the division, but there just isn’t the kind of money paid out in the white marlin showdown.

In the tournament’s namesake division for white marlin, Ven Poole of Raleigh N.C., won with a 77.5-pounder caught on the Waste Knot – a Raleigh-registered boat that fishes out of Morehead City, N.C.

Poole’s fish, caught three days ago, is worth $3,699,630.

Caught by Noah Vickers of the event’s hometown, a 76-pounder white caught on the Ocean City-based Billfisher currently is worth $1,797,119 and second place.

In the blue marlin division, Lance Blakemore of Horseheads, N.J., won with a 897.5-pounder caught on the Stone Cutter. The fish is one of the top five blues ever weighed in at the event – based on weight – and is worth $520,374.

Phil Key of Miller’s Island, Md., was second with a 894-pounder caught on the Moore Bills that is worth $410,936.

Rob Jones of Cincinnati, Ohio, captured the tuna division with a 220.5-pound bigeye caught on the Blue Runner. His fish earned $1,007,012.

A pair of bigeye tuna are tied for second at 193.5 pounds.

Fishing on the Indian River Del.-based American Lady, Ian Horowitz of North Wales, Pa., won the wahoo division with a last minute 70-pounder worth $68,594.

On former NBA superstar Michael Jordan’s Catch 23, Patrick Field of Stuart, Fla., won the dolphin division with a 32.5-pounder worth $64,594.

Teams are now hurrying south for the upcoming Pirate’s Cove and Virginia Beach billfish showdowns.