They Caught the Fish, but the $3.5 Million Prize Got Away
The first boat to bring in a marlin weighing more than 500 pounds would win the Fabulous Fisherman prize, worth $739,500. The prize for catching the biggest marlin overall was $2,769,400. The potential haul, then, was $3.5 million if you won both prizes.
Sensation dropped the lines and trolled. At the end of one particular line was a Black Bart Super Plunger with a blue and silver head and streaks of red and purple.
But two minutes later, the line with the Black Bart exploded off the reel. “A hit like you wouldn’t believe,” McCoy said later. Line raced from the rod with a screaming whine. Something was on the line, and it was big.
They pulled into the docks around 11:15 p.m. Word had spread about their big catch, and people packing the waterfront restaurants and bars cheered them as they motored into Morehead City. A huge crowd packed Big Rock Landing.
The tournament’s weighmaster, Randy Gregory, who is a marine biologist, boarded the boat and inspected the fish. He quickly recognized a problem. The marlin had a bite on its tail, apparently from a shark, and was a missing chunk of flesh on its anal fin.
Under the rules, any fish that was mutilated during the battle would be disqualified. When a fish is hurt, the angler has an unfair advantage.
Sensation’s win was in doubt. But out of respect for the crew’s efforts, Ivey said, officials chose to announce the weight: 619.4 pounds. It was the first fish greater than 500 pounds, and the largest overall by 135 pounds. The crowd hooted in celebration, but tournament officials said they needed to deliberate further and sent everyone home.
That night, they brought in additional biologists and experts to examine the fish. Their conclusion: It had indeed been bitten by a shark or some other predator during the time it was hooked on the line.
The next morning, they announced that Sensation’s catch was disqualified.
The first boat to bring in a marlin weighing more than 500 pounds would win the Fabulous Fisherman prize, worth $739,500. The prize for catching the biggest marlin overall was $2,769,400. The potential haul, then, was $3.5 million if you won both prizes.
Sensation dropped the lines and trolled. At the end of one particular line was a Black Bart Super Plunger with a blue and silver head and streaks of red and purple.
But two minutes later, the line with the Black Bart exploded off the reel. “A hit like you wouldn’t believe,” McCoy said later. Line raced from the rod with a screaming whine. Something was on the line, and it was big.
They pulled into the docks around 11:15 p.m. Word had spread about their big catch, and people packing the waterfront restaurants and bars cheered them as they motored into Morehead City. A huge crowd packed Big Rock Landing.
The tournament’s weighmaster, Randy Gregory, who is a marine biologist, boarded the boat and inspected the fish. He quickly recognized a problem. The marlin had a bite on its tail, apparently from a shark, and was a missing chunk of flesh on its anal fin.
Under the rules, any fish that was mutilated during the battle would be disqualified. When a fish is hurt, the angler has an unfair advantage.
Sensation’s win was in doubt. But out of respect for the crew’s efforts, Ivey said, officials chose to announce the weight: 619.4 pounds. It was the first fish greater than 500 pounds, and the largest overall by 135 pounds. The crowd hooted in celebration, but tournament officials said they needed to deliberate further and sent everyone home.
That night, they brought in additional biologists and experts to examine the fish. Their conclusion: It had indeed been bitten by a shark or some other predator during the time it was hooked on the line.
The next morning, they announced that Sensation’s catch was disqualified.
