Results in from the 2023 Waterman

Reel Time

he third annual Waterman Fly Fishing Tournament was held this past weekend. The two-day, fly-only redfish tournament with a Snook Calcutta (an award for the longest snook of the tournament) was a sellout with 126 anglers registered. The fishing boundaries were wideranging, including the west coast of Florida from Crystal River to the southernmost tip of Sanibel Island. The photo submission format and the angler tournament app made it possible for fishermen in this entire range to participate. The tournament culminated in an awards banquet and prize-rich raffle at the Bradenton Yacht Club on Sunday evening, an event that was made possible by a large number of generous sponsors. All proceeds from the tournament benefited Tampa Bay Waterkeeper, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection, preservation and improvement of the Tampa Bay watershed.

The 63 two-angler teams received a collared long-sleeve tournament shirt, Tampa Bay Waterkeeper hats, dinner for two at the awards ceremony and one raffle ticket for each angler. Target species were redfish and snook. Scoring was done by the highest combination of the two longest redfish caught between day one and day two. If a tie had occurred in any of the three top places, it would have been decided by a casting com- petition based on fly casting distance and accuracy. Sponsors were pivotal to this event and the fishing community stepped up to support TBWK’s mission. A full list of sponsors is available on the Tampa Bay Waterkeeper website.

Some quality redfish were landed, but among the anglers I spoke to there was concern with the overall abundance of fish as well as the condition of the bay. That sentiment was shared by tournament organizer and TBWK Board member Adam Fernandez in his introduction at the evening’s awards ceremony and raffle. A total of 82 fish were weighed in during the two-day tournament including nine snook, the biggest at 25.5 inches. Seventy-two redfish were entered in the tournament. The biggest, at 34 inches, was caught by Pierson Monetti of the first-place team Crawl Mode with Josh Glidden. The team entered two fish totaling a combined 65 inches. Monetti’s company, MRIC Spatial, was a platinum sponsor of the tournament. Second place was claimed by Team Not Ready with Leigh West and Brandon Chircop. Their two fish totaled 62.5 inches. Third place was