BUC CUP NEWS & PROGRAM by Recreational Fishing Alliance

TOURNAMENT PROGRAM EDITION

January 19 - 21, 2017

TOURNAMENT DETAILS & SCHEDULE THE SPONSORS WHO MAKE IT POSSIBLE HOW THE BUC HELPS KEEP US FISHING AND SOME GREAT READING, TOO! January 2017

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BUC CUP NEWS

Special Tournament Program Edition

ongratulations to the crew of the Kathy Jo for winning the 53rd Buc Cup last January. It was a tough one with the weather throwing some serious nastiness at the contestants, but when all was said these Buc Cup rookies took home $95,900 in cash from one of the smallest fields we seen in recent memories. With a little help from the fishing gods and the weather we should see a larger field of boats and a major increase in money in the pot in 2017. Will you be in the hunt this year? We hope so!

TABLE OF CONTENTS Giving Thanks Welcome to Buc 54

Page 5

Kathy Jo Wins! The Blow by Blow from Buc 53

Page 6

A Word About Our Sponsors

Page 10

Corporate Sponsor Listing

Page 12

Buc 54 - Schedule, Rules, Regulations & Fee Information

Page 16

Sailfish Tournament Conundrum: Balancing Live & Dead Bait

Page 23

Jupiter Beach Resort

Page 32

Maxel Sailfish Special Reel Giveaway

Page 34

SUBSCRIBE January 2017

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Longer Article Headline Subhead By: Gary Caputi

GIVING THANKS

s we prepare for the 54th Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Tournament we reflect on all the things that have to come together to make it happen.

cal action organization that has worked tirelessly to represent saltwater fishermen like you for the last 20 years. Some of their accomplishments have been critical to rebuilding billfish stocks, protecting critical As a stand-alone event it is one of the smaller billfish tournaments held in Flori- habitat for pelagic species and protecting da each winter. It doesn't have the largest your right to fish for sailfish, white and blue marlin. One of their accomplishments field, but it attracts some really great prevented regulations that could have shut teams each year. It doesn't offer the biggest payouts, but the Calcutta and tourna- down the most prestigious big-money billfish tournaments so many of your look forment cash add up to a pretty handsome ward to fishing each year! sum. Just ask the owner of the Kathy Jo, last year's first place boat! So we thank the owners, captains and anglers who fish the Buc and hope they all reThe Buc isn't the oldest Florida tournament, but at 54 years and running it's cer- alize that by doing so they are showing thanks and helping continue the work of tainly got a lot of history behind it. Many an organization that we should all recogof the legends of the sport have been involved with it going back to its beginnings nize and be part of. We also thank the in the 1960s. One of the reasons we work many companies that are sponsors of the Buc and can tell you that every one underso hard to make it happen is to keep the stands the contribution the RFA's work has history going for each new generation of had for the sport and for their businesses. competitors. The Buc Cup is different from most tournaments because the money it generates, all the money it generates, is donated to the Recreational Fishing Alliance, a politi-

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The more boats we can gather here each January to fish the Buc the bigger the event, the bigger the payouts and the greater the amount money we can donate to the RFA . Thanks for coming.

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KATHY JO Wins the 53rd Buc Cup Last year's event will go down as one of the hardest fought with the top boat trophy and big payout going to a tournament newcomer.

he toughest of the tough competed against each other and the weather in the 53rd Annual Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Release Tournament. The field of 21 boats set out on Friday, January 22 in rough seas and rain and if that wasn’t bad enough the west wind on Saturday was blowing a gale throughout the day! Even in the face of severe conditions fish were still caught by a group of the most hardcore tournament fishermen you’ll find anywhere!

but consistent and by afternoon the lead was changing hands between three boats. The day ended with Tuna Tango, Della Ann and Intents in a three-way tie for first place release points.

Day two started off at 8:32 with a release by the 70’ Bertram, Kathy Jo, owned by Lewis Lakin and captained by John Millroy, a boat that didn’t have a single release on day one. It wouldn’t be the last we’d heard from this team as they Day one the trolled in lead changed rough seas almost with nine miles off every release the beach and called in to the well north of radio room tournament high atop the headquarters Jupiter Beach at Sailfish MaSpa and Resort The crew of the Kathy Jo show off their cups and plaques, rina. Tuna where PentTango and house Paulie but also took home a check for $95,990! Miss Annie was manning the official tournament channel. De called in fish shortly thereafter, but Kathy Jo had -Bait-Able started the day off with the first sail- found a pod of fish and they were capitalizing on fish trolling, which was quickly followed by Daryl their good fortune. They called in a single at 9:22 Deka’s 39’ Contender, Doin’ It All/Hard Way, and then two doubles, the first round 11:00 and calling in a double on live bait. The bite was slow, the second just before 11:30 followed by singles at

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Kathy Jo, a beautiful yellowhulled 70' Bertram, feared no seas during the two days of wind and waves!

12:30 and 1:00, which was enough to seal the deal as the competition continued scratching and clawing their way through heavy seas and winds trying to add to their totals.

ment Top Lady Angler was Tamara Slayton on the Reel Candy, who also took home the Biggest Fish award for a 31.5 lb. blackfish tuna caught on Saturday.

The awards dinner at the historic Sailfish Club of Florida saw a lot of very tired, battered and bruised fishermen who gathered for a top-flight seafood buffet, open top-shelf bar, a silent auction and some camaraderie where the beautiful Buccaneer Cup awards were presented along with $171,000 in Calcutta money. The Kathy Jo team took the trophies for 1st Place Boat, most points overall, most points on dead bait and won the charity Calcutta for a free entry into the 54 th Buccaneer Cup along with a pile of Calcutta money. Skipper John Millroy was presented with the InTheBite Top Captain trophy.

While dead bait trollers dominated the tournament this time around the kite flyers caught fish, too. Old No. 7 took the $5000 tournament cash and cup for the most points on live bait and a tidy check for several live bait categories.

The 2nd Place Boat award was secured by Tuna Tango with Della Ann placing third. Top Angler honors went to David Cash of the Della Ann, 2nd Place was Tony Huerta of the Tuna Tango and 3rd was Chris Manetta on the Old No. 7, who also received beautiful Buccaneer loving cups. TournaJanuary 2017

“The big story this year was the weather surrounding the tournament,” said Gary Caputi, tournament director. “Fishing had been slow the weeks prior to the tournament, but the days leading up to it saw the first significant cold fronts of the year red hot fishing. Interest in the tournament was high, but the evening of the captains meeting at the Buccaneer Marina Restaurant the weather forecast for the two fishing days was deteriorating rapidly, which kept participation down. The boats that fished had had their hands full and really tested their boats, equipment and crews. They earned the respect of everyone associated with the event.”

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And Now....

A Word About Our Sponsors

he liked to fish it. A call to friend Sam Peters secured Release Marine and then Bob Donat at International Paint brought them on board. My friends at AFW/Hi-Seas didn’t hesitate, either. A few other companies paid to advertise in the program and many more donated products for the silent auction, but the core six have been with us since the beginning and never missed a beat. That loyalty is in good part because they understand the work the RFA has done for the sport and that has a direct impact on saltwater fishermen and their businesses.

ince taking the reins of the Buccaneer Cup 11 years ago there have been a few allies that have made it possible to keep the tournament going and growing through good times and not so good times. Initially I got involved at the request of the Buccaneer Yacht Club, the originators of the tournament, with the understanding that they would make a donation to the Recreational Fishing Alliance from the proceeds. To make a long story short, a deal was reached and I went to work, and one of the first things I did was try and secure sponsors. While it wasn’t easy the Over the ensuing years more companies have RFA connection opened some doors. joined the core group, some returning every year The first company to sign on was Pat Healey and and others just one or two years. In 2007 MerrillViking Yacht Company quickly followed by ViLynch became a top name sponsor, but when the king’s Florida broker, Steven Moynihan and his economic bubble burst in 2008 their commitcompany HMY Yacht Sales. Not long after ment did, too. They might have been too big to Dominick LaCombe, president of American Cus- fail, but their commitment to fishing tournatom Yachts jumped in with both feet because the ments remained short lived, even after all these tournament had always been special to him and years. 10

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Today the Buccaneer Cup has attracted a list of business sponsors that reads like a who’s who of the industry and we consider ourselves honored by their involvement. After a multi-year hiatus MTU along with FDDA and J&T have been back in a big way as our Awards Dinner Sponsor last year and will be again in this January. That commitment seems to go well with their slogan, “Go big or go home.” Our perennial supporting sponsors Viking Yachts and HMY Yacht Sales have stepped into the role of Captain’s Meeting Sponsors in recent years and Team Viking lead by Captain Ryan Higgins is always in the hunt as a top competitor in the tournament. Other major sponsors include Yamaha Outboards, Jupiter Beach Spa and Resort, our old friends at American Custom Yachts, Interlux, Release Marine, Salt Life Optics, Maxel Reels and Contender Boats. They are joined by SeaKeeper, Garmin, Jarrett Bay Boat Works, AFW/Hi-Seas, Cummins Power Systems, Bahama Boats, Venture Boats, RH Custom Rods, Mustad, Sailfish Marina,

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InTheBite Magazine, Viking Service Center, Outrigger Yacht Products, Tsunami Awesome Tackle and Reel Time Apps. Most of these companies recognize the history of the Buccaneer Cup, but they also understand the importance of the Recreational Fishing Alliance to the future of the sport. I hope you will recognize their commitment to the tournament when shopping for products and services in the future. We’re all in this together and the more we close ranks with the RFA the great our chances we and future generations will be able to enjoy it. Fishing the Buccaneer Cup is just one way to help support the RFA. If you’d like to explore more ways please check out the website (www.joinrfa.org) or call the office at 800-Join-RFA.

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54th BUCCANEER CUP It would be impossible to put on the Buccaneer Cup without cere thanks for all they do to make this tournament possible

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CORPORATE SPONSORS the support of our many loyal sponsors. We extend our sinfor our benefactors, contestants and the Buc Cup legacy.

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2017 Fishing Schedule - Rules - Prizes General Information January 19, 2017 (6 PM) – Captain’s Meeting: Buccaneer Yacht Club, 142 Lake Drive, Singer Island, FL 33404 (Registration/ Calcutta Entry 4 to 6 PM) Fishing Days - January 20 & 21, 2017. (No Lay Day) Fishing Hours - Lines in 8:00 AM. Lines out 3:30 PM. Boundaries: From 27.30.00 latitude (Ft. Pierce Inlet area) to 26.02.00 latitude (Ft. Lauderdale Inlet area) and no further offshore than 072.50 longitude. Boats may leave from Lake Worth or Jupiter Inlets no earlier than 6:30 AM and must return catch logs to Sailfish Marina or Castaway Marina by 5:00 PM. Boats need fish only one day for tournament to be official. There is no weather committee. The determination to fish is at the discretion of the captain and crew, who assume all liability for their decisions. Certified Observers may be provided by the tournament as available.

Fishing Regulations I.G.F.A. Rules apply except as follows. Only non-offset circle hooks and maximum manufacturer stated 20-lb. test line may be used.

The length of the leader may not exceed 15 feet. The combined length of the double line and the leader may not exceed 20 feet. Live or dead baits may be used, but only one type of bait is permitted in the water at any time. Chumming of any kind, including with live bait, is prohibited. No more than six rods are permitted in the water at any time. This includes rods being used to catch bait. Live Bait: No more than two kites maybe used and artificial or dead bait dredges or teasers are permitted. Dead Bait: No more than two dredges maybe used and artificial or dead bait surface teasers and daisy chains are permitted. Live bait teasers are prohibited. Passing the rod to an angler after hookup is permitted.

Catch Validation To qualify for points each release must be called in to the Tournament Committee including the boat number, type of bait and angler's full name immediately by VHF radio or cell phone and it is acknowledged with an assigned catch number and official time of release. The time, catch number and angler’s full name must be entered for each release on the boat’s catch log. Hookups 15 minutes prior to the

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end of fishing must be called in for a release after lines out to qualify.

will be at the discretion of the Rules Committee.

A release is official when the leader is touched by the mate, the leader is wound inside the rod tip or the cork on a live bait rod touch- CASH PRIZES es the rod tip. $5,000 for most points live bait. Your entry into the Buccaneer Cup implies $5,000 for most points dead bait. expressed approval that you and all anAdded Entry Levels glers and crew members will submit to a polygraph test if requested by the rules Overall Categories committee. Failure to do will result in dis__ $5000 Most Points Overall (Winner Take All) qualification. A certified polygraph examiner will be on site should such services be __ $3000 Most Points Overall (50/30/20 split) required. __ $3000 Most Points Daily ($1500 per day 60/40 split)

Point Structure & Scoring Release points will be awarded as follows:

__ $1500 Most Billfish Released (60/40 split)

200 points for sailfish on live bait.

Live Bait Categories

300 point for sailfish on dead bait.

__ $2000 Most Points Live Bait Daily (60/40 split)

400 points for marlin on either bait. In case of a tie the winners will be determined by earliest release times.

__ $2000 Most Points Live Bait Overall (Winner Take All)

Dead Bait Categories Protests must be submitted to the Rules Committee in writing accompanied by a nonre- __ $2000 Most Points Dead Bait Daily (60/40 split) fundable $500 filing fee no later than 5:00 PM. In all cases the decision of the Rules __ $2000 Most Points Dead Bait Overall Committee is final. (Winner Take All)

General Requirements

General Categories

21. Boats and anglers must comply with all state __ $250 Top Angler (Winner Take All) and federal fishing regulations and licensing requirements. Failure to do so may result in __ $500 Biggest Meat Fish (Winner Take All)* disqualification. All boats must carry appro- __ $500 Charity Category (Free Entry for 2017) priate liability insurance. *Kingfish, dolphin, wahoo, tuna & cobia 22. All boats must be a minimum of 27 feet LOA. **90% payout - 10% donated to charities The final determination of a boatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eligibility January 2017

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KEEP UP WITH THE COMPETITION WITH THE REEL TIME SCORING APP Know where you stand at all times. Download the free REEL TIME live scoring app to your smart phone, tablet or computer.

watch the tournament: iPhone, Android and Web apps.

he Buc Cup is again offering FREE Reel Time Scoring Apps to contestants and anyone else who wants to keep up with the action as it happens in this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tournament. Reel Time Apps are easy to use with an intuitive design that allows every user to easily navigate the available information and options.

To download the REEL TIME Scoring App for the Buccaneer Cup go to the App Store on your phone and enter Buccaneer Cup 2016 in the search window. When it comes up download and install the app. The download is free. The service goes live Monday, January 19 listing the boats entered. Real time scoring is in effect on the two fishing days, January 22nd and 23rd.

App users can favorite a boat to receive push notifications in real time when a boat releases a fish. Participants and fans can view and send pictures from the app. If you or someone on the boat takes great photos you may send them to the tournament director to be included in the app. Whether you are on the go or at your desk, there are 3 ways to

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For desktop web coverage or to learn more about how the phone apps work go to www.reeltimeapps.com

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Buccaneer Cup is a Sanctioned

InTheBite Captain of the Year Cup Tournament

nTheBite’s Captain of the Year is the only award in the marine industry that honors the professional tournament boat captain. Since 2003, the Captain of the Year was selected from a diverse pool of nominees—professional captains who had multiple first place tournament victories in top big game tournaments during the annual season. Like the Heisman Trophy, each year a group of nominated captains are voted upon by the past Captains of the Year in order to determine the winner. As a result the Captain of the Year title has become a prestigious award in sportfishing and is globally recognized as big game sportfishing continues to break down geographic barriers.

The InTheBite Captain of the Year Cup is now be presented to the top captains in five different divisions: the United States East Coast, the United States Gulf Coast, Florida, Hawaii and International Divisions, which will include the Caribbean, the Pacific and elsewhere. All five will be named InTheBite Captains of the Year. “It’s time we continue to evolve and grow with the award and pave the way for the next surge of top professional captains with a broader geographical reach,” says InTheBite publisher Dale Wills. “In order to do this with clear and objective standards, we have created a point system which we feel will truly embrace the professional captains who are at the top of the sport each season and ultimately increase tournament participation as more

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Captain John Millroy, skipper of the Kathy Jo, poses with his beautiful InTheBite Top Captain Cup at the awards dinner for the 53rd Buccaneer Cup.

captains try to accumulate points to win.”

won the event in grand style and was credited with 500 points toward the final CapInTheBite has established a list of the top tain of the Year standings billfish tournaments in the world—these are known as “Sanctioned InTheBite Cap- Everyone can keep up with the Captain of tain of the Year Cup” events. The Bucca- the Year standings by going to neer Cup Sailfish Release Tournament is www.inthebite.com and clicking on the one of those events and as such InTheBite appropriate tab. In the meantime everysponsors and presents a special “Top Cap- one at the Buccaneer Cup and the competain Cup” to the skipper of the first place tition teams who fish it are looking forboat each year. Last year the recipient was ward to seeing who will win the Top CapCapt. John Millroy of the Kathy Jo, which tain Cup this year. January 2017

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Sailfish Tournament Conundrum Reprinted with Permission

Balancing Live and Dead Bait by Gary Caputi, Tournament Director, Buccaneer Cup

n 2005 I was asked to attend a meeting of the Buccaneer Yacht Club’s board of directors at Duffy’s Sports Grill in Palm Beach Gardens. The club owned and ran the Buccaneer Cup, one of Florida’s most venerable and well known sailfish tournaments, but dwindling membership and the loss of the Buccaneer Marina to condo developers had put them in a tough spot. My longtime friend Ken Kaufman, of Canyon Gear International, was a board member and he had given me a heads up so knew what was coming.

ured into their plan.

Realizing that the club no longer had the resources to continue running the Buc Cup they asked me to take on the positon of tournament director to revitalize it. After a lot of discussion I agreed with the understanding that the proceeds from the event would be donated to the RFA. We shook hands and I went to work. From the beginning I was saddled with a vexing problem, how should release points be scored for boats trolling dead baits fishing against boats using live. The use of circle Several of the board members were also hooks was just gaining in popularity and also members of the Recreational Fishing Alli- wanted to encourage teams to use them. ance, an organization I was affiliated with, and they felt it could benefit from an associa- The rules in 2006 read: Competition will be tion with the tournament. My background as scored on the basis of 100 pts for each saila writer and staff member for a number of na- fish released on live bait / circle hook or 150 tional fishing and boating magazines also fig- pts if caught on dead bait / J hook or 200 pts with dead bait / circle hook. January 2017

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It was somewhat confusing, but luckily there structure? To gain some background my first was not too much contention among contest- call was to mu friend Frank Murray of Murray ants because if I was asked to explain the rea- Products. Frank’s brother, the late, great Ed soning behind the points differential it would Murray, owned the bar at the Buccaneer Mahave been a Homer Simpson moment—Duh! rina in the late 1980s and they were among Did I mention the areas elite that tournaanglers. Today ment director their fighting was never a job chair company I wanted to add remains synonto my resume? ymous with the Well there you sport. go. It took a “The Buccaneer while to gain a Cup was always better undera great time and standing of the from the beginsituation and ning it was a we began to relive bait, all refine the rules in lease, amateur subsequent angler event set years trying to up so families strike a better and weekend balance and enanglers could go courage particiout and have a pation by live good time,” bait boats from Frank said. “It the south and wasn’t until the trollers from mid ‘80s that the north. trolling entered Thankfully a lot the picture for a of great capvariety of reatains and toursons, but it did nament boat create a scoring owners have ofproblem befered their incause of the put along the supposed adway, sometimes vantage live bait in heated conhad over dead. versations dur- Pick your poison . Will it be goggle eyes or ballyRemember, ing captains kites were not allowed for a lot of years and meetings and they have made the job easier. dredges were yet not on anybody’s radar So how did the Buc, a release tournament that screen. I remember having lively discussions was a live bait competition since its inception with my dear friend John Rybovich, an ardent in 1963 and through its formative years, find conservationist, about keeping the Buccaneer itself in a position where trolling became a live bait only, but a lot of the guys that hung factor and competing techniques had to be around the bar considered him to be somebalanced against one another in the scoring thing of a pain in the you-know-what. What

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many failed to realize was John was a vision- tion before the secret got out, but the concept ary, especially when it came to releasing bill- was slow to catch on for some time. While all this was extremely interesting it didn’t anfish.” swer my questions about how the Buccaneer As Frank reminisced he remembered the Cup transitioned from a live bait tournament name of a captain he claimed was the first to to contest between kite fliers and trollers. come up with a dredge, Barry Kohlus, a Mon- That was until Debbie Asbel, also from Cantauk guy who ran tournament boats in the yon Gear International, told me to call TomPalm Beach area in the winter. After a little my Ewr, who was catching and supplying live digging I located Kohlus, who’s in his early bait from their slip at the Buccaneer Marina 70s and still running a charter boat called the since 1977. Debbie’s father, the late Dr. Asbel, Venture out of Montauk. He picked up the kept his sportfisher there and she rememphone on the first try for a very interesting bered Tommy working with his father Nat in conversation. the bait business. My call to Ewr cracked open the mys“Yup, I was the guy who came “You can please some of the people tery.

up with the all of the time, you can please all of “From the beidea and put ginning (1963) together the the people some of the time, but you until the midfirst dredge,” can’t please all of the people all of 1980s the Buc he admitted was a live bait the time.” John Lydgate with pride. “I tournament,” used to run the Tommy reChevy Won for called. “The a Florida car “But that doesn’t stop us from trying!” boat crews dealer by the would go out Gary Caputi, Buccaneer Cup name of Dick and catch their Raffo in 1981 own baits, freand ‘82 and we quently right outside the inlet. My dad started would troll for sailfish using daisy chain teas- the bait business in 1977 and me and my ers. I remember sitting on at the helm looking brother worked him until he retired and I at the spread thinking that when baitfish get took over. It was a difficult profession. It attacked by predators they don’t get in a line, seemed that when we could catch a lot of bait they ball up. we couldn’t sell it all and when we couldn’t “The next year I ran a boat called the Penade everybody wanted it. in the winter and was chartering in Montauk the rest of the year. We had just started trolling umbrella rigs for striped bass and bluefish back home so I brought a few frames with me to Florida, called Charlie Hayden and had him rig me five of the biggest black mullet he could find without hooks so I could clip them onto the four arms of the rig and put one down the center. It was deadly!”

“But it wasn’t until the North South Shootout started in the 1980s, along with sailfish tournaments popping up just about every weekend, that trolling started to make its way into traditional live bait tournaments like the Buccaneer Cup. There weren’t a lot of guys supplying live bait at the time and the methods for keeping them in pens were still being experimented with and were a long way from How deadly? The Penade won the Masters being effective. Then there were a lot of captwo years in a row using the Kohlus innova- tains that wouldn’t even consider fishing with 28

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thrived until the bait crisis and then the rules committee was forced into juggling the point structure to accommodate trolling, which was considered to be a less effective method of catching sailfish.” Remember, the dredge was still a lightbulb over the head of Barry Kohlus and prospecting was years away so the practice was strictly surface teasers with a few ballyhoo skipping behind the boat. Heading back into the transporter, “beam me back to the present, Mr. Scott,” and the Buccaneer Cup has transitioned from a live bait angler tournament into a live-dead bait boat team tournament with accommodations for the two techniques. When I took it over we partnered with Fred Miller’s Florida Fish for Life Billfish Tournament and Fred and I began a series of rule changes trying to balance the playing field as much as possible. The dredge was revolutionizing the effectiveness

baits that had been penned so come tournament time, if bait was scares the law of supply and demand took over and prices went up. Not only did the price increase, there simply wasn’t enough to go around and if you couldn’t get it the only alternative was trolling rigged baits.” Tommy remembered captains yelling that they were being ripped off, cheated on the prices, but quickly added that after working all night to catch 30 or 40 baits they couldn’t turn around and sell them for $40. “So the guys with the big bank accounts who didn’t care what it cost bought them all and the rest went trolling,” he said. “The Buc was the biggest, most prestigious live bait release tournament in Florida for many years,” Tommy reminisced, “everybody fished it and had a great time. Our business January 2017

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of dead bait trolling for white marlin up north and had become the norm for sailfish tournament boats, too. What we did was equated the use of the dredge with the use of the kite live baiting and instituted the two kites or two dredges rule and limited lines in the water to six. In recognition of how much more competitive trolling had become because of the dredge and techniques like prospecting we changed the points structure from 100/200 - live bait/ dead bait to 200/300. We also required the use of non-offset circle hooks for everyone to reduce release mortality.

even with the 200/300 points spread. Looking ahead to the 54rd Annual Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Release Tournament (January 21 -23, 2016) we are once again contemplating tweaking the rules at the request of a number of captains and owners, but we will maintain the 200/300 points differential. The practice of using artificial dredges by kite flying live bait teams has become prevalent and trollers want to be able to deploy surface teasers along with dredges so the rules team is planning to loosen those restrictions so that both groups can go out and do what they do bestâ&#x20AC;Ś catch and release as many sailfish as possible. The six line limit will be kept in place as will no chumming of any kind.

The new rules were relatively well accepted and seemed to work pretty well as the tournament has been won equally by live baiters and trollers in recent years. In fact the Sandman, owned by Sandra MacMillan, won the Buc in 2011 trolling and in 2012 When all is said and done it's all about fishing live bait! the flags and who came in flying the

The Buccaneer Cup, like most tournaments, is almost a living, breathing entity and it has grown, gone through changes and most each day. Good luck to all the matured over the last The general thinking teams and thank you for fishing the 54th 50 plus years through was that trolling had Buccaneer Cup. tough times and good an advantage when times. It legacy as one the sailfish were concentrated north of Ft. of Floridaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s oldest, most cherished tournaPierce, traditional trolling territory, and live ments lives on as it continues to be an all rebait had the advantage when the fish were lease, 100% charity event that benefits the further south concentrated closer to the reef, work of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, an but the Miss Annie laid that idea to rest in organization that has had a lot to do with the 2014 when the fishing was very tough, the revitalizing of the billfish populations in U.S. fish were scarce and the trollers were doing waters and select cancer charities. We hope to most of the catching to the north. They fished see your team competing this January. north and won the tournament on live bait

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The Buccaneer Cup highly recommends

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Hummingbird etched on copper

January 2017

22x30 Framed original sailfish etched on solid copper.

54th BUCCANEER CUP

HERE'S YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A SET OF HOT NEW SAILFISH REEL FROM

ourtesy of Maxel there will be a set of four, beautiful OMS10 Sailfish Special reels with matching Nano technology Gold rods in our silent auction. These are the hottest new sailfish reels on the market and here's why.

once it is set and the reel can easily match drag range to line test. The high tech carbon fiber drag delivers a wide range, smooth performance curve even when wet.

Custom designed for live and dead bait trolling, Kite fishing, or drift-bait techniques where high speed retrieves, effortless low inertia dropbacks and ultrasmooth light line drags are needed, the Maxel Ocean Max Specialty (OMS) reels are perfect for smoker kings, cobia, sailfish, striped or white marlin fishing.

As with all Maxel reels, this New OMS10 Specialty model is precision machined from rigid, one piece tempered aluminum billets with cold-forged aluminum spools to stand up to monofilament stretch. The high speed, 5.8:1 gear ratio assures fast line recovery through super precise, heat treated stainless steel gears. Six super precise German made, shielded stainless steel ball bearings are strategically located for the best of smoothness and power transfer. The all stainless steel spool click mechanisms will stand up to even the longest runoffs.

The precision graduated drags are designed for use with monofilament lines and have positive stop-pin Strike and Full drag maximums targeted for lines of 15 to 25 pound test. The click detent drag Pre- All Maxel OceanMax Specialty reels are set wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t drift while fishing or fighting covered by a Five Year Limited Warranty. 36

54th BUCCANEER CUP

January 2017

54th BUCCANEER CUP

54TH BUCCANEER CUP FIRST PLACE BOAT WINS A SET OF FOUR RH CUSTOM SAILFISH RODS

January 2017

54th BUCCANEER CUP