STANDING ONTHE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS

2023 Billfish 15000 Tournament

Article by Blyde Pretorius Photos by Kiki Corner Photography

IN 1987 the first Billfish 15000 took place and had 60 boats competing for R15000.That’s where the Billfish 15000 got its name from.Founder member Piet Joubert from Northern Transvaal Ski-Boat Club started with a prizegiving in a marquee which gave the tournament the island feeling that everyone loves.

In 1997,Dorado Ski-Boat Club bought the Billfish 15000 from Northern Transvaal Ski-Boat Club and have been hosting it for the past 27 years.At the tournament in 2000,179 boats competed for prizes to the value of R1.5 million.That’s quite a step up in prize value and the number of participants!

The number of billfish released has also varied substantially each year.In 1987 virtually no billfish were released,but fortunately the anglers didn’t give up.During the 2009 tournament in which there were only two days of angling due to bad weather conditions,four marlin were caught and weighed and 14 billfish were released.The Billfish 15000 made headlines with a new world record in 2011 when 133 billfish were successfully released in five days.

The 37th Billfish 15000 held at Sodwana Bay from 12 to 17 November 2023,left in its wake both elated and disappointed anglers who all fought their hearts out for the coveted top spot.In total,36 billfish were released – 20 blue marlin,four black marlin,eight striped marlin,two short-billed spearfish and two sailfish.

Dorado Ski-Boat Club and their incredible team worked tirelessly,from long before the start of the event and throughout the following week to make this the prestigious event it is on the fishing calendar.

As always,the atmosphere in the tent was electric,and over 400 anglers gathered on the Sunday evening to socialise and attending the skippers’briefing which kicks off this popular annual competition.

This was the last time the Billfish 15000 was to be hosted in the marquee,as the 2024 Billfish 15000 will move to the newly built giant venue at Sodwana Ski-Boat Club.

Special tribute was paid to the founder members of the Billfish 15000 – Jan Hendriksz,Doors van Rensburg,Tini van Rensburg,Philip Conradie and Neil Steyn.Those who couldn’t be there in person were still able to get a tast of the gees thanks to B-Promotions who live streamed the whole event throughout the week.Likes and comments streamed in on social media from all corners of the globe.

The weigh-in area outside the tent –Castle Corner – was also an immense success when Happy Hour started and everyone could see details of all the daily releases displayed on a big screen and by-catches that were weighed.As always,the MC,Jaco Hendriksz was very entertaining,when he gave a rundown of the day’s happenings each evening.

When the fishing started in earnest, tension could be felt each evening as new catches changed the face of the leaderboard and those lucky enough to make their mark waited in anxious anticipation of what would happen the following day.

The first day’s launch went smoothly despite the rough sea.By 5.10am the first hook-up had been reported and by 5.25am Fanus Momberg on Viskoors had released the first billfish of the day – a black marlin.

The biggest bycatch that day went to Francois du Toit who landed a 15.9kg wahoo on C-Cruiser.Eight billfish were released on the first day including a blue marlin for Malcolm van der Merwe fishing on FantaSea.

Day two was a bumper day for blue marlin with ten of that species being released along with one striped marlin, one black marlin and one spearfish. Tielman Roos,fishing aboard Climax , had the catch of a lifetime – his 97.2kg yellowfin tuna was the second biggest bycatch in the history of the Billfish 15000! Team Viskoors led the charge for the competition for the first two days.

Striped marlin pipped the blues on day three,with six stripey releases to three blues.Three black marlin were also recorded,and the first sailfish of the week hit the charts. Team FantaSea moved into top position overall with 505 points thanks to a black marlin caught by Mario Els. Team Viskoors was in second position (490 points) and Tail Walker a close third (487 points).

When day four dawned,most anglers thought it was not worth launching,but almost all braved the potential hazards anyway.Organiser and compere Jaco Hendriksz said the sea was the best it had been all week, though it got rough and choppy between 8 and 9am.

The fish weren’t worried by that, though,and there were nine strikes, seven hook-ups and two releases. Team FantaSea was among the few teams who threw caution to the (strong) winds to launch on day four;they were rewarded when Henry Gouws released a blue marlin just after 8am. Team Bakgat had already released a sailfish at 7.38am.Eventually fishing was called off after only a few hours due to the poor conditions.

Henry Gouws on FantaSea said they went out knowing the water would be unfishable,but they headed for Rondekop where they hooked four fish and by 8.03am he had caught and released a blue marlin.This lucky strike increased their overall points to 799 and ultimately sealed their victory.

Team Bakgat’s sailie catapulted them from seventh to second place overall! John Minnie congratulated them at the final prizegiving and handed over their prize – a Lowrance HDS12 Live Autopilot Bundle from Lowrance SA,an M260 Transducer from Airmar and a Navionics Mapping card.

Day five was a blow out,but Team FantaSea had screamed ahead of the field on day three to grab the overall lead,and managed to hold that position and their collective breath for the rest of the week.

Congratulations to Team FantaSea – Henry Gouws,Malcolm van der Merwe,Mario Els and Rian van Vuuren –who clinched the title and took home the first prize of a fully rigged,Yamahapowered Kosi Cat centre console skiboat on trailer,one year’s insurance from CMI and other fabulous prizes sponsored by Yamaha,Pulsator,Fishing Pro Shop,Mias,Rapala,Shimano,Jacks Paints,Buddy Cool,McGee Ford and Lowrance.

What a momentous week – great company and great fishing! It has been such a privilege to be part of the organisation of this tournament for the past 11 years – there’s never a dull moment and every year just grows from strength to strength.No doubt many teams are already booking their spots for this year’s competition which will be held from 10 to 15 November 2024.

Till then,happy fishing!