Big Rock
Celebrates 50 Years

THE BIG ROCK Blue Marlin Tournament celebrates its 50th anniversary June 7 through 14, 2008. Mark your calendars for a fabulous fishing tournament to exceed all expectations! Special events and new and exciting prizes are just a hint of the spectacular things to come during this half-century celebration.

Fifty years ago, no one was sure if billfish existed in the waters off North Carolina. No one had ever seen a billfish, and locals, even the commercial fishermen, rarely ventured beyond sight of the coastline for their day’s catch. But sailors traveling in and out of the state port at Morehead City had reported seeing these giants. And dismissed as bar talk, the talk kept coming until a local group known as the Fabulous Fishermen Club decided to settle the rumors once and for all.
           
These anglers, together with local merchants, announced a grand prize for the first person to catch a blue marlin off the North Carolina coast. The reward: a child’s red wagon full of silver dollars. On September 14, 1957, Jimmy Croy of Raleigh brought home the bacon with a 143-pound blue marlin. Amid police sirens, local chatter and the honking of car horns, the little red wagon filled with silver dollars was pulled through town to where the fish would be brought in. It was the first celebration of the event that would soon become the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.

With a cash purse now annually exceeding $1 million, the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament still brings all the excitement to the Morehead City waterfront as the first blue marlin catch in the 50s. With daily weigh-ins on tournament days, you know a fish is coming in when you see the crowds start to gather at Big Rock Landing. Winning the Big Rock has become the focus of many top billfish competitors from across the country and around the world.

In 2007, Bak Bar out of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, made last call at the 49th annual Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament’s weigh station, bringing in a 613-pounder to win $800,839 from the event’s incredible $1,568,950 purse. Later that summer, the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament Board of Directors presented $82,750 in tournament proceeds to 13 worthy area organizations. The 2007 donation propels the cumulative charitable contributions of the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament to $1,639,500.

As summer 2008 draws nearer, stay tuned for more information on the Big Rock's 50th Anniversary, a not-to-be-missed event. Details, 252-247-3575 or thebigrock.com.

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49th Annual Big Rock Results

BAK BAR MADE last call at the 49th annual Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament’s weigh station near the end of the tournament, weighing in a 613-pounder to win $800,839 from the event’s $1,568,950 purse.

Bak Bar captain Tommy Lewis, Huger, SC, reached Morehead City just after 11pm with a blue marlin that his son, Montukie, needed nearly six hours to land. Fifteen hours later, when no bigger fish were caught during the final hours of fishing, the Bak Bar crew began an after-hours celebration.

The Bak Bar win almost didn’t happen. Bak Bar’s blue marlin got tail wrapped and died near the bottom of the ocean four hours into the fight. For the next two hours, Montukie Lewis had to carefully reeled in the dead giant. He couldn’t set the drag too tight in rough seas or reel too fast for fear of breaking the line.

“It was dead weight with a big fish at the very bottom ,” the younger Lewis said. “It was rough out there. I had to give back as much (line) as I took. I didn’t make much headway for a long time. I had to find a happy medium … but I only got tired at the end.”

Once the fish was in the boat, Lewis wasn’t tired at all. The entire Bak Bar crew knew they had the potential winner.

“We knew (the fish) was longer than the others,” Lewis said. “It’s a good one … a big fish. This is my happiest day. It feels great to be in this position.”

Lewis’s catch was an early Father’s Day present for his dad. Ironically, all five blue marlin brought to the Big Rock scales Friday were reportedly caught by father-son teams.

Bak Bar’s catch knocked Licketysplit from the top spot on the Big Rock leader board. Licketysplit, captained by Bobby Scarborough, Hatteras, took the Big Rock lead Friday afternoon with a 567-pounder reeled in by Grimesland angler David Williams. But that lead didn’t even last the night.

Licketysplit tried to return the favor Saturday afternoon with a hookup three minutes before the tournament ended. Unfortunately for Licketysplit, the fish threw the hook and got away. Licketysplit competitors received $258,752 for placing second.

Maggie, captained by Randy Bryant, Morehead City, finished in third place with a 505-pound blue marlin landed Friday by Beaufort angler Butch Bryant. The Maggie crew received $171,835 for finishing third.

Catches by Bak Bar, Licketysplit and Maggie knocked Safari from the leader board Friday. Safari, captained by Mark Harris, Dania Beach, Fla., was the tournament’s inaugural leader with a 473.5-pounder reeled in by angler Brett Goulding.

Safari was in line to win $1.2 million as fishing got underway Friday. A little more than 14 hours later, Safari was out of the money.

Anglers on 170-of-184 boats were eligible to fish Saturday. Anglers recorded 22 releases on the final day of competition, raising the six-day total of releases to 96 blue marlin, 45 white marlin and 31 sailfish. This is an all-time blue marlin and overall release (172) record for Big Rock competitions.

Sea Striker, captained by Adrian Holler, Newport, captured first place in the release division with 1,600 points, His angler, Curtis Struyk, Atlantic Beach, had four blue marlin releases, including a Big Rock record three on Wednesday. This put the Sea Striker crew in line to win $92,239.

Sea Toy, captained by Bull Tolson, Manteo, finished second in the release division with 1,440 points on three blue marlin releases, including one on a circle hook. Sea Toy anglers Frank Daniels Jr., and Joe Hodge helped their team win $59,074.

Sea Hag, captained by Ken Kramer, Morehead City, recorded two sailfish release Saturday to take third in the release division. The Sea Hag, which featured lady anglers, was able to reel in four sailfish, two white marlin and a blue marlin and tally 1,300 points to win $33,164. Jessica Ledford, Sara Katherine Kirkpatrick and Carly Ledford shared Sea Hag angling duties during the tournament.

The Carolina Gentlemen, captained by Skipper Gentry, Morehead City, held third place for 28 minutes with a 422.5-pounder reeled in by Morehead City angler Robbie Willis. Gentry and crew won the 40-and-under small boat category worth $5,000.

Tailwalker captain Fred Walker and angler Sean Cooper, Morehead City, won $4,900 for scoring the 49th billfish release of the tournament. Walker and Cooper accomplished this feat Tuesday.

Yellowfin, a boat captained by Jeff Garner, Morehead City, captured the tuna division with a 69.4-pounder reeled in by Steve Rollins, Brighton, UT. The Yellowfin catch proved to be worth $7,536.

Sea I Sea, captained by Brad Langdon, Newport, won the wahoo division with a 45.25-pounder reeled in Wednesday by Bill Mills of Jacksonville. That fish turned out to be worth $7,065.

Buck Wild, captained by Parrish Warren, Rocky Point, won the dolphin division with a 52.1-pounder caught Wednesday by Wes Davis, Wilmington. That netted the Buck Wild team $6,594. After six days of competition, 36 boats won a share of the event’s purse.

Read more feature articles in the print edition of Waterfront Magazine.