67th Big Rock off and fishing

The first day of the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament was rather uneventful.

Of the 272 teams competing in the 67th annual competition out of Morehead City, N.C., only 43 teams hit the water.

Thank typical late-spring weather conditions for most of the field taking a lay day. Teams are allowed to fish only four of the six competition days, although many will fish during their “days off” to keep on top of the action.

The teams that did compete Monday managed only 17 billfish releases - 12 blue marlin, four sailfish and one white marlin.

Today will feature only one boat out of the fleet, as the rest are using lay days because - you guessed - sea conditions are less than favorable.

Teams can fish four of six days before the tournament ends after Saturday's final action.

According to the National Weather Service’s Morehead City office, winds at 6 a.m. were gusting to 46 miles per hour with a forecast for them to drop to steady winds of about 25 mph. Seas are expected to be in the 4- to 6-foot range, but bigger swells will be encountered.

While rough seas put a damper on the number of teams, they did little to stop them from making a little money.

The field this year is competing for a total purse of more than $6.3 million.

Old No. 7 out of Palm Beach, Fla., managed to catch and release two blue marlin that currently are worth a little more than $200,000, including a guaranteed $49,229 for the Day One Daily Release prize. The fish gave the team 800 points and the lead on time of catch.

Accordingly IV also finished with 800 points on a pair of blues.

And while it was small by normal standards, the 14-pound dolphin brought to the docks by Offshore Outlaw was good for $5,000 and possibly the division’s total prize of $548,250.

Teams can enter a wide array of divisions that can increase the size of their bank accounts.

Day one did not result in any tuna or wahoo making it to the docks, and no blue marlin meeting the 400 pounds or 110 inches were weighed.

Lines in each morning start at 9, with the scales closing at 7 p.m.

Local teams are riding a short winning streak, capturing three of the last four titles.

And the Hatteras Harbor-based boat Release finished second last year and won the Fabulous Fisherman's prize for the event's first 500-pound-plus blue marlin. The team had a 504-pounder and banked a wallet-fattening $2.2-plus million.

Sushi out of Oregon Inlet won the 2023 crown with a 484.5-pound blue caught by Justin Riley. In 2022, Virginia Beach-based Mercenaria won with a 572.5-pounder fought by Matthew Brown. And the year before, Cole Pirrung decked a 656.5-pounder fishing on the Oregon Inlet vessel Wide Spread.

The NWS forecast for Wednesday sees improving conditions, with decreasing winds and slightly smaller swells.