Nasty seas, just a few boats and no fish brought the scales ... it's rough in the 52nd annual White Marlin Open

With only 14 boats fishing, chances didn’t look good for anybody to upstage the leaders in the 52 annual White Marlin Open.

And if you were a betting person, you would have made a good call. No fish were brought to the scales.

But the thing is, it only takes one white marlin to turn the entire shooting match upside down.

And that could be the case today, despite the fact that only eight boats were signed up to be on the water. If a team brings in a qualifying white, all the prize amounts will get shuffled.

Rough seas brought on by a tropical low in the northeast Atlantic and another low working its way up the coast - all sandwiched between a high pressure system to the northeast and a stalled cold front to the southeast - and you have all the makings of a very messy ocean.

The event, held out of Ocean City, Md., concludes Sunday. Officials list 282 registered teams competing for a $7.3 million purse. But only 255 boats have been listed in each day’s fishing/not fishing choices. Teams are allowed to fish only three days.

With nothing being weighed in Thursday, a 72-pound white marlin currently waits to be crowned the champion. Caught by Ocean City angler Dan Gough on the home-based Billfisher, the team currently sits on approximately $4.27 million.

Leading the blue marlin division, a 929.5-pounder caught by Drew Osmeyer of Timonium, Md., on the Atlantic Beach, N.C.-based Barbara B could be worth $1.2 million.

The team is looking at a $51,000 bonus for leading the dolphin division with a 32.5-pounder caught by Essex, Md.’s Andrew Schreiber.

Virginia Beach vessel Mama C has the leading tuna, a 95-pound yellowfin caught by Tommy Farella of New Smyrna Beach, Fla. That fish could bring the team $790,000.

So stay tuned. With seas forecast to stay on the nasty side, the last three days of competition could be more than a little interesting.