As you read this article, the Annual Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament is taking place in Morehead City, NC. This highly anticipated, deep-sea fishing competition draws anglers from all over to the Crystal Coast to fish for a prized blue marlin. Despite the popularity of the tournament, it was once believed that blue marlins couldn’t be found off the North Carolina Coast. Although these fish are far more common in the warmer waters of the Gulf and the Caribbean, Jimmy Croix disproved the idea that they were impossible to find offshore the Carolina coast, let alone catch and reel in, when he boated a 143-pound blue marlin in 1957.
The exact location of that catch is still unknown, but it’s suspected that Croix pulled in the fish somewhere over the Big Rock. The area, some 30 miles southeast of Morehead City is about 15 miles east of the R14 buoy and features a series of underwater ledges, peaks, and plateaus, which provides the perfect environment to house the smaller fish, lile Spanish mackerel, that blue marlins feed on. Upon this astounding discovery, the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament was born. The first event had only a few participants, but since then, the boats, sponsors, and prizes have increased exponentially. For over 16 years, the Big Rock Tournament payout has been upwards of $1 million, and in 2019, the cash purse totaled over 2.8 million dollars!
Today, I spoke to a customer at my donut shop who is a participant in this year's tournament. Entry fees for the competition range from $2,500 on upwards. My customer showed me a photo of the check he wrote to enter the tournament and it was for $27,500. He also showed me a business card, with a face value of $6,000 that gave him entry into a full week of fantastic events, including the Captain's Party which featured pork BBQ.
During the six day tournament, boats are allowed to fish four of the six days. Lines can be dropped after 9AM and must be reeled in at 3PM, with only one exception. If you have hooked a marlin prior to 3 PM, and you have phoned in your hookup, you can fish until you boat your fish. One year, an angler battled a marlin for 34 hours. Back in the day, if you were the angler who hooked the fish, you were the only angler who could handle the rod. Today, every angler on the boat can take turns reeling in one of these massive fish.
Other oddities include taking lie detector tests, and using a specific Go-Pro video system that links up to the tournament's software so officials can observe your every move. And, only the whole fish counts. If sharks nibble on your catch while you reel it in, it can't be weighed, officially. And, you got to get the fish, which can weigh up to half a ton, on the boat. Unless, of course, you are in the catch and release contest. Here, if your line touches the boat, anywhere, your catch is disqualified. Oh, yeah, you better remember to phone in your hook-up and the time of your boating.
Roughly about 3,000 spectators gather every day at the Sanitary Fish Market to observe the weigh-ins. If you are here on the Crystal Coast this week, it is worth investing a couple of hours to experience this one of a kind event. Proceeds from the Big Blue Rock Marlin Tournament are given to local charities. And, all fish are sent to the NC State Veterinary School where autopsies are performed to advance our understanding of this magnificent fish.
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