OCEAN CITY- With another successful summer season in the books, the Ocean City Marlin Club last weekend handed out its seasonal awards to the winners in several categories.
The award for the first white marlin of the season caught by an OCMC member went to angler Ian Schwing on the Fish Whistle. Schwing also won the award for the first white marlin by a junior angler. The award for the first blue marlin of the season went to angler Pam McAteer on the Maverick.
The award for the most blue marlin releases by a private boat went to The Chaser, while the award for the most blue marlin releases by a charter boat went to the Moore Bills. The top three award winners for the most billfish released by any boat went to the No Quarter (85), the Billfisher (52), and the Reel Chaos (51). The same three boats took the top three spots in billfish released by a charter boat. The top three in billfish releases by a private boat went to the Legasea, The Chaser and Makara.
The awards for the most billfish released by a boat from 35 feet to 46 feet went to the Poore Sport, Gret’s Three J’s and Spring Mix II. The awards for the most billfish released by a boat from 27 feet to 34 feet went to the Brenda Lou, the Christine Marie III and Caneelin. The top boat in terms of billfish releases in a single day was the No Quarter, which released nine billfish on a single day and eight on two other occasions. The award for the most billfish released on a single day by a private boat went to the Gret’s Three J’s.
The awards for the most tuna caught by a charter boat went to the Marli, the Boss Hogg and the Wrecker. The awards for the most tuna caught by a private boat went to the Killin Time, Tunafowl and Absolut Pleasure. The awards for the heaviest tuna of the season went to Howes Fishing (270 pounds), Game Changer (210) and Nauti Norwegian (202).
The awards for top heaviest dolphins of the season went to the Big Billin (46 pounds), the Game Changer (35) and the Marli (32). The awards for the top heaviest wahoo went to the Billfisher (93 pounds), the Brenda Lou (88) and the Grande Pez (81). The awards for the heaviest sharks of the season went to the Get Reel (501 pounds), the Game Changer (437) and the No Quarter (248).
The top lady angler of the year award, issued to the female angler with the most catches in the season went to Judith Duffie. The top gentleman angler of the year award went to Jeffrey Lessin, while the top junior angler of the year award went to Dillon Churchill. Finally, the annual Edna Hodgens Award for outstanding service to the Ocean City Marlin Club in 2017 went to past-president Billy Regan.
