OCEAN CITY- The historic Ocean City Light Tackle Club, largely responsible for the resort’s reputation as the White Marlin Capital of the World, this week was honored with a Club of Excellence Award by the prestigious Billfish Foundation.
On Monday, the Billfish Foundation announced the 2018 recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Awards and the Club of Excellence Awards. The latter were awarded to big game fishing clubs that have contributed to advancing the conservation and management of billfish and other species along with responsible sportfishing and support of the Billfish Foundation.
The Ocean City Light Tackle Club (OCLTC) was honored with a Club of Excellence Award. The club was established 75 years ago not long after the historic 1933 created the Inlet and access to the fertile canyons off the coast. Not long after, the first white marlin was caught off the coast of Ocean City. The 10 early pioneers of the club quickly learned light tackle was the preferred method for catching billfish, which were found in abundance off the coast.
In August 1940, founding member Alan Ferguson landed a 114-pound-plus white marlin off the coast of Ocean City, setting a world record and placing Ocean City on the sportfishing map. Soon after the club was established, members adopted light tackle as the appropriate gear for white marlin. OCLTC members are also credited with pioneering the practice of catch-and-release for billfish and other conservation measures for the species.
