[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he Southern Kingfish Association (SKA) officially announces the location for their 2016 Mercury Professional Kingfish Championship and SKA National Championship: Fort Pierce, Florida.
“We’re extremely excited to bring our largest tournaments of the year back to the City of Ft. Pierce,” says Jim Butler, SKA Director of Operations. The Professional Tour Championship will be November 7-8 and the Nationals event is scheduled for November 10-13. The National Championship serves as the official end to the SKA’s 2016 Mercury Tournament Trail. Top teams from 9 regional divisions will travel to Ft. Pierce and compete for the coveted title of National Champion within their Class. This event will also serve as the 26th Anniversary Celebration of the Southern Kingfish Association’s inception.
“We all are familiar with the connotation of the Treasure Coast. To anglers they know that our fishing grounds are a treasure trove in themselves” says St. Lucie County Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky. “With securing this agreement with the Southern Kingfish Association with a multi-year commitment, our area businesses, hoteliers, restaurants, and tourist venues will benefit annually from the treasures they will experience.”
With thousands of dedicated anglers hailing from across the Southeast, the SKA chose Ft. Pierce to be a part of its rotating National Championship tour. It’s the SKA’s intention to rotate the National Championship location every season. Jim Butler highlights, “It’s important to ensure our Championship is accessible to all our anglers. We want them to experience different locations and ultimately, it makes the Championship win all-the-more challenging. We’re looking forward to Ft. Pierce being one of our banner locations for years to come.”
Fort Pierce was the host location in 2010 for the SKA’s National Championship Tournament, generating an estimated $750,000 in economic impact. With the Fort Pierce City Marina’s recent expansion and a healthier economy, county and city officials are hopeful the event will bring 250-300 teams to the area generating an even larger economic impact. The Treasure Coast Sports Commission (TCSC), which is funded by the St. Lucie County Tourist Development Council using county tourist taxes, will be the funding agency for the event. In addition to the 2016 host agreement, the SKA has committed to hosting the nationals every three years in Fort Pierce and during off years, the SKA has agreed to add Fort Pierce to the tournament’s Pro Tour schedule.
“The mission of the Treasure Coast Sports Commission’s mission is not only to recruit sporting events, but to retain them. This multi-year contract allows us to work with the SKA on an annual basis, rather than just every three years. This is
excellent for our area and hopefully sets the stage to bring future national tournaments by other fishing organizations to Fort Pierce,” said Rick Hatcher, executive director of the Treasure Coast Sports Commission.
St. Lucie County Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky, who also serves as the chairman of the Tourist Development Council, was instrumental in securing the event making the initial contact to Southern Kingfish Association (SKA) proposing Fort Pierce as its next host city. “We all are familiar with the connotation of the Treasure Coast. To anglers they know that our fishing grounds are a treasure trove in themselves. With securing this agreement with the Southern Kingfish Association with a multi-year commitment, our area businesses, hoteliers, restaurants, and tourist venues will benefit annually from the treasures they will experience.”
Founded in 1991, the Southern Kingfish Association is the largest saltwater fishing tournament trail in the world. With thousands of members across the Southeast, the SKA’s purpose is to promote and responsibly grow the family sport of fishing. They are passionately committed to fostering rewarding experiences amongst king mackerel anglers, tournament directors and their industry partners.
For more information on the 2016 Championship events, visit www.fishska.com.
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