Photo Caption: Team Sandy Wolf took Grand Champion honors in the inaugural Islamorada Winter Fishing Classic in late Febraury.
Teen Anglers Win Inaugural Islamorada Winter Fishing Classic
Fifteen anglers fished for nine species on the ocean side of U.S. 1 at Islamorada in the inaugural Islamorada Winter Classic in late February. Over the course of two days of fishing, they released 27 fish under a format of guided and non-guided divisions as well as junior and team divisions for most releases.
Anglers Kenny Raspberry, Zachery Wolf, Jake and Shai Cohen, and Ryan McKay, all from Cooper City, Fla., took home Grand Champion honors in the Team Most Releases Non-Guided division. Fishing aboard their boat, The Sandy Wolf, the team released 12 fish, including two sailfish, five barracuda, two mackerel, one dolphin and two snapper. In the Guided division, aboard the Out of the Blue, Capt. Todd Monson led anglers Dustin and Heath Beard, of Midland, Texas, to top honors with five sailfish, five barracuda and one tuna for a total of 11 releases.
The Lobster Trap Art Gallery in Islamorada supplied amazing trophies for all of the winners. Teen angler, Heath Beard, landed the largest snapper, an 8.1-pound mutton. His dad, Dustin Beard, weighed the largest tuna, at 11.5-pounds. Junior angler Xander Ewald, 6-years-old, was awarded Most Releases in his division, and his fishing partner, Jack Brown, age 5, was runner up. In the Teen division, Heath Beard was awarded top honors in the Guided division with five releases. Teen angler, Kenny Raspberry, released 8 fish, which beat out his fishing partner, Shai Cohen for top teen in the Non-Guided division.
Proceeds from the tournament will benefit The Good Health Clinic and Voices for the Florida Keys Children. The Islamorada Spring Classic will be held April 25-26. For more information, see www.islamoradaclassic.com/.