by Noel Bourque, Mark Gerretson Memorial Fishing Tournament
Once again, the 23rd annual Mark Gerretson Memorial Fishing Tournament presented by Merrill Lynch was held in August, and what a beautiful day to fish offshore in Delray Beach, Florida! The tournament was started by Mark Gerretson as the Delray Beach Jaycees Fishing Tournament to raise money for Delray Beach Kids and Cops program, among other worthy causes. Mark ran the tournament for 11 years before he passed in 2005. At that time, his friends and family made a promise to keep the tournament going, and to continue to raise money for a variety of charities that support the Delray Beach Community. The committee works throughout the year to plan the tournament, identify worthy causes, and disburse the money to those in need. Over the years the tournament has raised over $150,000 for local charities and provided help and hope to many children and families during tough times. A list of the charities supported by the tournament can be found on the website. The committee members are: Gary (Falcon) Musial (President), Noel Bourque, (Treasurer), Patricia Gerretson, (Mark’s mom), Tim Knapp, Jen Buce, Paul Shersty, Deena Chapman, Chris Reich, Jim Gerretson, and Brittany Gerretson Roberts.
The Captain’s Meeting and party was held at the Hurricane Bar & Lounge again this year, where 29 boats entered the tournament. Captains, Anglers, and guests gathered to register their boats, win raffle prizes, buy official tournament tee-shirts, get updated tournament rules, and of course tell fish stories. Tasty eats were donated by Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, Sandwiches By The Sea, and the Hurricane’s very own Mary Schroeder. All that good food was washed down with signature brew from our local brew masters at Salt Water Brewery.
The Tournament was held on Saturday the 12th with this year’s weigh-in location at the Boynton Beach Marina. Both the Captain’s Meeting and tournament were blessed with excellent weather. Raffles were held during both MGMFT events, including regular and high-dollar prizes. Wonderful items included a bike from Richwagen’s Bike & Sport, a personal emergency GPS beacon, a set of custom painted Adirondack chairs from local artist Tina Black, a “3 day, 2-night stay” at Wright By the Sea, and fishing gear donated from Ray’s Offshore Tackle and Tuppen’s Marine & Tackle were among the prizes. A complete list of the prizes and sponsors can be found on the tournament website.
Of the 29 boats registered this year, over 15 boats brought in fish. Fish were caught in each of the tournament categories and some great fish stories were swapped. For the first time in our history 2 kingfish tied in weight. This year’s winners of the MGMFT Tournament are:
Category Weight Angler
Overall Champion (Wahoo) 25.1 lbs. Michael Minia
Kingfish 21.6 John Quini
Hugh O’Neill
Dolphin 12.8 Alicia Lipscomb
Wahoo 22.7 Noel Bourque
Mystery Fish (Amberjack) 37.9 Dill Soares
Lady Angler (Dolphin) 9.0 Fiona Cozzolino
Jr. Angler (Dolphin) 6.2 Christopher Sprague
Family Fun Winner Wyatt and Dylan Loomer
Mark’s Trifecta (King, Dolphin, Wahoo) Team Bootlegger/XGeneration
The overall champions took home over $5000 in prize money.
Check out the website and Facebook page and patronize the sponsors on the site. The tournament would not be a success without their help. Visit www.mgmft.net and friend us on Facebook at Mark Gerretson Memorial Fishing Tournament