Move to the Pacific
With success in the Atlantic, a division soon began in the Pacific, where awards were presented at the United Anglers of Southern California annual banquet.

"While Tag/Flag is best known for helping to increase tagging participation in the Atlantic, the Pacific offers a clear example of its value," Shedd says. "In the 1990s, almost all marlin caught in Hawaii were brought ashore. According to Kona charter captain Gene Vanderhoek, that changed in large part due to the Tag/Flag Tournament. Gene was one of the first to begin tagging marlin in Hawaii. He won the Pacific Captain of the Year Award and received a great deal of recognition. He started receiving charters from anglers who previously fished on other boats, but wanted to fish with a captain who would release their marlin. Today more than 75 percent of the marlin caught in Kona are released."

Capt. Peter Hoogs, who runs the Pamela, a 41-foot Kona-based charter boat, also helped spread the word about tagging in Hawaii. Hoogs first tagged a billfish in 1971 and won the Pacific Blue and Black Marlin Award in 2002 and 2005. "I think most of the Kona charter fleet is involved with the tagging program to some extent, and the tournaments as well," Hoogs says. "It's a big misconception that we kill all our billfish in Hawaii, and it really needs to be shown that that's not the case."

Off the coast of Guatemala, Capt. Ron Hamlin tagged and released thousands of sailfish, winning numerous awards. But for Hamlin, tagging is a way of giving back to the sport, and it's not the trophies that motivate him, although he does appreciate the accolades (he has won the Pacific Sailfish Award seven times). Hamlin began tagging fish long before any awards or recognition was given out. "I tagged my first sail off the Sail Ahoy as a mate in 1963," he says. "I continued to tag as a captain from the early '70s on with the Big Blue, the Prowess, the Marauder and the Emotional Rescue, tagging blues, whites, sails, swords and giant tuna."

Hamlin saw the program grow tagging interest in the Atlantic and change perceptions in the Pacific. The tournament also helped the public understand that big-game fishing isn't about killing large fish. Many charters began calling, seeking to learn more about tagging and conservation. "All anglers interested in tagging know that if they fish with me on the Captain Hook, they get to leave their name in history as a conservationist," Hamlin says.