Thirty-two teams engaged in a high-seas battle for bragging rights and $100,000 in cash and prizes during the Cabo Summer Slam, presented by Pelagic. And while the focus was squarely on the billfish release division — targeting blue, black and striped marlin plus sailfish — teams could also score big with the heaviest tuna, mahimahi and wahoo in the game fish categories.
There were 71 billfish released on Day One, with Turning to the Right and Capt. Ty Valli leading the way with seven striped marlin and a sailfish let go to win the daily cash jackpot. Day Two brought excellent fishing conditions, with many boats running to the ledges and seamounts that surround Cabo San Lucas.
By the call for lines out on Day Two, the fleet had released 93 striped marlin. Hot Rod had the hot hand and scored a total of 2,000 release points from 20 marlin (13 on Day Two alone) to pocket $10,935, along with a full day’s charter on the brand new 33-foot Magnum from Mag Bay Yachts and the Picante Fleet. Expedition was second with 1,300 points and Nice Ride settled for third; they posted 1,200 release points.
The Tejas team, appropriately from Texas, made the most of their second day and returned to weigh a 97.6-pound yellowfin tuna along with a 41.1-pound wahoo, winning nearly $26,000 as a result of their two first-place fish. They also took home a free entry to the 2016 Bisbee’s East Cape Offshore Tournament. Team What a Journey had the biggest mahimahi at 25.6 pounds. For the tournament, there were 164 billfish releases.
