FORT PIERCE, Fla. – Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour teams caught them by the boatload fishing just off the beach on opening day of competition at Fort Pierce, and seemingly unwise is the captain who attempts to stray from that strategy on day two.
This place is coughing up lots of kings at the moment, plus a good number of big ones. Eight kingfish over 40 pounds crossed the scale Friday, and the fifth-place cut weight settled at a projected 43-4 on day one. The anglers, however, expect the cut will rise to around 46 pounds on day two as more big kings – including a possible 50-pounder or two – come in Saturday.
The reason for the big weights is that, simply put, the kingfish are very accessible right now. They’re migrating into the shallows with the baitfish, and the tournament boats are fishing in what looks to be an armada of 35-foot Wellcrafts, Hydra-Sports and Scarabs just off the beach to the north of Fort Pierce. All but just six of the 86 teams weighed in a fish Friday, and most of them caught them in roughly the same place.
“It’s really unique, not having to make that run,” said George Edens, crewmember for fourth-place Team East Coast Sports. “Last time we were here, we had to run a hundred miles one way. Yesterday, we ran just three or four miles one way. It was just right.”
With the fishing fast, easy and close by, expect the fleet to come with more nice Atlantic kings on day two.
Into the cut
The 86-boat opening round ends after today’s fishing. The field will be cut to the top five, based on the heaviest single fish over the first two days, and will advance to Sunday’s final round. The winning team will be determined by heaviest two-fish weight, combining the opening and final rounds.
At stake in Fort Pierce is a potential $100,000 payday for the winning team. The total purse for the event is $300,000.
The scales open at 4 p.m. Eastern time Saturday at Fort Pierce City Marina located at 1 Avenue A in Fort Pierce. The scales will be open until 6 p.m.
The final, top-five weigh-in Sunday will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 5100 Okeechobee Road in Fort Pierce beginning at 4:30 p.m.