ORANGE BEACH, Ala. – Hurricane Ike, a massive 800-mile-wide storm potentially more devastating than Katrina and packing the highest kinetic energy of any Atlantic storm in the last 40 years, has forced FLW Outdoors tournament officials to delay the start of the Walmart FLW Kingfish Tour event yet another day.
Although the Orange Beach event was scheduled to take place Sept. 12-14, FLW officials now say the tournament will scaled down to a one-day format which will commence on Sunday.
“Given the weather conditions, we decided to postpone the start of the tournament until Sunday,” said FLW Outdoors tournament director Dan Grimes. “On Sunday, we’re going to have a one-day shootout format. As of right now, we’re planning to give the field extended fishing time – probably from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. – although that hasn’t been finalized yet.
“We’re going to do our best to give teams as much time on the water as possible,” Grimes continued. “But as of right now, safety is our main priority.”
Although the main thrust of Hurricane Ike is currently located in southeastern Texas, its effects are still being felt for hundreds of miles along the Gulf Coast. With southeasterly winds ranging from 25 to 35 mph, and waves recorded as high as 16 feet in the Orange Beach area, today’s conditions ultimately proved too dangerous to move ahead with Saturday’s rescheduled start to the Kingfish Tour event.
The competition
As many as 100 teams will compete in the FLW Kingfish Tour event at Orange Beach, which features a total cash purse of $300,000. Teams will be competing for a first-place prize of $100,000.
Teams are allowed to weigh in one kingfish as long as it meets the minimum 30-inch requirement. On Sunday – weather permitting – the entire field will fish an abbreviated one-day event. Whichever team secures the heaviest kingfish during Sunday’s finals will be crowned champion.
In addition to lucrative cash awards, teams fishing the FLW Kingfish Tour are also vying for valuable points that could translate into a berth into the no-entry-fee $500,000 Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour Championship in Biloxi, Miss., Nov. 14-16. There, teams will have a shot at winning as much as $150,000.
Sunday’s takeoff begins at 7 a.m., at The Wharf marina, located at 4550 Main Street Intracoastal Waterway between mile markers 158 and 159 in Orange Beach, Ala.