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Top five face improving conditions in FLW Kingfish Tour Championship finale
BILOXI, Miss. – A bottlenose dolphin chased baitfish at the mouth of Point Cadet Marina just moments after five teams exited the concrete break wall en route to the final round launch of the Walmart FLW Kingfish Tour Championship. Flipper had a short run for his breakfast, but his human counterparts will take their hunt much farther into the Gulf of Mexico.
With the aftermath of a harsh cold front yielding a crisp, clear morning with a gleaming sunrise and temperatures in the upper 30’s, anglers bundled in sweatshirts, rain suits, stocking caps and facemasks. Long offshore runs will be painfully cold, but sea conditions have improved much since
Saturday when high winds and big waves prompted FLW tournament management to cancel the second day of competition.
Most teams indicated that they would be fishing at least part of their day around a drilling rig in 200 feet of water, some 80 miles southwest of Biloxi on the east side of the Mississippi River delta. Slow trolling live blue runners and bluefish will be the common tactic, along with dead ribbonfish towed behind downriggers.
Teams kept live baitfish leftover from day one in bait pens tied at the docks. They will likely augment their bait supplies by working small diamond jigs and gold hook “sabiki” rigs around drilling structures.
Loose Lucy, captained by Mike Kaminsky of Charleston, S.C. enters the final day of competition in the top spot. Catching a 57-pound, 10-ounce kingfish on day one established a team record in FLW competition and gave them an 8-pound, 3-ounce lead. Team BP sits in second with 49-07, followed by K Sea Lake with 45-10, Team Coppertone with 44-01 and Sake 1 with 43-15.
Loose Lucy’s Susan Kaminsky said enthusiasm over the prospect of winning has prepared her team for the cold ride and the work ahead of them. “We’re bundled up, but we’re so excited about fishing that I’m hoping it will take the chill out as soon as we get out there and get on some fish.”
A margin of 8-plus pounds gives Loose Lucy a sizeable advantage, but Susan said she and her 
teammates are making no assumptions. They will be looking for another big fish to seal the deal.
“We need to get a 35-pound fish and then bump around and try to get one a little bigger,” Susan said. “We’re confident that 45 pounds is all we’ll need, but we want to get something in the box right away.”
The day’s marine forecast calls for 15- to 20-mph winds and 3- to 5-foot seas in the morning. After noon, winds should decrease to 10-15 and seas should drop to 2-3 feet. Rough conditions make it difficult to control multiple lines so teams decrease their spreads from four or five lines to two or three. Most will run a single downrigger line, a short flat line and a long “shotgun” line.
Logistics
Teams must be checked in at City Marina next to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino by 2:30 p.m. The final weigh-in starts at 4 p.m. at the Walmart store located at 3615 Sangani Blvd. in D’Iberville, Miss. The weigh-in is free and open to the public.
The winning team will be determined based upon the heaviest kingfish from Friday plus the heaviest kingfish from Sunday. Teams will fish for a top award of up to $75,000 cash.
Sunday’s conditions:
Sunrise: 6:23 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 38 degrees
Expected high temperature: 57 degrees
Water temperature: 70-72 degrees
Wind: from the NW at 10-15 mph
Humidity: 40 percent
Day’s outlook: Sunny and cool