White Marlin Open billfish tournament will go on as scheduled in August, officials say
A fish is weighed in at the annual White Marlin Open in Ocean City in 2013. (Rachael Pacella / Baltimore Sun)
SALISBURY, Md. — Officials with the White Marlin Open, a five-day event billed as the biggest and richest billfish tournament in the world, will go on as scheduled in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
Boats from Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks regularly contend for top catches in the tournament, and last year boats from Virginia Beach finished second and third.
Tournament officials said on the event's Facebook page that the tournament will be held as planned beginning on Aug. 3, the Salisbury Daily Times reported Wednesday.
The Facebook post said the event will follow government guidelines on spectator crowd size, but adds it doesn't know what restrictions will be in place in August.
Held in Ocean City, the tournament runs for five days with different fishing categories such as white marlin, blue marlin, tuna, wahoo, shark, swordfish and dolphin.
The White Marlin Open was created in 1974 by Jim Motsko, who still serves as the organization's president. The tournament has grown every year, and through the years has hosted more than 100,000 participants and distributed more than $63 million in prize money.
Ocean City fisherman Tommy Hinkle won the 2019 tournament with his catch of a 79.5-pound white marlin, earning just under $1.5 million. Last year's tournament featured a billfish tournament world record total payout of $6.14 million.
In 2018, Underdog captain Jake Hiles of Virginia Beach lost to the Weldor's Ark out of Morehead City, North Carolina, in a controversial tie-breaker.