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NEILL HOLLANDMarty and Vanessa Slade had big expectations for the Charlie Rice Memorial tournament Saturday.
The couple lives on the water at Pass-a-Grille, one of the area's most productive inshore fishing spots, and they had what they believed was an ace in the snook hole: a private dock loaded with fish.
But, snook being snook, they wouldn't cooperate with the tournament on the line.
"They just weren't turned on," Marty said. "I usually have no problem getting them to bite, but last night the slow tide gave them lockjaw."
Even without the homefield advantage, the Slades landed a pair of inshore slams - snook, trout and redfish - near the islands around Pass-a-Grille, and Vanessa won the redfish division with a 27-inch fish.
Louis Garcia fished near the Sunshine Skyway to win the Master Angler inshore award with 17.92 pounds of snook, redfish and trout. Each inshore angler had to catch two of the three.
Brenda Hinton hauled in 14.72 pounds to win the women's inshore division.
Mike Watts won the offshore division with a 56.96-pound grouper landed 75 miles offshore on a live pinfish. Joe Maisano also turned heads with his first-place amberjack weighing 42.48 pounds.
Andrea Weatherby won the ladies offshore award with 41.44 combined pounds in the division that awarded mangrove snapper, grouper and amberjack. Offshore contestants had to catch two of those three to be eligible.
Aeden Bauduin won the youth division.
- Neill Holland is an inshore guide based in St. Petersburg. Call him at 727 455-3002 or contact him at snh921@aol.com