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The Old Salt Fishing Club's 17th annual TV John Trolling Tournament on Saturday had a remarkable turnout with 141 anglers trolling artificial baits. No live or dead bait could be used.
Prizes were awarded for grouper (red or gag), Spanish mackerel, king mackerel and a winner-take-all jackpot fish, bonito. And a master angler prize was available to any contestant who caught all four species.
Taking first place for grouper was Rob Campbell, whose gag grouper weighed 17.22 pounds. The fish was caught in 40 feet off Indian Shores Reef around noon. Campbell was trolling a deep-diving, silver-and-black plug when the grouper hit.
The top Spanish mackerel was Dave Laggner's 3.28-pounder. Laggner caught his winning fish about 8:30 in the morning just outside the swim buoys by Redington Long Pier. Laggner's mackerel hit a green spoon pulled behind a No. 1 planner at 9 knots.
The winning king mackerel was caught by Michael Aycock. It weighed 19 pounds and was caught close to shore off St. Pete Beach. The fish ate a plain silver spoon Aycock won at the tournament's captains meeting.
Paul Mcduffee won the winner-take-all special division with a 10.8-pound bonito.
The winner in the master angler division was Geoffery Everhart, who caught all four species.
- Rick Frazier runs Lucky Dawg Charters out of St. Petersburg and can be reached at 727 510-4376 or by e-mail at captainrick@luckydawg.com