1999 Ho'ole'a Fishing Tournament Report

“Will you two guys be the tournament chairs this year?” came the request from the tournament committee in May. “We want to bring this tournament back to the stature it used to have, and it’s been going nowhere for the past couple of years. We need to do something that can hopefully revive it.”

“That’s a pretty tall order,” we (Rick Abille and I) said. “How do you expect us, in four months, to turn around a tournament while maintaining the tradition and standards you have set? This is going to take some work.”

And so the foundation was laid. On May 5 at Waikiki Yacht Club, Rick and I accepted the tournament co-chairs for the 1999 Ho’ole’a Fishing tournament and began a four month attack on Hawaii’s fishermen. The goal was thirty-five to forty boats. We felt if we got this number, the Ho’ole’a would have a chance to re-establish itself as one of the premier events on Oahu, and provide a greatly needed presence on the South shore. We printed up four thousand marketing brochures and two hundred posters and had them in all the fishing stores within a few days after publishing. We mailed the brochures out over seven hundred names of skippers who have participated in tournaments in the past. We hit the newspaper, KGU radio, Hawaii Boats and Yachts, and the Internet. Most importantly, we hit the street and got the fishermen to talk about the event like never before.

Kahuna Kai with a tie for the largest Ono at 45.5lbs

We lowered the entry fee, and gave a discount for those who jumped in before August 7. We added free entries, offered family entertainment, gave away a free entry into Ahi Fever, lengthened the fishing hours, and made absolutely certain that everyone who entered would have the ability to tie up at one of the two yacht clubs if they wanted to. And, to make it even sweeter, we added $2,000.00 of the tournament's money to the jackpot to add to the fishermen’s wish list.

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The winning Marlin caught by the boat Loeau

And we made some unique changes to the fishing rules that made it possible for big money to be won while still allowing several different ways to win. People in a 17 footer could compete with 50 footers, and everyone had a chance. For years Oahu fishermen have objected to IGFA style fishing because it cost them a lot of money to change their gear. We found that nobody minds fishing IGFA style (i.e. one person fights the fish, no bang sticks, gaff or release as appropriate), but not too many people have a spare set of fully legal IGFA gear laying around the house. So we kept the tournament IGFA style but relaxed the line class and chair requirement.

And for the first time, we made it possible to accumulate points for releasing billfish. For years, the tournament has had a Tag and Release division, but that format had never given much encouragement to those who wanted to release fish and still compete for the main prizes. This year, instead of a release division, we made second place worth 25% of the pot, meaning once a big fish was on the scale, the focus would turn to points building through catching all species and releasing billfish when undersized.

By August 10^th, we had thirty-eight entries, more than what we’d hoped to attract. By the time I announced to Hawaii Yacht Club the total at the August 17 general membership meeting, we’d grown to forty-three. When we took the program to press, it was sixty-three, and at the end of the skipper’s meeting on Friday the 3^rd of September, we had seventy-seven entries received. One boat withdrew a few days before the start, so we had a final count of seventy-six boats competing for $37,000 in prizes.

Even the sponsors got into the act. It began when Sealand, Aloha Importing and Brokerage, Southern Wines and Spirits, and Caterpillar came to us with the desire to make it happen one more time. “Bang for the buck” was the catch phrase everyone was using. We needed to find a way to make the sponsors get some bang for their buck. And as the tournament grew, they got the bang they were looking for. More and more sponsors jumped in, offering donations and cash to the tournament in return for an ad in the program. No less than forty sponsors joined us this year, and we received over $20,000 in cash and donation from the group.

The sponsor load had a snowball effect like the entries, and one sponsor actually joined us while I was putting the program together at Kinko’s the night before the skipper’s meeting. At 1:30 in the morning, a gentleman peered in my direction and questioned what I was doing. After explaining the tournament and the details, he asked how much it would cost to place a business card sized ad in the program. I gave him the amount, and within five minutes, he was listed as a sponsor on page thirty-five. Thanks to Robert Smyth of Smyth and associates for meeting me at Kinko’s in the wee hours of the morning and validating to me this tournament was going to be a success this year.

And so came the tournament itself. Seventy-five boats hit the start line at 6:00 on Saturday, and when the call to start fishing was given, the engines roared to life with a wash of boats headed in every direction in search of the fish that would make them over $12,000 richer.

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The crew of Kalei K with their 139lb Ahi

Alele II with skipper Al Bento was one of the first to come across the radio with a hookup, a fish that almost emptied his 130-pound tackle (complete with thirty-two pounds of drag) in less than a minute, then unfortunately came unbuttoned shortly thereafter. But the hookups kept coming. Kuu Huapala had a fish on with some 800 yards out, but it too came off the pointy end. Waianae’s Kaimalolo had a fish on they figured was a good 500 pounds plus, but it managed to break the barb of the hook and swim away much to the horror of the crew. Kahuna Kai also reported a big fish in the 350-pound range that came unglued, and several others boats had major hookups that didn’t stick for some reason or another.

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Pursuit and their 122lb Ahi

At the end of day one, the fish to beat was a 188.5 pound Blue Marlin caught by Lady Kay. In many tournaments, when a big fish is landed on the first day, there is a sense that the tournament is over and there’s no real reason to keep at it. However, this tournament never had that feeling, both because the biggest fish was considered beatable, and also because second place was for total weight. So with all the cash still up for grabs, everyone was on the start line again Sunday morning and hit the seas with a vengeance. More hookups were called in, but overall, the fishing was a little slower than the forty boat weigh-in on Saturday. And nothing huge seemed to jump on anyone’s line. Some good fish to be certain, but nothing huge.

In the end, we wrote a few checks out to some skilled anglers who were fortunate enough to find the fish over the weekend. Joe O’Neill on the Girlie T received $325.00 for his free entry into Ho’ole’a as a result of the 1999 KGU “GO FISH” show with Mike Buck. Joe was selected out of twenty-four names that were entered into the promo, and he was awarded his check at the Monday night banquet.

Kurt Kamioka was awarded a check in the amount of $350.00 plus a free entry into the 2000 Ahi Fever tournament for his effort on Saturday. Kamioka and crew managed to land the largest Ahi of the tournament, a 139 pounder. Rahn Yamashita and his crew cashed in on $350.00 for the largest Mahimahi on day two, and since they entered the optional dailies, their total for that single 40.5 pound fish was $822.50.

Kahuna Kai also received $1,272.50 for one fish. His 45.5 pound Ono caught on day was good for $350.00 for the largest of the day, plus he entered the optional categories which brought his total up. The same went for Carlos LaRosa on Lynell, where his 49.5 pound Mahi netted him the same prizes as Kahuna Kai.

Brian Abelaye on the Sonya Lea had an excellent tournament. Although they didn’t win any of the four main jackpot prizes, they did manage to catch some key fish that netted tham a tidy check in the amount of $2,230.00. They caught the largest Marlin on day one in the optional entry category (118 pounds, $562.50), largest Ono on day one (45.5 pounds, $562.50+350), and the largest Ahi on day two (65 pounds, $405.00+350).

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49.5 and 42.0 lb Mahi's caught by the crew of Lynell

And if these winners aren’t enough, we’re left with the main winners. Third largest fish, good for 10% of the jackpot, was a tie between Ruff Suspect and Nautigal, and skippers Scott Minaldi and Jim Markey enjoyed a check for $1,275.00 each for their Marlin that both weighed 174 pounds. The second largest fish of the tournament, good for 15% of the pot, was a 188.5 pound Blue caught by Lady Kay, which netted them a check in the amount of $4,175.00.

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The crew of Malia Kini with their 44lb Ono

Second place in the tournament was awarded to the skipper who accumulated the most points including released Billfish. This year, the highest total weight was won by Pursuit, skippered by Art Kamisuge. The qualifying fish he and the crew were able to land included a 122 pound Ahi, a 116.5 pound Marlin, and five Mahimahi ranging from twenty-two to thirty-four and a half pounds.

Which brings us to the grand prize winner. The 1999 Ho’ole’a Fishing Tournament winner, Loeau, skippered by Larry Bardegas. They managed to land a 197 pound Blue Marlin on day two only 10 minutes before the 4PM stop fishing call went out. The fish was good for largest on day two and 50% of the overall tournament jackpot, bringing their total winnings to $13,100.00.

At the end of the tournament banquet on Monday night, Rick and I looked across at each other, shook hands, and agreed we probably did a good thing for the Ala Wai and our yacht clubs.

Aloha and mahalo to all our volunteers, sponsors, and participants. We’ll see you all next year!