Pensacola Beach Results

After the cancellation of our March 28th scheduled event we considered changing our name to the Bad Weather Fishing Tournament Series. It almost held true again on April 4th. The forecast was calling for 10-15mph winds and we ended up having a solid 15-20mph wind for most of the day straight out of the East. The water was very choppy and in most places very dirty, making it difficult on the sight fishermen. With this tournament being a rescheduled event and having the IFA tournament in Slidell on the same day, we knew the turnout would be a little low, but we still had 20 boats show up ready to fish.
Boats were released from three boat ramps in the Gulf Breeze area at 6:30a.m. The weigh-in was at a restaurant on the south side of the sound at 3:00p.m. Eleven boats ended up weighing in fish, and we had a good crowd of spectators as well.
Bill Lipscomb and Bob Heard took 5th place with 9.06lbs. Joey Sostheim and Pete Turner weighed in 11.72lbs for 4th place. Daniel Snapp and Jerry Adams brought in 11.76lbs for 3rd place and won E.C.R.C. long sleeve t-shirts, a No Doubt measuring board and a tub of fish friendly hand cleaning wipes. New comers John Rivers and Dusty Powers took 2nd place with 12.20lbs, winning a free engine service to Edgewater Marine, a pair of Guideline Sunglasses, a No Doubt measuring board and tub of hand cleaning wipes. First place also went to E.C.R.C. new comers and Pensacola locals Chad Skeeles and George Johnson who brought in a monster weight of 14.06lbs. First place was awarded the E.C.R.C. tournament trophies, a free engine service to The Ships Chandler, two Sahara 3000 Shimano reels, a No Doubt measuring board and a tub hand cleaning wipes.
Chad Skeeles and George Johnson not only took first place for the event, but also won the Elite Series for largest single redfish and the largest aggregate which totaled $580. Mike Klinger and Rob Lawson won the Elite Series for the longest trout which was 21 ½" long and weighed 3.62lbs. They took home $110.
After the weigh in, people had a few drinks and some food there on the water and told lies about the fish they had lost. It turned out to be a great event. Thank you tournament sponsors, Edgewater Marine for giving a free service and Hot Spots Tackle for giving the two Shimano reels and shirts. Thank you also to our club sponsors, The Ships Chandler for supplying a free engine service, No Doubt Fish Rule for supplying the scale, new measuring boards and the hand cleaners, and Guideline Sunglasses for giving another pair of great glasses.
April 25th we'll be in Destin. The website will be updated with details or join the fishing forum to get on our email list. Hope to see everyone in Destin!