Sneads Ferry King Mackerel Tournament

The 2024 Sneads Ferry King Mackerel Tournament attracted 117 boats to fish this year’s event, a success considering that conditions were predicted to be very challenging at best on Sunday, the second of the two fishing days that boats were given the choice of fishing.

The 112 boats that fished on Saturday enjoyed good conditions, but the 5 boats that opted to fish on Sunday found that Ernesto’s effects made fishing extremely uncomfortable and not a single fish was weighed in on Sunday.

No fish on Sunday meant that the Liquid Fire Fishing Team, who sat atop of the leaderboard after Saturday’s fishing, took home the win.

In the Sneads Ferry event, Team Liquid Fire, out of Cape Carteret, had onboard Mark Henderson, John Molfetto, and Crockett Henderson, and they launched their Andros Offshore 32, powered by twin V-10 Mercury 400s, out of Morehead early Saturday to find winds at only 5 knots and a 5-6’ swell that were a very comfortable 13 seconds apart. They had menhaden already in the livewell, penned up from the day before, but stopped to cast net some bluefish before taking off to the east side of the shoals.

The team headed out of Drum Inlet looking for better water and a big king, but while they worked to the north, the crew only found smaller kings. The decision was made to head back inshore a little, and during that move they found a temperature break. 

This new location only produced a lot of sharks and amberjacks, so they moved yet again, this time targeting a tideline not too far from Drum Inlet with water temperatures in the 79-80 degree range. Soon after getting out their spread, the winning king hit a live menhaden naked on the long line. 

Mark Henderson, John Molfetto, and Crockett Henderson (l-r), of Team Liquid Fire out of Cape Carteret, with the first place king in the 2024 Sneads Ferry King Mackerel Tournament. The 36.51 lb. king hit a naked pogie on the long line while trolling a tideline outside Drum Inlet. Photo courtesy of Anita Lancaster.

They were in just 35’ of water, so the king’s initial run went directly offshore, and then after another blistering run, the crew found the king holding under the boat. 

36. Molfetto was at the helm, C. Henderson was the angler, and M. Henderson (self admittedly) struggled a little with the 12’ gaff and the king’s position directly under the boat. Still, the seasoned crew put the 36.51 lb. king in the box.

Liquid Fire finished atop the leaderboard and won several TWTs, and they took home over $45,000 in prize money. On the win, they thanked the support of their sponsors, such as SiriusXM Marine, Andros, Mercury, Amera Trail Trailers, TACO, FXR Pro Fish, Simrad, Accurate, and Cannon.

On A Mission, comprised of Chris Bryan and Alan and Natalie Ambrose, finished in second place with a 32.10 lb. king. 

On A Mission started their Saturday in the Ocean Isle area, one of less than six boats that went south. They caught bait around 7:00 am, floating the net once the sun came up a little, and then headed to an area about 10 miles southwest of Frying Pan Tower in 90’ of water. 

Their first king bite of the day came at approximately 10:30, and it was the 32-pound class fish they would weigh in. The king hit a single naked pogie on the long line. Chris was the angler, Alan was on the gaff, and Natalie was at the wheel. 

Team On A Mission, out of Ocean Isle, took second place in the 2024 Sneads Ferry KMT with this 32.10 lb. king that fell for a naked pogie while slow trolling 10 miles southwest of Frying Pan Tower. Photo courtesy of Anita Lancaster.

The rest of their fishing day was made up of smaller kings, barracudas, and jacks, so they started the 2+ hour run to the scales. The team’s list of sponsors include Fountain Powerboats, Mercury Marine, Bass Pro Shops of Myrtle Beach, Myco Trailers, Lumitec Lighting, and Aquateko.

In other top finishes, Annie and Fisher Wokasch on Team FishAnn were the Junior Angler champions with a 26.02 lb. king, the Dolphin Division went to Reel Motivator with a 7.02 lb. mahi, and Joker’s Wild won both the Small Boat TWT and the Single Engine TWT with a 25.68 lb. king. 

The Sneads Ferry KMT, put on by the Sneads Ferry Rotary Club, is a major fundraiser for good causes in the area, with donations made this year to such organizations as Dickson High School scholarships, Share the Table, Folkstone Food Bank, Boys & Girls Home of Lake Waccamaw, and others, as well as Christmas shopping for those in the community in need.

Their newest project is to raise $1 million by this time next year to train people to staff One Place, a child advocacy center finishing a new building to better serve the community.

For more information on the Sneads Ferry King Mackerel Tournament, including a complete leaderboard, please visit www.sfkmt.com.

by Fish Poster