Jodi Tynch Memorial KMT
Mike, Michael, and Austin Lucas and Greg Pare--the "Collision Course" fishing team--took home the $5,000 first place check in the 4th annual Jodi Tynch King Mackerel Tournament with a 35.1 lb. fish they hooked at the 30/30 on a naked menhaden.
With a king mackerel that outweighed the second place fish by just shy of 10 lbs., Michael Lucas and the “Collision Course” fishing team took home the $5,000 guaranteed first place check in the 3rd Annual Jodi Tynch Memorial King Mackerel Tournament, held June 25-26 out of Starling Marine and Motts Channel Seafood in Wrightsville Beach.
“We’ve struggled some this year,” Lucas explained, “so this sure felt good.”
Fishing on a 32’ Fountain, Lucas and the rest of the crew—his father Mike, son Austin, and Greg Pare—didn’t even need to catch their big fish, as the 28 pounder they also had aboard would’ve topped the field as well.
After catching bait in Banks Channel on tournament morning, the anglers headed for the 30/30, a live bottom area off Carolina Beach that’s produced more than a few money-winning mackerel.
Once arriving, they immediately hooked a pair of large spanish mackerel on the downrigger, then dealt with sharks until 10:30 that morning, when the 35 pounder inhaled a naked menhaden on their long line.
Mike Lucas was first to the rod, holding on while the fish took a hard first run and the crew cleared the remaining lines.
“He pulled pretty hard,” Michael Lucas said. “It took us a while to get that fish in, but we never had to chase it. After that first real good run, he came right back towards the boat.”
Staying down in the water, the king prolonged the battle by refusing to surface for the first 20 minutes. Once it did, however, the anglers were ready.
“When we actually saw him,” Lucas continued, “we didn’t waste time. I stuck him the first time I could and hauled him in the boat.”
Putting the fish on a hand scale, the crew got a reading of 39 lbs., and the mood aboard the “Collision Course” boiled over.
“It was probably 30 minutes of excitement after we got him in the boat that we finally got that fish on ice,” Lucas reported.
Once they had their prize secured, the crew went back to trolling, catching a dolphin an hour later and several more sharks before they hooked the 28 pounder at 1:30.
Richard Clark with the 25.3 lb. king mackerel that earned he and Ricky Holden, aboard the "Reely Miss Behavin," second place in the Jodi Tynch KMT. Their fish fell for a naked pogy on the long line near the Shark Hole.
With a pair of winning fish in the boat, the anglers headed for the scales, and they wisely chose to hand the 35 pounder over to the weigh master.
“We weren’t taking any chances,” Lucas said. “We weighed the big one!”
The “Collision Course” anglers wished to express their gratitude to Gore Marine for contributing to their success.
Scaling a 25.3 lb. king mackerel, Ricky Holden and Richard Clark, the “Reely Miss Behavin’” crew, took home second place in the event.
Fresh off a win two weeks ago at the S.H.A.R.E. KMT, the anglers had a good idea of where to look for a big king mackerel on tournament day.
“We caught our winning fish at the Shark Hole, and we knew a lot of the Jolly Mon fish had come from there last weekend, so that’s where we went,” Clark explained.
After catching menhaden off Bald Head Island, the pair headed out to the Shark Hole.
The spot lived up to its name, producing only sharks until they got the bite they were looking for at 10:00.
A naked menhaden on the long top line fooled the big mackerel, and Clark grabbed the rod as it ran.
“He ran hard and took a lot of line,” Clark said, “and went deep and stayed there. He actually fought for a long time.”
When Clark finally coaxed the king to the surface, Holden planted the gaff and boated the fish.
“We were excited,” Clark continued. “There was a lot of high-fiving because we hadn’t heard of any other big fish on the radio.”
A 23.6 lb. king earned third place in the tournament for Leslie Davis on the “Outcast.” Capt. Austin Eubank and the “Clearly Hooked” crew scaled a 22.1 lb. fish for fourth, and Henry Moore on the “Bobcat” rounded out the top five with an 18.6 lb. king.
The Jodi Tynch Memorial KMT is a fundraiser for the Lower Cape Fear Hospice and Life Care Center, and this year’s event generated $5,368 for the organization. Tournament Director Mike Tynch would like thank all the event’s sponsors and the participating anglers for helping honor his late wife’s memory and generating proceeds for that worthy cause.
