Onslow Bay Open KMT
Jeff Mulford and Raymond Pugh, of the "Finnagle" fishing team, took first place in the Onslow Bay Open with a 29.76 lb. king mackerel they hooked on a double pogy rig at the Keypost.
Traveling south from Nags Head to fish the event, Raymond Pugh and the “Finnagle” fishing team took first place in the Onslow Bay Open King Mackerel Tournament, besting the second place finishers by a quarter-pound. Pugh fished with Jeff Mulford aboard his Yamaha-powered 23’ Kencraft Sea King, and fishing the week before the tournament had given the pair an idea of where they didn’t want to fish, but not much more.
“We fished up here off Morehead in the Atlantic Beach tournament last weekend,” Pugh explained. “We caught a lot of fish, but they were all small fish, and we knew we were going to need something bigger to place in this one.”
The night before the tournament, some local friends helped out the “Finnagle” anglers with some info.
“My friends Tony Ross and David Pennington told us about some big fish caught a bit further south off Emerald Isle,” said Pugh. “We fished down there on Friday and caught a couple decent fish, so we headed straight down there yesterday.”
Fishing the morning and early afternoon at the East Rock off Bogue Inlet proved unproductive, so the anglers made a call to head in towards the beach.
“We hadn’t had any luck on East,” the winning captain continued, “so we decided to come inside a little bit and try some spots closer to the beach, and that’s when we caught our fish.”
Setting out their spread at the Keypost, a rocky area in 45’ off Bogue Inlet, the anglers marked a good amount of bait on their sounder, and the activity kept them in the area until the big fish struck at 2:00.
“He hit a double pogy rig a bit further back than the propwash,” Pugh reported. “We didn’t see the bite. The fish just started screaming line off.”
Pugh grabbed the rod as the fish ran upwind, and Mulford took over at the helm, turning the boat to chase the king.
“He ran straight into the wind,” Pugh explained. “When we turned to chase him, Jeff’s hat blew off. We weren’t going to get it. I told him I’d buy him a new one.”
The anglers chased their king down, but the long run was only the first part of the fight’s drama.
“When we got up close to the fish, I thought we were going to lose it because there was a big shark after it,” said Pugh. “The fish made one big loop and came back towards the boat, and I told Jeff, ‘You better gaff it now because we might not get another shot—the shark’s on him pretty good’.”
Mulford took the advice to heart and planted the gaff when the king was within reach and swung the king over the gunwale.
Yulee, FL's "Reel Office" team of Jeff and Vicki Keeton and Colin Williams earned second in the Onslow Bay Open with a 29.51 lb. king mackerel they hooked on a live bluefish at the 30/30.
With the near-30 lb. king on board the “Finnagle” at 2:30, the anglers immediately stowed their gear and headed for the scales.
At the weigh-in, their fish narrowly bested the second place king, earning the anglers the first place title and check.
Raymond Pugh wished to thank Lowrance, Pure Fishing, Stren, Shimano, and NC Sportsman for their support of the “Finnagle” crew.
Posting their second high finish in an NC king tournament this year, Yulee, FL’s “Reel Office” fishing team hauled in the 29.51 lb. kingfish that took second place in the event. In their first season fishing NC waters, the Floridians won the Sneads Ferry KMT and were looking for another high-placing fish to ensure they qualified for SKA Nationals in Division One.
Jeff and Vicki Keeton and son Colin Williams make up the “Reel Office” crew, and the trio headed for the 30/30, off Carolina Beach, where they’d heard about some quality king mackerel.
“We fished down there last weekend,” Jeff Keeton explained, “and we heard it was holding some fish still.”
The anglers ran their 32’ Yellowfin out of Bogue Inlet on tournament morning before pointing the bow south towards the 30/30.
The anglers arrived around 8:00, and they didn’t have to wait long before their money fish struck.
“The first line out was a bluefish,” Keeton continued. “It wasn’t in the water five minutes. While I was setting out one of the other lines, it went off.”
Vicki grabbed the rod at first, then passed it off to Colin, but the 5’+ seas made it difficult for the junior angler to fight the king.
“Colin tried hard, but the seas were bouncing him around a little bit,” Keeton said, “so Vicki took back over. It was actually a pretty easy fight except for the seas. The fish ran about 200 yards and then basically gave up.”
When the fish was close enough, Jeff Keeton gaffed it and hauled it aboard the Yellowfin.
“Right after we caught that fish a big storm rolled in,” explained Keeton. “It went from 5’ to 8’ really quick. We got caught in it pretty bad.”
With the weather worsening and a solid king in the boat, the “Reel Office” anglers made the call to head in to Carolina Beach Inlet at 9:30, and then they ran the waterway back to the scales at Swansboro’s Casper’s Marina.
The “Release” captured third place in the event with a 28.19 lb. king. “Won Up” followed with a 28 lb. fish, and team “Raymarine” captured fifth with their 27.88 lb. fish.
The Onslow Bay Open supports a variety of children’s charities throughout the area, and Tournament Director Capt. Stan Jarusinski wished to thank all who fished and all the sponsors for making the tournament’s substantial charitable contributions possible.
This year’s beneficiaries include Toys for Tots, Onslow Christmas Cheer, NC Special Olympics, the Boys and Girls Home of NC, Carteret County Shop with a Cop, and Children’s Flight for Hope.
