Tournament Report – Topsail Island Surf and Pier Challenge
After a rescheduling due to the wind and rain during the weekend of Hurricane Joaquin, anglers made their way to the beaches and piers of Topsail Island the weekend of November 6-8 for the Fisherman’s Post Topsail Island Fall Surf and Pier Fishing Challenge. The anglers competed in five categories for both the surf and pier divisions with an optional Red Drum Calcutta.
Jeff Hoy, of Winnabow, NC, nabbed the surf side of the event’s largest flounder, a 4.7 lb. fish that more than double the weight of its competition. Hoy hooked the winning flatfish with less than half-an-hour to go in the event while fishing around a mile north of Surf City Pier. A piece of shrimp on a #6 hook on a double-drop spot rig fooled the flounder.
Conway, SC’s William Green, Jr. topped the surf division’s bluefish leaderboard with a 2.0 lb. fish he hooked while fishing the drive-on beach near New Topsail Inlet. After catching numerous smaller bluefish over the course of the event, Green finally hooked a larger blue around dark on Saturday evening. His winning fish took an interest in a live, 4” pinfish.
Michael Harris, of Wilmington, took home the bounty for the event’s top surf trout, a 1.2 lb. gray trout. His fish fell for a chunk of striped mullet on an Owen Lupton drum rig on the first morning of the event. Harris was fishing a beach access a few miles north of Seaview Pier at North Topsail Beach.
The tournament’s biggest money-winner was Joseph DiLorenzo, who scored big when he landed a 6.7 lb. red drum around 8:00 on the final morning of the event. Fishing in front of a rented condo a mile north of Seaview Pier, DiLorenzo had been hooking big numbers of bluefish and a large stingray before his money-winning red bit. Squid fooled his drum, and he landed three larger, but over-slot reds immediately afterward.
The winners in the 2015 Topsail Island Fall Surf and Pier pose with their checks and plaques following the event’s Awards Dinner and presentation.
Keith Boughton took home the top honors in both the black drum and sea mullet categories to round out the surf division’s winners. His fish weighed 3.6 and 1.6 lbs. respectively.
Roger Lee, of Holly Ridge, NC, was the pier division’s flounder champion, scaling a 1.9 lb. fish he landed right at daybreak on Saturday. After fishing for sea mullet all night, Lee began dropping live shrimp next to the pier’s cleaning station in the hopes of hooking a trout or flounder. Although pinfish and bluefish made it tough to keep a shrimp on the hook, he was able to hook his fish and send down a drop net to shuttle it to the pier.
Tim Chavez, of North Topsail Beach, topped the pier trout category, weighing in a 2.3 lb. gray trout to earn the victory. Chavez was fishing along the breakers with a live finger mullet, hoping for a red drum, when his winning fish bit around 3:30 on Saturday afternoon.
Bryce Williams took first place on the pier bluefish leaderboard, landing a 1.3 lb. blue. He’d been catching big numbers of smaller blues when the fish bit around daybreak on Sunday. A red/white Gotcha plug was responsible for Williams’ winning catch.
Steve Rochelle rounded out the list of pier winners, landing a 1.3 lb. sea mullet to top that category.
For a full leaderboard and more information on the Topsail Island Surf and Pier Challenge and all Fisherman’s Post’s events, visit www.fishermanspost.com.
