Tournament Reports – Back Water Bash
Over a year ago, father and son David and Tripp Hooks, of Ocean Isle, collaborated to arrange their first inshore fishing tournament. After the successful 2018 event, Tripp and Tournament Director David Hooks arranged and registered approximately 40 boats for their second annual Capt’n Hook’s Backwater Bash, which took place on June 24, 2019, exactly one year since their previous event.
This year competing anglers had the opportunity to participate in a variety of divisions. The main event features a top two-fish aggregate between flounder, red drum, and speckled trout (any combination of two of the three species could be used), and cash prizes were awarded to those anglers who placed in the top five. Other awarded divisions of this year’s Backwater Bash consisted of largest black drum, largest oyster toad, lady, junior, and senior anglers, and TWTs for heaviest overall fish and heaviest aggregate.
The two-fish aggregate division was won by Patrick “Smiley” Kelly and teammate Chris Ossman. “The morning was not going our way,” Kelly said, “as all of our live shrimp and finger mullet were dead due to a faulty livewell.” Fortunately, at dead low tide in Tubbs Inlet, Kelly and Ossman caught their wining 6.02 lb. flounder and 6.53 lb. redfish using 7” Gulp swimming minnows. Their total aggregate weight of 12.53 lbs. brought in $3,675 in winnings.
Second place in the two-fish aggregate division was won by Scott Blevins and teammate Tim Corn, who caught a 3.19 lb. flounder along with a 7.20 lb. redfish, for a combined aggregate weight of 10.39 lbs. Blevins and Corn caught their redfish early in the day near Bald Head Island. They switched to flounder after moving over to Lockwood Folly Inlet. Along with their second place aggregate finish, the team placed second in the Big Fish TWT.
Chris Ossman (left) and Patrick “Smiley” Kelly with the winning two-fish aggregate (plus a trout) in the Capt’n Hooks Backwater Bash. The duo weighed in a 6.02 lb. flounder and a 6.53 lb. red drum.
Angler Chris Hanson’s total aggregate weight of 10.17 lbs. placed him in third in the two-fish aggregate division. He pulled in a 3.90 lb. flounder and a 6.27 lb. redfish.
Angler Zach Fipps took home the first place Big Fish TWT with a 7.68 lb. redfish.
Other noteworthy catches of the day go to Brian Wilder, who placed fourth in the main event reeling in a 2.88 lb. flounder and a 6.84 lb. redfish, as well as Brandon Sauls, who placed fifth by pulling in a 3.72 lb. flounder, and a 5.43 lb. redfish.
After this year’s great turnout, expect the Capt’n Hook’s Backwater Bash to be held around the same time of year in 2020.
