Hatteras Yachts took first-place honors in both the white marlin and wahoo categories at this year’s 35th Annual White Marlin Open, held at Harbour Island in Ocean City, Md., Aug. 4-8. Billed as the “World’s Largest Billfish Tournament,” this year’s field consisted of more than 300 boats competing for more than $2.2 million in payouts.
Fishing from the deck of the Hatterascal with captain David Fields at the helm and mate Ben Horning running the cockpit, anglers Roger Mooney and Bob Hoste both landed winning fish on an exciting last day of the tournament, scoring an exciting double win for Hatteras Yachts. Earlier in the week the Hatterascal, Hatteras Yacht’s 60C GT Tournament Edition factory demo boat, scored with four white marlin, but Friday provided the twin wins. Mooney scored first, landing an 81-pound white marlin shortly after noon that would tie for first place. Hoste followed this feat an hour later with a win of his own, boating the tournament-winning 47-pound wahoo.
Mooney and Hoste are no strangers to either Hatteras or the winner’s circle. Both hold key positions with Jarrett Bay Yacht Sales, Hatteras’ exclusive dealer in the Carolinas, Virginia and Maryland, and both are seasoned captains as well as anglers with more than 50 years of experience between them.
“Bringing in the winning white marlin at this prestigious event felt like winning the Super Bowl,” stated Capt. Fields. “There were hundreds of people at the dock chanting ‘Hatteras’ over and over with our win — and Bob’s first-place wahoo was icing on the cake.”
“What an exciting win for Hatteras Yachts and Jarrett Bay Yacht Sales,” added Mooney. “Capt. Dave put us on the fish, and Ben did an awesome job working the cockpit all week long – he was simply amazing. With such an experienced team and a fantastic boat, we really had the odds stacked in our favor!”
Hoste’s comments were even more specific. “In a day and time where fish conservation is at the front of everyone’s mind, the fact that 93 percent of the billfish caught during this tournament were released, and the top three fish were within a pound-and-a-half of each other, speaks to the professionalism evident in the entire field of 300 boats — especially this Hatterascal crew.”
