14th Mako Mania Tourney in the Books

OCEAN
CITY- The 14th Annual Mako Mania Shark Tournament last weekend was a
big success with hundreds of sharks caught and released and dozens more weighed
at the scales at host Bahia Marina.

Sharks
turned up in great numbers in the waters off the coast of Ocean City just in
time for the annual Mako Mania, the first major event of the summer tournament
season in the resort. A total of 44 boats and 196 anglers participated in the
annual tournament and were rewarded with over $60,000 in prize money.

First
place in the signature mako division went to angler Tom Perry and the crew
aboard “Team Country Wide” with a 293-plus pound mako caught on the
tournament’s second day worth $10,895. Second place in the mako division went
to angler Mike Frybarger on the “Salty Sons” with a 236-pounder worth $11,973
in prize money. Angler Matt Keller aboard the “Marli” caught took third place
in the mako division in terms of weight with a 191.8-pounder, but was first in
terms of prize money at $21,926 because of added entry levels. The crew aboard
the “Crush ‘Em” was fourth in the mako division with a 176-plus pounder worth
roughly $3,100.

In the thresher
division, the crew aboard the “Playin’ Hooke” took first place with a whopping
627.6-pounder worth a little over $5,000. The “Keep ‘Er Wet” crew took top
honors in the bluefish division with a 14.3-pounder worth $4,276. The “All In”
and the “JoJO” shared second place in the bluefish division with a pair of
11.3-pounders and each received $825. The crew aboard the “Playmate” took home
the W.W. Harman Award for the most releases with 14 makos released during the
tournament.