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The 2025 Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Tournament delivered an unforgettable three days of action-packed fishing, as the fleet of 32 boats and 215 anglers released a record-breaking 808 sailfish, marking one of the most prolific tournaments in the event’s storied history.
The tournament saw a slow start on day one, with only one team venturing out into the unfavorable conditions to and record nine releases. However, days two and three saw a red-hot bite, that had crews scrambling to secure enough release flags to fill their riggers at days end.
Mallard, a 55-foot Skulley captained by Randy Yates, emerged as the tournament victor in overall points and the live bait category with an astounding 54 sailfish releases, earning 10,800 points and a payout of $181,396.
Finishing in second place was Reel Easy, a 43-foot Freeman captained by Jimmy Behar, which put up an impressive 51 sailfish releases for 10,200 points. Rounding out the top three was Sandman, a 63-foot Spencer captained by John Dudas, with 9,400 points from 47 releases. Also worth noting is the top finisher in the dead bait division, Two Daze Off, a 50-foot Viking captained by Scott Fawcett, that released an impressive 23 sailfish for 6,900 points.
The top individual angler and the top female angler awards were won by Sandra MacMillian aboard Sandman, who logged a phenomenal 20 releases for 4,000 points. Turning heads in the meat fish divison, Insane-o weighed-in a remarkable 110.4-pound wahoo to easily secure that category.
In total, 11 teams took home a share of the over $380,000 in prize money. The tournament also raised $7,500 for The Billfish Foundation and fisheries conservation efforts.
“It was the best few days of fishing here in Palm Beach I have seen in my 17-year career as a tournament director,” said Courtney Bowden. “Based on everything I can find in tournament history, this is a new record number of releases for the Buccaneer Cup.”
