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The Hawaii Marlin Tournament Series concluded in September with the final leg of the series, appropriately named the “It’s a Wrap” tournament. The series kicked off in March and over the eight qualifying tournaments, series participants fished a total of 22 days and caught 437 marlin, with 96.4% of all fish tagged and release. A total of 16 qualifying blue marlin were weighed, ranging from 426 to 714 pounds.
Chad Beaudry, fishing on Last Chance with Capt. Tracey Epstein, clinched the title of 2024 Champion Angler, amassing 7,333.5 points from 31 blues and 3 stripes tagged, plus one weighed fish at 638.5 pounds. Previous champion Chad Lindner came in second this year with 6,871 points while fishing from his boat, Bwana, with Capt. Teddy Hoogs.
Led by Capt. Carlton Taniyama, Five Star tallied 9,087 points to earn the 2024 Champion Boat/Team honors. Owner Warren Keinath, along with friends Tom Goodman and Ken Stehle, contributed 3,570 points before returning home, leaving angler Bono Hauanio to secure 5,517 points and earning third place in the angler division. Last Chance finished second in the boat/team division with 8,853.5 points, followed by Bwana in third with 7,061 points.
A notable moment in the series involved Jeff Stafford, who lost a marlin to sharks that weighed over 745 pounds. Despite the setback, Stafford and the crew on Tantrum rebounded the next day, successfully landing a 715-pound marlin and the win at the 38th Big Island Marlin Tournament.
In addition to the cash and prizes awarded at the qualifying events, the 2024 Hawaii Marlin Tournament Series Champion Angler and Champion Boat/Team shared a $10,000 bonus payout for their performance in the overall series.
“I can’t recall a year quite like this one for Kona or for the Hawaii Marlin Tournament Series,” said tournament series director Capt. Jody Bright. “We’ve had incredible fishing almost all year, evident by the record numbers produced and a nail-biting finish going down to the last day of the final leg. That’s about as good as it gets in Kona tournament fishing. Congratulations again to the winning teams and anglers!”
