Anglers Greg Smith and Dan Stacy had a great three days of fishing for Team Blue Sky to win the Guana Cay Championship.
The team aboard the 56' Viking from Pawley's Island, South Carolina released three blue marlin, one white marlin and one sailfish to clinch victory in the first leg of the 2014 Bahamas Billfish Championship series. Team Blue Sky released fish each day to earn a total of 2,100 points and put them in the lead for the 2014 Bahamas Billfish Championship.
Anglers Bob Jacobson and Austin Burr guided Team Marlin Darlin to a second place finish with two blue marlin and three white marlin releases. Jacobson and Burr, aboard the 62' Spencer from Clearwater, Florida released their first blue on day one, a white marlin on day two, and on day three they finished strong with a blue marlin and two white marlin released. It was an exciting final few hours in the tournament, as Team Blue Sky and Team Marlin Darlin traded the top two spots throughout the afternoon.
Tournament sponsors Hatteras and MarineMax teamed up to fish the 63' Hatteras Hatterascal. Angler Ken Reda released a white marlin on the first day and a blue marlin and sailfish on the third day, ending in third place overall. Aboard the Hatterascal, John Ward, president of Hatteras Yachts, watched his team have an excellent three days of fishing and was pleased with their third place finish.
The Guana Cay Championship win earned Greg Smith and Team Blue Sky a Chris Costello handmade trophy presented by tournament sponsors Hatteras and MarineMax. In addition, Smith received a gift certificate for a new pair of Costa Sunglasses from tournament sponsor Costa as well as a gift certificate from Roffer's Ocean Fishing Forecasting (ROFFS), longtime Bahamas Billfish Championship sponsors. Captain Steve Crammer and his crew each received Randy Rich-designed crew trophies sponsored by the Lewis Marine Group.
The second place Chris Costello handmade trophy went to Marlin Darlin. Jeff Donahue and Team Hatterascal received the third place Chris Costello handmade trophy. In addition to the Chris Costello trophies, the second and third place teams also received gift certificates from Roffer's Ocean Fishing Forecasting Service (ROFFS) and Costa Sunglasses.
The Guana Cay Championship, hosted by Orchid Bay Yacht Club & Marina, produced seven blue marlin, 11 white marlin and two sailfish. All billfish were released. All catches in Bahamas Billfish Championship tournaments are validated using time and date stamped digital images. Affidavits signed by all participants fishing on each team further confirm that the fish were released in accordance with International Game Fish Association (IGFA) and Bahamas Billfish Championship rules.
Hatteras and MarineMax were the co-hosting sponsors of the Bahamas Billfish Championship's season opener at Guana Cay. The companies' sponsorship included a special pig roast dinner for participants that Thursday evening at Nipper's. Other social functions during the tournament were hosted by CAT Marine Power, Ocean Club at Port Canaveral and ZF Marine.
The Bahamas Billfish Championship is the oldest billfish tournament series in the world. Anglers can fish any or all of the tournaments with cumulative points determining the overall Bahamas Billfish Champion. The Bahamas Billfish Championship has endowed two scholarships that have afforded Bahamian students the opportunity to pursue degrees in marine biology or advanced education in the marine technologies.

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