The 2017 White Marlin Open took place August 7-11 in Ocean City, MD. And on the last day of weigh-ins at Harbor Island, a 95.5 pound white marlin, the third largest in tournament history, jumped into first place. Glen Frost of the Wire Nut with the winning 95.5 pound white marlin! Photo courtesy White Marlin Open According to the White Marlin Open (WMO):
The Wire Nut made the 4 p.m. bridge and cruised toward the HI scale with a quiet confidence.  Angler Glen Frost, an attorney from Stevensville, MD, knew that he had to beat a large white, but the crew felt the measurements indicated that was possible. When the digital scale read 95.5 pounds the celebrating started.  It was the third largest white marlin ever caught in the 44-year-old event and it was Frost’s first white marlin catch! So, Frost’s first ever billfish catch earned first place in the 2017 WMO and $1,654,800 in prize money.  That fish cost Donohue $1,400,000 but Donohue and The Griffin still earned $1,525,964 for the second place white.  MR Ducks and fell to third with earnings of $164,673.
The tuna category produced eight winners including a White Marlin Open record $866,553 tuna payout to Joe Sadler off the Intents both from Jupiter Florida. The money in the Daily Meat Fish division is split between the heavy wahoo and heavy dolphin. The dolphin fishing was the slowest in memory and only one dolphin qualified. The one dolphin that did qualify, however, took big money. In the Daily Release Point division, the Bar South took first with 735 followed by Fender Bender with 700 points and Weldor’s Ark with 665 points. Those same boats took the top three places in the prestigious Billfish Points division. The top Tournament Anglers who will receive the coveted Master Angler Rings are: Jack Owens off the Rebel, John Roberts on the Weldor's Ark, and Kevin Pento aboard the Singularis.

Leaderboard

White Marlin

1. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Wire Nut, Ocean City, MD Angler: Glen Frost, Stevensville, MD Weight: 95.5 pounds Est. Prize: $1,654,800.00 2. Date: 8/9/17 Boat: Griffin, Palm Beach, FL Angler: Mike Donohue, Wilmington, DE Weight: 86 pounds Est. Prize: $1,525,960.00 3. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: M.R. Ducks, Ocean City, MD Angler: Joe Andrews, Ocean City, MD Weight: 79.5 pounds Est. Prize: $164,673.00

Tuna

1. Date: 8/9/17 Boat: Intents, Jupiter, FL Angler: Joseph Sadler, Palm Beach Gardens, FL Weight: 68.5 pounds Est. Prize: $866,553.00 2. Date: 8/8/17 Boat: Blue Runner, Manasquan, NJ Angler: James Boynton, Scituate, MA Weight: 67 pounds Est. Prize: $90,380.00 3. Date: 8/9/17 Boat: Warden Pass, Cape May, NJ Angler: Kris Rainear, Buena, NJ Weight: 67 pounds Est. Prize: $52,950.00 4. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Slabjack, Ocean City, MD Angler: Jared Brown, Brick, NJ Weight: 65.5 pounds Est. Prize: $36,180.00 5. Date: 8/10/17 Boat: Caitlin, Manasquan, NJ Angler: Jim Murray, Toms River, NJ Weight: 64 pounds Est. Prize: $36,180.00 6. Date: 8/7/17 Boat: Milling Around, Atlantic Highlands, NJ Angler: Jim Stavola, Atlantic Highlands, NJ Weight: 64 pounds Est. Prize: $36,180.00 7. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Lisa-Small Boat, Ocean City, MD Angler: Mike Cutler, Leawod, KS Weight: 59 pounds Est. Prize: $112,050.00 8. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Dawg Haus-Small Boat, Ocean City, MD Angler: Jimmy Michael, Pasadena, MD Weight: 59 pounds Est. Prize: $51,300.00

Dolphin

1. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Silly Money, Annapolis, MD Angler: Andrew Cohen, Ashton, MD Weight: 23 pounds Est. Prize: $74,841.00

Wahoo

1. Date: 8/7/17 Boat: Hog Wild, Manteo, NC Angler: Gary Capuano, Annapolis, MD Weight: 55 pounds Est. Prize: $27,841.00 2. Date: 8/10/17 Boat: G-Force, Ocean City, MD Angler: Seth Obetz, Manheim, PA Weight: 53.5 pounds Est. Prize: $26,841.00 3. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Karen Marie, Vero Beach, FL Angler: Jonathan Bennett, Atlanta, GA Weight: 50.5 pounds Est. Prize: $24,841.00

Shark

1. Date: 8/11/17 Boat: Restless Lady, Ocean City, MD Angler: Frank Snover, White Township, NJ Weight: 126 pounds Est. Prize: $7,091.00