According to the
White Marlin Open (WMO) page, federal judge Richard D. Bennett ruled against angler Philip Heasley, the winner of the 2016 White Marlin Open after a two week trial in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. The judge ruled that the White Marlin Open properly applied the rules of the tournament to the 2016 White Marlin Open, meaning that Heasley has been disqualified and will not receive the $2.8 million in prize money.
According to the WMO, Heasley and his crew members aboard the
Kallianassa had not passed polygraph examinations, which were required under the rules of the tournament. The Court also found that Heasley and crew violated the Tournament Rules by deploying fishing lines before 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 9, 2016, the date they caught the 76.5 pound white marlin.
As a result of the polygraph examinations, WMO officials did not pay the $2,818,000 to Heasley and instead, "to protect the integrity of the tournament filed an interpleader action in court and asked the Court to determine whether the White Marlin Open directors had acted appropriately in withholding the money from Mr. Heasley."
Throughout the case, the intention of the White Marlin Open directors has been to protect the integrity of the tournament and to ensure that the rules are applied fairly for all participants. The White Marlin Open, like many other tournaments, has found that the use of polygraphs is an effective method of ensuring compliance with the rules. The White Marlin Open is pleased that its reputation for integrity, built over its forty-three-year history, has been upheld."
The 2017 tournament is set for August 7-11 in Ocean City, MD, and a later ruling will determine how the prize money will be distributed among other fishermen from the 2016 tournament. This ruling only determined that Heasley would not receive the prize money. Stay tuned for further updates.
