By Connie Leinbach
Ocracoke charter fisherman Rob Orr can say with confidence that the big ones did not get away.
We’re talking two 400+-pound marlins that got him into the running in the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament in June out of Morehead City.
The 68th tournament, presented by Jarrett Bay Boatworks, featured a fleet of 278 boats competing for a staggering total purse of over $9 million, the tournament website says.
According to the event website, http://www.thebigrock.com, more than 330 billfish were released during the week, 127 of which were blue marlin.
Only blue marlins of 400 pounds or more are eligible to win, Orr said. The white marlins and sailfish are released for points.
Before the final day on June 10, Orr’s catches in his “Free Ranger” were in the running for one of the top three spots.
During the six-day event, anglers choose four days in which to chase those huge fish.
“We took the first fish in on Monday—a 437-pounder—and that fish put us in second place,” Orr said.
But on day two, Tuesday, it got bumped to fourth place when “Marlin Fever” brought in their record breaking 919.9-pound fish.
Later, Orr’s team caught a 597.4-pounder that put them in third place.
He held onto third place all week until 10 p.m. on the last day when the boat “Haphazard” brought in a bigger fish, bumping Orr to fourth place.
But catching two scoreable fish in this tournament is almost unheard of.
The 900-pounder shattered the all-time Big Rock tournament record, officially becoming the largest blue marlin ever weighed in tournament history.
Only the first through third places in each category won prize money, crushing Orr’s hopes. But he can claim the rare title of having two fish in the running.
“Out of 278 boats, we finished fourth and eighth,” he said. “That doesn’t get you any money.”
But it did get his team the support of Ocracoke.
Farris O’Neal said he and his brother Erik, their kids and about 20 islanders piled into a boat. They landed on Cedar Island then drove to Morehead to cheer the “Free Ranger” upon docking.
“When we pulled into the landing, there was a whole crowd from Ocracoke waiting for us,” Orr said. “They came both days—Monday and Wednesday, which was the day we weighed our 597.4-pounder.”
The tournament website noted that support.
“The Free Ranger’s arrival quickly became one of the early storylines of the week, as the team brought what felt like the entire village of Ocracoke to the docks, turning Big Rock Landing into a sea of cheering supporters each time they pulled in,” the tournament’s recap said.
“It was awesome,” O’Neal said. “Rob’s a very good marlin fisherman and he will win it one day.”
The tournament boundaries in the Gulf Stream go from Cape Hatteras to Cape Lookout, and Orr left each day out of Ocracoke.
“All the best marlin fishing is right here off of Ocracoke,” Orr said. “All the boats leave Morehead 90% of the days and run up here and fish up here.”
Orr’s disparate group of anglers, who fish with him during the season, hired his boat for the tournament and paid the fees for all of the categories, which include sonar, non-sonar, tuna, wahoo and dolphin (mahi).
Marlin fishing is a team sport with professional charter crews, he said.
“My part of the equation is getting the boat in the right water and the right location and then use the sonar to drive the boat over the fish,” he said.
Mate Dylan Esham’s job is to set the bait and get whoever is going to reel into the chair. The other mate is Daniel O’Neal.
When Esham’s dad, David Scott, was 23, he placed in the Big Rock Tournament, Orr said.
“Now Dylan is 23 and he’s in the tournament,” Orr said.
The competition is extreme, said Orr, who logged his 10th time in the event,
“I know people that fish the tournament for 25 years and never got in the way of a fish,” he said, “and out of the 10 years, that’s the first time I’ve been able to take in a qualifying blue marlin. So, it’s exceptionally rare.”
So, having two qualifying marlins was a feat in itself.
And just fishing for these giants of the ocean is a thrill.
“To see a 600-pound fish jumping out of the water 50 feet behind the boat is the most exciting thing,” Esham said.
“There’s nothing like it,” Orr continued. “And he might jump 25 or 30 times in the first 30 seconds.”
