2011 Grouper Grab Tournament Information and Schedule in Part Benefiting: Blessings in a Backpack
The 2011 Grouper Grab Fishing Tournament Feeds Over 45 Local School Children for an Entire Year
(Cape Coral, FL – September 7th, 2011) The 12th Annual Grouper Grab Fishing Tournament was held August 19th-21st, 2011 in Cape Coral, FL. The award for first place went to team Max Marine Insurance; Captain Tommy Butler, Steve Woodard, Mike Watts, Steve Bertran and Josh Taylor with a total weight of 180.75 lbs of fish. Not far behind in second place was team Fish Tale Marina; Captain Mark Combs, Robert Kofkoff, Greg Smith and Jeff Smith with a total of 163.3 lbs and the third place award went to team Colonial Roofing; Captain Ozzie Fischer, Glenn Bailey, Weston Bailey, Christian Fischer and Chris Rakos with a total of 68.95 lbs. of fish.
The 2011 Grab had 25 teams and awarded over $9,000 in prize money much going to the top three teams with a random payout awarded to the 9th place team of Florida Weekly with anglers Pason Gaddis, John Pollack, Shane Wilson and Bo Henderson whom had a total of 37.65 lbs of fish.
Tournament officials are pleased to announce that Southwest Florida's local chapter of Blessings in a Backpack has received a donation check for $3,827.50 which will feed approximately 48 LOCAL school children throughout the year and look forward to growing that number in the years to come.
Click Here to View 2011 Results
The 2011 Grab will allow FIVE fish to be weighed - ONE MUST BE A RED OR BLACK GROUPER in order to qualify. TWO of your fish, if you are weighing FIVE fish MUST be snapper. You may still qualify and weigh only three fish (one being a grouper) in any combination of Grouper, Snapper, Cobia or Kingfish ie two Cobia and one Grouper, two King Fish and one Grouper, one Grouper, one Snapper and one Cobia and so on. Click on the rules link for more information.
Due to the recent closure of Gag Grouper in the Gulf of Mexico by the FWC (please read below) the following rules have changed for the 2011 Grouper Grab. Keeping with the tradition of the Grab being a Grouper fishing tournament we will require each team to bring ONE Red or BLACK Grouper to the weigh station in order to qualify for the tournament. However to keep this year’s tourney fair for all size boats and teams involved we will be adding 2 NEW species to the tournament – Cobia and King Fish are allowed to be weighed for the 2011 tournament, until further notice of restrictions / closures or openings are made by the FWC for 2012 and beyond. ALSO as always the donation of any additional fish is highly encouraged. See below for the complete FWC ruling and all tournament rules.
Gulf of Mexico (except all state waters of Monroe County)
Updated: June 1, 2011
2011 Gag Grouper Closure and Fall Harvest Season
in Federal and State Waters
The latest stock assessment indicates that gag grouper in the Gulf of Mexico are overfished and undergoing overfishing. NOAA Fisheries Service recently announced interim rules that prohibit recreational harvest of gag grouper in Gulf of Mexico federal waters until long-term management measures for gag grouper can be developed.
The FWC Commissioners approved rules that closed state waters of the Gulf of Mexico, excluding Monroe County, to the recreational harvest of gag grouper from June 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011, with the exception of a fall harvest season September 16 through November 15, 2011. These rules will be in effect for 2011 only.
MORE INFO COMING SOON!!
The 12th annual Grouper Grab will take place August 19th -21st, 2011 at Cape Harbour. The Grab has a long history of being one of the top Grouper Tournaments in the state of Florida and brings in professional guides and teams from all over the country to compete in the highest level of offshore fishing. In addition to the top payouts, there are also awards given for the largest Grouper, Snapper and Blackfin Tuna.
The Captains Meeting will be held at 6:00pm Friday night August 19th in the boat barn at Cape Harbour. Each angler will check their teams in and receive a bag of Official Tournament Gear (long sleeve t-shirts, hats, koozie cups and much more). Rum Runners will be serving some of their signature appetizers and of course drinks will be flowing with live music!
Don’t miss out on all of the fun at the weigh station Saturday August 20th behind Rum Runners. Boats will start bringing in their catch at 4:00pm and it is open to the public.
The awards banquet will be on Sunday August 21tst in the boat barn @ Cape Harbour. Prizes will be awarded, an auction will take place in part to benefit Blessings in a Backpack and anglers, sponsors and guests will enjoy a fish fry with music and plenty of drinks.
"Blessings in a Backpack" is the primary beneficiary from the auction, raffles, sponsorships and tournament participation; this is a great cause that needs everyone’s support! Blessing’s is a local nonprofit organization that feeds our LOCAL school children on the weekends. Florida ranks fourth in the United States for the number of K-12 students eligible for Federal Food Assistance programs. In Lee County more than 62% of K-12 students participate in those programs. The "Blessings in a Backpack" program steps-up where federal aid stops by feeding children on the weekend. Every Friday afternoon, children receive backpacks filled with kid-friendly, ready-to-eat items. Students return every Monday morning with an empty backpack, a full stomach, and an eager mind. In the schools we work with In Lee County test scores, reading skills, positive behavior, general health, and attendance have improved dramatically. An $80 donation feeds a kid for an entire year!
Check out more info on this great nonprofit organization at: blessingsinleeco.org.
The entry fee is $600 per boat with a four person team, any additional anglers are $100 each. For more tournament information please visit the website www.thegroupergrab.com or contact Ron Riley @ 239-671-9347 / caloosa14@aol.com or Kristi Riley @ 239-850-1707 / kristiriley@gmail.com
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