Team “Gator One” Grabs Their First Win at the 25th Annual Saltwater Slam
Pompano Beach, Fla. (June 15, 2020) – With a fleet of 95 boats, the 25th Annual Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Saltwater Slam was the post-pandemic tournament anglers have been craving. Despite all of the current “social-distancing” guidelines still in place, Bluewater Movements collaborated with the City of Pompano Beach to establish a safe and fun environment for anglers to enjoy themselves in! For the first time in 25 years, the kick-off party was limited to registered anglers only. Although the guest list was limited, these meat-fishing teams reminded us they still know how to have a good time, face mask’s and all! DJ Select hosted the party outside while anglers won fabulous prizes from tournament sponsors on the “Spin-to-Win” wheel. Blue Moon Fish Company delivered another extravagant food experience and the free drinks were flowing from Landshark Lager, Rabble Wine, Tito’s Vodka, Bacardi, and Appleton Rum.
The pandemic altered the format of the weigh-in as well, but it didn’t slow down the fishing! With Captain Ryan McBride behind the wheel, Lonnie Bergeron and his Mercury powered “Gator One” won their first ever tournament in the PBSC series, weighing in a total of 185.3 pounds for a grand total $27,059 in earnings. On top of winning 1st place team and $10,000, they caught the heaviest Cobia (30 lbs.), and 2nd heaviest Kingfish (34.9 lbs.), and John Bassett Jr. was the Top Male angler catching 105.1 lbs. of fish himself! Not far behind, in 2nd place was Captain/Owner Mark Lamb and his notoriously consistent team “Doing It All/Hardway” with a total of 164.4 lbs. of fish to secure 2nd place and $9,850 in prize money. “Off the Wall” claimed 3rd place with a total of 159.4 lbs. that was good for $3,620 and teammates Jimmy and Buddy Tight won the top family award with a combined weight of 99.8 pounds.
Boat after boat, the fish bags could barely zipper shut for the Landshark Lager sponsored weigh-in at Sands Harbor Resort. The Heaviest Fish of the tournament was a 49.1-pound Wahoo caught by Kyle Senkowicz from team “Hot Suppah” who weighed a total of 132.6 lbs and took home the 2nd largest check of the tournament for a total of $18,610! Captain Nick Carullo and his “Lenny’s Luck” fishing team cashed in big on their 26’ SeaVee with 92.9 pounds to win first place in the small boat division, plus they had the heaviest kingfish of the tournament (36.7 lbs.) that won them several other categories for a total of $11,135 in tournament winnings!
The 25th Annual Saltwater Slam delivered a purse of more than $200,000 including an $80,280 winner-take-all “Pick 3” (the target species pulled during the random drawing were tuna, dolphin, and cobia) that was not fulfilled and will rollover to the Shootout in July. The highly anticipated “KDW Jackpot” (catch a weighable Kingfish, Dolphin, Wahoo) will also rollover to the Shootout in July with a winner-take-all payout of over $53,820 as well!
If your team fished the Saltwater Slam last weekend, you are 1/3 of the way to getting entered into the highly prized Pompano Beach Saltwater Circuit “Grand Prize Drawings” that happen at the Saltwater Showdown kick-off party. If you register for all 3 PBC tournaments (Slam, Shootout, and Showdown), your team will be eligible to win these grand prizes on Thursday, August 13th! Prizes include a 3-year 2020 RAM 1500 truck lease from Joey Accardi of Pompano Beach, a V.I.P weekend package to Resorts World Bimini valued at $6,000, a SiriusXM Marine offshore weather package, TACO Marine outrigger package valued at $2,500, Grizzly cooler package, Costa sunglass package, $4,000 Loadmaster gift certificate, $500 Bass Pro Shops shopping spree, and a $2,500 cash giveaway!
Save $100 on your registration for leg 2 of the Pompano Beach Saltwater Circuit, the 2020 Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Saltwater Shootout by registering your team by Friday, July 3rd. Late Registration remains open through the conclusion of the Shootout kick-off party on Thursday, July 16th. Early entry for the Shootout is $375 per boat + tax, that discounted price is valid through July 3rd. After July 3rd, the fee for late entry is $475 per boat + tax. Register now at www.fish.bluewatermovements.com
Charitable proceeds from the PBSC summer series benefit the Perry J. Cohen Foundation. Together PJCF and Bluewater Movements are working to educate adolescent boaters on the importance of boating safety to make sure they place safety first and are fully prepared with the life-saving equipment they need every time they leave the dock. To learn more about the PJCF mission visit https://www.bluewatermovements.com/tournaments/summer-series/charity/
For more details on the Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Saltwater Slam, visit www.saltwaterslam.com Details on the 3-leg PBSC summer series are available at https://www.bluewatermovements.com/tournaments/summer-series/
About Bluewater Movements:
Bluewater Movements, Inc., is a sport’s marketing company based in South Florida, the sportfishing capital of the world. Throughout the past 25 years, our team has developed some of the most successful competitive fishing events in the industry. Our background in tournament fishing coupled with our expertise in event marketing has enabled a premium experience for tournament anglers and sponsors. Within our portfolio there are six wildly popular fishing tournaments, all hosted at various venues across South Florida.
