Irish Exit: Final Sail 2023 Champions!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2023
Phone: 954-725-4010
Email: Chris@bluewatermovements.com
The Final Sail of the Quest for the Crest Sailfish Series
The Quest for the Crest series finale, Final Sail, has come to an end. With $381,475 at stake, 32 teams set sail for the last time this season, hoping to cross the finish line as champions in Miami.
The stage was set with challenging weather conditions leading up to the event, including tropical storm-like conditions with high seas, strong winds, and torrential downpours causing flooding in some areas leaving many teams unsure how fishing conditions would fair come tournament weekend.
The Finale Recap
Day One
On day one, the water was left murky from the floodwaters draining into the ocean, pushing marine life further offshore. Despite the tough conditions, Final Sail top team Irish Exit were able to raise four release flags on their 39’ SeaVee to win the Tier One and Tier Two Dailys and the Late Bite, earning a cash prize of $32,610 for the day. SeaVee Boats Team Miss Britt/Top Vee followed closely behind with three releases calling in a buzzer-beater release just 12 minutes before lines out. They edged out the Yamaha-powered team On-Sail on time after calling in their third release on a hook up just before lines out. Teams Reel Lucky, Contender One, Killbox, Weez In The Keys, FFMD, Osh-it, Native Son, and Blue Tales/SA Fishing all called in two releases, finishing in order based on time.
While the Sailfish bite was thin on day one the same can’t be said about the meatfish. Teams FFMD and Big Ben landed on some daily meat money. FFMD weighed in two blackfin tuna totaling 54.5lb for 1st place and $5,040 in the Dynamite Daily, while Big Ben weighed in two blackfin tuna as well for 48.6lb and $2,160 in the Dynamite Daily.
Day One Standings
Day One Leaderboard
1st – Irish Exit – 4 Points
2nd – Miss Britt/Top Vee – 3 Points
3rd – On Sail – 3 Points
4th – Reel Lucky – 2 Points
5th – Contender One – 2 Points
Tier One Daily – 50/30/20 Split
1st – Irish Exit – 4 Points – $5,400 Payout
2nd – Miss Britt/Top Vee – 3 Points – $3,240 Payout
3rd – Contender One – 2 Points – $2,160 Payout
Tier Two Daily – 70/30 Split
1st – Irish Exit – 4 Points – $26,460 Payout
2nd – Miss Britt/Top Vee – 3 Points– $18,360 Payout
Dynamite Daily – Meatfish 70/30 Split
1st – FFMD – 54.5 Points – $5,040 Payout
2nd – Big Ben – 48.6 Points – $2,160 Payout
Day Two
On day two, fishing conditions eased up slightly, and a total of 46 releases were made. Matthew Barkett, the top male angler of Final Sail, had the Midas touch, calling in all four releases for team Three R’s, earning them a first-place finish for the day based on time. However, FFMD was able to cash out big with the same amount of releases, earning $31,860 in the Tier One and Tier Two Dailys, securing them a second-place finish overall. Teams Never Enough and Remix followed closely behind with four and three releases, respectively.
The meat fish winners for day two were teams Family Matters and Contender One, with Family Matters weighing in a Tuna and Dolphin totaling 34.1 pounds for a total of $5,790, and Contender One weighing in a 25.6lb Tuna for $2,160.
Day Two Standings
Day Two Leaderboard
1st – Three R’s – 4 Points
2nd – FFMD – 4 Points
3rd – Never Enough – 4 Points
4th – Remix – 3 Points
5th – Irish Exit – 3 Points
Tier One Daily – 50/30/20 Split
1st – FFMD – 4 Points – $5,400 Payout
2nd – Never Enough – 4 Points – $3,240 Payout
3rd – Remix – 3 Points – $2,160 Payout
Tier Two Daily – 70/30 Split
1st – FFMD – 4 Points – $26,460 Payout
2nd – Remix – 3 Points – $11,340 Payout
Dynamite Daily – Meatfish 70/30 Split
1st – Family Matters – 34.1 Points – $5,040 Payout
2nd – Contender One – 25.6 Points – $2,160 Payout
The Grand Finale
Irish Exit Makes a Grand Exit
Despite Miami’s reputation for a hot sailfish bite this time of year, the teams competing in Final Sail faced challenging conditions last weekend. But amidst the adversity, one team rose to the top, showing true consistency in the face of difficult circumstances. Irish Exit, led by Captain Jesse Meerhoff, maintained their position at the top of the leaderboard throughout the competition.
On day one, Irish Exit kicked into high gear in the afternoon, after calling in one release in the morning, they added three releases in the afternoon to put themselves ahead of the competition by one point heading into day two. With the title of Final Sail Champions on the line, and the bite being far from plentiful, Top Female Angler of Final Sail, Nicole Ely, stepped up to keep the team in the game with two releases. Then, Angler Zeb de Tuya closed the curtains with the team’s final release, lucky number seven, securing their victory and a total payout of $122,145!
Irish Exit… The title of 2023 Final Sail Champions, is now yours to hold forever.
Final Sail Standings
Main Leaderboard
1st – Irish Exit – 7 Points – $12,000
2nd – FFMD – 6 Points – $7,000
3rd – Miss Britt/Top Vee – 5 Points – $3,000
4th – Three R’s – 5 Points – $1,500
5th – Never Enough – 5 Points – $1,200
Top Male Angler
1st – Three R’s – Matthew Barkett – 4 Points
Top Female Angler
1st – Irish Exit – Nicole Ely – 3 Points
Small Boat Division
1st – Miss Britt/Top Vee – 5 Points – $1,500
2nd – Killbox – 3 Points – $1,000
3rd – Bad boyz/Audacious – 1 Points – $500
Non-Pro Division
1st – FFMD – 6 Points – $1,500
2nd – Never Enough – 5 Points – $1,000
3rd – Miss Michelle – 3 Points – $500
Meat Fish Aggregate
1st – Bad boyz/Audacious – 68.9 Points – $1,500
2nd – Contender One – 58.2 Points – $1,000
3rd – Family Matters – 56.6 Points – $500
Grand Daddy
1st – Bad boyz/Audacious – 42 Points – $1,500
About The Quest For The Quest Sailfish Series
This iconic series hosts some of the top billfishing teams in the sport. Teams in this 3-leg series are expected to compete for an estimated purse of over $1.7 million. However, the most coveted award – The Crest – doesn’t come in the form of a cash prize. The Crest represents the pinnacle of tournament sailfishing. It is viewed as the highest accolade bestowed upon a team. Presented in jacket form, competitors must emerge as the most dominant among an elite field in order to don the burgundy jacket. Privilege is earned, not given, on this quest to crown a world champion.
About Bluewater Movements
Bluewater Movements, Inc., is a sports marketing company based in South Florida, the sport fishing capital of the world. Throughout the past 27 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 seven wildly popular fishing tournaments, all hosted at various venues across South Florida.
