‘Boss Gyal’ Takes It All At 7th Annual Grand Caribe DeepSea Classic
With 40 registered boats and over $173,500 in cash and other prizes, the 7th Annual Grand Caribe DeepSea Classic once again proved a huge success! Local and international anglers fished the 2-day tournament and enjoyed the 4-day event at the tournament base, Caribeville on Ambergris Caye, hosted and organized by Grande Caribe Resort. This year, a total of eight (8) billfish were successfully landed and brought boat-side before safe release, including an exciting triple-header Blue Marlin hookup. Kicking off with the Captain’s Cocktail & Dinner to herald in the 4-day event, we’re walking you through the 7th Annual Grand Caribe DeepSea Classic, held Thursday, June 29 - Sunday, July 2, 2023. Plus, getting you excited for the next fishing tournament and our flagship event: BGFA’s 14th Annual Belikin Blue Water Classic on October 20-21, 2023!
Image courtesy Felicia Fishell.
Highly anticipated as the largest fishing tournament in Belize to date, the 7th Annual Grand Caribe DeepSea Classic on Ambergris Caye doubles as a key event that’s putting Belize on the map as a sportfishing destination! By promoting tourism and offering beachfront lodging packages to match, guests can largely target pelagic species like sailfish, dorado, wahoo, blue marlin, and tuna from their Grand Caribe base. Aside from renowned marine artist Carey Chen attending with original artwork as prizes, the tournament also saw the likes of the high-profile all-female tournament team at Marlin Magazine’s Lady Anglers; famed YouTuber and owner Viktor Hluben of Landshark Outdoors fishing brand; fishing personality Darcie Arahill of Darcizzle Offshore; and Tony Umer, an official representative from Boston Whaler.
DAY ONE
Image via Belize Tourism Board.
A Bimini Start with 3 Billfish Released
Glowing bulls for ‘Boss Gyal’ with 2 Dorados in the boat.
Fish Tales (Blue Marlin released) 2,510 points
Unreel (Sailfish released) 1,015 points
Bobby C (Sailfish released) 1,010 points
Any boat that lands a Blue Marlin weighing less than the minimum weight will be deducted 10 points per pound below weight.
With flags collected the night before (or on the morning of), all 40 vessels line off to the horizon of Grand Caribe Resort for an always-adrenaline-inducing bimini start. Airhorns echo off at 6:00 am sharp — the official start time, with 12 hours of fishing ahead. Tournament rules state all competing boats must present themselves at Tournament Base at 6 am on every day of the tournament before fishing commences. If a boat cannot make it to Tournament Base before 6 am, it must still present itself before fishing can commence. Any boat that does not present itself at Tournament Base before starting to fish will not be allowed to earn points for that day of fishing.
The first reported billfish of the tournament went to female angler Shelby Callison of ‘Bobby C’ with a Sailfish, as early as 9 am! By midday, team ‘Fish Tales’ reported a Blue Marlin release by angler Viktor Hluben near Rocky Point. Less than 3 hours later, team ‘Unreel’ call-in a Sailfish released by angler Jules Guerrero. Beyond the four release rules of billfish on video, teams get extra points to show the hook being removed from the fish before release. The following boats call in the first reported species of the tournament: ‘Ms. Darlene’ with a dorado; ‘Jolly Mon’ with a wahoo; and ‘Reef Demon’ with tuna.
6:00 pm meant lines out, with all fish caught brought to the dock at tournament base in order to be counted. At the end of Day 1, top 5 boats (respectively) were Fish Tales, Unreel, Bobby C, Ms. Darlene, and Sonic.
DAY TWO
With plenty of anglers buzzing about the billfish bite around—considering many more were hooked than landed on Day 1—it was another 12-hour day of fishing ahead, and it was still anyone’s game. Within the first two hours, ‘Bobby C’ bumps up their scorecard thanks to female angler Maddy Hazlett on her 22-minute fight east of Caye Caulker, successfully releasing Day 2’s first Blue Marlin! Meanwhile, boats rack up blackfins and skipjack tunas alongside plenty of dorados. By midday, ‘Fish Tales’ calls in their 2nd released Blue Marlin for the tournament by angler Viktor Hluben! Then, ‘Cerca Del Sol’ reports a Sailfish release north of Caye Caulker by angler Kevin Barker.
And with probably the most exciting call-in of all, ‘Boss Gyal’ reports a triple hook-up. Although the third Blue Marlin shook off, anglers Troy Mock and Mike Hancock successfully land two right outside Grand Caribe Resort. Meanwhile, non-fishing guests enjoyed the BTB Connect Expo inside Grand Caribe’s West Room where local businesses proudly displayed their services. As boats returned one by one before the official end and lines out at 6 pm, live music by the TLC Band awaited on the beach at Grand Caribe, serving beers and tacos from 5 pm to 9 pm.
On Sunday morning, July 2, at 10:30 am, the fishing frenzy officially came to a close inside Grand Caribe’s West Room with the tournament’s prize-giving ceremony, announcing the top five boats and anglers. The official after party was later held across the street at Grand Caribe’s sister resort Sunset Caribe: happy hour specials, poolside BBQ, and DJ Dev until 7 pm was the perfect send-off for the 7th Annual Grand Caribe DeepSea Classic!
Year after year, Grand Caribe’s DeepSea Classic consistently delivers on its promise to be bigger and better — largely attributed to the meticulous organization by the team of Grand Caribe Resort and a personal commitment from its owner, Sean Feinstein. The Belize Game Fish Association takes this opportunity to both congratulate and thank the Caribeville team. Kudos to all anglers, sponsors, and everyone else that made this event possible!
Now, we look ahead to the next sportfishing tournament: the 14th Annual Belikin Blue Water Classic at Old Belize, Belize City on October 20-21, 2023! Learn more here.
