For the eighth year running, the Tristram Marine Open was a massive success for families and game-anglers alike.
Based at the highly coveted Mercury Bay Game Fishing Club, the tournament ran over eight days from Saturday 20th to Saturday 27th February,
offering several weather windows for its 189 anglers across 60 boats which were able to pick and choose the days they fished.
One hundred sixty-three fish were weighed in over the week-long competition, 117 of those being caught on light tackle, which has become increasingly popular in this tournament.
This year’s prize pool hit a record value of almost $100,000 with several incredible prizes from 51 sponsors, including Tristram Marine, Shimano NZ, Navico/Simrad, Fishing & Leisure Group, Overdrive Total Automotive, Cookes, Flaxmill Bay Motels, Placemakers, Fusion Marine Entertainment and Techniice.
Each year the Tristram Marine Open’s dates coincide with those of the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council Nationals, enabling anglers to enter both competitions concurrently.
This year MBGFC won the National’s ‘Varta Cup’ for the first time, a symbol of superiority between game fishing clubs in New Zealand. MBGFC ranked 1st for Striped Marlin & Skipjack and 2nd for Mahimahi in the Interclub species rankings – an incredible result for all those involved.
MBGFC and Tristram Marine are already beginning to plan another brilliant looking tournament for 2022.
