Guam’s Amber Marie hauls in largest mahi

Guam anglers—even if it’s not their turf—navigated their way around Saipan waters successfully as they hauled in big catches during the two-day Saipan Fishermen’s Association 40th Annual Saipan International Fishing Tournament last weekend.

The Amber Marie captained by Adam San Gil, with two other anglers in their 22-footer, caught the biggest mahi-mahi that weighed 23.9 lbs out of just two caught during the tourney. Second place was casted by Saipan’s Hello Fishy at 10.4 lbs.

The Guam vessel also bagged third place in the skipjack tuna category with their 14-lb catch, and fourth place in the bill fish category with a 123.5-lb haul. They received $800 from the Greg D. Perez Sportfishing Foundation.

First place in the skipjack category was Chang at 16.1 lbs, and second was St. Jude at 14.6 lbs.

First place in the bill fish category was Le’Ana Vae from Tinian at 153.2 lbs. Second went to Defiance with their 132.5-lbs haul; and third was Sweet Candy at 130 lbs.

Toward the end of the banquet, the grand prize winner was announced. It was the biggest bill fish caught by Only Reels at 211 lbs. Captain Aaron Benavente and crew took home $3,000 and the side bet of $5,800.

The Amber Marie was actually in contention for hauling in the biggest fish so far in the tourney after Day 1 last Saturday, but was eventually bumped off, said the 25-year-old captain. So, with that, when they saw no one had caught a mahi yet, they decided to change it up.

He said they fished off Marpi Reef after looking at his chart and asking some local fishermen where to go. With the catch, he said, “it was a lucky fish. The second day of the tourney was kind of rough so we decided to drop lines early instead of pushing throttle to the spot. We were just blessed with double banger mahi-mahi early in the morning… Just got lucky with that one.”

As for the tuna, he said they got it on the first day last Saturday when the water wasn’t as rough.

Besides their haul, they said that they also tried to hunt for a bill fish big enough to break the record 942-lb marlin caught by his uncle Mike James in the tourney last 2012.

San Gil then said he’s joined the tourney for about six or seven years now and this is the second year with his own boat.

Despite the long trek from the south to the north, San Gil said they come back to join the tourney because they love it. “The Saipan derby is a lot bigger than any derby on Guam. The community is awesome. There’s a lot of planning that goes into it; the prizes are great; the banquet is awesome. I love the Saipan derby.”

He added, “Any Guam boats that haven’t made the journey up here yet, if you think your vessel is safe and seaworthy to make it up here, you should definitely come up to Saipan and check out the derby. It’s a big derby and the community is awesome.”

Results of the yellowfin, wahoo, and total weight will be posted in the next issues of Saipan Tribune.

Tournament sponsors are the Marianas Visitors Authority, Mobil Oil Marianas, Budweiser, Docomo Pacific, Tan Siu Lin Foundation, Paradise Dental, Hawaiian Rock Products, Matson Navigation, Coca-Cola/Foremost, Pacifica Insurance, Century Insurance Co. Ltd., RNV Construction, Bridge Capital Investments, LLC, United Management International, JEM Mobile Stations, Fishing Tackle & Sporting Goods Store, Pacific Basin Insurance, and Tinian Shipping.