Weekly Tournament Digest
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No offshore tournaments fished within the March 30 – April 6 window — this is the natural transition between the winter and spring seasons. The Costa Rica and South Florida season concluded March 23, and three events fire simultaneously starting April 8. Results published this week from tournaments that fished just before the window are below.
At a Glance
1 / Tournament Results & Standings
2 / Upcoming Tournaments (Next 2–4 Weeks)
| Tournament | Location | Dates | Species |
|---|---|---|---|
| Viking Key West Challenge (12th Annual) | Key West, FL | Apr 8–12 | Billfish (release), tuna, dolphin, wahoo, swordfish |
| Final Sail (Quest for the Crest – Leg 3) | Miami, FL | Apr 8–11 | Sailfish, white/blue marlin, dolphin, wahoo, tuna |
| Chub Cay Invitational (6th Annual) | Berry Islands, Bahamas | Apr 9–11 | Blue marlin, white marlin, sailfish |
| Bisbee's Pura Vida Payout | Quepos, Costa Rica | Apr 14–18 | Sailfish, blue/black marlin, tuna, dorado |
| Costa Offshore World Championship | Quepos, Costa Rica | Apr 19–23 | Pacific sailfish, blue/black/striped marlin |
| IGFA Walker's Cay Shootout (2nd Annual) | Walker's Cay, Bahamas | Apr 22–25 | Blue marlin, white marlin, sailfish |
| Louisiana Gulf Coast Billfish Classic | Venice / Grand Isle, LA | Apr 28–May 3 | Blue marlin, white marlin, yellowfin/bluefin tuna |
Notable format changes for 2026:
Bisbee's Pura Vida Payout: Historic first international Bisbee's event and first-ever all-release billfish format in the series' 44-year history. Entry: $5,000 base / $98,140 "All In." Multi-million dollar potential payouts.
Costa Offshore World Championship: Major overhaul — teams now bring own boats, open-entry Challenger category added, entry fees cut from ~$15,950 to $3,500–$5,000, Omni sonar scoring adjusted.
IGFA Walker's Cay Shootout: $4,500 entry includes $1,500 IGFA conservation donation. Mandatory $18,000 cash Calcutta (90% paid back).
3 / New Builds & Launches
Winter's largest build to date. 75' convertible, full custom. Sea trials completed February 10.
LOA 57'8", Beam 18'5", Draft 4'8", Fuel 1,500 gal. Cold-molded. Power plant TBD. Updated/expanded platform.
Twin MTU 2,600 hp, Seakeeper 40, 3,000 gal. fuel, 4 staterooms/3 heads, 20 built-in tuna tubes. Purpose-built for Gulf Coast tournament fishing.
scarboroughboatworks.com | April 3, 2026LOA 70'10", Beam 18'11", 118,500 lbs. Power: MAN V12X 2200 or MTU 12V2000 M96Z. 194 sq. ft. cockpit, 4 staterooms/5 heads. Open, Enclosed, and Sky Bridge configs. Target ~43 knots.
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InTheBite | March 27, 20264 / Industry News
5 / Used-Boat Market Pulse
### Section 5: Used-Boat Market Pulse
No new sportfishing or center console market data published this week. The most recent comprehensive source remains the Denison/Boats Group 2025 Year-End Market Index from March 3, which showed average sold prices up 4.9% YoY, used boats at 139 days on market, and overall unit sales down 8.5%.
Current marine lending rates (Navy Federal, April 4): new boat 6.95–8.95% APR; used boat 7.45–9.90% APR. Market average (LendingTree Q4 2025): 8.40%.
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6 / What to Watch Next Week
Tournament Charter Marketplace
Most charter platforms charge captains hundreds to list — and none of them focus on tournament fishing. Sportfish Hub is the only place where captains list tournament-specific charters completely free, connecting them directly with anglers researching the events they fish.
Tournament results, schedule changes, and boat drops — delivered every Thursday.
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Why it matters: ** Deep-water grouper (yellowedge, snowy, warsaw) are prized recreational targets in 400–800 ft Gulf waters. Amendment 58B — which proposes reducing catch limits due to yellowedge overfishing — is still pending. Tighter recreational limits are likely in a future rule.
** Quota withheld since January 1 pending Amendment 58B. Released because the amendment didn't take effect by deadline.
NOAA Bulletin via Agroinformacion | March 31, 2026** Mercury Marine hit a record 70% outboard engine share at the West Palm Beach Boat Show — up 5 points YoY. Boston Whaler and Sea Ray reported 40% YoY revenue growth. Simrad AutoCaptain OEM expansion confirmed.
Why it matters: ** Mercury's dominant saltwater show share signals continued production strength for the engine brand powering most offshore platforms. Whaler's revenue jump suggests the premium sportfishing segment is outperforming the broader market.
** Growth driven by larger, premium configurations. AutoCaptain expanding beyond the Whaler 405 Conquest launch platform.
Boating Industry | April 1, 2026Why it matters: ** Robalo is a widely-owned, value-priced offshore center console brand. Absorption into MasterCraft consolidates two independent manufacturers. Owners should watch for changes to dealer relationships, warranty, and parts supply.
** Combined pro-forma revenue ~$560M. Post-close: MasterCraft shareholders ~66.6%, Marine Products ~33.4%.
Stock Titan / SEC DEFM14A Filing | April 2, 2026** NOAA distributed 545,576 lbs of previously withheld deep-water grouper allocation to Gulf IFQ shareholders, effective April 1. Total 2026 commercial quota restored to 1,024,000 lbs.
** Joint proxy for MasterCraft's ~$232.2M acquisition of Marine Products Corp (parent of Chaparral and Robalo) mailed to shareholders. Votes scheduled May 12. Closing target Q2 2026.