Cape resident wins billfish title
Cape Coral is now the home of the 2008 World Billfish Series Grand Champion.
Resident Pat Logue tallied an impressive score of 1,000 points with two blue marlin and two sailfish releases while fishing the tournament aboard his 74-foot Viking, 1st Strike.
Logue fought his way through the two-day qualifier, finishing the first day in 11th place before rallying to second place on the second day with a pair of blue marlin and one sailfish. His hot streak continued in Saturday’s championship round, releasing another pair of marlin and two sailfish to win the WBS championship.
Logue collected the bronze Grander Marlin trophy, a custom gold champion’s ring and the keys to a 2009 Mercedes C-300 to go along with his World Champion title.
Anglers first qualified in a yuear-long competition on the 70-event WBS World Tour in eight geographic divisions. Only qualifiers attended the Grand Championships in Los Suenos, Costa Rica, where only the top five qualifiers advanced to the final day’s shootout.
Larry Drivon of Napa, Calif., placed second and Mainor Oporto of Costa Rica, the top qualifier over the first two days, placed third.