SFA banquet wraps up annual tourney

The 20th Annual Saipan International Fishing Tournament officially came to a close on Monday night as the Saipan Fishermen’s Association hosted their awards banquet to the delight of the participants, volunteers, and sponsors, poolside at the DaI-Ichi Hotel Saipan Beach.

The banquet had plenty of sashimi, sushi, and no shortage of marlin, as all of the seafood prepared by the staff of executive chef David Spitzer was donated by the generous anglers who participated in this year’s event.

After the grand feast, the over 400 attendees watched and listened as the top three winners from each of the categories were called up to receive their share of the prizes and applause.

The category that provides the tournament winner with the most bragging rights, as well being known as the angler’s favorite, is the marlin. Saved for last in the presentation, the big winners of the tournament were awarded well for their efforts, as Nguyen Hoa and the crew of the Charlie Cat walked away with the Governor’s Cup and $10,000 in prize money for the biggest catch of the tournament by weight.

The winning didn’t stop there for the Charlie Cat, as they also grabbed $1,500 and a trophy for taking third place in the billfish category with their 129.19-lbs. marlin, the Mobil Cup and $2,750 for the total weight of their catch, and a first ever prize in the tournament.

After receiving an arm full of prizes and several rounds of applause, Nguyen and his crew of anglers were presented with $3,000, a camera phone equipped with 1,000 free minutes of airtime by the president of SaipanCell Communications, Mark Chamberlin, for winning the SaipanCell Side Bet. The Duty Free Cup and $2,500 went to captain Ray Dela Cruz and the crew of the Grand V’s for landing the largest yellowfin tuna, followed by second place George Moses and Pete Itibus of the Sweet Candy, and Danny Agulto and Noel Cabrera of the Love Boat in third.

In the wahoo category, Antonio Mostro and Dumingo Lubteb of the Yellow Boat were awarded with the Speaker’s Cup and $2,500 for their whopping wahoo, while Joe Seman and the crew of the Marlin II bagged $1,500 for second, and the Pot Luck from Guam took $1,000 for third place.

The Love Boat (exciting and new) returned to the stage to accept the Mayor’s Cup and $2,500 for the mightiest mahi mahi, while Paul Roberto and the crew of the Kuuipo won $1,500 for second, and the Sea Hawk’s Ozawa and Mike Sablan took $1,000 for finishing in third.

Mike James and the crew of the Emmanuel came all the way from Guam to win $1,000 and the Yamaha Cup for scooping up the most sizable skipjack, while the Mako’s Eloy Inos and crew snatched $750 for second place, and the Cabo Express, captained by Heinz Hofschneider and his crew took home $500 for third.

After the presentations were finished, and the raffle prizes were distributed, the banquet attendees were entertained with an assortment of island-style music that lasted into the evening.

“I thought it was excellent. It was fun, entertaining, and there were a ton of prizes. It was a good time for everyone involved,” said SFA Entertainment Committee chairman Tony Scragg.

According to Scragg, there were plenty of groups and organizations involved with the banquet’s success, and he wanted to thank Vicky Benevente, Martin Duenas and all of the staff of the Marianas Visitor’s Authority, Wolf Mojica and Juan Morgan Tenorio for emceeing the event, Pauline Johnson and Mark Chamberlin of SaipanCell Communications, the Dai-Ichi Hotel for once again providing the SFA with an ideal venue, and everyone who volunteered their time to provide for another successful tournament.