Talk about a big fish!
A South Carolina man won the 53rd annual White Marlin Open in Ocean City, Maryland, on Saturday, Aug. 8 by catching a white marlin that weighed in at 80 pounds. The fish is worth an estimated $3.5 million.
Bill Sharpe of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina caught the white marlin aboard the Charleston-based boat called Mister Pete on Thursday, August 6 and took the early lead. No one was able to supersede his 80-pound catch and the crew took home the trophy and the cash prize of $3,503,891.
John Wardlaw on the Gray Fox out of Brielle, New Jersey, won both the tuna and wahoo divisions with catches of 179 pounds and 69.5 pounds, respectively.
“Every year, the White Marlin Open seems to find a new way to surprise us, and this year was
no exception,” tournament director Madelyne Wainglass said, per For The Win, part of the USA TODAY Network. “We saw incredible fish, dramatic changes on the leaderboard and some truly unforgettable moments at the scales.”
In non-competitive fishing news this summer, a Montana fisherman reeled in 117-pound paddlefish for the first time in 22 years.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: $3.5 million fish caught by South Carolina man to win White Marlin Open
