It seemed that The First Annual Monomoy Shootout had been summoned by Mother Nature’s “Guards of Chatham” to be given a rite of passage to fish her waters off the Southeast corner of Cape Cod.  Although the winds did not hit forecast speeds, they had been causing a stir for several days leading up to the Shootout Day Saturday September 12, 2009. Swells of 6’, heavy fog, some dashes of driving rains, and not-so-warm temperatures are typical for Chatham; so why not have a tournament to not only test your fishing skill but seamanship as well?

To the 9 boat field the weather was not the issue.  At stake were thousands of dollars in cash and prizes and the bragging right to the title of “Chatham’s Top Fisherman”.  Every boat caught fish that were brought to the scales at Stage Harbor Yacht Club’s fish pier.  Most anglers were drenched and cold but all had smiles.  The buzz began when the first boat crossed through the inlet to weigh in their catch.  This boat was Captain Aaron Polhemus (Chatham, MA) and Team Relentless who came in third with their 11.45 lb Striped Bass.  “It was tough out there” Polhemus said of the conditions and the fishing.  “We really had to work for them and couldn’t find many with much size.”

Soon after Polhemus left the dock, Team “No One Has To Know” hit the docks and stole the leader board posting a 37” 15.55 lb Striper.  Jesse Carlton battled the fish and was happy with where they stood up to that point.  “I don’t know if it will hold but I didn’t see a lot of fish taken today” commented Carlton. Earlier in the day Carlton mentioned that he knew it would be “slim pickin’s out there today”.  The next few boats came in with smaller bass and lots of bluefish.  Some estimated their bluefish totals to be over 35 fish but it was Team Bass Hammer, Captained by Bob Maizaka, who was the last to weigh in and took home the prize for largest blue (10.7 lbs) beating out Team SummerSitters (Capt. Gary Koch) by a pound. 

Half way through the three o’clock hour Matt Swenson (Chatham, MA) and Bob Fitzgerald (Kinnelon, NJ) quietly pulled up to the dock.  As soon as they did Team “Comstock Regulator” made some noise hauling a few big bass from the fishbox.  After hitting the scales they stole the lead and sealed the tournament with a 29.35lb striped bass measuring in at 45 inches.  “We knew there probably wouldn’t be a fish over 30 lbs so we were happy to get this one in the boat this morning” Swenson said of the winning fish.  Fitzgerald and Swenson have been fishing together for years and fished with a plan.  They would not delve into any secrets but when the final bell rang and their GPS confirmed they had fished within tournament boundaries the 1st place trophy and the $1,800.00 Grand Prize was theirs to bring home.

Although the number of boats had been cut in half after rescheduling due to Hurricane Danny on August 29th as Tournament Director I still see the first year as a success.  It was great to get the tournament in the books and have something to grow on for next year.  The reason for the tournament is simple; I have wanted to do something like this for a long time.  I have been wishing for a Chatham tournament for years so I took it into my own hands and with a lot of help from sponsors and Stage Harbor Yacht Club we made my wish come true.  Hopefully in a few years I might actually be able to fish ‘The Shootout’ too!

After expenses are paid and prize money is delivered proceeds from the event will be donated to local charities within the community.  As fishermen weighed in fish at the dock, tournament officials also accepted donations of Striped Bass to be distributed by the Chatham Food Pantry.  Chatham Pier Fish Market at the fish pier in Chatham donated their time and resources to help process and package the fish into family sized portions to ease the transition of fish from the ocean to the dinner plate.  Andy Baler, owner of Chatham Pier Fish Market was instrumental in providing this resource.  They are truly a class act operation who deserves recognition for running a great business and donating their time to help the community.  Our sincere ‘thank you’ goes out to the employees of Chatham Pier Fish Market who helped make this possible.

Several sponsors made the event possible:  Peter Wade Custom Builder (Eastham, MA), Chatham Bait & Tackle, SummerSitters.com, Bohman Thayer Real Estate (Chatham, Orleans, MA), The Chatham Squire, Narragansett Beer, The White Marlie (Chatham, MA), The Goose Hummock Shop (Orleans, MA), Local Hooker Rods (Chatham, MA), and LeftBehindMedia.com, OffshorePursuits.com, and Stage Harbor Yacht Club.

The official host of this year’s event was The Chatham Squire who hosted both the Captains Meeting on Friday night and the Awards Ceremony on Sunday.  Look for the tournament earlier in the season next year.  July or early August is being targeted by tournament officials in preparation for The Second Annual Monomoy Shootout.

 This is a fishing village!  This town was built on the fishing industry and people here have lives that depend on it.  We just want to provide a stage to have fun, be fisherman focused, and give back to the local community.  Check in for updates, photos, results, and next year’s tournament information at:  www.themonomoyshootout.com