Bay Point Billfish Open Continues Second Leg of SFC’s Gulf Division

There’s a new powerhouse tournament in the Gulf of Mexico, and that designation now goes to the Bay Point Billfish Open as thousands of fans are anticipated to pack the marina over four nights of festivities this week in Panama City Beach, June 26-30.

In ’23, the Bay Point Billfish Open committed to resurging Panama City Beach’s elite sport fishing tournament scene after the region experienced a decade of waiting since the tournament last operated in 2012.

“It’s an honor and a privilege to bring elite competition back to Bay Point and Panama City Beach,” said Jay Quave, Baypoint Tournament Committee Chairman. “This tournament is very special to the PCB community, and has a special legacy and history in the sport fishing community.”

The Florida record for the heaviest blue marlin ever caught in the state occurred in July 2001 at the then Bay Point Invitational, Quave noted. Capt. Tommy Browning’s 1,046 pound blue marlin harvest record still stands to this day, and is a badge of honor for the Bay Point fishing community.

The 2024 Bay Point Billfish Open will recognize the top angler of the tournament with the Capt. Tommy Browning Award – the tournament’s most prestigious individual award, and a way to honor the historic catch by Capt. Browning.

The tournament will mark the second stop in the Gulf Division during SFC’s 2024 Billfish Championship Season. Team Rising Sons currently sits atop the Gulf Division and tied for 1 st place overall after a win last month at the Hurricane Hole Louisiana Open in Grand Isle.

“We’re just going to put our heads down and execute our game plan,” said Rising Sons angler Jaselyn Berthelot. “We went into the 2024 SFC Season with one goal, and that was to win a championship. We’ve had one of our best fishing seasons ever, and we believe we can find the podium again this week against one of the most competitive fields we’ve seen in a long time.”

The Bay Point Billfish Open field includes a stacked lineup of some of the Gulf Divisions top teams, including Lifeline, Miss Maysen and Blueprint and Mechanical Man.

Fishing the SFC for the first time this season will be A Work of Art, Bird Dog, Breathe Easy, Devotion, Relentless Pursuit and Team Supreme, making this the most competitive field fans will likely see during the ’24 Gulf Season.

Team Lifeline steamrolls into the week after a strong month leading up to the event.

“We’ve been able to get on top of fish, hook ‘em up when we get our chances, and fly some flags off the back of the boat,” said Dino McDowell, team owner and angler on Lifeline. “The Bay Point Tournament has an elite field of boats – it’s going to be a battle out there.”

Gulf Division teams will have the opportunity to continue to build their resumes for the Zane Grey Championship Playoffs this summer at the Hurricane Hole Invitational (July 24-27) and Mobile Big Game Fishing Club’s Labor Day Invitational (Aug. 29 – Sept. 2). This is the first time the Bay Point Billfish Open has served as a Qualifying Event in SFC's Billfish Championship.

The celebrations kick off on Wednesday, June 26, with the Opening Night Concert
featuring country music superstar Randy Houser with Blane Rudd. Music at the main stage begins at 8:00pm. Fans are encouraged to purchase parking before arriving at the event at www.baypointbillfishopen.com.

Thursday’s first day of competition kicks off with a Boat Parade at 9:00am, followed by a ceremonial shotgun start at 10:00am.

The Tournament Scales open on Friday at 4:00pm, with Mitch Piersen & Guests headlining the stage during the evening. Scales will reopen on Saturday at 4:00pm, followed by Will Thompson in concert.

For more information, visit www.baypointbillfishopen.com or www.sportfishingchampionship.com/baypointbillfishopen. Official SFC coverage of the event will be available across all official SFC social media platforms.

(Article Updated June 27, 2024.)

Media Contacts:
Courtney Hueston
Director of Marketing
305-335-2613
courtney@sportfishingchampionship.com