Some people mark the TPC as Jacksonville’s top-notch annual event, for others it’s the Jazz Festival or Springing the Blues, but for a solid 30,000 people each summer, the Kingfish Tournament is king, making the AT&T Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament, presented by Marine Charities, the largest Kingfish tournament in the country.
In this 27th year of the annual festival, they are awarding $500,000 in prizes and participation is free for most. From July 16-21 more than 30,000 spectators and fishermen and one thousand boats will converge on Sisters Creek Park off of Hecksher Drive. Favorite attractions include the Food Festival; the KidZone, a free play area for kids ages 3-14; the Liars’ Tent, featuring live entertainment; exhibits, tents and the Boatique, offering a variety of boat products. As in the past, the weeklong festivities will be capped off with a fabulous fireworks display sponsored by the City of Jacksonville.
The event is free to the public, but boaters have to pay to get a shot at all of that prize money. Registration is $425 and only the first thousand boats get to participate, so register early. Other events include the Junior Angler Tournament, which is only a $10 entry fee, for fisherboys and girls under the age of sixteen. There is also the Yacht Clubs of the Americas VIP Tournament on July 16. This tournament has a steeper $1,800 entry fee but awards $20,000 as its first prize.
Proceeds from The 27th Annual AT&T Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament go to the 501c(3) organization Jacksonville Marine Charities, Inc. This organization created the tournament to provide a regional fishing tournament as the organizers had seen in other large cities and to raise money and awareness for marine science research, preservation and education. According to their press kit, Jacksonville Marine Charities, Inc. has donated more than $600,000 to various marine-oriented non-profit organizations in the Fisrst Coast over the last 17 years.
Jacksonville Marine Charities promotes marine conservation, the preservation of fishing habitats, development of the Sister’s Creek Park, scholarships for students pursuing an education in marine science or oceanography, and many other boater education programs and conservation projects.
Monday, July 16th, kicked off with the YCOA VIP Tournament at 6 am and all of the tents, food and exhibitors got setup for the week. On Tuesday, July 17th , at 7:30 am the Junior Angler Tournament hit the water. On Wednesday, July 18th, general tournament registration began and the boaters got a chance to enjoy the Liars tent or the array of foods. On Thursday, July 19th, the fishing begins. On Friday, July 20th, after the weigh-in for day two is over, fishermen can enjoy live entertainment from the George Aspinall Band. There is entertainment all day on Saturday, July 21st, including live music from The Swingin’ Medallions and fireworks provided by the City of Jacksonville at 10 pm.
Prizes will be awarded in several categories. They will award a first through third place prize for largest Kingfish, first through twentieth place for Ultra Class Aggregate, first through twentieth for 23 Class Aggregate, a “Tagged Kingfish Bonus” for catching any of the five tagged Kingfish, as well as record-breaking bonuses. They are expecting to give out more than $500,000 in prize money, but nothing compares to winning in the country’s largest Kingfish Tournament. That just might make you a world champion.
For additional details visit the Kingfish Tournaments website at kingfishtournament.com.
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