48 Years and Over 86 Million in Prize Money

The White Marlin Open is a 48-year-old deep-sea fishing tournament held annually in Ocean City, Maryland. Long known as “World’s Largest Billfishing Tournament,” the Open has awarded over $86 million dollars for catches of the gamefish that migrate up the Gulf Stream each summer. The first tournament was held in 1974 and drew 57 boats, 150 anglers, and paid $20,000 in prize money. The 2021 event drew 444 boats, over 3,500 contestants, and awarded over $9.2 million dollars in prize money, including the top individual prize of $3.2 million dollars which established a new world record award for the catch of a fish!