50 Years and Over $105,000,000 in Prize Money

The White Marlin Open is a 50-year-old deep-sea fishing tournament held annually in Ocean City, Maryland. Long known as the “World’s Largest Billfishing Tournament,” the Open has awarded over $105 million 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 2023 event drew 400 boats, over 3,500 contestants, and awarded over $10.5 million dollars in prize money, including the top individual prize of $6.23 million dollars which established a new world record award for the catch of a fish!