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MIKE HANNAN | 1989                                                                                                        CHRISTIAN PHILLIPS | 2009

                                                  Assistant to the Weighmaster •  Calligrapher                                                                               Lead Fishman • Lead Dock Hand




                                                With 34 years of service, Mike is longest tenured member of the dock                                                       Christian has been part of the WMO Dock crew for 15 years and does
                                                crew and is Alex’s right hand man.  Together they have provided 66                                                         it all from helping to secure the boats to the dock (he is our best rope
                                                years of expertise and industry to the docks.  Mike and Alex are the                                                       man), to carrying the fish from boat to scale in his indomitable style, to
                                                first on the boat to measure any billfish to see if they qualify.  They                                                    providing comic relief for the rest of the crew.  Christian was born and
                                                handle this important job efficiently, accurately and with utmost integ-                                                   raised in Salisbury and still resides in the town.  When he is not getting
                                                rity.  Make no mistake about it, Alex and Mike ARE the dock crew of                                                        covered in fish blood during tournament week, he is a commercial real
                                                the WMO.  They have seen it all, done it all and handled it with humility                                                  estate agent.
                                                and professionalism.

                                                Mike’s handiwork on creating our photo chalkboard for each placehold-
                                                ing fish is a WMO tradition and one that is appreciated by the anglers                                                      GARRETT MOTSKO | 2000
                                                and the photographers alike.  His impeccable printing is seen by tens of
                                                thousands each year! Mike’s “other” job is running the downtown Berlin                                                       Scribe  •  Assistant Fishman
                                                post office.  Mike hails from Salisbury and currently lives in the coolest
                                                small town in America, Berlin
                                                                                                                                                                          Along with his brother Connor, Garrett has been part of the tournament
                                                                                                                                                                          since his birth.  Once old enough, his roles with the WMO have included
                                                                                                                                                                          selling t-shirts, acting as our first on-staff EMT and most recently as our
                                                                                                                                                                          scribe, recording the salient information about each catch. When needed,
                                                                                                                                                                          he is available to help handle some of the bigger catches.

                                                  CONNOR MOTSKO  | 1998                                                                                                   Garrett grew up in Baltimore and is a 2023 graduate of High Point Uni.
                                                                                                                                                                          When not working the WMO, he is a graphic designer in Charlotte, NC.
                                                  Lead Fishman •  Bir thday Boy




                                                                                                                                                                            RYAN DUNCAN  | 2019
                                                Connor was born a day after the 1998 tournament ended and has been on
                                                the docks ever since.  He often celebrates his birthday during the tourna-                                                   Assistant Fishman • Assistant Dockhand
                                                ment and grew up with thousands spectators signing him Happy Birthday
                                                each year.

                                                                                                                                                                           Ryan is the newest member of the crew having joined in 2019.  He is still
                                                He has always been around the boats and the fish.  Early on in his work                                                    learning the ropes but is an eager learner and a hard worker.  He large-
                                                with the White Marlin Open, he could be found on the upper stage of the                                                    ly helps Christian with the docking of the boats and is ready to pull his
                                                scale operating the winch.  He has since moved down from that perch and                                                    weight should a big fish come in.  Ryan was born right here in Ocean City,
                                                is now part of the muscle that transfers the fish from the boats to the                                                    MD and currently lives in Baltimore.
                                                scales.  Connor resides in Ft Lauderdale, FL and is a principal in Kings of
                                                the Sea, a charter boat business.
                                                                                                                                                                           When not docking boats at the WMO, Ryan sells custom ceilings.



     90                                             visit us online at www.WhiteMarlinOpen.com                                                                                                                                                  91
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