$10K ‘shoot-out’ for this prized SC fish pits pros against wily locals in Port Royal

Port Royal and Beaufort residents living near the water will have a hard time missing a fleet of $150,000 fishing boats cruising the Beaufort River and Battery creek Saturday. These boats, replete with logos of fishing industry and beer sponsors, are helmed by professional fishermen and will be stalking the local waters all trying to land the biggest redfish — and the accompanying trophy and check that comes from the Southern Redfish Cup competition.

To gain an advantage, many of the professionals’ boats are equipped with sonar, radar fish-finding technology and towers in the front that anglers climb to “sight” the tough-fighting redfish that swim in the Lowcountry’s shallow waters.

Joining the seasoned professionals are the fiercely competitive locals made up of weekend anglers, bait and tackle shop owners and local sportsmen and women. They will be in boats costing a fraction of the pro’s crafts but they are all chasing the $10,000 first prize the one-day tournament organizers offer. Often the local fishermen know local waters better than the pros who come in from outside the Lowcountry.

The Redfish Cup comes back to Port Royal

The Southern Redfish Cup series also includes stops in Georgetown Oct. 26 and Isle of Palms Dec. 14, as pro teams battle for “team of the year,” but the Port Royal leg begins at first light Saturday with a “blast off” from Sands Beach. Between 30 and 40 boats, each carrying teams of two, are expected in this year’s competition, which has been around for 10 years.

The winner of the tournament pitting pros against locals will take home $6,000 to $10,000 — and possibly more, depending on the field, with prize money going to first, second and third place finishers.

Competitors were still signing up as of Friday afternoon in advance of the “captains meeting” that evening at the Shellring Ale Works on the Port Royal waterfront.

“It’s a one-day shootout,” tournament director Chris Condon says and redfish are the target.

The rules are straightforward, with the team that catches the three largest redfish, brought in alive, and within the state size limit, winning first prize.

Catching ‘really big fish’

Also known as red drum or spottail bass, the reddish-bronze fish with the distinctive spot at the base of the tail fin is one of the state’s mostly highly prized inshore fish.

Easy access to redfish, which are found in shallow water, and its fighting ability, make it easy to love as a game fish for anglers of all levels, Condon says.

“It’s a sport that doesn’t require a humongous investment,” says Condon, “and you get to catch really big fish in shallow water.”

Professional fisherman, wearing jerseys with sponsor names and logos, tend to compete in all of these Southern Redfish Cup events as well as other tournaments. But one of the unique aspects of the tournament series is the competition that comes from local anglers who think, “I can compete with those guys. I know where some good reds are,” Condon says.

“They’ll want to go up against our pros,” Condon says. “That’s what’s great about our format. It’s open to everybody.”

The teams can fish anywhere they choose, as long as the return in time for the Saturday afternoon weigh-in at the Shellring Ale Works .

“They all go their own ways,” Condon says. “They are very territorial.”

It’s a live-fish tournament, meaning the fish that are caught by the teams will be returned to the water at the end of the tournament.

“There’s a lot of intensity,” Condon says of the competition. “They are all amped up. They are nervous. They get excited.”

This year’s Port Royal tournament is being dedicated to Beaufort’s Chuck Lather, a long-time tournament angler and friend of the tournament who died in 2021.

The majority of the teams will fish around Beaufort and Port Royal , patrolling the marsh grasses and creek channels where the fish feed on mullet, shrimp and sometimes fiddler crabs.

“Sometimes you can see them when they breach the water with their tails and dorsal fins,” Condon says. “This is what makes them fun to catch.”