Jordan Anderson reeled in an 8.3-pound flounder Saturday, June 13 to win the 13th Carousel Center Flounder Tournament.
The tournament began before dawn Saturday, when 92 fishermen dropped their lines into the water in hopes of hooking the heaviest flounder. They fished throughout the Cape Fear waters and returned to Inlet Watch Yacht Club between 2 and 4 p.m. for the weigh-in.
The 2014 winner, Chris Hanson, left the docks at 5:30 a.m. with his friend Troy Phillips. Last year, his 6.5-pound catch was good enough to take first place. He and Phillips fished around Snow’s Cut all day, but when they returned, the scale revealed their largest flounder only weighed around 4 pounds.
Meanwhile, Devin Anderson set out with his father and two brothers. They spent the first few hours catching tiny Atlantic menhaden to use as baitfish. Then, they started reeling in flounder after flounder, but almost none were large enough to keep.
“We caught 25 or 30 flounders,” Anderson said.
Anderson has fished the tournament every year since its inception, but this was the first year he brought along his younger brother, Jordan Anderson. It was the younger Anderson, fishing in his first flounder tournament, who finally reeled in the 8.3-pound tournament winner and took home the $1,000 cash prize.
“That’s the biggest fish we’ve ever caught in this tournament,” Devin Anderson said.
While it was an impressive catch, the heaviest flounder caught in the tournament’s history was 12.75 pounds, event organizer Tom Banks said. He founded the tournament 14 years ago, inspired after participating in a Florida tournament to benefit the Cancer Treatment Centers of America.
“I came home and one of the doctors from the Carousel Center asked my company to do some work for them, and that’s when I decided to try to do this to raise them some money,” Banks said.
The inaugural event drew 50 entrants. Participation has almost doubled since then, and the event’s most successful year attracted as many as 128 entrants. About half the fishermen come from Carolina Beach and half from Wrightsville Beach, Banks said.
During its 13 years, the tournament has raised about $230,000 for the Carousel Center, he added. Carousel Center staff stood on the docks during the weigh-in, selling raffle tickets and thanking the fishermen for participating as they brought in their catches.
The Carousel Center is a child advocacy center serving New Hanover County, Pender County and Brunswick County, executive director Amy Feath said. The organization provides medical examinations and trauma therapy for children in cases of reported child sexual or physical abuse.
“This money [will go toward] general operating services,” Feath said. “Our fundraising total every year is about one-third of our budget. … This is the 13th year that Tom Banks and MTS Services have been generous enough to run this whole thing for us and … donate the proceeds of the tournament, which we really appreciate.”
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