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Amazing Billfish Bite in Guatemala

Capt. Brad Philipps, generally regarded as one of the best billfish captains on the planet, added to his legacy in late December, tallying incredible numbers of billfish releases aboard his 40-foot Gamefisherman, Decisive.
Philipps

Philipps

Capt. Brad Philipps (rear) led Angela (left) and Dave (right) Workman to an amazing 91 sailfish releases Dec. 28, 2012, aboard Decisive. Courtesy Capt. Brad Philipps

Capt. Brad Philipps, generally regarded as one of the best billfish captains on the planet, added to his legacy in late December, tallying incredible numbers of billfish releases aboard his 40-foot Gamefisherman, Decisive.

Over a 10-day stretch, Philipps, who operates Guatemalan Billfishing Adventures, released well over 400 sailfish. The action got hot right after Christmas, on Dec. 27, when Philipps found a huge body of fish only 7 to 14 miles offshore and tallied 40 releases from 49 bites.

“But the following day saw one of those unbelievable bites most only dream about,” said Philipps, who has released more than 23,000 billfish over the past 11 years in Guatemala and has won The Billfish Foundation’s Release Captain of the Year Award for 10 years straight.

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Ninety-one sails were released out of 114 bites that day, with 73 alone coming from angler Dave Workman, of Jacksonville, Florida, who was fishing with his wife Angela.

The husband-and-wife duo continued to see amazing fishing during the course of their trip – they released a total of 182 sailfish and a 450-pound blue marlin over just three days.

“This may just be the new world record for the most billfish released by a single angler in a single day,” said Philipps of Workman’s 73-release day, “all following IGFA rules.”

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