Weather and high levels of sargassum have postponed the Virgin Islands Game Fishing Club’s Inaugural USVI Billfish Shootout, scheduled for Saturday, August 2, 2025, out of IGY’s American Yacht Harbor Marina, in Red Hook, St. Thomas. Even so, four intrepid teams, Abigail III, Backlash, Coquito, and Double Header, cast off to the U.S. Virgin Islands’ waters on both the South and North Drops in search of marlin, tuna, wahoo, and mahi. In the end, tropical wave conditions and excessive seaweed made it a day for fishing rather than catching. This means the top prizes of $5000 catch for the boat that releases the most billfish, and $1000 apiece for the boats that catch the largest mahi-mahi, tuna, and wahoo, are still on the table.
“We’ve set a new date for September 6 for the USVI Billfish Shootout,” says Kelvin Bailey, Jr., president of the board of the Virgin Islands Game Fishing Club. “Like our other events, the Dolphin Derby and Wahoo Windup, the USVI Billfish Shootout will be fished in U.S. Virgin Islands waters. We invite local and visiting anglers from neighboring islands and abroad to register now and fish with us. We’re looking forward to better weather, less sargassum, and great fishing next month. September usually produces large billfish.”
