Exactly one week after the first tagged redfish was caught by a registered STAR angler, a second eligible angler reeled in a tagged redfish landing him a Michelob Ultra-wrapped 23’ AVID Mag boat for the CCA Louisiana Statewide Tournament and Angler’s Rodeo (STAR), presented by Chevron.
David Jones, of Destrehan, Louisiana, caught his prize winner off the bank in Leeville. Jones is the second straight bank fisherman to catch a tagged redfish and the second to be registered for the tournament.
After fishing the morning along the bank in Leeville and the beach at Elmers Island, Jones and his friends returned to Leeville after lunch to continue fishing, catching small trout and redfish along the way before snagging the winner.
“It was getting hot and I was going to make one more cast before we headed in,” Jones said. “Lo and behold, I reeled in the tagged redfish right when we were about to leave.”
Jones’ catch nets him a 23’ AVID Mag boat with a 200 hp Mercury and McClain Trailer and will be wrapped by Michelob Ultra. While recording their consistent catches for a fishing group he and his friends belong to, Jones’ catch was caught on video by one of his fishing buddies.
“Since we were catching a lot of smaller fish consistently, my buddy took out his phone to start recording to show our catches and that’s when I caught it.”
Jones said he started the day fishing artificial and wound up catching his prize winner with dead shrimp.
“I had caught some shrimp in my cast net earlier in the day, but my aerator died and wound up with dead shrimp,” he said. “That’s what the redfish hit on.”
CCA Louisiana tags 100 redfish with red tags and 80 with blue tags. Registered anglers catching fish with a red tag can win: a truck and multiple Avid, Freedom and GatorTail boat packages. The blue tags net the winner “beer for a year” from Michelob Ultra.
The Chevy Silverado and wrapped 23’ AVID Mag boat package has now been claimed but there are plenty of tags still out there and some incredible prizes like other boats from Avid, Freedom and GatorTail. STAR is one of the largest and richest saltwater fishing tournaments in the state, offering over $750,000 in prizes. The tournament spans the entire Louisiana coast and is open to anglers of every age. In addition to the Tagged Redfish Division, STAR has over 25 divisions, that cater to all types of saltwater anglers. The tournament lasts until Labor Day, Monday, September 2, 2024.
“Just goes to show you that you can catch a fish from anywhere,” STAR Director Sam Hopper said. “You don’t need a boat to catch a winner.”
Jones has been fishing STAR on and off for over ten years.
“If you plan on fishing a lot, you may as well sign-up cause you never know,” Jones said. “All my friends say they’ve never known anyone who won or caught anything for the STAR tournament. Now they do.”
Registration for the tournament is only $35 with your CCA membership. To register as well as see a complete list of divisions, leaderboard, weigh stations, sponsors and rules, visit CCASTAR.com.
For more information about STAR, contact Sam Hopper at (225) 952-9200.