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+--- Thread: ESPNs Redfish Cup Stops In Biloxi/DIberville For Final Regular Season Event (/showthread.php?tid=578118)
ESPNs Redfish Cup Stops In Biloxi/DIberville For Final Regular Season Event - FishNews - 04-07-2010
D' Iberville, Mississippi - The Redfish Cup, the nation's premier saltwater fishing series makes its final regular-season stop at the D' Iberville Pier just north of Biloxi as part of the Redfish Jubilee Festival. The three-day fishing frenzy officially begins at 6 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 28 with the morning launch and ending with the dramatic final day weigh-in at 3 p.m. at the D' Iberville Pier on Sunday, Aug. 30 when one teams walks away with the $40,000 grand prize.
For the second consecutive year the Redfish Cup visits the lucrative marshes of Mississippi and promises to bring big thrills and even bigger bags with the state fishing regulations allowing a 30-inch maximum slot size. At last year's event, Andrew Bostick and Mark Sepe broke the record for the most single-day weight with a bag of redfish tipping the scales at 19.89 pounds.
"We're excited to bring our tournament back to Mississippi for another year," said Steve Levi, general manager of fishing properties at Career Sports & Entertainment, the agency that owns the Redfish Cup. "Biloxi and D' Iberville offer some of the finest fishing along the entire northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico and our anglers are fired up to visit the area again."
Fifty-six invited teams from all over the South, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North and South Carolina and Texas will compete in the 2009 Redfish Cup including perennial favorites Captain Kevin and Cajun Phil Broussard (Lake Charles, La.), who are currently ranked number one in the Academy Sports + Outdoors Team of the Year presented by Crocs race.
The Biloxi/D' Iberville tournament will be broadcast on ESPN2 later this fall.
Local kids will have their chance to kick off the fishing-filled weekend at Net Gains, a free fishing and conservation clinic with the Redfish Cup pros a t the Academy Sports + Outdoors in Gulfport (15130 Crossroads Pkwy in the Crossroads Plaza) Thursday, Aug. 27 from 5-6 p.m.. Ages seven and up are welcome and all attendees will receive a Redfish Cup goodie bag and a photo with their favorite angler upon completion.
"We're honored to be a part of the Redfish Cup and contribute to the future of fishing with activities like Net Gains," said Jerry Debin, director of outdoor marketing for Academy Sports + Outdoors.
More kid-friendly activities include a kids fishing rodeo presented by D' Iberville Moose Lodge on Saturday, kids casting contest presented by Sonic Drive-In, Kids E-lympics presented by E-Fitness, Parisi Speed School Clinic presented by Pasici Speed School, Kangarooz Fun Center and Gulf Islands Waterpark Fun Zone. All activities and events are free.
"We were very pleased with the turnout last year for the Redfish Cup, and we're even more excited this year with many kid-friendly activities planned," said D' Iberville Mayor Rusty Quave. "This event helps promote the Gulf Coast as a fishing Mecca and we're expecting a great turnout to watch the pros do what they do best, catch fish."
Additionally, the Redfish Cup and Jubilee promises good times for all ages with a Redfish Cup poker tournament open to the general public (ages 21 and up) at the Isle of Capri Hotel & Casino in Biloxi (151 Beach Blvd) Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 7 p.m.
The Redfish Cup and Jubilee is also teaming up with the Center for Prevention of Child Abuse with an extension of its Blue Ribbon Campaign that started back in April. The festival will host a Blue Ribbon Sale with blue ribbon-marked boats, campers, jet skis, four-wheelers, etc. A percentage of each blue-ribbon purchase will be donated to the Center. The Redfish Cup anglers will also wear blue ribbons in honor of the campaign and cause.
The Redfish Jubilee will feature live music throughout the weekend with local bands Suthurn Touch, Steve Cason, Mobile Brass Band, Severd Ties and Stand Up Sadie.
This year the Redfish Cup is teaming up with Costa Del Mar to implement a new community initiative, Weighing in for Conservation that kicked off at the Punta Gorda tournament. On the Sunday of each 2009 stop including the Championship, the Redfish Cup will donate $1 for every pound of redfish weighed in during days one and two to the local Coastal Conservation Association chapter on behalf of Costa Del Mar. Costa Del Mar donated more than $700 to the local CCA in Florida at the first tournament; $1,326 to the local Texas CCA at the Kemah tournament and $1389.77 to the local Louisiana CCA at the Chalmette tournament.
"We're grateful to be a part of a program that supports marine conservation and the interests of saltwater anglers," said Nicole Ralston, marketing manager for Costa Del Mar. "Weighing in for Conservation enables us to extend our support of the Coastal Conservation Association and professional fishing tournaments like the Redfish Cup."
Biloxi/D' Iberville is the final stop of the regular season on the Redfish Cup circuit and will determine who advances to the Redfish Cup Championship. Only the top 20 teams in the Academy Team of the Year presented by Crocs race will advance to the Championship held in conjunction with the annual Pensacola Seafood Festival Sept. 25-27 in Pensacola, Fla. Redfish Cup teams accumulate Team of the Year points based on their final placement in the four regular-season tournaments. The Academy Team of the Year presented by Crocs awards the winning team $10,000.
Now in its seventh season, the Redfish Cup has become the nation's premier saltwater fishing championship. The event will visit five venues across the South in 2009 with nearly $750,000 in prize and contingency monies. Each event features a $40,000 grand prize and $146,000 in total payout.
The Redfish Cup and Jubilee, Aug. 28-30
When: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday-Sunday<br />
3 p.m., daily weigh-ins on the Redfish Cup stage
Where: D' Iberville Pier/Back Bay<br />
(Take Exit 2 on I-110)
For more information and up-to-the-minute news, visit www.RedfishCup.com.
About The Redfish Cup<br />
In its seventh year, the Redfish Cup is the nation's premier inshore saltwater fishing championship. The 2009 schedule consists of five events culminating with Redfish Cup Championship in September. It is the proving ground for the nation's top professional redfish anglers. Full 2008 tournament coverage can be seen Saturdays at 8:30 a.m. EDT on ESPN2 starting on July 4.
Sponsors of the 2009 Redfish Cup include Academy Sports + Outdoors, Lake & Bay Boats, Plano, Costa Del Mar, Lowrance Electronics, Falcon Rods, Xtreme Glove, Power-Pole, Crocs, Revere Supply, Gatorade, Rat l trap, Mystik and Gemini.
About Career Sports & Entertainment<br />
Atlanta-based Career Sports & Entertainment (CS&E) is a full-service sports and entertainment agency with more than 20 years of experience working with some of the world's most influential people and brands who trust CS&E's integrated approach. CS&E's Media Services division provides content across all media platforms with full television production capabilities. CS&E provides more than 200 annual hours of outdoors programming to ESPN. The Corporate Marketing division serves Fortune 500 and growing companies, providing marketing, property consulting, public relations, event services and creative services. A sample of CS&E's corporate clients include Aflac, AT&T, the Atlanta Falcons, Kellogg Company and the New Jersey Nets. The Client Representation division represents more than 200 athletes, coaches and broadcasters. CS&E's individual clients include Doc Rivers (Boston Celtics, head coach) Tom Izzo (Michigan State, head coach), John Smoltz (St. Louis Cardinals, pitcher), Jeff Francoeur (NY Mets, outfielder), and Ryuji Imada (PGA TOUR).
Visit us at: www.careersportsentertainment.com.
Media Contact<br />
Cama Poffenberger, Career Sports & Entertainment (770) 955-1300 (office) (404) 290-5906 (cell) or cama@careersports.com