Morehead City, NC (July 23, 2025) – The Inaugural Big Rock Triple Crown (BRTC) presented by Bailey’s Fine Jewelry featured 92 boats. Only 19 of those boats chose to enter the Level II Calcutta, with an entry fee of $5,000, bringing the total purse to $80,750. Diving into the details, boats entered in the Triple Crown weren’t required to fish all three Big Rock Tournaments (KWLA, Big Rock, BRKids). Boats scored an additional 50 points for each tournament they competed in. Scoring for the BRTC followed each of the tournament’s scoring systems, giving boats competing in Big Rock Kids a competitive advantage when billfish were released by Jr. Anglers, earning an additional 25 points AND an extra 25 points were given to releases made by boats without use of a sonar. Now that Big Rock season has come to a close, we’re proud to announce that CARTERICAN is the first ever winner of the Big Rock Triple Crown.
The series began with the Keli Wagner Lady Angler Tournament. CARTERICAN released 3 Blue Marlin, 3 White Marlin and 2 Sailfish (1825 points), winning the tournament and a total of $111,563, this marked CARTERICAN’S strongest day of fishing throughout the series. This gave them a strong advantage leading into Big Rock, where they released 2 Blue Marlin, 2 White Marlin, and 4 Sailfish (1550 points). After the first two tournaments wrapped up, CARTERICAN held a commanding lead, but fished The Big Rock Kids Tournament to seal the deal, releasing 1 Blue Marlin, 1 White Marlin, and 7 Sailfish (1625 points). With 6 BM, 6 WM, and 13 SF across the series, CARTERICAN ended with 5,150 points (including 150 bonus points for fishing all three tournaments) winning the Inaugural Big Rock Triple Crown. CARTERICAN claimed the BRTC Level II Calcutta top prize of $40,375, bringing their total winnings (KWLA + BRTC) to $151,938.
MARSH MADNESS got off to a slow start, only earning 250 points during the KWLA tournament with a White Marlin and Sailfish release. They bounced back during Big Rock with four incredible days of fishing, totaling 5 Blue Marlin, 1 White Marlin and 3 Sailfish. They ended the tournament tied with BUILDER’S CHOICE with 2500 points for 3rd place in the release division. Ultimately, the prize of $59,075 went to BUILDER’S CHOICE, as they were the first boat to achieve the winning total, but MARSH MADNESS did score $5,000 for a daily first blue marlin release. During Big Rock Kids, father-son duo, Capt. Shane Brafford & mate Hunter Brafford, were determined to catch up to CARTERICAN, for their chance at the six custom Big Rock Triple Crown rings designed by Bailey’s Fine Jewelry. Though they didn’t catch anything on their first day of fishing in the tournament, they had a strong finish releasing 6 Sailfish (900 points) on their final day. MARSH MADNESS secured second place with 3800 points, for releasing 5 Blue Marlin, 2 White Marlin and 10 Sailfish (including the 150 bonus points for fishing each tournament). The boat was entered in both Level I + Level II, winning $24,225. Their total winnings (Big Rock + BRTC) totaled $29,225!
With 3425 points, DOC FEES claimed third place in Level I of the Big Rock Triple Crown. DOC FEES didn’t catch any billfish during the KWLA Tournament, but they released 6 Blue Marlin during the Big Rock alone! During Big Rock Kids, their Jr. Anglers released 1 Blue Marlin + 3 Sailfish (875 points). Though they don’t qualify for any prize money in the BRTC, they will walk away with $1,000 for a first release of the day during Big Rock Kids + plenty of BRTC swag at the wards ceremony this fall.
Though MARLIN FEVER finished 5th in the Triple Crown overall, they secured the third place payout in the Level II Calcutta. The 63’ Jarrett Bay came in as the underdog, as they released only 1 Blue Marlin in KWLA and 1 BM during Big Rock (800 points). Their bite was hot during Big Rock Kids where the crew of Jr. Anglers released 2 Blue Marlin, 1 White Marlin and 9 Sailfish (2350 points) in just two days of fishing. MARLIN FEVER became the first ever repeat champion of the Big Rock Kids Tournament, winning a total of $51,125 in the tournament. Additionally, they picked up $16,150 for their 3300 points they earned in the BRTC Calcutta, for a grand total of $67,275 in prize money!
Thank you to the participants, sponsors, and supporters who made each leg of the Triple Crown a resounding success. The inaugural BRTC was one for the books and the story’s not over yet. Big Rock is built on tradition, and this series is a new way to celebrate everything that makes the tournaments so special, from the competition to the camaraderie. Winners will be recognized at a private ceremony this fall. The real champions are the charities Big Rock supports, and we look forward to revealing the charitable impact made possible by this community at the end of the year. Until then, best of luck to all boats and teams as the tournament season continues!
