News & Events

Dear Members,

Summer is in full swing, we can certainly feel it with the extreme heat.

This is the time of year when many of you go to your summer homes or go away on vacation. Enjoy your trip, and stay safe.

Construction on our new club continues at breakneck speed. Chris and his team are doing a great job, and his goal is to have the building dry in this September.

I would also like to remind all members about the sponsorship packet recently emailed, Sponsorship opportunities available, and the 25 lifetime memberships, of which nearly half have been taken. Once all are gone, the category will close.

Please inform me when you get a new credit card whether it was lost or it has a new expiration date.

Sincerely,

Vinnie Feola
General Manager
Islamorada Fishing Club

Presidential Update
July 2024

If you have not been to the construction site, the project is moving forward very quickly. The progress (see photos here) is generating quite a buzz around town and I anticipate that it will be attracting more potential members.

The Board recently opened the Lifetime Membership category which had been closed for some time. The Board agreed to cap the number of newly offered Lifetime Memberships at 25. The response has been overwhelming and we have about half of those memberships sold. We continue to offer legacy naming opportunities within the new building, and some have been spoken for, but we do still have opportunities.

I am looking forward to our Italian theme night dinners that Vinnie and Chef Dave have come up with for a middle-of-the-week treat. I know we will be working to expand on these special nights mid-week to bring members out for more nights at the club. Look for other entertainment nights to be coming soon.

Hope to see you at IFC soon!

Sincerely,
Joe Roth, President
Board of Directors

Trophy Hunter wins Islamorada Fishing Club’s Captains Cup Sailfish Tournament

The Islamorada Fishing Club welcomed 68 anglers fishing on 19 boats for the Islamorada Fishing Club Captain’s Cup Sailfish Tournament on January 17th. Islamorada Fishing Club Member Captain Brian Cone led team Trophy Hunter to first place, also achieving the team’s second win in the three-leg Florida Keys Gold Cup Sailfish Championship.

The Trophy Hunter team released five sailfish between 8:45 and 11:13 a.m. on the contest’s single day of fishing to take and maintain the lead, landing the winner-take-all prize of $19,000. Trophy Hunter angler 13-year-old Andy Cone of Tavernier, FL, released two of the teams’ fish, Club member Mark Mitchell and Kenneth Padgett, both from Charlotte, North Carolina, and Club Member Travis Bennett of Tavernier, Florida, each released one sail, to round out the team’s winning five fish total.

Returning to the dock in second place with three sailfish was Captain Marty Lewis of Marathon, Florida, at the helm of Main One/Main Attraction. The team’s anglers were Mark Busch of Key Colony Beach, Florida; Ben Zdan, Ariel Medero, and Alex Lewis from Marathon; and Danny Lombardo of Islamorada.

In third was Captain Alex Adler of Islamorada and his crew aboard Kalex. The team, including Indiana anglers Chris Chastain, Allen Sutkowski, and Nathan Burns, along with Colby Mason of Islamorada, released two sailfish. 26 sailfish were released in the IFC Sailfish Tournament, which is the second leg of the annual three-event Florida Keys Gold Cup Championship series.

Festivities were held in the club’s temporary location while their gorgeous new building was being built. The Islamorada Fishing Clubs Captains Cup Dolphin tournament will be held on June 27th, 2024.

Anglers were greeted with flat seas & extremely hot weather on Thursday, June 29th, for the 23rd  Annual Islamorada Fishing Clubs Captain’s Cup Dolphin Tournament.

41 anglers headed out to capture three big dolphin. It would be the largest combined weight of three fish that would be needed to win the tournaments $11,000.00 in prize money. When the scales closed at 5 PM, all the stories were the same. There were lots of fish out there but no big ones.

It would be IFC Member Captain Brian Cone aboard the "Conetagious" that would find the three biggest dolphin. Caribee Boat Sales and Yamaha outboards sponsored first-place trophies would go to Anglers IFC Member Travis Bennet, Don DeLeon, Reef Bennett, and Andy Cone. The team would weigh 21 pounds combined to win the $11,000.00 grand prize. A tough day of fishing for all.

Capt. Chris Ware of "Executive Decision" would be closest in second with 20.8 pounds From Anglers John & Jill Paglia, Sam Milazzo & Mike Kasten and take the TD Bank sponsored second place trophies.

Captain Cody Darby fishing the "Kill Box" with Anglers Tyler Kelley, KC Spaulding, Corbin Buckley, and Joey Marino, would take home trophies for third place with a total of 20.1 pounds, Sponsored by Regan/Roth Insurance.

"The Islamorada Fishing Club put on an amazing show," stated the tournament director Dianne Harbaugh. Angler gifts and ditty bags loaded with SWAG were handed out on the kickoff night. Fantastic appetizers followed by a dinner buffet awaited all the anglers and guests. The awards ceremony on Thursday evening was filled with amazing appetizers, followed by a Plated exceptional dinner. All the anglers and Captains are excited and ready to be a part of next year’s event, which will be the last Thursday in June 2024.
 

Anglers were greeted with beautiful weather on Thursday, June 30th for the 22nd Annual Islamorada Fishing Clubs Captain’s Cup Dolphin Tournament.

49 anglers headed out to capture three big dolphin. It would be the largest combined weight of three fish that would be needed to win the tournaments $15,000.00 in prize money. When the scales closed at 5PM all the stories were the same. There were lots of fish out there but no big ones.

It would be IFC Member Captain Brian Cone aboard the “Conetagious” that would find the three biggest dolphin. Caribee Boat Sales and Yamaha outboards sponsored first place trophies would go to Anglers IFC Member Travis Bennet, Don DeLeon And Tim Rahn The team would weigh 94.3 pounds combined to win the $15,000.00 grand prize.

And also landed the biggest fish of the tournament with a 34.1 pound Dolphin
Capt. Chris Ware of “Executive Decision” would be closest in second with 83 pounds
From Anglers John & Jill Paglia, Brandon Simmons & Mike Kasten and take the TD Bank sponsored second place trophies.

Captain Skye Stanley fishing the “J Watty-Hoo” with Anglers John Watson, Reese & Jason Guenther & Aaron Watson would take home trophies for third place with a total of 60 pounds, Sponsored by Regan/Roth Insurance.

“The Islamorada Fishing Club put on an amazing show,” stated tournament director
Dianne Harbaugh. Angler gifts and ditty bags loaded with SWAG were handed out on
the kick off night. Fantastic appetizers followed by a dinner buffet awaited all the anglers and guests. The awards ceremony on Thursday evening was filled with amazing appetizers followed by an Asian Themed dinner and All the anglers and Captains are excited and ready to be a part of next year’s event which will be the last Thursday in June 2023.

For more information on the tournament and the Islamorada Fishing Club call the club or visit www.theislamoradafishingclub.com.

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