Independence docked at Pt. Loma Sportfishing September 17 after a seven-day charter with 31 anglers riding with skipper Jeff DeBuys. The group had near-limits of yellowtail, plenty of dorado and some tuna and bottomfish. "We fished down The Ridge and offshore," said Jeff. "The weather was great; hot and flat calm."

One of the anglers aboard was Brandon Hayward of WON. "Uncle Sam was wide-open," he told dock reporter Bill Roecker. "They ate all our iron. I got some on the mint Candy Bar and the blue swirl 6X surface jigs. The bass, bit, too. It was good fall fishing."

Joe Overstreet of Rancho Palos Verdes won first place for a 37.8-pound yellowtail. He said he bagged it with a blue swirl Salas 6X jig on 50-pound blue Izorline, and Avet LX and a Calstar 700 H rod.

Don Gallacher of San Diego won second place for a 31-pound yellowtail, and David Dolder of Lakewood won third place for an 87-pound gulf grouper.