Frank LoPreste tied his Royal Polaris to the dock at Fisherman's Landing December 6 after a 12-day trip with 27 anglers.

Fishing again after a 10-year hiatus, Tony Garza, in the above photo, of Anaheim came back strong with a first and third sweep in the jackpot. His two tuna weighed 215 and 204 pounds. Both tuna bit a sardine on a 5/0 ringed Mustad Demon J-hook, tied to 100-pound Soft Steel Ultra line and 100-pound Power Pro spectra. Tony said he used a Penn 16 VSX reel treated by Cal Sheets and a Calstar 765 XH rod to beat the fish in 20 minutes.

"This is my first time out in 10 years," said Garza, who said he is re-introducing Soft Steel. "I'm back in the game."

Brandon Stevens of San Diego won second place for a 213-pounder, his best fish. It fought for an hour, he said, after it bit on a sardine and a 6/0 ringed Owner Super Mutu. He used 100-pound Blackwater flourocarbon, 100-pound Power Pro spectra, an Avet 30 W reel and a Super Seeker 2 x 4 rod. Stevens will apparently qualify for $500 for the return of an archival tag found on his fish. Scientist Ed Everett was on hand to pick up the tag, and he offered it up for a photo. He said the fish had been tagged in 2007, on February 17, at Socorro Island. It then weighed about 45 pounds. When recaptured December 2, it was off Clarion Island. "It was the last fish of the trip," commented Stevens.