- When
- Usually October
- Host port
- Southport
- Organizer
- U.S. Open King Mackerel Tournament
- Species
- King mackerel
- Format
- Heaviest king mackerel wins; results listed by winning weight
- First held
- 1979
Fall king mackerel tournament based in Southport and Oak Island, North Carolina, where the heaviest king mackerel wins. The organizer's homepage says it draws over 400 boats of all sizes annually and plans its headquarters at Dutchman Creek Park.
Organizer's siteOfficial results
Results
| Year | Category | Winner | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Winner (heaviest king mackerel) | Freek-A-Leek (Cody Knight, Fayetteville, NC) | 44.55 lb; record breaking winnings totaling $162,933 (homepage) |
| 2025 | Winner (heaviest king mackerel) | Fishing Condition (Kenneth Howard, II, Southport, NC) | 45.40 pounds |
| 2024 | Winner (heaviest king mackerel) | FinZ (William Zeron, Southport, NC) | 41.85 pounds |
| 2023 | Winner (heaviest king mackerel) | Triple j (Joe Matthews, Winnabow, NC) | 43.45 pounds |
| 2022 | Winner (heaviest king mackerel) | Tailgrabber (Michael Hayes, Thomasville, NC) | 42.30 pounds |
Winners as the organizer or the cited results publish them.
The organizer's homepage says the 2026 champion's 44.55-pound king brought record breaking winnings totaling $162,933.
Captains in published results
- Capt. Cody Knight, Freek-A-Leek, 2026
- Capt. Kenneth Howard, II, Fishing Condition, 2025
- Capt. William Zeron, FinZ, 2024
- Capt. Joe Matthews, Triple j, 2023
- Capt. Michael Hayes, Tailgrabber, 2022
