THE BUCKS: A primer on how $425,000 was paid out in Cabo to five teams.


In case you‚re a little confused about how the $425,000 in winnings were earned and divided when looking at the results in this special section on the 2003 event, here‚s a quick primer: Remember, all payouts were subject to Mexican income taxes, which were deducted from the team's total amount when the money was paid out.


Cash/Prize Payouts
The basic team entry fee (teams can consist of up to 4 anglers and 2 crewmen) is $600, with two days of five optional daily jackpots totaling $400, $500, $1,000, $2,000 and $3,000. The total amount for a team paying into all optional jackpots was $7,500. Teams could enter none, or one, or some of them, or all of them.


In this year‚s tourney, the results show that a little less than a third of the 184 teams did not enter any optionals. In one case, the biggest fish of the first day would have been worth $175,000 to the two-man team. As it was, the 78.2-pound yellowfin picked up third place Overall money of $3,680.


„Some teams were not aware that they were not to allowed to add to the jackpots or even enter them while in Cabo at the check-in, a precaution taken for the first time this year,‰ said event director Kit McNear. „Teams who signed up were called prior to the event and told we would not be accepting any money on-site, and they were surprised when we adhered to it. Unless we come up with a way to ensure the staff‚s safety on-site in Cabo, we won‚t be taking money again in Cabo next year. I know some people were disappointed, especially the teams that could have made more money, but we did let them know prior to the event.‰


Of the 184 teams, 125 of them entered the first jackpot, $400. Total payout was $20,000 each day. The second jackpot, $500, had 115 entries for a $23,000 payout, 98 teams got into the $1,000 daily for a $39,000 payout each day, 54 teams kicked in $2,000 for a shot at $43, 200 each day, and 42 teams were in the $3,000 dailies, for a chance at $50,400 each day.


The payback to anglers: There is an overall 66.6 percent payback on entry fee ($600) and 80 percent on daily jackpots. Of the total amount available, $200 of the $600 Overall Jackpot entry fee and 20 percent of the optional money goes to Western Outdoors Publications, the remainder to the team members and 10 percent to the captain of the charterboat ˜ if that boat is chartered.


If not chartered, the captain‚s fee was divided among the team members as they saw fit. For example, David, captain of the Fish Tales Too, was awarded $10,556, after the team won a total of $105,560 for taking the first two optional jackpots the second day and finishing first Overall. Not a bad payout for the captain.


The Fish Tales Too team, led by Lloyd Collyer of Denver, CO also donated $8,000 to the For Pete‚s Sake Marlin Tournament, which over two decades in Cabo has raised more than $1 million for cancer research. Collyer also made the winning bid of $4,300 for the Peter J. original painting, the money going to the Cabo Fire Department, which is funded through donations.
The team that caught the second largest tuna, a Day two 78.9-pound tuna by Barramondi II, won 10 percent of the Overall Jackpot cash, or $7,360 in addition to the last three jackpots for a total of $140,160. Third biggest tuna, a 78.2, earned 5 percent of the money, $3,680, and $368 of that went to the charter boat captain, Jose.
In optional jackpots, the winning team/team captain took all cash in each pot entered. Just as in the Overall Jackpot, if the boat has been chartered, the charter captain was paid out 10 percent of the winnings.
For wahoo or dorado, G. Loomis rods and Shimano reels were awarded to members teams weighing in the biggest wahoo and dorado (first place only) over the two days. The value of those rods and reels was over $2,000 per team.


Full results of the event are elsewhere in this special report of the event, but perhaps this explanation clears up some questions on how the money is paid in and paid out.


And if you don‚t win cash, there‚s the $180,000 in prizes given away in free drawings, plus the giveaways for each team when they sign in. For example, Flexx-Rap gave away $2,000 cash in free drawings, in addition to purchasing hats for each angler and providing six-packs of tape, and Burch Ford gave away $3,000 cash in a Mystery Weight drawing Saturday night.