Los Suenos, Costa Rica: Anticipation was high heading into the 63rd International Masters Angling Tournament as releases the week prior at the Safe Harbor Los Suenos Triple Crown were exceptional. The Pacific hot spot did not disappoint as the Masters logged 537 releases over three days!
Thirty anglers from across the United States met on February 3 to take part in the annual boat draw just the way John Rybovich designed it six decades ago. The Masters is an angling tournament; it’s just angler vs. fish. Two anglers per boat rotate to a new boat and new partner in the ‘pit each day. Anglers hook up and then fight the fish “dead boat” style as they are clocked with a stopwatch and earn scores based on fight time.
Day One kicked off just as expected with the fleet landing on some productive fishing grounds somewhere within the 50-mile boundary. Two hundred and one sailfish and 11 blue marlin kept the anglers busy with notable catches by Freshman (first time) angler Ryan O’Boyle of Mount Pleasant, SC. Boyle ought a blue marlin dead boat style in 6:25 minutes. By the rules anglers may choose a boat assist on marlin only but O’Boyle’s fish earned him double points and added to his score for Top Freshman honors. JC Gonzalez of Land O Lakes, FL scored a :5 second fight time that held on to the end and the Pete Boinis Fastest Fish Award. Ladies Love Pink founder, Tonya Love Cheatham of North Palm Beach, bested the leader board capitalizing on hook ups and fight time – a combination every angler strives for! An overall Day One tally of 15 fish and 1,000 points earned Cheatham the Top Daily Angler award and solidified her Third Place Overall honors. Top Boat Day One went to Capt. Rob Mahoney and crew on the Miss AC with 20 fish released.
Fishing Day Two was just a bit better with 3 blue marlin and 213 sailfish released during 7.5 hours of fishing time. Capt. Jamie Esfeller on the Fin Tech brought the heat as anglers Mike Rich, Key Largo, FL, and Lach Cheatham of North Palm Beach logged a steady pick, of 23 fish and Day Two High Boat honors. But the angler to beat Day Two was Rick Stavola of Jupiter, FL. Releasing 13 fish for a total of 940 points, Stavola added to his overall score and ultimately earned the Second Place Angler Overall award.
Day Three seems to dawn earlier every year and anglers kicked it off with breakfast and their traditional, good natured ribbing! With the top eight anglers in the hunt heading out, there was proof that “the last day changes everything” holds true at the Masters!
Fishing slowed down for the day with 116 sails released and this set up an epic battle of the fleet as well. Adding to previous days’ scores, Reel Joy and Capt. Andy Helms secured Third Place Boat overall with 42 releases. Second Place went to the Scandaloso crew and Capt. Brian Shepard scoring 43 releases. Earning 575 points on 9 fish, Dale Creamer of Saddle River, NJ, secured the Top Daily Angler spot and assisted in adding 17 fish to the Dealers Choice scoresheet for Top Boat of the day. With a final count of 52 fish, Capt. Danny Solorzano and Dealers Choice earned the Top Captain award and Top Boat overall.
With 25 releases on time, angler Lach Cheatham earned the Most Billfish Released award before taking to the podium to accept the coveted Rybovich Master Angler award. Cheatham won the event in 2024 but the achievement was no less epic for him in 2026. Cheatham proudly hoisted the Old Man and the Sea bronze which is the same sculpture presented to anglers for 62 years prior.
Fishing by standards created more than six decades ago never goes without reverence to the history of our sport. The friendship and camaraderie of the Masters anglers remain unmatched and the epic battle, solely between man and fish, is an ambitious endeavor for which our anglers will always be grateful.
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Attached photos credit: Ronald Rojas Photography
Angler Shon Craig of Holiday, FL
Past Masters:
L-R: Dennis Coleman, Dale Creamer, Lach Cheatham (center), Patrick Healey, Alex Stavola, Bill Shockley
