The 2026 Old School Kingfish Shootout Tournament took place in St. Augustine, Florida on June 13th this year. A total of 562 boats fished the event and at the end of the day, the No Limit team captained by Trip Fletcher won the tournament with a 44.48-pound king mackerel. The No Limit team won a 2026 Yellowfin 21 Bay Boat, complete with a Yamaha F200 outboard and an AmeraTrail trailer, the grand prize valued at $130,000.
The Old School Shootout is a unique event because of its rules. The tournament specifies specific north/south boundaries and there is no checkout, but boats may not leave the boundary to catch bait or deploy lines. The northern boundary is 31.10.000 (just north of the St. Simons Shipping Channel) and the southern boundary is 28.56.000 (approx. 10 miles south of Ponce Inlet).
Live bait may not be purchased. Instead, all live bait must be caught on the tournament boat on tournament day. Live bait may not be transferred from boat to boat. Purchased dead bait is permitted. Boats can begin catching bait within the boundaries via cast net or hook and line at 5:00 am on designated fishing day. Possessing any type of live bait is NOT permitted prior to 5:00am on tournament day. All types of live bait are permitted; however, all bait must be caught within the boundary or in the Intracoastal Waterway. In addition, all boats must fish in State Waters (within three nautical miles of the beach) and follow all State Fishing Laws. If a fish is hooked within the boundary and, while fighting the fish, you are taken out of bounds you may continue to play the fish until it is caught or lost but may not deploy lines after completion until you are back in bounds. These are old-school rules, hence the “Old School” name.
Paul and Lauren Dozier created and run the Old School Kingfish Shootout, which has become a large and immensely popular event. The tournament’s motto is “Fishing fun for the whole family,” and accordingly, entry fees start at only $250 per boat, so it’s affordable for almost everyone. And the old-school rules level the playing field so everybody has a shot at winning. The Old School tournament takes place annually on the second weekend in June. They also run the Northeast Florida Wahoo Shootout, which is the largest wahoo tournament in the world. You can learn more about the Old School Kingfish Shootout at oldschoolkingfish.com.
