09/13/2026
🎣 SEPTEMBER 2026 - SLOTS & SPOTS CRYSTAL BEACH INVITATIONAL — TOURNAMENT RECAP 🎣
Another great day of competition, camaraderie, and fellowship at the Slots & Spots Crystal Beach Invitational!
11 teams hit the water and battled some challenging conditions. Increasing winds made reaching and fishing the open-bay reefs difficult, Saturday boat traffic was heavy, and there seemed to be an absolute armada of ladyfish waiting for anyone looking for trout!
🏆 1ST PLACE — TEAM DIRTY HERON
Seth Rustin & Thadd Turner put together the winning stringer with an upper-slot redfish and a solid doormat flounder, making a late push to the top of the leaderboard and taking home the tournament victory. Congratulations on a well-earned win!
🥈 2ND PLACE — TEAM Salty Dog Texas Fishing - Bolivar Peninsula TX
Liberty DeLeon & Dennis Mackin
Team Salty Dog found a strong back-marsh redfish bite, landing eight reds between 25” and 29” and a solid 16.5” flounder.
🥉 3RD PLACE — TEAM FISH HAPPENS
Mitchell Cappadonna and Trace Simmons brought a redfish and speckled trout to the scales to secure the final podium position. Great job grinding it out under some tough conditions!
💰 REDFISH SIDE POT — TEAM SASQUATCH
Congratulations to the Bellahs (Esther Bellah ) for taking home the Redfish Side Pot!
🐟 NEW HEAVIEST FLOUNDER SIDE POT
We added a Heaviest Flounder Side Pot to the tournament this month, and it was great to see some quality flounder brought to the weigh-in. We think this is going to be a fun addition to Slots & Spots moving forward!
Days like this are a reminder that tournament fishing isn’t supposed to be easy. When experienced resident fishermen and guides are having trouble finding tournament-legal fish, every fish that makes it to the scales has been earned.
But Slots & Spots has always been about more than the leaderboard.
👏 THANK YOU TO OUR LOCAL SPONSORS!
Events like the Slots & Spots Crystal Beach Invitational don’t happen without the local businesses and organizations that step up to support our fishing community.
A huge thank you to:
🎣 Harold's Tackle & Pat's Coffee
🌊 Stingaree Restaurant
Your continued support helps us put on these events, grow the tournament, and bring anglers together here on the Bolivar Peninsula. Please support the businesses that support our fishing community!
We also want to give a special shout-out to our new tournament directors and weighmasters, Mike Riley and Terrie Riley, for stepping up and helping everything run smoothly.
And thank you to all of our local Salt Strong Insiders, volunteers, anglers, families, and supporters who continue to contribute their time and energy to making Slots & Spots better.
👏 Bravo to all 11 teams who competed!
Congratulations again to our winners and to everyone who battled through a tough day on the water. Great competition, great sportsmanship, and an even better group of people.
Competition. Camaraderie. Fellowship.
That’s what the Slots & Spots Crystal Beach Invitational is all about.
🎣 Tight Lines & Bent Rods!
