"World's Richest" Tarpon Tournament

History of the “World’s Richest” Tarpon Tournament

In 1983 the “World’s Richest” Tarpon Tournament was originally called the Boca Grande Club Invitational sponsored and run by the private Boca Grande Club located on the north end of Gasparilla Island and traditionally run during the summer.

In 1991, the Boca Grande Club decided to discontinue their sponsorship of the tournament and the Boca Grande Area Chamber of Commerce took it over renaming it the “World’s Richest” Tarpon Tournament and opening entries to the general public.

At its height, the total purse of the “World’s Richest” exceeded $175,000. and anglers from all over the world traveled to Boca Grande to enter for a chance to win it.

The impressive ‘World’s Richest” perpetual trophy is on display at the Boca Grande Area Chamber of Commerce office and features the names of the winning team leaders for each year the tournament has been in existence.

In 2005, the Chamber of Commerce decided to take a hiatus from sponsoring the tournament to focus more on economic development for its growing membership base.

The Boca Grande Fishing Guides Association took over the tournament and renamed it the Boca Grande Fishing Guides Association Tarpon Tournament which ran until 2011.

Now in 2012 on the 30th Anniversary of it’s inception, the Boca Grande Area Chamber of Commerce will once again sponsor and direct the storied “World’s Richest” Tarpon Tournament in its triumphant return.

Education and conservation of the fishery combined with sport fishing will be the primary focus. Safe boating, sportsmanship and responsible angling will be promoted in order to encourage a safe, successful family friendly event that will ensure the protection and proper stewardship of our natural resources so that they may be enjoyed for generations to come.

The urgency towards conservation has become increasingly apparent over the last few years and the Boca Grande Area Chamber of Commerce is committed to taking the lead in creating opportunities to help rehabilitate a habitat that has flourished in South West Florida for thousands of years.

Our all–release, no-weigh, no-kill tournaments are an alternative whose time has come. Bringing families together in sport and education enriches not only our estuaries and fisheries, but our community as a whole.

Our “World’s Richest” Tarpon Tournament scheduled for May 17th & 18th 2012 is combined with the 2nd Annual Gasparilla Island Kid’s Classic will be held on May 19th hosted by Gasparilla Outfitters and the 22nd Annual Ladies Day Tournament held on May 20th. The weekend long events will be combined with a downtown festival that will include music, food and games for the kids.

Contact the Boca Grande Area Chamber of Commerce at 941-964-0568, email us at info@bocagrandechamber.com or visit our website at http://www.bocagrandechamber.com/ for more information.