JJFISHWEEKAC Expands its Reach with Additional Weigh Station in Ocean City, Maryland
MIAMI, FL - May 14, 2024 – Pro Football Hall of Fame Coach Jimmy Johnson and the seasoned team at Fish Hard Events are heading back to Atlantic City for the fourth annual Jimmy Johnson Atlantic City ‘Quest for the Ring’ Championship Fishing Week (JJFISHWEEKAC) on July 14-20. This year’s event will expand its reach with an additional weigh station located at Sunset Marina in Ocean City, Maryland, enhancing accessibility for participants and spectators along the northeastern coast.
Annually held in partnership with the Atlantic City Sports Commission, JJFISHWEEKAC’s home base is Atlantic City and hosted at the Frank S. Farley State Marina managed by Golden Nugget Casino, Hotel & Marina. The tournament is annually presented by Contender Boats, powered by Yamaha Outboards, hosted additionally by Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, fueled by Papa’s Pilar, and guided by Garmin Marine.
“We are thrilled for the fourth annual JJFISHWEEKAC to return to Atlantic City! JJFISHWEEKAC is not your ordinary fishing tournament; it's the ultimate experience for fishermen, their families, and spectators alike,” said Larry Sieg, President and CEO of Visit Atlantic City and the Atlantic City Sports Commission. “We look forward to showcasing everything our world-class destination has to offer to all participants and wish all competing teams the best of luck on your quest for the ring!”
Following the resounding success of JJFISHWEEK in South Florida in March, Coach Johnson and his team are primed to deliver another unforgettable high-stakes competitive sportfishing event, complete with over-the-top entertainment in host destination, Atlantic City. Drawing over 80 teams from around the country in 2023, JJFISHWEEKAC promises even more entries, renowned parties, high stakes fishing, and a chance to secure the coveted Championship Ring, earning a spot in Coach Jimmy Johnson’s famed Ring of Honor.
The theme for the 2024 event is ‘Fish For YOUR Species’ with an updated prize structure where you can fish for more in 2024! There are more payouts, more ways to win, and MORE accessibility for participants to fish for their favorite species and win big. This year’s tournament has an estimated purse exceeding $1.5 Million, along with calcuttas and an all new shifted $100,000 guaranteed general entry payout, only available for teams who participated in early entry. The week-long extravaganza features multiple categories, including payouts for white marlin, blue marlin, tuna, wahoo, dolphin, small boat tuna and marlin, yellowfin and bigeye tuna aggregate weight, catch and release, and non-sonar calcuttas with payouts for marlin and tuna, plus an overall high points category. A new set of calcuttas have also been added to the prize structure, including the all-new INLET CHALLENGE, where teams can select their inlet of choice, between Atlantic City, NJ and Ocean City, MD, and enter to compete against teams leaving from or closest to either Inlet.
The addition of a second weigh station in Ocean City, MD, provides increased accessibility for teams, allowing them to fish out of any of the canyons from the Hudson to the Norfolk with shorter runs out and back. The expansion not only enhances convenience for participants, but also opens new opportunities for competition and increased purse available for grabs with the increased boat entries.
While Ocean City, MD will be home to a second weigh station, Atlantic City will be the epicenter of excitement as the continued host destination for JJFISHWEEKAC. The week-long event will kick-off with a celebration at the Golden Nugget Rooftop in Atlantic City on Sunday, July 14. Throughout the week, participants and their guests will enjoy daily dockside parties at the infamous Hospitality activations and all new Suite, which hosts complimentary dinners, open bars, and games after a long day on the water.
On Saturday, July 20, JJFISHWEEKAC will close out at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City with the highly anticipated ultimate gifting experience, in which participants will enjoy swag and gifts over $5,000+ per team on behalf of all the sponsors, and attend the Ultimate Closing Awards Bash featuring a night of live entertainment, dinner, dancing, open bar, and more with the announcement of the tournament winners to close out the epic week.
JJFISHWEEKAC will once again take part in a community-wide effort throughout the week to support those in need throughout Atlantic City. JJ’s Catch for the Community station, sponsored by Greentree Mortgage, will feature fillet stations at the nightly weigh-ins, where many teams will have a chance to graciously donate their weighed-in catches to be filleted and donated to the Boys and Girls Club of Atlantic City. The Club will assist in cooking meals to feed underserved youth and families throughout Atlantic City. Last year, JJFISHWEEKAC collected and filleted over 3,000 pounds of fish.
For more information and a schedule of events, visit https://questfortheringac.com. To register, visit JJFishWeek.CatchStat.com.
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About FISH HARD EVENTS
Fish Hard Events annually hosts a series of fishing tournaments throughout the year with Coach Jimmy Johnson for Jimmy Johnson’s Championship Fishing Week (JJFISHWEEK) and the culmination is this project, the Yamaha Contender Miami Billfish Tournament of Champions (TOC), which takes place in Miami Beach as a celebration of the best of the best teams, the celebrities of the sportfishing, who come together to compete for a high stakes tournament weekend. Coach Jimmy Johnson’s Championship Fishing Week has (2) legs, (1) takes place annually in March across South Florida, where teams come from around the country to fish from Ocean Reef in Key Largo, Fl to Palm Beach and celebrate at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino throughout the week, with a $1Mill Guaranteed purse and up to $2Mill est payout annually, and (1) in July, which takes place in Atlantic City, NJ and attracts teams from across the east coast to join in Atlantic City to compete, which another est $2Mill plus up for grabs. February’s Yamaha Contender Miami Billfish Tournament of Champions is the culmination of the hard work these teams put on annually and brings together the leading teams in sportfishing for a VIP Kick off to South Florida Sailfish season with a weekend of luxury entertainment from local partners and high stakes sportfishing with teams from across the country, hosting a purse of est. $300,000-$400,000 and three days of intense tournament fishing and hospitality events taking place at Miami Beach Marina. Teams that generate a certain amount of dollars throughout the competitive season throughout a variety of different tournaments in the country are invited to join. More information can be found at www.fishhardevents.com or on social @fishhardevents @jjfishweek or @jjfishweekac.
About Visit Atlantic City
Visit Atlantic City is a 501(c)(6) organization formed and funded as a public-private partnership by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) to create economic development through conventions, sporting events, film production and group tourism. Visit Atlantic City focuses on three primary objectives: sales, marketing and services.
For complete Atlantic City tourism and convention information, visit www.visitatlanticcity.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
About the Atlantic City Sports Commission
The Atlantic City Sports Commission was officially formed on January 13, 2015 as a 501 (c)(3) organization with the support of Visit Atlantic City and the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) to attract sporting events, conventions and competitions to Atlantic City.
For more information, visit www.atlanticcitysports.org. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Valerie Roy, Fish Hard Events
P: (786) 683-6397, E: valerie@ci-mgt.com
Cindi Perantoni Rodgers, Perantoni Public Relations
P: (305) 962-9206, E: cperantoni@perantonipr.com