2023 Champions

Angler Dave Preston
Captain Luis Cortes
5,804 Points

Press Release:
Angler Dave Preston and Guide Luis Cortes win 60th annual Gold Cup Invitational Fly Fishing Tarpon Tournament

60th Annual Gold Cup Invitational Fly Fishing Tarpon Tournament
June 19-23, 2023
Islamorada, Florida Keys

The 60th Annual Gold Cup Invitational Tarpon Fly Fishing Tournament, one of the most revered fly fishing tournaments in the world, is known wherever anglers pursue the Silver King with a fly. It has been referred to as the “World Series” of tarpon fishing and consists of 5 days of honorable competition. This year was especially exciting as the largest fish in tournament history was caught and the fishing heated up midweek, providing some real suspense each day.

Talented Fly-Anglers were able to pull in a total of 66 fish during the five-day stretch, consisting of 37 Release and 29 Weight Fish, a significant decrease from last year’s 103 fish. Teams of Anglers and Guides compete for various trophy and sponsor-donated items. The real honor is for the overall winning team to have their names added to the 60-year-old perpetual trophy. The historic GCTT trophy is showcased locally at The Florida Keys Outfitters.

Third time Grand Champion Angler, Dave Preston from Miami, FL, and Guide to Grand Champion, Capt. Luis Cortes, earned their Grand Championship title with 5804 points, consisting of 4 Release Fish and 4 Weight Fish for the week. Preston and Cortes’s Weight Fish weighed in at 163, 96.1, 118.1, and 83.2 pounds. Dave Preston’s never failing positive attitude and passion for conservation has been evident over the 11 years that he has fished the tournament. Preston says, “Getting to spend quality time on the water in the Keys with Luis is reward enough, and when you add in our recent tournament success it’s all been the stuff of dreams. We’ve been fishing the Gold Cup together for five years now. This year, as usual, the competition was elite and the late season fishing and weather were challenging at points, but we caught fish every day and persevered. We are both honored and humbled by the opportunity to hold the Gold Cup Tarpon championship for a third straight year, in the footsteps of the all-time greats who came before us. As native South Floridians and stewards of the Everglades and Florida Bay, we would like to remind everyone that loves this special fishery that there is so much work to be done to ensure future generations are able to experience the things we have been so lucky to experience and hold dear.”

First Runner Up Angler, Thane Morgan from Amarillo, TX, and Guide, Capt. Dustin Huff, earned a total of 4130 points. Morgan and Huff started the first 2 days slow, going out with a bang with 3 release fish and 3 weight fish (111.1, 120.1, and 91.8lbs) in the final 3 days of the tournament.

Second Runner Up Angler, Chalmers Allen from Charleston, SC, and his Guide, Capt. Mike Alfano, earned Second Runner-Up with 4018 points. In a spectacular first year fishing the Gold Cup, Allen caught a total of 4 Weight Fish weighing 76.1, 86.3, 129.9, and 109.5 pounds.

The Largest Tarpon Award was earned by Angler Dave Preston from Jupiter, FL and his Guide, Capt. Luis Cortes, with a fish weighing approximately 163 pounds—the largest fish caught in Gold Cup history!

The 61st Gold Cup Tarpon Tournament will take place June 17-21, 2024. For additional information, including current results and sponsors, please visit the website at www.GoldCupTT.com.

Tournament Format & Official Rules

The Gold Cup Tarpon Tournament is an all release fly-fishing format using 16lb test IGFA specifications unless otherwise superseded by the official tournament rules. Five weight fish (70 pounds minimum) can be measured for “weight” points with 10 points awarded per pound.