Anchorage Daily News

Historically, Alaskans have been the luckiest anglers in the Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby, catching five of its last 10 winners.

Surprising? Probably not, considering Alaskans often know where to locate the mother lode of halibut and have more salt-water angling experience than most run-of-the-mill tourists.

But Californian Jeff Pardi isn't your average tourist. He brought his own gear to Alaska for his second lingcod trip in as many years in the Gulf of Alaska with Keith Kalke of Ocean Hunter Charters.

All Pardi needed was Kalke to transport him to a sandy pinnacle about 50 miles off the Homer shoreline that's known for abundant lingcod and an occasional trophy-size halibut.

"Captains know the backside of pinnacles have at least one hog," Kalke said. "So I tell clients, when you're fishing for lings, buy a derby ticket."

Targeting lingcod with jigs, Pardi hooked a monster halibut -- a 348.2-pounder that took more than an hour to land and could end up being worth thousands of dollars.

"It was an hour and 15 minutes of hell," Pardi said. "I was pretty beat afterwards."

But all the pain in his forearms and sweat that rolled off his forehead was worth the effort. He could become one filthy-rich angler.

'STILL ANYBODY'S GAME'

With 81 days remaining in the five-month derby, his first-place fish could win Alaska's longest running derby. The average weight for winning halibut is 323.5 pounds and the average payout is $27,756.

The amount in this year's jackpot won't be known for months. Derby tickets cost $2.50. Derby director Paula Frisinger said ticket sales are on par with last year when Jerry Saunders of Chugiak earned $37,243 for his winning fish.

Though the derby started May 1, Frisinger said it's just starting to heat up. Last week, Steve Merson of Wisconsin caught a $10,000 tagged halibut but went away penniless because he failed to purchase a derby ticket.

Then John Calvert Jr. took the lead with a 279.6-pounder a few days later, getting anglers and captains in Homer fired up, Frisinger said.

"It's only the beginning of July and our smallest fish on the board is 204 pounds," she said. "It's still anybody's game."

But for now, the top spot belongs to an Outside angler. If Pardi's 348.2-pounder holds the lead, he would become the fourth Californian to win the derby -- the most successful state other than Alaska, which has racked up 11 of the 22 derby winners.

Odds are also in Pardi's favor. His fish would rank fifth on the all-time list. Jerry Meinders of Minnesota holds the record for the biggest derby winner, a 376-pounder caught in 1996.

'GLUED TO THE GUNWALE'

On a rare bluebird day in the Gulf of Alaska where Kalke and his clients fished, the air was so warm and still that Pardi wore shorts and a T-shirt. The water was calm and glassy.

Only 45 minutes after Pardi dropped his jig 150 feet to the sea bottom, something massive struck the end of his line.

The halibut stripped yard after yard of Pardi's 100-pound-test line. But the 34-year-old braced himself against the railing and steadily cranked.

"He was glued to the gunwale," said Kalke, a five-year captain who would soon witness the biggest halibut a client of his has ever caught.

When the halibut surfaced, Kalke shot it with a slug, but it still took three gaffs and three anglers to haul the lunker onboard.

Laying flat on the deck, everyone thought the fish was dead. Then it started thrashing and all six clients found a safe corner to hide -- well all except Pardi.

"Jump on it! Jump on it!" Kalke yelled to Pardi.

He obeyed the captain's orders and gave the halibut a few good whacks.

Once they reached the Homer harbor, they put the big fish on the ground and Pardi couldn't help but jump on the eight-foot halibut again. But this time, he gave it a giant hug.

"I guess you'd say I was laying with the fishes," he said. "Just like the Godfather."

Find Kevin Klott online at adn.com/contact/kklott or call 257-4335.