Updated: September 28, 2016 Published: August 20, 2014
Sixteen-year-old Jackson Hobbs, from Franklin, ID, left, stunned the field in the 2014 Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby when he brought a 335-lb. fish to be weighed at Derby Headquarters in the last half hour of the fishing day Tuesday, August 19, 2014. "It only took a half hour to bring in", said Hobbs, who was fishing with Captain Travis Larson, right, on Alaska Premier Sportfishing's charter boat Venturess. Jackson is in Alaska on a trip sponsored by his grandfather as a reward for becoming an Eagle Scout. Hobbs comfortable leads the derby for now, with the competition ending 9 p.m. September 15.
The winner of the jackpot prize for the largest fish receives a $10,000 payout, plus .$50 for every Derby ticket sold. Last year's Jackpot winner went home with $21,281.50. In its 28th year, the Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby is the longest-running halibut fishing competition, with the largest total payout, in Alaska.
A good scout is always prepared, so before heading out of Homer to go halibut fishing Tuesday, Eagle Scout Jackson Hobbs of Franklin, Idaho, made sure to buy a $10 Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby ticket. Hobbs' devotion to preparedness could make him the youngest winner in derby history.
Fishing aboard the Venturess with skipper Travis Larson of Alaska Premier Sportfishing, Hobbs, 16, hauled in a monster 335-pound fish that bested the previous leader by more than 57 pounds.
Homer Chamber of Commerce director Jim Lavrakas said official derby records don't list the age of previous champions, but nobody he's spoken with can remember a younger angler winning the derby, which began in 1986.
"We believe this is the youngest possible derby winner in derby history," Lavrakas said Wednesday from Homer.
Read more: Teen's massive 335-pound halibut seizes lead in Homer derby
Alaska Dispatch Publishing