The 51st annual White Marlin Open wrapped up Saturday after nearly 300 boats competed for a share of the $8.59 million prize pool, despite rough weather conditions from Tropical Depression Debby. This year’s tournament saw one of the heaviest blue marlins in tournament history.

“We are incredibly proud of how this year’s White Marlin Open unfolded, despite the challenges posed by the weather,” said Jim Motsko, tournament director and founder of the White Marlin Open, in a news release. “The level of competition was outstanding, with some of the most impressive catches in the tournament’s history.”

Sea levels for the early portion of the tournament were relatively normal at about 3 to 5 feet, said Madelyne Motsko, tournament director. By Thursday, sea level reached 8 to 12 feet due to the tropical storm and continued to increase until Saturday.

The tournament saw a drop in participants compared to previous years due to the storm, but competitors landed impressive catches after receiving an additional fishing day on Saturday.

“We are very happy with the outcome,” Motsko said. “It is the single largest factor when it comes to participation, which is out of our control. Every year we pray for good weather.”

In the Blue Marlin division, Lance Blakemore of Horseheads, N.Y., participated on the Stone Cutter and caught an 897.5-pound fish, earning him $520,374.07. Phil Key from Millers Island on the Moore Bills caught an 894.00-pound blue marlin, winning $410,936.89. Hershel Martin of Montross, Va., on Bobojo rounded out the top three with a 789.50-pound blue marlin that earned $112,704.77.

In the White Marlin category, Ven Poole from Raleigh, N.C., on the boat Waste Knot, got the top spot with a 77.50-pound catch, earning an impressive $3,699,630.67. Just behind Poole, Noah McVicker from Ocean City landed a 76.00-pound white marlin, taking home $1,797,119.13.

Other category winners include Rob Jones from Cincinnati, Ohio, who netted a 220.5-pound bigeye tuna on the Blue Runner, taking home more than $1 million in the tuna division. Ian Horowitz from North Wales, Pa., in boat American Lady, caught a 70-pound wahoo, winning about $68,594.09.

The White Marlin Open, known as the “World’s Largest Billfishing Tournament,” has awarded over $105 million since 1974 to its winners, among more than 105,000 anglers aboard over 14,000 registered boats. Commonly, the bulk of prize money goes to the person who catches the largest white marlin, but no qualifying white marlin was caught last year.