Photography by Rick Ogata/Special to Hawaii247.com

In the Omilu division, Randy Duldulao brought in an 18.7-pound omilu. He caught the fish on Friday afternoon in the Kapoho area. Randy is pictured with Sonja Soun, the Tournament Queen.

In the Ulua division, Bruce Blythe caught a an 89.8-pound ulua, at 1:30 in the morning on Friday, with his first cast. He was fishing on the southern side of the Big Island and beat out the second place finisher by one tenth of a pound.

Story by Miranda Ogata/Special to Hawaii247.com

While most of us enjoyed the nice weather this week, it was not ideal for fishing: there was rough surf on the south side of the island and high winds on the north side. The S. Tokunaga Store Ulua Challenge ran from June 11 through June 14, weigh-in being from 11:00am until 2:00pm, and it was certainly a challenge for the 501 registered participants to reel in a catch.

Out of those who did manage to secure a fish and get it in to the scales, Randy Duldulao took first place in the omilu division with an 18.7 pounder. He was followed by James Ku with a 17.1 pounder and Vic Llanes close behind with a 16.9 pounder. In the ulua division, Bruce Blythe took first with a 89.8 pounder. Bruce squeaked out his win by one tenth of a pound over Duane Fukumoto, who brought in a 89.7 pounder. Third place was taken by Scotty Burns with an 80.7 pounder. The Tournament Queen Sonja Soun graced the weigh-in area and posed for pictures as each contestant brought in their fish.

While the fishing may have be hard, the turnout of spectators more than made up for it, with Aunty Sally’s Luau Hale seeing standing room only during the awards announcements. There were many happy lucky number winners, as well as awards for the top ten placers in the omilu and ulua divisions. Many custom poles, reels, bags, gift certificates, and more were handed out to the winners. In spite of the heat and humidity, a great time was had by all who attended.

The 2010 S. Tokunaga Store Ulua Challenge with be held from June 10 – 13, 2010.