Any doubt about bluefin was erased the first day of the Manasquan River Marlin & Tuna Club’s Bluefin Open when the three biggest fish were brought in to the scales.

The heaviest fish was 132.8 pounds and caught by the crew of In Deep, a 32-foot Cape Horn. Miss Mikayla Ann Two was next with a 112.6 pounder, followed by Timepiece’s 91.6 pound bluefin. Twenty-nine boats out of the tournaments 74 entries fished the first day of the tournament, which was Wednesday.

Thursdays results weren’t in by the time of this article’s deadline. The tournament still has three fishing days left so no captains are giving up their spot, but it’s safe to say they’re going east at least 60 miles.

Closer to shore, the fluke appear to be getting hungrier. A bunch more were brought in by surf anglers this week. Shell E. Caris weighed one in that was close to four pounds on the scale at Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park. The shop had a couple more weigh ins before that. Gulp baits are effective on those fish in the surf.

More: Tournament fishermen look to zero in on bluefin tuna in Manasquan club’s Bluefin Open

The sea bass fishery continues to steam along. With few exceptions, the days have been filled with limit catches of 10 fish for a lot of the anglers jumping on the party boats. Capt. Ron Kish on the Capt. Cal II out of Belmar had nice day on the water Wednesday with anglers pulling in two sea bass at a time. He made two stops for the day and that was enough, especially for the anglers dialed in with the jigs. As a special treat they also got a wildlife show from some passing whales and dolphins.

Tragic loss

The fishing community had a tragedy this week with the news of the loss of Kenneth Halvorsen Jr., owner of Pell’s Bait & Tackle on Mantoloking Road in Brick.

Pell’s was one of the true mom & pop tackle shops where so many people stopped over the years to pick up there crabbing gear or live minnows before hitting Barnegat Bay. New Jersey State Police found Halvorsen unresponsive in his boat after it apparently had run aground and was doing circles in Raritan Bay. The incident was still under investigation as of Thursday.

More: Toms River man dies after being found unresponsive on vessel in Raritan Bay, police say

His loss, though, is felt by many who knew him. Grumpy’s Tackle posted on their social media pages the following tribute.

“Kenny was not just a respected business owner but also a cherished member of our fishing community. His passion, dedication, and friendship touched many lives, and he will be deeply missed. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones during this difficult time. Rest in peace, Kenny.”

When Jersey Shore native Dan Radel is not reporting the news, you can find him in a college classroom where he is a history professor. Reach him @danielradelapp; 732-643-4072; dradel@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: NJ fishing: Fluke bite in surf while tuna hunters return with bluefin