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Bigger flounder have been moving into the inlet and into the ocean off the beaches and in the surf, although they have not entirely left the back bays.

Trish Callow of Broomall, Pa., got a 7¼-pound flounder in Great Egg Inlet; Jim Shellenberger of Kunkletown, Pa., picked a 7-pound, 2-ounce flounder from the bay behind Strathmere; Fred Hynes of Brigantine caught a 7-pound flounder in Absecon Inlet, and George Lynch of Philadelphia got a 5-pounder in Ship Channel inside Great Egg Inlet. Shellenberger weighed his at Frank's Boat Rentals in Strathmere. Hynes caught his with a live spot, reports Andy Grossman at Riptide Bait and Tackle in Brigantine. Joan Barrett at Dolphin Dock in Somers Point said Callow won the pool on the Duke of Fluke pontoon partyboat, and Lynch caught his on Wednesday.

Flounder are doing very well in the back bays inside Long Beach Island. Margaret O'Brien at Jingle's Bait and Tackle in North Beach Haven said Intracoastal Waterway markers 110 to 113 and the Brigantine side of Little Egg Harbor Inlet are two good spots on the top of the tide. She said one boat crew picked up two keepers in a catch of 15. O'Brien said the new 7-inch Gulp chartreuse belly strip artificial bait is the latest hot flounder lure. Basil Shehady at Barnegat Light Bait and Tackle said the keeper ratio on the north end of Long Beach Island is one in 15 in the back bays and one in 10 in the ocean.

Mike Tabasso, captain of the pontoon partyboat High Roller out of Gardner's Basin in Atlantic City, has been working mainly in Absecon Inlet lately, and he said fishing is "weird." He counted five keepers in a catch of 70 Tuesday afternoon and 166 throwbacks with four keepers Wednesday afternoon. Plus, add the odd kingfish, croaker and small bluefish into the mix. Tabasso powerdrifts in the deeper ditches and channels in Absecon Inlet. He said an angler from Allentown, Pa., was a happy visitor when he got 25 flounder on a morning trip and went out again on the afternoon trip for 32 more. None were keepers, but he didn't care, Tabasso said.

Two boat trips to the Longport Bridge out of Ray Scott's Dock in Margate also had varied results. One came back with four keeper flounder right after high water and another got blanked on keepers but had constant action with 60 throwbacks.

The Old Grounds 20 miles south of Cape May seems to be one sure bet for flounder fans. Judy Yarnell of Audubon registered a 5-pound flounder at Dolphin Dock that she caught there while out on the Miss Chris partyboat that operates out of Cape May. The Old Grounds has consistently given up a number of limits and big fish.

Surf fishing for flounder is also getting lots of attention. Brigantine has them in the surf on the north and south end, Grossman said. The Ocean City suds have them, too. A report from Fin-Atics said surfcasters should cast bucktails with bait such as squid out to the bars and crank them back to drop into the gullies and sloughs. Grossman said one angler used bucktail and floating jig head to get three keepers in a catch of 21 in the surf on the south end of Brigantine.

The enigmatic kingfish made another appearance, this time in the Ocean City surf. Fin-Atics put them at 21st, 23rd, 46th and 47th streets. Kingfish have been frustrating for summer surfcasters with their off-and-on antics.

Triggerfish are collecting around the rocks at Barnegat Inlet, the Atlantic City T-Jetty and the 8th Street Jetty in Avalon, mixed with tautog. Croaker and porgy are also moving into the area to join sea bass. Striped bass are still around and chasing plugs along the sod banks and around the bridges mainly at night.

Tournament updates

Sixteen of the 67 boats entered sailed on Thursday's first day of the 40th annual Beach Haven Marlin and Tuna Club White Marlin Invitational. Ocean and weather conditions conspired to keep most of the boats dockside. Some captains and crews who toughed it out returned to the dock at Philadelphia Avenue and the bay with fish.

The Pez Machine got by far the biggest tuna with a 159.4-pound bigeye. Second is Outer Limits with a 60.5-pound yellowfin tuna. Viking 68 had two white marlin releases, and Northern Light boated a 20.9-pound mahi to lead those categories. Mollie K also had a white marlin release.

The tournament was scheduled as a three-day event ending today but was extended to a fourth day Sunday because of the weather. Captains choose the two days of the four they want to fish. Twenty-six sailed Friday, which means today and Sunday should be active days for the weighmasters at the BHM&TC dock. The weigh-ins are 4:30-8 p.m.

The next offshore big-game tournament in southern New Jersey is the Ocean City Marlin and Tuna Club Overnight Billfish from Aug. 9-15. Fishing days are Aug. 10-15 with captains fishing one overnighter of their choice. The captain's meeting is 6 p.m. Aug. 9 at the Ocean City Yacht Club, 4th Street and the bay in O.C. Call Brian Logue at 609-827-0820 for information.

The Mid-Atlantic $500,000 offshore tournament is Aug. 16-21 at the Canyon Club Resort Marina in Cape May. Call Bob Glover at 609-884-2400.

Mike Shepherd is the retired sports editor of The Press. His Shep on Fishing column and Shep's Hot Spot appear Tuesday and Saturday in the sports section and Thursday in At The Shore. Call 609-350-0388 or e-mail:

sheponfishing@yahoo.com.

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