Sports & outdoors
Franky Pettolina Marlin Club Heels & Reels
Ladies billfish weekend at the Ocean City Marlin Club—sits on the same dates as Marlins for Mason and immediately before White Marlin Open week, so lodging and slip demand spike hard.
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Dates and prices change—confirm with official sources before you book travel. Status uses US Eastern calendar dates for “today.”
Plan your trip
Tickets, parking, lodging pacing, tips, and official links for this event window.
FAQs
Practical visitor questions—kids, weather, parking, tickets, and local logistics.
About this event
Heels & Reels (Franky Pettolina Marlin Club Heels & Reels, 18th annual) is the Club’s late-July ladies billfish tournament. 2026 chairmen listed on the Club page are Ryan Freese, Kayvan Bahrami, and Chris Evans. It is the social and competitive bridge from midsummer Club events into White Marlin Open registration weekend.
Published 2026 rhythm: registration Wednesday, July 29, 6:00–8:00 p.m.; fishing days July 30, 31, and August 1 with a fish-1-of-3-days structure; weigh-ins each fishing day 5:30–7:30 p.m. at Fisherman’s Marina; awards Saturday, August 1 at the OCMC clubhouse. Download the brochure for eligibility, release scoring, and Calcutta notes.
The same calendar window hosts Marlins for Mason, the charity marlin-release fundraiser for the Dravet Syndrome Foundation. Some ladies Calcutta paths on the Mason registration page require Heels & Reels entry—crews stacking both must read both packets before wiring two sets of fees.
Immediately after awards, White Marlin Open late registration opens August 1–2 at Harbour Island. Treat July 29–August 9 as one lodging and marina strategy, not three unrelated weekends. West Ocean City Sunset Avenue and Harbour Island corridors both compress.
Visitor FAQs: White Marlin Open visitor FAQ, tournaments FAQ, marinas, and lodging. Club phone: 410-213-1613.
For angler format notes, target species, and related tournament weekends, open the fishing events & tournaments card.
Full fishing tournament card All fishing tournaments
Quick planning tips
- Pad marina and Route 50 minutes—tournament weeks compress West Ocean City and inlet corridors.
- Book lodging early; billfish and tuna weeks stack with summer beach demand.
- Confirm weigh-in windows and public viewing rules with the host marina before you promise kids a “scale night.”
Full plan guide Official tickets
Map (approximate)
Top FAQs
- Does OCEANCITY.MD sell entries for Heels & Reels?
- No—register only through the official tournament or host marina channels linked on this page. We publish planning context, not entry desks.
- Will this tournament affect my recreational charter day?
- Often yes near host docks—weigh-in crowds, trailer traffic, and reserved slips can slow staging. Ask your captain, and keep a non-tournament backup window. See charter trip picker and marinas.
- Does it overlap Marlins for Mason?
- Yes—both are listed July 30–August 1, 2026. Confirm cross-entry and Calcutta eligibility with each organizer; some Mason ladies paths require Heels & Reels entry.
Sources we used
OCEANCITY.MD does not operate these events. Organizer websites, OceanCity.com, the Town of Ocean City (OC Ocean), OC Visitor, and regional tourism calendars are starting points—verify every time-sensitive detail directly.
Related guide on this site: older editorial page (may overlap topics).
