There has been a lot of hype about the offshore tuna bite, and little about the marlin bite. Truth is, the local striped marlin season has been incredible for those with the means with which to target the scrappy billfish.

(That'd be a fancy sportfishing yacht and lots of free time.)

Check out the results of the recent and very exclusive Riviera Zane Grey Invitational, headquartered in Avalon on Santa Catalina Island:

First place was Team Bad Company, which in three days caught and released 12 striped marlin. Runners-up were Good Karma and C-Bandit, with six marlin apiece. The winning team, which also won the Avalon Billfish Classic, is essentially a ringer. It's the favorite going into this week's Catalina Classic and among the strong favorites during the Bisbee's Black & Blue Marlin Jackpot Tournament next month in Cabo San Lucas.

Bad Company is made up of boat owner and millionaire Anthony Hsieh, Captain Steve Lassley and renowned anglers Pete Groesbeck, Andy Horner, Jimmy Kingsmill and Chad Herren.

They take their fishing very seriously. If you're a marlin, you don't want to be anywhere in the vicinity. The Classic runs Sunday through Tuesday. It will be covered via blog by Jason Jepson.

--Pete Thomas

Photo of team Bad Company courtesy of Sportfishermen.com