At least four women-only sport fishing tournaments are on the calendar in Baja California Sur this year, a sharp increase from just one or two annual events as recently as 2022. The newest, the Cabo Queens Tournament, will launch July 11 in Cabo San Lucas with a guaranteed purse of 250,000 pesos (about $14,480 USD). It joins a growing roster that includes the Pink Promise Tournament in Loreto, the Mujeres al Agua Tournament, and the East Cape Ladies Shoot Out in Los Barriles.
Club Gavilanes Fielded Its First All-Women Team in 73 Years
The most telling sign of this shift came in May, when Club de Caza, Tiro y Pesca Gavilanes A.C. in La Paz sent its first all-women fishing team to a tournament. The club was founded in 1953, making it one of the oldest sport fishing organizations on the peninsula. For 73 years, it fielded only mixed or all-male teams in sanctioned competitions.
That changed at the fifth annual Pink Promise Tournament, held May 2 and 3 in Loreto. The event drew teams of four women per boat from across the state. It doubles as a fundraiser for women living with breast cancer in Baja Sur communities.
“The first time I went, I didn’t know anything,” said Alejandra Amador, one of the Club Gavilanes competitors. “It’s more about attitude, teamwork and giving your best. It’s important to stay calm and steady to fish properly.”
The Mujeres al Agua Tournament followed on May 9, and the East Cape Ladies Shoot Out in Los Barriles held its inaugural edition in 2025. Both are now annual fixtures on the Baja Sur fishing calendar.
Baja Sur’s Sport Fishing Economy Relies on Tournament Tourism
Sport fishing is one of the largest economic engines in Baja California Sur outside of resort tourism. Los Cabos alone is home to more than 800 licensed charter boats operating from marinas in Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo. The region bills itself as the “Marlin Capital of the World,” and major tournaments like the Bisbee’s Black & Blue have drawn international fields since 1981, with total purses regularly exceeding $4 million USD.
Tournament fishing drives spending well beyond entry fees. Visiting teams book hotels, rent boats, buy fuel, hire crews, eat at restaurants, and often extend their stays. A 2019 economic impact study by the state tourism board estimated that each major fishing tournament generated between $1.5 million and $3 million USD in direct local spending over a three- to five-day event window.
Women-only tournaments are now tapping into this same economic pattern. The Cabo Queens entry fee is 8,000 pesos (roughly $460 USD) per team of one to four anglers. Target species include dorado and tuna, with all billfish on catch-and-release. Eligible dorado must weigh at least 16 pounds. Registration and the tournament briefing take place July 10 at IGY Marina Cabo San Lucas, with a shotgun start the following morning.
The East Cape Ladies Shoot Out, scheduled for July 25 in Los Barriles, is also structured to pull visitors into the East Cape corridor. Participants who register online receive a 10% discount on accommodations at Hotel Palmas de Cortez or Hotel Playa del Sol, two of the area’s best-known fishing hotels.
Four Women-Only Events in One Season Is a First for the State
Before 2022, women competed almost exclusively in mixed-gender tournaments across Baja Sur. The Pink Promise Tournament launched in 2022 in Loreto as the first women-only sanctioned event in the state. By 2025, the East Cape Ladies Shoot Out joined the calendar. This year, with four events spread from May through July and spanning Loreto, La Paz, Los Barriles, and Cabo San Lucas, the circuit has reached a scale that would have been difficult to imagine five years ago.
The growth mirrors a broader trend in Mexican sport fishing. Mexico’s national fishing federation has expanded its women’s tournament categories in recent years, and participation in coastal states from Sinaloa to Quintana Roo has risen. But Baja California Sur, with its concentrated marina infrastructure and year-round fishery, has become the center of gravity for women’s competitive fishing in the country.
Registration for the Cabo Queens Tournament opens July 10 at IGY Marina Cabo San Lucas. The East Cape Ladies Shoot Out in Los Barriles follows on July 25, closing out the 2026 women’s tournament season in Baja Sur.