Despite a late afternoon thunderstorm, the Moonlight Hawg Hunt Fishing Tournament got off without a hitch Saturday evening at the Natchez State Park Lake.

Eddy Houghton of Natchez won the tournament with a catch of 6.62 pounds. That one fish gave Houghton a paycheck of $1,125 – $1,000 for being the champion and $125 for first place in the second hour.

Charles Laird of Natchez, who last participated in the Moonlight Hawg Hunt in 1997, said just moments before the fishing started that &uot;the winner will be determined in the first two hours.&uot;

Indeed that was the case. However, many of the fish that were weighed in were under four pounds.

Before heading out to the lake, Barry Burnside of Clinton, Mississippi said, &uot;I expect some good fishing and some good sportsmanship and a big paycheck at the end of the day.

Unfortunately for Burnside, the big paycheck was not to be.

Before the event, Park Ranger Roderick &uot;Roddy&uot; Powell said, &uot;It’s just going to be a fun time for the fishermen and the spectators.&uot;

He said the fishermen were going to have a good time whether they caught any fish or not.

Don Hubbard of Pineville, La., narrowly missed out on being the winner as his big catch was 6.52 pounds, which was still more than good enough for first place in the fifth hour.

Flynn James of Natchez came in first place in the first hour with a catch of 3.30 pounds.

Brad Wooley of Liberty took home $250 for having the biggest fish during separate weigh-ins – 6.37 pounds in the sixth hour and 5.95 pounds in the seventh hour.