Catch 22: the Islamorada daytime swordfish boat, reviewed

Item: Catch 22
Rating: 8.1
Author: Choose Your Charter

Catch 22

The marquee swordfish boat at Bud N' Mary's, Captain Scott Stanczyk's 54 foot Blackwell, the biggest and most capable offshore hull in the port under a captain who helped invent daytime swordfishing, marked down only on a steep day rate and a booking that runs through the marina office.

Ranked #2 of 6 in Islamorada Updated June 2026 Reviewed by the fishing desk

Catch 22 is the marquee offshore boat at Bud N’ Mary’s Marina in Islamorada, a 54 foot Blackwell run by Captain Scott Stanczyk, who helped invent the daytime swordfishing the port is known for. It is the biggest and most capable private hull in the field, and the captain has about 25 years on this water fishing roughly 250 days a year. If your goal is a swordfish or a serious big game day and the budget is there, this is the boat. What holds it just below the top of the ranking is a steep day rate and a booking that runs through the marina office rather than a slick site of its own.

The verdict and where it ranks

At 8.1 Catch 22 is the second ranked boat in Islamorada and the clear pick for a swordfish or marlin day. The captain and the boat are both close to faultless for the job: Scott Stanczyk is one of the captains credited with the first targeted daytime deep drop swordfish in the United States, back in January 2003, and the Catch 22 is a 54 foot Blackwell with the range, the cabin, and the cockpit for a long offshore run. Two honest things keep it behind DirtyBoat at the top: it costs about $3,000 for the day, among the highest in the port, and there is no split seat, so the whole boat is the only way on. The booking goes through Bud N’ Mary’s, and while the marina is the oldest and largest fleet in the Keys, its dock service draws more mixed comment than the boat does. Book it for the fish that need this boat; for a general half day, lighter options fish well for less.

The boat

The Catch 22 is a 54 foot sportfisher built by Craig Blackwell, powered by twin 800 horsepower MAN engines, with an air-conditioned cabin, a galley, a head, a fighting chair, a bridge, and a tuna tower. It is the most boat in the Islamorada private fleet for the long run and the heavy fish, and it is set up for the deep drop work that swordfishing demands. That capability is the point of the high boat and equipment score. The trade for all that hull is the price; you are paying for a big, true offshore sportfisher, not a nimble center console, so it earns its keep on the long days and is overkill for a quick reef trip.

The fishing and what you target

The headline is daytime swordfish, the deep drop technique the Stanczyks worked out in this port, dropping baits to the bottom in 1,500 to 1,800 feet off Islamorada during daylight. Beyond that the boat fishes the full big game card: sailfish in the cooler months, mahi mahi and blackfin tuna over the ledges and the Islamorada Hump in the warm season, wahoo, the odd marlin, and grouper on the reef and the wrecks. This is a boat that fishes for the fish that need a 54 footer. Swordfish, billfish, and the Atlantic seasons all carry rules that shift year to year, so confirm the current dates and limits with Florida FWC and NOAA before you set a target.

Trips and prices

Catch 22 is sold by the whole boat for up to 6 anglers and booked through Bud N’ Mary’s at (305) 664-2461. A day charter runs about $3,000 for the boat, and daytime swordfish trips sit at the top of the marina’s posted $2,000 to $3,300 range. The marina lists a $400 deposit for offshore charters and $500 for swordfish. The rate is high and the trip menu online is thinner than the posted price tables on boats such as TAN MAN Charters and the Sea Horse, which is the main reason value and transparency is its lowest factor. Our cost guide puts a top end private day against the cheaper ways onto the water in this port.

The crew

Captain Scott Stanczyk is the boat’s strongest asset. Twenty-five years on this water, about 250 days a year, and a genuine place in the history of daytime swordfishing add up to local knowledge that very few captains anywhere can match. Reviewers who fish with him come back describing the same things: comfort on the boat, careful preparation, and a hard working day. The honest qualifier is that the customer review trail for Catch 22 specifically is thinner and more scattered than the deep, recent record on DirtyBoat, partly because much of it sits inside the broader Bud N’ Mary’s marina reviews, where comment on the dock and the office is more uneven than comment on the fishing.

Booking and what to know

Book through Bud N’ Mary’s Marina by phone, not through a booking platform. The marina sits at mile marker 79.8 on the ocean side. Because this is a high cost, high demand boat, reserve well ahead for a swordfish date or a winter sailfish window, and ask what the trip will target so the long run matches the season. Bring a cooler for the fillets, sun protection, and your own food and drink for a full day offshore.

How we scored it

Catch 22 scores 8.1 on a captain and a boat that are both near the top of the scale, a strong track record carried by the captain’s standing and the boat’s pedigree, and a clear specialty in daytime swordfish. It is pulled back by value and transparency, where the roughly $3,000 day rate is steep and the trip menu is thin online, and by a booking that runs through the marina office. See how we scored this boat, and see where it sits against the full Islamorada field.

Daytime swordfishBig gameBud N' Mary'sTournament pedigree

Typical Catch 22 rates · Up to 6 anglers
Trip	Hours	Rate
Full day (reef/offshore)	~8 hr	$3,000 for the boat
Daytime swordfish	Full day	$3,000 to $3,300 for the boat

Typical Catch 22 rates · Up to 6 anglers

Trip

Hours

Rate

Full day (reef/offshore)

~8 hr

$3,000 for the boat

Daytime swordfish

Full day

$3,000 to $3,300 for the boat

Frequently asked questions

How much is a Catch 22 charter in Islamorada?

A day charter runs about $3,000 for the whole boat for up to 6 anglers, booked through Bud N' Mary's Marina. Daytime swordfish trips sit at the top of the marina's $2,000 to $3,300 range. The marina lists a $400 deposit for offshore charters and $500 for swordfish trips. It is one of the priciest boats in the port, which the boat and the captain go a long way to earn.

Who is Scott Stanczyk and why does it matter?

Scott Stanczyk has run Catch 22 at Bud N' Mary's for about 25 years and fishes roughly 250 days a year. He is one of the captains who pioneered daytime swordfishing in the United States, with the first targeted daytime deep drop swordfish landed back in January 2003. That depth of local knowledge is the main reason the boat scores where it does on captain and crew.

What is daytime swordfishing?

It is a deep drop technique that catches swordfish during the day by sending baits to the bottom in 1,500 to 1,800 feet of water, rather than drifting for them at night. The Stanczyk family at Bud N' Mary's helped develop it in this port, so an Islamorada daytime swordfish trip on Catch 22 is fishing the technique where it was worked out.

Is the Catch 22 a good boat for a family or first trip?

It can be, but it is built and priced for serious offshore and swordfish fishing. The 54 foot Blackwell is comfortable, with an air-conditioned cabin and a head, so a family can fish it in comfort, but at about $3,000 for the day a first timer or a casual group may do better on the party boats or a split seat. Match the trip to what you actually want to catch.