Waterlands

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Red grouperRetention open

Cape · Florida

Philippe Point

28.01°N · 82.67°W · Cape · Tampa Bay waters

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Best score today · 6 PM · Red grouper

73/100Great
Now
4312 PM EDT
Best window
2-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.4 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 PM · now

Time12PNOW
Score43Fair
Tide2.4 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind4 kn ENEgusts 13 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.4 ft · 5 s
Air temp87°Hot
WeatherPartly cloudy30% cloud
Water85°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Red grouper

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 20 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero in state waters. No more than 4 grouper combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open year-round in Gulf state waters. Federal waters close February 1 through March 31 seaward of 20 fathoms.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (10 per day)
  • Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
  • Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
  • Crevalle jack Retention open
  • Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
  • Gag grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
  • King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
  • Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
  • Red snapper Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
  • Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
  • Snook Retention open (1 per day)
  • Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
  • Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder

Red grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red grouper in Florida

Spot profile

Philippe Point

Depth
2-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed grouper

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Philippe Point

Philippe Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 2-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, permit, Atlantic tarpon and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Red drum peak from September through November.

Tackle & technique

Red grouper
Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
Atlantic croaker
Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
Common snook
Snook ambush bait around mangrove shorelines, bridge and dock lights, jetties and the mouths of passes and inlets, generally in 2 to 15 feet of water. Fish moving water, especially the outgoing tide, with a live pilchard, pinfish or shrimp, or a jerkbait or soft plastic swum past the structure. In summer they spawn along beaches and inlets, and in winter they crowd into rivers, canals and deep backcountry creeks where the water stays warmer.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Safety Harbor

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Common snook 65
    • Gray snapper 62

    4 kt ENEH 12:55 PM · 1.6 ftL 9:20 PM · 0.2 ft

  • Mobbly Bay

    Bay · 1.7 mi

    69
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • Red drum 65
    • Permit 62

    4 kt ENEH 12:55 PM · 1.6 ftL 9:20 PM · 0.2 ft

  • Boat Bayou

    Bay · 2.2 mi

    69
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • Red drum 65
    • Permit 62

    4 kt ENEH 12:55 PM · 1.6 ftL 9:20 PM · 0.2 ft

  • Booth Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    64
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 64
    • Common snook 60
    • Gray snapper 56

    4 kt ENEH 12:55 PM · 1.6 ftL 9:20 PM · 0.2 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with FWC before you keep a fish.