Captain
Vinnie Sacks

Member since October 2017 Dania Beach, United States
Background
Captain Vinnie operates the YB Normal out of Fort Lauderdale, FL, and has worked aboard other boats in the area all his life. He loves being out on the water and getting groups on awesome fish. His favorite fish to catch is Black Grouper, but a huge part of what makes fishing so fun for him is never knowing what is going to bite next. This is what makes bottom fishing so fun for him - you can never tell what will take your bait!
Techniques
Here in south Florida there are so many different species of fish to catch, some of my favorite things to do include trolling, wreck fishing, and live baiting. All three of these techniques are well known and do produce big fish and plenty of fish as well as different types of fish too. Trolling is a good way to start your day off beacause you are able to cover ground and find where the fish are, live baiting is a good way to fish for lots of trophy sized fish like sailfish and and giant king mackerel as well as big bull dolphin. Wreck fishing is a good way to switch it up if your other techniques are not working and still be able to land some large fish like amberjack and grouper, sometimes you can also have a surprise catch like cobia as well.

Hey, I'm Captain Vinnie Sacks

Dania Beach, United States
Background
Captain Vinnie operates the YB Normal out of Fort Lauderdale, FL, and has worked aboard other boats in the area all his life. He loves being out on the water and getting groups on awesome fish. His favorite fish to catch is Black Grouper, but a huge part of what makes fishing so fun for him is never knowing what is going to bite next. This is what makes bottom fishing so fun for him - you can never tell what will take your bait!
Techniques
Here in south Florida there are so many different species of fish to catch, some of my favorite things to do include trolling, wreck fishing, and live baiting. All three of these techniques are well known and do produce big fish and plenty of fish as well as different types of fish too. Trolling is a good way to start your day off beacause you are able to cover ground and find where the fish are, live baiting is a good way to fish for lots of trophy sized fish like sailfish and and giant king mackerel as well as big bull dolphin. Wreck fishing is a good way to switch it up if your other techniques are not working and still be able to land some large fish like amberjack and grouper, sometimes you can also have a surprise catch like cobia as well.
Anglers Choice
Verified

My Charter Listing

Excellent
4.8 / 5
(457 reviews)
Angler's choice
Dania Beach
 2 bookings in the past week.
 Instant Confirmation
Trips from US $600

Fishing Reports

Cold Temps HOT Fishing In Fort Lauderdal
Cold Temps HOT Fishing In Fort Lauderdal
Jan 29, 2026 Dania Beach
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here, what a great report this week i have for you guys. To say the least it has been cold as a mother for us here in south Florida although i know what we think is cold here is not even close to the cold thats going on right now in the rest of the United States but don't make fun of us haha. Anyways it seems that the fishing has picked up very strong this week specially with live bait. This most recent cold front that just moved through seems to be the one that we needed to get the winter fishing patterns going. Live bait fishing with a kite has been our go to, kite fishing is very visual and a lot of times you see the bite before it actually happens. Sailfish is the main target but plenty of other fish with eat a live bait fished from a kite like, tuna, mahi, and king macks. As of late though there seems to still be some really nice mahi mahi around and we have been catching them while kite fishing, when i say nice im talking 10-20lb fish. Hard fighters and good eating also. Most of the kite fishing action has been scattered all over from super shallow in 80 feet and as deep as 200 feet. Every day is different though different conditions with currents and changing wind directions so the challenge becomes where are the fish going to be. Other then live bait action i have something very cool this week, we recently took out a great client of ours Daniel from Georgia on a 10 hour swordfish trip, Daniel has fished with us before and wanted to test his luck on catching a sea monster. We took Daniel and family out daytime swordfishing and after about 2 hours of fishing we hooked up with a monster! Raining sideways rough as heck and lightning cracking every where it was like something out of old man and the sea. After a 3 hour battle we landed a true beast of a swordfish a 300lb monster! (pictured) This was the trophy we were looking for. After a long ride back to the dock it was all smiles and we had a crowd of people when we pulled in to the dock and needed help getting it off the boat. It was one of those things were you had to be there to believe it. Im glad we were able to catch such a great fish for one of our great clients. Congrats Buddy! This week please be sure to check out some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters in Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood/Dania beach and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like facebook and Instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up for the next few weeks I would imagine the sailfish action to remain steady for the next few months as well as scattered mahis and blackfin tuna to remain prevalent on afternoons trips, should be a great winter. If your coming down to south Florida and looking to do some deep sea fishing we have some availability for the month of February and March and as you can see from the recent photos fishing is HOT. We would love to have you out with us and we would love to show you a great time on the water. More later..... Capt. Vinnie
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Starting Off The New Year Right
Starting Off The New Year Right
Jan 20, 2026 Dania Beach
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here, its been a crazy week here in Fort Lauderdale weather wise and fishing wise. We have been having some crazy cold fronts moving in as well as some good sailfish action. For the report this week the main topic is going to be sailfish. This time of year when we have these cold fronts that is going to be the main topic species, sailfish begin to move down the coast when the wind blows North. A lot of the sailfish action is taking place right now while live baiting and specifically with a kite. Kite fishing allows you to take a live bait and fish it right on the surface where most pelagic fish feed, with the kite in the air all of the tackle is out of the water like the line and leaders etc. Just the live bait and the hook remain in the water. Most of the sailfish action has been taking place in depths from 100 feet on out to 180 feet or just on the outside of the reef. While live bait fishing you are not just trying to catch sailfish there are tons of other fish that will try to eat a live bait, like kingfish, tuna, wahoo, and mahi mahi. That's what makes live bait fishing so exciting because you never know whats going to bite. Other then sailfish action this week afternoons remain a great choice if your looking to get out and bend the rod with some action, blackfin tuna action that is. Late afternoons when the sun is low has been giving the best results for blackfin tuna. The tuna have been anywhere from 5-15lbs right now and mixed in with them has been bonito as well. We have been catching most of the tuna in depths around 180 feet on out to 450 feet, while trolling we tend to mark the schools of tuna on our fish finder when they make there way closer to the surface. Once marked I tend to circle that area specially if I keep getting bites. This week remember to check out some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up in the next few weeks i would imagine to start seeing more and more sailfish moving through our area as well as some big game sharks getting ready to make there migration down towards south Florida. Blackfin tuna will remain strong for a few more months in the afternoons as well, and hopefully if we can get a few days with light winds the bottom fishing for snapper will pick up. We do have a good amount of available dates for the rest of the month as well as moving into February, so if your coming down to south Florida and looking to do some deep sea fishing we would love to have you and show you a great time on the water. Capt. Vinnie
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New Year Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
New Year Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
Jan 7, 2026 Dania Beach
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here, been a super busy week with a lot of charters, i personally want to thank everyone that came out fishing with us new and repeat customers. For the report this week fishing has been a true grind, some days have been literally not a bite till the last minute of the trip and other days a bite right off the bat and then no bites the rest of the trip. Thats how it goes this time of year the cold weather has a big play on the way the fish are going to bite, but patience pays to those that wait. Fishing this week the hot topic would be sailfish, we have been catching a few sailfish live baiting with a kite, depths around 150 feet seem to be the magic number where the sailfish are coming threw. Live bait may not get the most bites but usually the bites you do get will be quality fish. Other then live bait trolling has been very slow and it seems its wahoo or bust. Just coming off the full moon we did manage to get one wahoo and we worked hard to get that bite. The best trolling bite right now is going to be that late afternoon bite for those blackfin tunas, around 3pm is when they have been biting the best up until dark. Smaller spoons have been having the best luck and the blackfin tuna have been all different sizes from 2-15lbs mixed in with the tuna has been a lot of bonito as well. Bottom fishing this week has been the most consistent bite we have been having and has literally been the go to when all else fails, a mix of a few different snappers have been biting, yelloweye, vermillions, and lane snappers have been very prevalent on most bottom spots around 200 feet. We have also been catching some of the biggest gray trigger fish I think i have ever seen. All these species are great eating and can be a huge difference maker in having a great trip to a slow one. This week please be sure to take a look and check out some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters in Fort Lauderdale and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up for the next few weeks i would imagine we would possibly see a spike in the sailfish action as well as the afternoon tuna fishing really heating up. Bottom fishing will continue to remain consistent as long as we have the conditions to do so. For the rest of the month of January we have plenty of availability so if your coming down to south Florida and looking to do some deep sea fishing we have plenty of different trips to choose from to suit your needs, and we would love to show you a great time out on the water... more later... Capt. Vinnie
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Pre Christmas Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
Pre Christmas Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
Dec 23, 2025 Dania Beach
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here from the command center here, for this week we get ready for one of the busiest weeks in charter fishing here in Fort Lauderdale. The fishing aspect of things can be a little tough during this time of the year, there are a lot of things that play a part in that and majority of it is the weather. Cold fronts and constant winds changing directly can hurt the bite at times. For the report this week sailfish is the hot topic, we have been getting a chance at a sailfish almost every trip weather we are trolling or live baiting. This time of year we tend to put away a lot of our trolling gear and break out our live bait tackle. The sailfish bites we are getting have been all over from depths as shallow as 80 feet to as deep as 400 feet and a lot of that depends on wherever the bait is, flying fish, ballyhoo etc. Other then sailfish right now we are still seeing a consistent bite of mahi mahi which is very odd for this time of year but we will take it. All of the mahi have been scattered all over just like the sailfish they go where the food goes. Average size on the mahi have been around 10lbs, the perfect size for a great dinner. Other then the previous species mentioned last but not least blackfin tuna have been showing up on the afternoon trips. Something special seems to always happen when the sun is low in the afternoon. The primary method to catch these tuna is going to be trolling, smaller lures like spoons and squid skirts are going to get the most bites right now, as we approach closer to spring time we will start to see some larger blackfin tuna and those are going to be caught more on live bait. This week please be sure to take a look at some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like facebook and instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. This week and next week are very very busy weeks for sport fishing charters but lucky for you there are some spots available so if your coming down for the holidays and looking to do some deep sea fishing we would love to show you a great time on the water, remember fishing makes a great gift specially for families to get out and enjoy something together. From all of us at the YB Normal we want to thank all of our previous customers and new customers for coming out fishing with us over the year, we wouldn't be were we are today without you guys, on that note we would like to wish you a happy holidays and a Merry Christmas... more later.. Capt. Vinnie
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Back In Action In Fort Lauderdale
Back In Action In Fort Lauderdale
Dec 14, 2025 Dania Beach
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here. I want to take the time to apologize for the lack of reports last week. In my previous report i was saying we were going to be doing a lot of work to the boat at the spa aka "boat yard" and we wouldn't be fishing for the next few weeks, but we are back now and the boat is looking better then ever for all of our customers to enjoy. It did take longer then expected but hey not every puzzle piece is going to fit just right the first time. Anyways enough about that, lets get to what you really come here for the fishing! For the report this week i would have to honestly say that things have slowed down a bit and thats standard issue for this time of year with cold fronts and weather changing constantly. Anyone that says the fishing is good all year round is lying through there teeth. Anyways fishing has slowed down a bit from what its been and honestly it just cant be good all year everyday its not possible, but if you are patient great things come to those that wait. The reef has been where most of the action has been and believe it or not mahi mahi have been the most common catch. Mahi specially in our area are a summer time and fall fish with winter time being rare to catch them but for some reason they have been biting in shallow on the troll, and with live bait. Trolling as shallow as the edge of the reef and as deep as 300 feet has yielded the best results, for the most part they have been scattered so a little luck is needed but they have been good size as well anywhere from 10-20lbs. Other then mahi there has been some sailfish around on the live baits being fished from a kite. Afternoons specially late afternoons have been as good as a guarantee for blackfin tuna, trolling is going to be the best method and smaller baits are going to get the best results. Average size on the tunas has been on the smaller size but thats standard for this time of year, even though the tuna maybe small they are still great eating and make wonderful poke bowls and sushi tuna. Last but not least the bottom fishing report is starting to heat up and this is the time of year is when i do the most of it, we have been seeing some larger yellow eye snappers right now on deep bottom spots around 400 feet. On the shallower spots around 200 feet we have been seeing some very nice porgys as well as vermillion snappers. This time of year when conditions are right bottom fishing is a great way to put meat on the table. Please take a chance and check out some of the great pictures of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters including a yellow eye snapper almost 10lbs, and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like facebook and instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up for the next few weeks as of right now we have some availability for fishing trips and fishing makes a great gift specially for the holiday season. So if your coming down to Fort Lauderdale and looking to get out on the water we would love to show you a great time out there.. more later... Capt. Vinnie
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Holiday Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
Holiday Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
Dec 1, 2025 Dania Beach
Hello everyone, Capt. Vinnie here. What a great week we had over the thanksgiving holiday lots of great people and some pretty great fishing as well. For the report this week we will start off inshore where most of the action has been taking place. Since we are moving more towards are winter time fishing conditions that means its about time to put the trolling stuff away and break out the live baiting gear. Kite fishing for sailfish is just starting to heat up and we have been catching a few big ones. Whenever we have the right conditions here in Fort Lauderdale kite fishing with live bait can be one of the coolest things you might ever see. Live baits of choice have been live mullet but goggle eyes are also a great choice. Other then sailfish we have been getting shots at nice kingfish, wahoo and some mahi mahi. All this action has been taking place less then 1 mile of the coast in about 120-200 feet of water. Like i said earlier trolling is getting ready to come to the end for now, but if your looking for species like tuna, the bite on them has been excellent lately but in the afternoon time. Now this time of year the blackfin tuna are not going to be the biggest in size but thats ok, because even if they are smaller they still taste great. Trolling depths from 200-400 feet of water with smaller baits like spoons or just plain squid skirts are going to be the best way to get the bites. The most important key i think is trolling faster and when you get a bite do not slow the speed down, slowing down will not allow you to hook multiple fish at once, so its important to keep your speed and adjust your reels drag pressure in order for multiple hook ups. Offshore this week has been somewhat slow but thats to be expected due to the fact that the mahi fishery is coming to and end, but that being said this week i was able to catch a few nice ones on a current edge. Like i said this time of year we tend to not catch many but the ones we do catch are bigger in size around 15lb average. This week please be sure to take a look at some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters in Fort Lauderdale and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like facebook and instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up for this week and part of next is a little break from the fishing scene, as the boat is coming out of the water for some maintenance, nothing major but a few things that need to get done. We will be back sooner then later. Now is a great time to book for the month of December for deep sea fishing specially around Christmas time, don't wait till the last second to book when we have the availability as of right now, so if your coming down to south Florida and looking to do some deep sea fishing look us up we would love to show you a great time on the water. more later... Capt. Vinnie
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Customer reviews

Rating summary
Excellent
4.8 / 5
out of 5 stars from 457 reviews
Boat
Excellent
4.8 / 5
Crew
Excellent
4.8 / 5
Experience
Excellent
4.8 / 5
Photos & videos by reviewers (782)
Great time
Great time
Great time
+779
Angler rating
399
34
14
6
3
Anglers claimed
Good experience
94%
Friendly captain
95%
Recommend this charter
95%
Appropriate for children
94%
Satisfied with the boat
99%
Caught fish
92%
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Showing:
5 of 457 reviews
Micahel B.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Great time

VERIFIED   NEW  6 Hour Trip (AM) on January 29, 2026
Great crew with lots of knowledge and get you the fish!
Micahel B. recommends YB Normal
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Jill D.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Fishing trip with kids

VERIFIED   4 Hour Trip โ€“ Private (AM) on May 30, 2025
Wow! What an amazing experience we had fishing with Capt Vinnie and first mate Nick. We took our two sons 9 and 11 y/o on their...
Jill D. recommends YB Normal
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Lester A.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Highly Reccomended

VERIFIED   4 Hour Trip โ€“ Private (PM) on February 13, 2025
My family of 5 including 2 adults, 2-13yr Olds and a 10yr old went out fishing and we were not dissapointed.ย  The captain...
Lester A. recommends YB Normal
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Maggie D.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Friendly and patient!

VERIFIED   4 Hour Trip โ€“ Private (AM) on February 3, 2025
Vinnie and Steve were awesome! We brought our boys (10,11, and 12) out to fish- they helped them every step of the way!...
Maggie D. recommends YB Normal
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Jose C.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Awesome trip!!

VERIFIED   3 Hour Beginners Trip (AM) on August 29, 2025
Highly recommend CPT Vinnie and his dad. They will put you on fish, teach you along the way, and make sure you have a good...
Jose C. recommends YB Normal
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