$70K, Three Swords, and a Chip on Their Shoulder Mark Phillips + Jason van Esch

🎣 Get the Net – Tight Lines, Loose Lips! 🎙️ · Jul 20, 2026 · 1h 26m

Mark Phillips grew up in Whitianga casting hand lines with Mum and Dad before discovering soft baiting and slowly working his way into competition fishing. Jason van Esch, a builder and tiler from Auckland, found his way back to fishing through camping trips, trailer boat comps, and a burning desire to be the guy walking away with the reels. A bromance forged on a building site and sealed somewhere out past Cuvier.

Part 1 is a front-to-back masterclass in what it takes to compete at the Kubota level — from the early trailer boat days chasing snapper prizes, to the first Kubota entry in 2021…