Contender 33 T Tournament, the Deep-V Bridge to the Stepped Era

What the 33 T actually is

Search for a 33 T or a Contender 33T for sale and you will find a boat that sits at an important hinge in Contender's history. The Contender 33 Tournament is a 34-foot 5-inch deep-V center console that Contender's own website, around 2009, described as built on a brand-new high-performance hull able to handle either twin or triple outboards. It sat in the upper half of a lineup that then ran 21, 23, 23-T, 25, 25-S, 27-T, the 31 family, 33-T, 35, the 36 family and the 38 Express.

It is also the boat Contender used as the starting point for its first stepped hull. When Salt Water Sportsman tested the new 33 ST in 2009, it reported that Contender already had a successful deep-V, non-stepped 33 in production, and that the company kept that deck layout and changed only the hull below the waterline and the stringer system to accommodate the steps. In other words, the 33T and 33 ST share the same deck, and the 33T is the conventional-bottom version.

That makes the 33T an interesting used buy: you get the deck and fishing systems of the boats that followed, on a solid deep-V that predates Contender's stepped era.

A spec sheet you will see again on the 35 ST

Contender's archived 33 Tournament page lists 34 feet 5 inches overall, a 9-foot-8-inch beam, a 24-inch draft, a dry weight of about 6,600 pounds, 13,500 pounds ready to fish, a 24.5-degree deep-V, 400 gallons of fuel and a 1,050 hp maximum. The standard deck carries a 208-gallon and a 115-gallon insulated fish box forward, two 85-gallon insulated boxes aft and two 40-gallon round livewells above deck at the transom.

Those numbers are worth memorizing, because they reappear. Sport Fishing's 2016 buyers guide for the Contender 35 ST quoted 34 feet 5 inches, 400 gallons, a 6,600-pound dry weight and a 1,050 hp rating, with the same 208- and 115-gallon forward boxes and 85-gallon aft boxes. Contender's current 35ST page still lists 13,500 pounds ready to fish and 400 gallons. The obvious reading is that the 33's deck, and the dimensions of its family, carried forward into the stepped 33 ST and then the 35 ST, though Contender has never published a formal lineage, so treat that as our inference from the spec sheets.

For a buyer, the practical point is simple. A used 33T, 33 ST and early 35 ST can look nearly identical on a trailer. The difference is under the boat: the 33T has an unbroken deep-V, the ST models have two ventilated steps.

The bigger console that set the template

Contender's overview made a point of the 33T's larger, wider console, with an integrated seat molded into its front and an oversized electronics panel. Standard equipment included an extra-large walk-in console with head compartment, lockable storage, a custom helm pod, dual hydraulic steering with a custom wheel, recessed trim tabs, waterproof switches and breakers and a 2,000 gph bilge pump.

Salt Water Sportsman's description of the 33 ST, which used this deck, adds useful detail: a center-mounted helm on a pod with knee room underneath for anglers using the leaning post, a finished console interior that hides wiring while leaving access to the back of the electronics and the battery switches, and room for the large multifunction displays then coming to market. Contender offered a T-top and two leaning post options.

Contender also highlighted a trend-setting combination of leaning post and livewell, plus finished hatches made in two-part molds with gelcoat on both faces, a small detail that makes the deck look and wear better than single-sided hatch lids.

Four livewells and room for a tournament weigh-in

The 33T came standard with Contender's signature twin above-deck transom livewells, and optional below-deck wells made it possible to carry four wells in total. That combination suits kite fishing for sailfish and slow-trolling for kingfish, where you want a lot of healthy bait, and the in-deck well doubles as an easy target when you dump a cast net.

Fish storage is generous for a 34-footer. Two forward boxes of 208 and 115 gallons and two 85-gallon aft boxes give well over 400 gallons of insulated capacity, and outboard of the aft forward box sit long lockers that Salt Water Sportsman noted can store rods up to eight feet. A transom door to starboard, a pop-up bow light and a molded anchor locker with a proper anchor keeper round out the layout.

Hardware was Contender standard: chrome-on-bronze or stainless fittings, a recessed bow lifting ring with pop-up cleat, 10-inch stern cleats, 8-inch spring cleats with hawse pipes and four Lee's flush-mount gunwale rod holders as delivered.

Performance, and the 33 ST numbers that frame it

We could not find an independent test of the non-stepped 33T. The closest data comes from its stepped sister. Salt Water Sportsman's 33 ST, on twin Yamaha F350s, found a sweet spot around 4,500 rpm at almost 54 mph burning 38 gph, and topped out at more than 67 mph. The tester also praised the stepped boat's handling in sharp turns and its quick planing.

A deep-V 33T on the same power would be expected to be somewhat slower and thirstier at high cruise, since Contender's case for the steps was efficiency. It also trades a little speed for a traditional feel in turns and when backing down. With 400 gallons aboard, either version has the legs for the Bahamas or a long canyon run, and triple-engine boats add redundancy far offshore.

Without a published test, we leave cruise speed and fuel burn blank in our specifications rather than guess.

Owning a 33T in 2026

Every 33T is now at least a decade and a half old, and most have been fished hard. A good one with sound stringers, a dry deck and late-model power is a strong value, often priced between $70,000 and $165,000. Budget $12,000 to $28,000 a year for insurance, storage, routine service on two or three outboards and fuel for a typical season, more if you run tournaments.

Big-ticket items to watch are repowers, fuel tanks and wiring. A triple-engine repower can cost more than the boat is worth, so a recently repowered hull is usually the smarter purchase than a cheap one with tired engines. If you want the same deck with a warranty and a stepped hull, the current Contender 35ST is the modern descendant.