Schatz wins Soldier Appreciation Tournament on Grand Lake

Spc. Jim Schatz of Midwest City, Okla., won the National Guard FLW Soldier Appreciation Tournament held on Grand Lake on Friday, Sept. 30, while fishing with Walmart Bass Fishing League boater Lloyd Davenport of Stillwater, Okla. Angler: Lloyd Davenport.

October 3, 2011 • MLF • Archives

GROVE, Okla. – Spc. Jim Schatz of Midwest City, Okla., won the National Guard FLW Soldier Appreciation Tournament held on Grand Lake on Friday, Sept. 30. Fishing with Walmart Bass Fishing League boater Lloyd Davenport of Stillwater, Okla., the tandem caught three bass for a total of 8 pounds, 10 ounces to take the title and bragging rights among his peers.

“I’m a huge fan of fishing, but I am a terrible fisherman and I love to do it,” Schatz said. “I got myself a great partner, and I learned a lot.

“This means a lot to be able come out and do something like this. I got back from Afghanistan last October, and I’ve wanted to get out and participate in some fun activities and meet new people, and today I was able to do that.”

Each of the participants in the National Guard FLW Soldier Appreciation Tournament are members of the Oklahoma National Guard and most have had at least one tour of duty in Iraq or Afghanistan. In this tournament, BFL boaters took a member of the National Guard fishing to compete among their peers. Each team was allowed to bring in three bass. FLW Outdoors is operating the tournaments in conjunction with the National Guard to show appreciation to our servicemembers of the National Guard.

“I jumped on the opportunity,” said Davenport. “I really enjoyed it. Jim was a lot of fun to fish with. He had a hard time netting the first fish, but that second and third one were pretty easy. This was a huge honor for me, and I would definitely do it again.”

A total of seven servicemembers participated in the tournament. Rounding out the teams:

2nd: Jerry Saunders, Vinita, Okla., fishing with boater Jason Gilstrap, Owasso, Okla., three bass, 7-15

3rd: Staff Sgt. Charles Bush (Ret), Afton, Okla., fishing with boater Alton Wilhoit, Harrah, Okla., three bass, 6-15

4th: Pvt. 2 James Williams, Stillwater, Okla., fishing with boater Chris Torkelson, Sand Springs, Okla., three bass, 6-13

5th: Spc. Dylan Branham, McLoud, Okla., fishing with boater Paul Helton, Russellville, Ark., three bass, 5-14

6th: Sgt. Travis Stoeser, Oklahoma City, Okla., fishing with boater Bob Noble, Blackwell, Okla., one bass, 4-2

7th: Staff Sgt. Karen Sandlin, King Fisher, Okla., fishing with boater Chris Jones, Pocola, Okla., 0 bass

The Soldier Appreciation Tournament was held in conjunction with the Walmart BFL event on Grand Lake, which was hosted by Grove Area Chamber of Commerce.

For complete details and updated information, browse this website. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/NationalGuardFLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWOutdoors.

About FLW Outdoors

FLW Outdoors is the best in fishing, on and off the water. Anglers worldwide can compete for millions over the course of 191 tournaments in 2011. FLW Outdoors has taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports game, FLW Fantasy Fishing presented by Straight Talk, where competitors can play for free as well as sign up for Player’s Advantage to gain an edge. For more information about FLW Outdoors and FLW Fantasy Fishing, browse FLWOutdoors.com or visit FantasyFishing.com.