Davenport wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Super Tournament on Grand Lake

Lloyd Davenport of Stillwater, Okla., won the Boater Division at the Sept. 8-9 Wal-Mart BFL Super Tournament on Grand Lake. Davenport, who turned in a final day catch of 15 pounds, 5 ounce, won $6,605 for his efforts. Angler: Lloyd Davenport.

September 9, 2001 • MLF • Archives

GROVE, Okla. – Lloyd Davenport of Stillwater, Okla., topped 101 competitors on Grand Lake this weekend with five bass weighing 15 pounds, 5 ounces to win $6,605 and 400 points on the boater side of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League (BFL) Okie Division season finale.

After qualifying for the final round of the two-day Super Tournament in sixth place with an opening day catch of five bass weighing 12 pounds, 5 ounces, Davenport out fished runner up Terry Butcher of Talala, Okla., by 15 ounces to take the win. Davenport caught his limits using a green tubebait around sunken trees in 4 to 7 feet of water.

Butcher qualified for the final round in first place with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 7 ounces and finished up with a 14-pound, 6-ounce catch to win $3,302.

Alton Wilhoit of Harrah, Okla., took third place and collected $1,651 with 13 pounds, 6 ounces. He also won $500 as the highest finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program.

Gil Keener of Muskogee, Okla., placed fourth and earned $1,431 with 12 pounds, 11 ounces, while John Vick of Inola, Okla., placed fifth and earned $1,321 with 10 pounds, 3 ounces.

Ray Scheide of Cookson, Okla., won the boater Big Bass Award and collected $1,010 with a 5-pound, 1-ounce bass that he caught on green-pumpkin jig.

First place in the Co-Angler Division and $3,302 went to Danny Arnold of Oklahoma City, Okla., who topped 101 competitors with a final round catch of four bass weighing 9 pounds. Second place in the division and $1,651 went to Tim Reason of Vian, Okla., with 5 pounds, 14 ounces, while Floyd Drannon of Stratford, Okla., took third place and $826 with 5 pounds, 14 ounces. The tie between Reason and Drannon was broke based on their day one weights of 6 pounds, 9 ounces and 5 pounds, 9 ounces respectively.

Tony Honeycutt of Broken Arrow, Okla., won the co-angler Big Bass Award of $505 with a 4-pound, 7-ounce bass that he caught on a chartreuse ¼-ounce spinnerbait.

Kirk Washburn of Harrah, Okla., landed the Divisional Points Championship and $1,000 with 1106 points won during five regular season tournaments. Gary Hurd of Dewey, Okla., landed the Co-Angler Points Championship and $500 with 1148 points.

The top 30 boaters and top 30 co-anglers in the Okie Division will advance to regional competition Oct. 16-20 on the Red River near Shreveport, La., where they will go up against top competitors from the Cowboy, Arkie and Mississippi divisions for a shot at qualifying for the BFL All-American, which features an estimated purse of $345,000 and ranks as one of the most lucrative post-season tournaments in competitive angling. The top two boaters and co-anglers may also qualify for the Ranger M1 tournament in Mobile, Ala., Feb. 27-March 2, 2002, where they can win up to $1 million in the world’s richest freshwater tournament.

Awards for the 2001 BFL season could reach $5.7 million based on full fields at each tournament.

Sponsors of the 2001 Wal-Mart BFL are ALPO Pet Foods, BC Powder, BFGoodrich Tires, Black & Decker, Chevy Trucks, CITGO, Coleman, Conseco, Energizer, EverStart Batteries, Frito-Lay, FujiFilm, Garmin, Kellogg’s, Land O’Lakes, Mercury Marine, Minn Kota, Pepsi, Poulan, Pure Fishing, Ranger Boats, Snickers Cruncher Bar, Stren, Shop-Vac, Timex, US Bank, Visa, Weed Eater, Wrangler and Yamaha Outboards. ACDelco is an associate sponsor of the Wal-Mart BFL.