Butcher wins BFL Okie Division Super Tournament

Terry Butcher of Talala, Okla., topped 90 Boater Division competitors Sept. 8 to win $5,742 and 400 points at the BFL Okie Division Super Tournament.

September 8, 2002 • MLF • Archives

MANFORD, Okla. – Terry Butcher of Talala, Okla., topped 90 Boater Division competitors on Keystone Lake this weekend with a five-bass catch weighing 12 pounds. He earned $5,742 and 300 points for the win at the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Okie Division season finale.

After qualifying for the final round of the two-day Super Tournament in ninth place with an opening-day catch of two bass weighing 5 pounds, 15 ounces, Butcher outfished runner-up Ray Scheide of Cookson, Okla., by 1 pound, 9 ounces to take the win. Butcher caught his limit on day two using a green tube.

Scheide qualified for the final round in fifth place with five bass weighing 9 pounds, 6 ounces and finished up with a catch weighing 10 pounds, 7 ounces to win $2,871.

John Diffee of Owasso, Okla. (four bass, 9 pounds, 13 ounces, $1,555); Billy Lemon of Sand Springs, Okla. (three bass, 6 pounds, 7 ounces, $1,316); and Lee Sanders of Stillwater, Okla., (three bass, 6 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,077) rounded out the top five boaters. Diffee also earned a $500 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program.

Hal Gunckel of Broken Arrow, Okla., won the boater big-bass award and collected $900 with a 4-pound, 14-ounce bass that he caught on a white spinner bait.

Bill Dudek of Sapulpa, Okla., topped 90 competitors in the Co-angler Division to take first place and $2,871 thanks to a final-round catch of five bass weighing 10 pounds, 10 ounces. Second place in the division and $1,435 went to Ed Gold of Broken Arrow, Okla., with a four-bass catch weighing 10 pounds, 3 ounces, followed by Bradley Morrison of Rudy, Ark., in third place with four bass weighing 8 pounds, 2 ounces worth $778.

Jay Glenn of Lexington, Okla., won the co-angler big-bass award of $450 with a 4-pound, 1-ounce bass that he caught on a watermelon Senko.

Butcher is also the Hoosier Division’s Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader, winning $1,000 for the 1,091 points he earned during five regular-season tournaments. Don Hill of Muskogee, Okla., is the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader in the Co-angler Division. He earned $500 for his division-leading 960 points.

The top 30 boaters and top 30 co-anglers in the Okie Division will advance to regional competition Oct. 29-Nov. 2 on Lake Hamilton near Hot Springs, Ark., where they will go up against top competitors from the Louisiana, Ozark and Gulf Coast divisions for a shot at qualifying for the BFL All-American, one of the most lucrative postseason tournaments in competitive angling.

2002 BFL awards could reach $7 million based on full fields.

Sponsors of the 2002 Wal-Mart BFL are Wal-Mart, ALPO Pet Foods, BC Powder, BFGoodrich Tires, Castrol, Chevy Trucks, Conseco, Energizer, EverStart Batteries, Evinrude, Faded Glory, Frito-Lay, FujiFilm, GARMIN, Kellogg’s, Land O’Lakes, Minn Kota, Newell Rubbermaid, Pepsi, Poulan, Ranger Boats, Shop-Vac, Snickers, Stanley Works, Stren, U.S. Bank, Weed Eater and Yamaha Outboards.