Head wins season opener on Broken Bow

BROKEN BOW, Okla. – The 2004 Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Okie Division season kicked off Saturday on Broken Bow Lake near Broken Bow, and Allen Head of Pryor claimed the win thanks to a five-bass catch weighing 14 pounds, 7 ounces. He bested 163 Boater Division competitors to earn $4,291 and 200 points.

Head also earned $1,000 as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program. Head, who has competed in various FLW Outdoors tournament trails in his career, claimed $100,000 in 1998 with a Wal-Mart FLW Tour win on Sam Rayburn Reservoir. This is his second career BFL victory.

Rounding out the top five pros are Rick Kelley of Ada (four bass, 12 pounds, 7 ounces, $2,145); Gary Carrier of Grove (four bass, 10 pounds, 8 ounces, $1,459); Wayne Diffee of Oakhurst (three bass, 9 pounds, 9 ounces, $1,116); and Raymond Renfroe of Oologah (four bass, 8 pounds, 9 ounces, $944).

Diffee claimed Boater Division big-bass honors and $815 thanks to a 6-pound, 9-ounce bass.

Clifford Blalock of Choctaw earned $2,145 as the Co-angler Division winner thanks to a three-bass catch that weighed 7 pounds, 9 ounces. He edged past 163 Co-angler Division competitors to score his second BFL top-10 finish.

Finishing second was Randall Snyder of Haskell with two bass weighing 4 pounds, 12 ounces worth $1,073. In third was Robert Duncan of Ardmore with two bass weighing 4 pounds, 11 ounces that earned him $729, followed by Jeff Peterson of Jay in fourth with two bass weighing 4 pounds, 8 ounces worth $558. Tied for fifth were Don Brackeen of Broken Arrow and Gary Bolser of Washington. Both men caught two bass weighing 4 pounds, 6 ounces to earn $429 each.

The Okie Division’s next stop will be March 27 on Grand Lake in Grove. Each BFL division features four one-day events followed by a two-day Super Tournament to round out the regular season. The top 30 Okie Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Toledo Bend regional near Many, La., Oct. 12-16, where they will compete against Arkie, Louisiana and Ozark division anglers for a slot in the 2005 All-American. The winning boater at the All-American receives $100,000 cash, making it one of the most lucrative and prestigious championship events in bass fishing.

Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points going to the winner, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on except for Super Tournaments, which award 300 points to the winner, 299 for second, 298 for third, and so on. These points determine angler standings. The Okie Division boater who amasses the most points at the end of the regular season will earn $1,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader, and the co-angler earning the most points will earn $500 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader in the Co-angler Division.

The $6.3 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 24 divisions nationwide. In BFL competition, boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired, with boaters supplying the boat and fishing against other boaters and co-anglers fishing from the back deck against other co-anglers. For more information or to enter a tournament, call (270) 252-1000 or browse this Web site.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its six tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997. For a complete list of FLW Outdoors sponsors and for more information about the premier products and services they offer, please visit FLWOutdoors.com’s sponsor page.