‘Angler of the Year’ honor given to Dudley

From staff reports

Published: July 12, 2008

David Dudley of Lynchburg captured Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year honors by placing 38th in the Wal-Mart FLW Tour’s final 2008 qualifier Friday, the Chevy Open, held on the Detroit River, Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair.

He finished with 1,003 out of a possible 1,200 points to win his first Land O’Lakes title, barely edging Brent Ehler of Redlands, Calif., who was runner-up with 1,002 points after finishing in 16th place Friday.

Dudley was in fifth place in the Angler of the Year standings going into the Open, overtaking pre-tournament leaders, Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn., and Glenn Browne of Ocala, Fla., who struggled to 192nd- and 197th-place finishes, respectively.

With more than $2.3 million in total winnings, Dudley owns the FLW Outdoors career earnings record. He was the youngest angler in history to surpass the $1 million milestone, a feat he accomplished at 26 in 2002, and the $2 million milestone, a mark he eclipsed at the age of 30 in 2006. Dudley boasts five victories — two FLW Tour, including the Forrest Wood Cup, one Wal-Mart FLW Series, one Stren Series and the Ranger M1.

“I’ve achieved the FLW Outdoors grand slam,” Dudley said after Friday’s final weigh-in. “I’ve been at this for 14 years, and I’ve won at every level in the professional ranks. Now I can add Angler of the Year to the list, and to me, that’s the most important.”

Along with the Angler of the Year title, which annually goes to the sport’s most dominant bass angler, Dudley earned $65,000, including a new Ranger boat powered by Yamaha and $25,000 cash.

The Angler of the Year title is determined by the total accumulated points from six regular-season events. Two hundred points are awarded for a win, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on.

Dudley started the FLW Tour season off with a 67th-place effort on Lake Toho in Kissimmee, Fla. He then finished 43rd on Lewis Smith Lake in Jasper, Ala. At the Tour’s third qualifying event, the National Guard Open on Lake Norman in Charlotte, N.C., Dudley took 28th. He was 26th in the Wal-Mart Open on Beaver Lake in Rogers, Ark., in May before winning at Fort Loudoun-Tellico lakes in Knoxville, Tenn., last month.

Next up for Dudley is the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup in Columbia, S.C., Aug. 14-17. There he will face 76 other qualifiers from the FLW Tour, FLW Series, Stren Series Championship, BFL All-American and TBF National Championship for the sport’s biggest award, $1 million.

Coverage of Dudley clinching the Angler of the Year trophy on the Detroit River will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net on Aug. 31 and Sept. 7 as part of the “FLW Outdoors” television program.