Levi Bennett won the top prize of Biggest Fish at Pauls Valley’s Okie Noodling Tournament Saturday. Bennett placed first in the tournament’s Scuba Division with a fish weighing in at 74.29 pounds. News Star photo by Chris Mackey
Lathyn Nelms (left) took second place in the tournament’s Natural Division and won Top Youth Runner-Up with a 65.41-pound fish. His dad, Derrik Nelms (right), won third place in the Scuba Division with a 62.83-pound fish.
Kids lined up to compete in the kids’ catfish eating contest at the 2024 Okie Noodling Tournament in Pauls Valley’s Wacker Park Saturday. News Star photo by Chris Mackey
Noodlers Keita Tanida (right) and Hirotoshi Azuhta (left) traveled from Japan to compete in Saturday’s tournament. News Star photo by Suzanne Mackey
Tournament committee member Becky Ledbetter, who celebrated her birthday while working Saturday’s tournament, got a little special recognition with a “Birthday Girl” sash from fellow committee members.
Hand fishermen from across the region gathered in Pauls Valley’s Wacker Park Saturday to compete for the top prize of Biggest Fish in the 2024 Okie Noodling Tournament. A total of 54 fish were weighed in this year, with a collective weight of 2,080 pounds.This year’s tournament drew spectators and competitors from at least 34 states, the United Kingdom and Japan.Levi Bennett c...
