An Arbuckle giant<br/><span class='hl2'>Davis angler's catch shows Florida-strain stockings are now coming of age</span>

Allen Gifford of Davis decided to spend a few hours bass fishing Wednesday afternoon on Arbuckle Lake before attending church services that evening.

"I know at this time of year anything is possible as far as big fish,” he said.

Gifford didn't make it to church Wednesday night as intended, but surely God will forgive the fisherman who missed a sermon because he landed one of the biggest bass ever caught in the Sooner state.

Gifford, 57, almost broke the state's most coveted fishing record, landing a 14-pound, 8-ounce largemouth bass.

The fish was just 3 ounces shy of the current state record of 14-11, set in 1999 by William Cross at Broken Bow Lake.

No angler has come this close to Cross' record in the past nine years. Gifford's fish is the third heaviest largemouth bass ever caught in the state, according to Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation records.

"I'm tickled with the fish and extremely lucky that I caught it, but I was disappointed it didn't go another three ounces,” he said.

Gifford was fishing in the back of a cove on the Guy Sandy arm of the lake, using a 3/8 oz. Terminator spinnerbait with a chartreuse and white skirt and gold and silver blades.

"I fish (spinnerbaits) real slowly at this time of year,” he said. "Basically, I'm dragging it half of the time on the bottom. I've had fish pick them up laying on the bottom.”

Gifford was slow-rolling the spinnerbait and had just lifted it from the bottom of the lake in 11 feet of water when the bass hit.

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