A. Lee Graham Reporter The 16,000-acre McLean Ranch in Amarillo sold for $16.8 million in a Thursday auction lasting longer than four hours. Presented by Assiter Auctioneers, the event drew 109 bidders to the ranch owned by Amarillo developer George Chapman. “The auction was everything we could have asked for. Mr. Chapman is happy, the lenders are happy, and 19 buyers who now own parts of the ranch are happy,” said Spanky Assiter, chairman and founder of the Amarillo-based auction company, commenting in a news release. Assiter’s company marketed the property and conducted the auction. Assiter took bids on the property’s 43 individual tracts before accepting bids on combinations of tracts. Assiter said the auction answered numerous questions about the land and its future. “When we opened up for bidding, nobody knew what the land would bring, whether it would all go to one big bidder or sell to a larger number of smaller bidders. But ultimately, it turned out that a number of different folks wanted parts of this land for grazing, recreation and probably other uses. That’s how an auction works,” said Assiter. The ranch is known for its game and fishing. It spans more than five miles of creeks and six lakes. lgraham@bizpress.net