Browning leads Stren Series event on Lake Okeechobee

OKEECHOBEE, Fla. – Pro Scott Browning of Franklin, N.C., caught a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 13 ounces Wednesday to lead opening day of the $275,225 Stren Series Southeast Division tournament presented by Evinrude on Lake Okeechobee.

“It feels great. This was definitely a boost for my confidence,” said Scott Browning, who has five top-10 finishes with FLW Outdoors. “The key to the rest of the week is to stay with the big bites. I’m targeting pre-spawn bass, and if I can find the right females feeding, I can stay on top. With this new format I feel pretty good, but the pressure isn’t off by any means.”

Browning is following a typical Lake Okeechobee pattern by flipping and pitching an array of soft plastics in and around the grass mats. “If I can find the right grass mats and the right group of fish, I can stay competitive,” he said.

Rounding out the top five pros are Tony Hogan of McDavid, Fla. (five bass, 18-5); Justin Schwier of Okeechobee, Fla. (five bass, 18-00); David Williams of Marshall, N.C. (five bass, 17-4); and Christopher Lane of Winter Haven, Fla. (five bass, 16-2).

Ken Ellis of Bowman, S.C., earned $300 for the Snickers Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 9-pound bass.

Overall, in the pro division Wednesday, there were 864 fish caught weighing 1,638 pounds and 2 ounces with 140 quality sized limits recorded.

Pros are competing for as much as $65,000, including a 519VX Ranger powered by Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met, and valuable points toward qualifying for the $1 million Stren Series Championship in Mobile, Ala., Nov. 8-11 for a shot at $140,000. After four qualifying events are complete in each of the circuit’s five divisions, the top 40 pros from each division will advance to the championship. The highest-finishing pro from each division at the championship will also earn a spot in the $2 million 2008 Forrest Wood Cup, where they will compete against top pros from the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series and TBF (The Bass Federation) for bass fishing’s biggest prize – $1 million.

Grady Allen of Columbia, S.C., leads the Co-angler Division in the chase for a top award of $35,000, including a 519VX Ranger if contingency guidelines are met. He caught five bass weighing 16 pounds while fishing with pro Travis Adams of Danielsville, Ga., who is currently in 168th place with four bass weighing 4-9.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Larry Butler of New Haven, Vt. (five bass, 15-3); Michael McCoy of Jupiter, Fla. (five bass, 15-2); Ralph Myhlhousen of Orlando, Fla. (five bass, 13-6); and Tony Arnold of Greenback, Tenn. (five bass, 11-4).

Co-angler leader Grady Allen also earned $150 for the Snickers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 7-pound, 7-ounce bass he caught.

The top 40 co-anglers from each Stren Series division will also advance to the championship, where they will fish for as much as $70,000. The highest-finishing co-angler from each division at the championship will then advance to the 2008 Forrest Wood Cup.

Anglers will take off at 7:30 each morning from C. Scott Driver Park located at 10100 W. Highway 78 in Okeechobee, Fla. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. EST. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 2101 S. Parrott Ave. in Okeechobee, Fla., beginning at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

Stren Series tournaments are four-day events consisting of two rounds. The entire field competes Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. At the conclusion of Friday’s weigh-in, the field is cut to the top 10 pros and 10 co-anglers based on the heaviest three-day accumulated weights. These anglers continue competition Saturday, with the winners determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses of nearly $43 million through 238 events in 2007.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most-respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.