Virtual Championship 2006: Bracket 17
Opening round – Browne vs. Kilby
Virtual Championship 2006
Opening round – Bracket 17: Browne vs. Kilby
Another exciting season of tour-level pro bass fishing drew to a close in record-smashing fashion on Lake Champlain last month, leaving only the Wal-Mart FLW Tour Championship on the horizon before 2006 is etched forever in the history books. FLWOutdoors.com will once again host its own “virtual championship” – a featured daily poll where readers can make their own picks and weigh in on who they think will be crowned champion during the Aug. 2-5 year-ending event on Logan Martin Lake in Birmingham, Ala.
In the days leading up to the championship, FLWOutdoors.com will ask readers to vote on who they think will advance in each of the daily bracket challenges (polls are located on the right-hand side of the FLW Outdoors and FLW Tour home pages). After each day’s votes are tabulated, the virtual championship bracket will be immediately updated to reflect the readers’ choices.
Will fishing fans correctly forecast the winner of this year’s championship? Vote each day to support your favorite qualified angler and to learn more about the 48 pros who will actually compete on Logan Martin Lake for a top prize of $500,000.
Today’s featured bracket matchup: Glenn Browne (No. 17) vs. Rob Kilby (No. 32)
Glenn Browne – No. 17 seed: The 2006 FLW Tour Championship will be Browne’s second appearance; he first made it to the big show during his rookie season in 2004. Coincidentally, he will again fish Logan Martin Lake in the championship. Browne entered the 2004 event ranked 27th, but went on to finish in 10th place – an exceptional performance for any angler, let alone a rookie. 2006 has been a good year for the Ocala, Fla., native. He has two top-50s and narrowly missed a $10,000 payday twice, finishing 54th on Okeechobee and 55th on Lake Champlain. A 16th-place finish on Pickwick Lake this year may add some confidence when returning to Alabama for the championship. With nine top-10s and a win under his belt, the three-year Stren pro has the experience to repeat, or even improve on, his 2004 FLW Tour Championship performance.
Rob Kilby – No. 32 seed: Like Browne, Kilby also qualified for the championship during his first full year of competing on the FLW Tour. However, Kilby could hardly be considered a rookie. After all, he had already competed in eight Bassmaster Classics out of 11 years on tour with BASS, achieved 14 of his 18 FLW Outdoors top-10s and racked up an astonishing 61 of 81 top-50 finishes. Kilby has been on a roll since that 1997 appearance, qualifying for the FLW Tour Championship seven of the last eight years. He has six top-10 finishes on the FLW Tour since 1998, and his total earnings are rapidly approaching $1 million. The 25-year pro has an abundance of experience on tap and the tools to get the job done.
Virtual Championship 2006 (click for complete details and poll results)
Wal-Mart FLW Tour Championship 2006 (click for more information)
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