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TEAM EVINRUDE ANGLER Tommy Skarlis crowned Champion at Mississippi River

 Apr 23rd, 2012 by OutdoorsFIRST 

Modified Apr 23rd, 2012 at 12:00 AM

Sturtevant, Wis., April. 23, 2012 – Team Evinrude angler Tommy Skarlis won the National Guard FLW Walleye Tour season opener on the Mississippi River in dominating fashion this past weekend with a three-day total of 14 walleyes weighing 72 pounds, 8 ounces. In addition to Skarlis, three other Team Evinrude anglers also finished in the top 10 for the tournament, which was held at Red Wing, Minnesota and presented by Evinrude.

	Evinrude Pro Tommy Skarlis

Skarlis, who runs a Ranger 620VS powered by a 250  H.O. Evinrude E-TEC main engine and Evinrude E-TEC 15 H.O. kicker engine, led all three days of the tournament. He started out with an incredible 36 pound, 12 ounce haul on the first day, which put him ahead by more than nine pounds. The Waukon, Iowa native added to his total Friday with 20 pounds, 13 ounces and held a 17-pound lead entering the final day.

“I was playing defense after day one, but fishing with such quality anglers I knew I could get beaten if I stumbled,” said Skarlis. “I did a lot of spot-hopping up and down the river, and my 250 H.O. got a workout to say the least. I needed speed and efficiency to get to my spots, and my Evinrude E-TEC performed flawlessly.”

In addition to his $63,000 pay day from FLW, Skarlis also won the $8,000 Evinrude contingency bonus for his first place finish.

Skarlis was joined at the top of the leader board by Team Evinrude angler Tom Brunz who finished in sixth place at 48 pounds, 2, ounces; seventh place finisher Joe Whitten weighed in at 46 pounds, 15 ounces; and Nick Schertz who rounded out the top 10 and bagged 34 pounds, 15 ounces.   

“We want to congratulate Tommy for a great tournament and impressive win,” said Krista Heidgerken, Senior Communications Specialist for Evinrude. “This is a strong start to the season for Team Evinrude, and we look forward to what is sure to be an exciting year on the FLW Walleye Tour.”  

The FLW Walleye Tour season opener on the Mississippi River will be featured in the Sept. 23 episode of ‘FLW’ which will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network from 1 – 2 p.m. ET. The tour’s next tournament is May 10-12 in Port Clinton, Ohio on Lake Erie.

BRP’s Evinrude engine line-up now includes engine models from 3.5- to 300 horsepower. All engines are available at Evinrude dealerships worldwide. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/brpevinrude.

BRP US Inc.

BRP US Inc. is a subsidiary of Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP), a privately-held company, is a world leader in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and marketing of motorized recreational vehicles. Its portfolio of brands and products includes: Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, Sea‑Doo watercraft and sport boats, Evinrude and Johnson outboard engines, Can-Am all‑terrain and side-by-side vehicles and roadsters, as well as Rotax engines. BRP products are distributed in more than 100 countries.

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