By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor

Lake Champlain is located more than 1,300 north of Glenn Browne's residence in Ocala, Fla., but he's found success in recent years by fishing it like he's right at home.

The former FLW Tour and Bassmaster Elite Series pro turned in some ugly finishes early in his career at the renowned venue that sits on the New York-Vermont border. But once he determined that he needed to forget all about the latitude of the place and fish his own strengths, those bombs went away and were replaced by solid money showings.

"I had to quit fishing for smallmouth in the tournaments," he said. "It was like, 'Hey dummy, (the southern part of Champlain) is a lot like Florida, so fish like you do at home and catch their (butts).

"It's pretty simple, really."

He dominated last week's Northern Rayovac Series stop at Champlain, amassing 63 1/2 pounds over 3 days to win by a margin of nearly 10 pounds. He took over the lead on day 2 with his second straight 22 1/2-pound stringer and his 18-07 haul was the biggest of the final day.

Here are some of the specifics of his second career Rayovac triumph.

Practice

Browne had discovered quality smallmouth action at Champlain on multiple previous visits. The problem was that it wouldn't hold up.

"I could catch them okay in practice, but I could never stay on them," he said.

All of his strong showings in recent years had come via the largemouth route, and on most of those occasions he exploited the Ticonderoga area at the southern tip of the lake. He went down there on both of his first 2 practice days this time and quickly dialed in his program.

Due to the frigid winter and spring experienced by the northern part of the country, the bass are far behind their usual seasonal progression. He found a lot of fish – big ones – in the extreme shallows.

"None of the fish I weighed in came from more than 2 feet of water."

Competition

> Day 1: 5, 22-09
> Day 2: 5, 22-08
> Day 3: 5, 18-07
> Total = 15, 63-08

Unlike in a 150-boat Tour event in which perhaps a third of the field will make the long run to "Ti," far fewer competitors opt to travel that far in triple-A derbies. Browne estimated that he was joined by no more than a dozen others, and none of them were fishing as tight to the bank as he was.

"I caught some from the reeds, some from the matted stuff and some from trees," he said. "It was a grind-it-out thing – anything on the bank that looked good, I'd fish it.

"They were just little isolated deals where I'd make one or two flips and I'd either get a bite or I wouldn't. A lot of it was real marginal stuff because even though the water was high, it was dropping, and you had to find the short stretches that had a little bit of extra water. The best thing was that nobody else was doing that – they were all out in the grass beds."

His day-1 starting spot gave him four fish in the span of five flips that combined to weigh almost 15 pounds, but he never caught another fish from that location. He picked up a 5-pounder on a frog on the first day as he was moving between areas, and it was the only one he took to the scale that didn't enter his boat on the end of a flipping stick.

Day 2 was pretty similar, although his number of keeper fish fell from 25 to 20. His sack was just an ounce lighter than the previous day's haul and he moved into the top slot.

He lost a good portion of day 3 due to a mechanical issue – he eventually learned that the problem was in the wiring harness. He was about 20 miles south of the launch in Plattsburgh, N.Y. when it occurred, and he immediately contacted road roommate Dave Lefebre, who launched his boat and delivered it to Browne.

Browne was forced to return to Plattsburgh and go through the boat-check process for a second time before heading out for Ti once again. He estimated that the ordeal cost him 2 1/2 or 3 hours of fishing time, but that wasn't a huge problem because his best action occurred later in the day.

"The bite got strong when the sun was good and high, and I figured if I could get 3 or 4 hours I could catch a decent bag of fish."

He ended up getting nine bites and catching seven keepers, and the five he brought back to Plattsburgh were more than enough to clinch the win.

Winning Gear Notes

> Flipping gear: 7'11" heavy-action Lew's Custom Speed Stick rod, Team Lew's Lite casting reel (7.5:1 ratio), 65-pound Gamma Torque braided line, 1-ounce homemade jig (black/blue), Zoom Big Salty Chunk trailer (black/blue).

> Although the water was mostly clear, he didn't think the color of the bait was critical. "I think I could've gone with green-pumpkin or whatever. It was mostly a reaction bite with those fish so shallow.

> The frog that produced the 5-pounder on day 1 was a SPRO Bronzeye.

The Bottom Line

> Main factor in his success – "I was real confident because flipping is my deal and I was doing something that nobody else was keying on."

> Performance edge – "That (Evinrude) G2 is the most impressive motor I've ever run. The first 2 days I could run down there and back without getting gas, and I could never do that before. It's unbelievably powerful and it's great on fuel."

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Final Standings

1. Glenn Browne -- Ocala, Fl -- 22 - 9 (5) -- 22 - 8 (5) -- 18 - 7 (5) -- 63 - 8 (15) -- $34,097 + boat

2. Otis Darnell -- Linden, Va -- 20 - 2 (5) -- 18 - 12 (5) -- 14 - 14 (5) -- 53 - 12 (15) -- $13,213

3. Joe Lucarelli -- Center Harbor, NH -- 17 - 9 (5) -- 17 - 4 (5) -- 17 - 14 (5) -- 52 - 11 (15) -- $10,229

4. David Cioppa -- Hopkinton, Ma -- 22 - 13 (5) -- 14 - 9 (5) -- 15 - 4 (5) -- 52 - 10 (15) -- $8,524

5. Brock Mosley -- Collinsville, Ms -- 17 - 4 (5) -- 19 - 7 (5) -- 15 - 12 (5) -- 52 - 7 (15) -- $7,672

6. Gerald Spohrer -- Gonzales, La -- 18 - 2 (5) -- 19 - 10 (5) -- 14 - 5 (5) -- 52 - 1 (15) -- $6,819

7. Derick Olson -- Honey Brook, Pa -- 19 - 1 (5) -- 18 - 5 (5) -- 13 - 12 (5) -- 51 - 2 (15) -- $5,967

8. Ryan Smith -- Galloway, NJ -- 16 - 9 (5) -- 19 - 6 (5) -- 15 - 0 (5) -- 50 - 15 (15) -- $5,115

9. Chad Grigsby -- Maple Grove, Mn -- 21 - 10 (5) -- 14 - 1 (5) -- 14 - 4 (5) -- 49 - 15 (15) -- $4,262

10. Daniel Murphy -- Wharton, NJ -- 17 - 1 (5) -- 18 - 5 (5) -- 12 - 9 (5) -- 47 - 15 (15) -- $3,642

The following anglers did not make the cut and did not fish on day 3.

11. Powell Kemp -- Scotland Neck, NC -- 16 - 4 (5) -- 18 - 7 (5) -- 34 - 11 (10) -- $3,197

12. Pete Gluszek -- Mt. Laurel, NJ -- 17 - 5 (5) -- 17 - 1 (5) -- 34 - 6 (10) -- $2,983

13. Chris Novack -- Mansfield Center, Ct -- 18 - 12 (5) -- 15 - 9 (5) -- 34 - 5 (10) -- $2,557

14. Daryl Biron -- South Windsor, Ct -- 17 - 5 (5) -- 16 - 2 (5) -- 33 - 7 (10) -- $2,557

15. Joel Richardson -- Kernersville, NC -- 17 - 9 (5) -- 15 - 8 (5) -- 33 - 1 (10) -- $2,557

16. Bryan Labelle -- Hinesburg, Vt -- 16 - 8 (5) -- 16 - 9 (5) -- 33 - 1 (10) -- $2,557

17. Cory Johnston -- Cavan, On -- 13 - 4 (5) -- 19 - 7 (5) -- 32 - 11 (10) -- $2,557

18. Scott Parker -- Candia, NH -- 13 - 4 (5) -- 19 - 7 (5) -- 32 - 11 (10) -- $2,557

19. Scott Cooke -- Marengo, Oh -- 17 - 1 (5) -- 15 - 10 (5) -- 32 - 11 (10) -- $2,557

20. John Wright -- Concord, NH -- 16 - 5 (5) -- 16 - 5 (5) -- 32 - 10 (10) -- $2,557

21. Nick Gainey -- Charleston, SC -- 16 - 0 (5) -- 16 - 9 (5) -- 32 - 9 (10) -- $2,344

22. Matt Greenblatt -- Port St Lucie, Fl -- 14 - 7 (5) -- 17 - 14 (5) -- 32 - 5 (10) -- $2,344

23. Jim Tutt -- Longview, Tx -- 15 - 7 (5) -- 16 - 10 (5) -- 32 - 1 (10) -- $2,344

24. Paul Mazzitelli -- West Wyoming, Pa -- 16 - 15 (5) -- 14 - 15 (5) -- 31 - 14 (10) -- $2,344

25. Richard Mccrory -- North Hero, Vt -- 14 - 14 (5) -- 16 - 10 (5) -- 31 - 8 (10) -- $2,344

26. Chris Flint -- Potsdam, Ny -- 14 - 3 (5) -- 17 - 4 (5) -- 31 - 7 (10) -- $2,131

27. Jeremy Vandenbosch -- Lowell, Mi -- 16 - 8 (5) -- 14 - 15 (5) -- 31 - 7 (10) -- $2,131

28. Jimmy Kennedy -- Plainfield, Vt -- 17 - 7 (5) -- 13 - 15 (5) -- 31 - 6 (10) -- $2,131

29. Tom Belinda -- Holidaysburg, Pa -- 16 - 15 (5) -- 14 - 7 (5) -- 31 - 6 (10) -- $2,131

30. Ryan Latinville -- Plattsburgh, Ny -- 16 - 6 (5) -- 14 - 13 (5) -- 31 - 3 (10) -- $2,131

31. Chris Molineaux -- Hope Valley, Ri -- 17 - 1 (5) -- 14 - 0 (5) -- 31 - 1 (10) -- $1,705

32. Al Farace -- Hunt Valley, Md -- 16 - 4 (5) -- 14 - 13 (5) -- 31 - 1 (10)

33. Steve Brinster -- Vernon, NJ -- 16 - 3 (5) -- 14 - 14 (5) -- 31 - 1 (10)

34. Walt Bowen -- Walnut Cove, NC -- 15 - 4 (5) -- 15 - 7 (5) -- 30 - 11 (10)

35. Jim Dillard -- West Monroe, La -- 15 - 2 (5) -- 15 - 8 (5) -- 30 - 10 (10)

36. Garry Woodruff -- Candia, NH -- 13 - 6 (5) -- 17 - 2 (5) -- 30 - 8 (10)

37. Jeffrey Ware -- Warrenton, Va -- 17 - 8 (5) -- 12 - 14 (5) -- 30 - 6 (10)

38. Thomas Lavictoire Jr -- West Rutland, Vt -- 15 - 14 (5) -- 14 - 6 (5) -- 30 - 4 (10)

39. Rob Digh -- Denver, NC -- 16 - 5 (5) -- 13 - 12 (5) -- 30 - 1 (10)

40. Denny Andrade -- Repentigny, Qc -- 15 - 9 (5) -- 14 - 6 (5) -- 29 - 15 (10)

41. Joe Holland -- Jefferson, Me -- 12 - 13 (5) -- 16 - 15 (5) -- 29 - 12 (10)

42. Troy Garrison -- Topsham, Me -- 14 - 10 (5) -- 15 - 2 (5) -- 29 - 12 (10)

43. Dave Lefebre -- Erie, Pa -- 16 - 12 (5) -- 12 - 14 (5) -- 29 - 10 (10)

44. Mike Moran -- Ruffs Dale, Pa -- 16 - 1 (5) -- 13 - 3 (5) -- 29 - 4 (10)

45. Tom Callahan -- Moriah Center, Ny -- 16 - 1 (5) -- 13 - 2 (5) -- 29 - 3 (10)

46. Joe Trinko -- Southern Pines, NC -- 13 - 1 (5) -- 16 - 0 (5) -- 29 - 1 (10)

47. Randy Almeida -- Tewksbury, Ma -- 15 - 1 (5) -- 13 - 11 (5) -- 28 - 12 (10)

48. John Trask -- Jay, Me -- 12 - 13 (5) -- 15 - 14 (5) -- 28 - 11 (10)

49. Kurt Mitchell -- Milford, De -- 14 - 1 (5) -- 14 - 9 (5) -- 28 - 10 (10)

50. Jason Ober -- Johnstown, Pa -- 13 - 13 (5) -- 14 - 7 (5) -- 28 - 4 (10)

51. Alexander Wilson Sr -- Elmore, Al -- 14 - 5 (5) -- 13 - 15 (5) -- 28 - 4 (10)

52. Tom Huynh -- Moorhead, Mn -- 10 - 8 (5) -- 17 - 11 (5) -- 28 - 3 (10)

53. Larry Kempler -- Bluemont, Va -- 13 - 4 (5) -- 14 - 14 (5) -- 28 - 2 (10)

54. Troy Morrow -- Eastanollee, Ga -- 14 - 5 (5) -- 13 - 12 (5) -- 28 - 1 (10)

55. Chuck Bellerby Iii -- Croydon, Pa -- 12 - 3 (5) -- 15 - 12 (5) -- 27 - 15 (10)

56. R T Kerber -- Ava, Ny -- 15 - 6 (5) -- 12 - 8 (5) -- 27 - 14 (10)

57. Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Tx -- 17 - 0 (5) -- 10 - 13 (5) -- 27 - 13 (10)

58. Joseph Wood -- Westport, Ma -- 12 - 3 (5) -- 15 - 10 (5) -- 27 - 13 (10)

59. Tim Aldrich -- Shutesbury, Ma -- 14 - 11 (5) -- 12 - 15 (5) -- 27 - 10 (10)

60. David Barnes Sr -- China, Me -- 14 - 8 (5) -- 13 - 1 (5) -- 27 - 9 (10)

61. Mike Blake -- Carrollton, Oh -- 15 - 12 (5) -- 11 - 11 (5) -- 27 - 7 (10)

62. William Shipes -- Williston, SC -- 13 - 2 (5) -- 14 - 4 (5) -- 27 - 6 (10)

63. David Jutton -- Rhinebeck, Ny -- 14 - 11 (5) -- 12 - 6 (5) -- 27 - 1 (10)

64. Perry Marvin -- Peru, Ny -- 12 - 8 (5) -- 14 - 8 (5) -- 27 - 0 (10)

65. Harold Marietta -- Hunker, Pa -- 12 - 3 (5) -- 14 - 11 (5) -- 26 - 14 (10)

66. Jeff Hippert -- Hamburg, Ny -- 13 - 14 (5) -- 13 - 0 (5) -- 26 - 14 (10)

67. Bradley Staley -- Pleasant Garden, NC -- 13 - 2 (5) -- 13 - 12 (5) -- 26 - 14 (10)

68. Destin Demarion -- Grove City, Pa -- 13 - 10 (5) -- 13 - 2 (5) -- 26 - 12 (10)

69. Sean Caswell -- Highland, Ny -- 13 - 3 (5) -- 13 - 8 (5) -- 26 - 11 (10)

70. Danny Jones -- North East, Pa -- 15 - 11 (5) -- 10 - 13 (5) -- 26 - 8 (10)

71. Brian Newbon -- Trenton, NJ -- 14 - 8 (5) -- 12 - 0 (5) -- 26 - 8 (10)

72. Timothy Laizer -- South Hadley, Ma -- 11 - 0 (5) -- 15 - 6 (5) -- 26 - 6 (10)

73. Bill Chapman -- Salt Rock, WV -- 12 - 14 (5) -- 13 - 8 (5) -- 26 - 6 (10)

74. Ed Casey -- Whiteford, Md -- 10 - 13 (5) -- 15 - 5 (5) -- 26 - 2 (10)

75. Michael Crocker -- Pasadena, Md -- 13 - 9 (5) -- 12 - 8 (5) -- 26 - 1 (10)

76. Tony Collins -- Dayton, Oh -- 14 - 2 (5) -- 11 - 13 (5) -- 25 - 15 (10)

77. Jenoah McLeod -- Williston, Vt -- 14 - 0 (5) -- 11 - 14 (5) -- 25 - 14 (10)

78. William Ambler -- Alderson, WV -- 12 - 14 (5) -- 12 - 12 (5) -- 25 - 10 (10)

79. Michael Marini -- Slingerlands, Ny -- 14 - 4 (5) -- 10 - 15 (5) -- 25 - 3 (10)

80. Ed Dennis -- Logan, Oh -- 13 - 15 (5) -- 11 - 4 (5) -- 25 - 3 (10)

81. Michael Brown -- Etobicoke, On -- 13 - 1 (5) -- 11 - 12 (5) -- 24 - 13 (10)

82. Edward Pecore -- Plattsburgh, Ny -- 12 - 3 (5) -- 12 - 9 (5) -- 24 - 12 (10)

83. Greg Schultz -- Naples, Fl -- 13 - 10 (5) -- 10 - 11 (5) -- 24 - 5 (10)

84. Scott Nagy -- Saint-Lambert, Qc -- 15 - 4 (5) -- 8 - 14 (5) -- 24 - 2 (10)

85. Blake Suhr -- Midland, Mi -- 10 - 12 (5) -- 13 - 6 (5) -- 24 - 2 (10)

86. Chris Blanc -- Cos Cob, Ct -- 10 - 13 (5) -- 13 - 3 (5) -- 24 - 0 (10)

87. Garrett Paquette -- Canton, Mi -- 12 - 7 (5) -- 11 - 4 (5) -- 23 - 11 (10)

88. Trent Pardue -- Troy, NC -- 11 - 10 (5) -- 12 - 0 (5) -- 23 - 10 (10)

89. Christopher Grenier -- Clarksburg, WV -- 10 - 13 (5) -- 12 - 4 (5) -- 23 - 1 (10)

90. Ralph Blasey -- Pinckney, Mi -- 10 - 9 (5) -- 12 - 6 (5) -- 22 - 15 (10)

91. Michael Elsea -- Mooresville, In -- 11 - 6 (5) -- 11 - 7 (5) -- 22 - 13 (10)

92. Gerald Sensabaugh -- Gray, Tn -- 10 - 12 (5) -- 11 - 14 (5) -- 22 - 10 (10)

93. Nick Radtke -- Greenwood Lake, Ny -- 8 - 12 (4) -- 13 - 6 (5) -- 22 - 2 (9)

94. Rob Johnson -- Schuylkill Haven, Pa -- 11 - 14 (5) -- 10 - 4 (5) -- 22 - 2 (10)

95. Brandon Neal -- Middletown, Ct -- 7 - 3 (4) -- 14 - 10 (5) -- 21 - 13 (9)

96. Darren Carlson -- Ridgway, Pa -- 10 - 14 (5) -- 10 - 8 (5) -- 21 - 6 (10)

97. James Ciferni -- Hammond, Ny -- 13 - 5 (5) -- 7 - 9 (5) -- 20 - 14 (10)

98. Burley Langford -- South Chesterfield, Va -- 9 - 0 (4) -- 11 - 14 (5) -- 20 - 14 (9)

99. Shaun Brown -- Slippery Rock, Pa -- 17 - 8 (5) -- 2 - 11 (2) -- 20 - 3 (7)

100. Walter (Mike) Snider -- Mt Airy, Md -- 11 - 5 (5) -- 8 - 11 (4) -- 20 - 0 (9)

101. Ronald Martinez Jr. -- Valley View, Oh -- 12 - 13 (5) -- 6 - 11 (4) -- 19 - 8 (9)

102. Paul Kimball -- Glastonbury, Ct -- 4 - 12 (2) -- 13 - 9 (5) -- 18 - 5 (7)

103. Mike Yawgel -- Cromwell, Ct -- 13 - 1 (5) -- 4 - 15 (2) -- 18 - 0 (7)

104. Rob Lamoy -- Chazy, Ny -- 5 - 2 (3) -- 12 - 6 (5) -- 17 - 8 (8)

105. Ron Cherkas -- Grimes, Ia -- 10 - 11 (5) -- 6 - 10 (3) -- 17 - 5 (8)

106. Melvin Smitson -- Baltimore, Md -- 14 - 5 (5) -- 2 - 13 (1) -- 17 - 2 (6)

107. Bill Spence -- Saint Albans, Vt -- 15 - 6 (5) -- 0 - 0 (0) -- 15 - 6 (5)

108. Mike Czaplinski -- Hopatcong, NJ -- 15 - 4 (5) -- 0 - 0 (0) -- 15 - 4 (5)

109. Mark Frickman -- Shelbyville, Mi -- 3 - 2 (2) -- 10 - 14 (5) -- 14 - 0 (7)

110. Jonathan Coholich -- Dunbar, Pa -- 11 - 3 (5) -- 2 - 1 (1) -- 13 - 4 (6)

111. Dale Gorrell -- Hatfield, Pa -- 8 - 8 (5) -- 4 - 7 (4) -- 12 - 15 (9)

112. Burley Warf -- Moneta, Va -- 3 - 10 (2) -- 7 - 9 (4) -- 11 - 3 (6)

113. Larry Allard -- Ware, Ma -- 11 - 1 (5) -- 0 - 0 (0) -- 11 - 1 (5)

114. Larry Schroeder -- Clayton, Oh -- 6 - 5 (3) -- 1 - 13 (1) -- 8 - 2 (4)

115. Joseph Bona -- Kersey, Pa -- 1 - 15 (1) -- 6 - 0 (3) -- 7 - 15 (4)

Matt Stasiak -- Pittsburgh, Pa -- 0 - 0 (0) -- 0 - 0 (0) -- 0 - 0 (0)