Provo, UT and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada -- (ReleaseWire) -- 01/03/2007 --Angling Masters International and "The Fish'n Line" magazine today announced that a potential world-record 29-inch brook trout was caught during the inaugural four-week "Fish'n Win" tournament.

During the October tournament, Tim Matheson of Manitoba, Canada apparently broke a 90-year-old world record by landing a brook trout that measured 29 inches in length with a girth of 21 inches. After measuring and photographing the fish, Matheson and his fishing buddy released it back into Manitoba's Barbe Lake.

"Based on the measurements of the fish and the pictures I've seen, I'd estimate Matheson's brook trout to be between 15 and 17 pounds," said Rob Cann, Angling Program Manager at Canada's provincial Water Stewardship Fisheries Branch. The International Game Fish Association's current world record for brook trout is 14 pounds 8 ounces and was caught in July 1916.

According to Matheson, matching the requirements for IGFA world record consideration would likely have led to the death of the massive brook trout. As a catch-and-release fisherman, Matheson says such an outcome was never a consideration in his mind.

"As much as I love fishing, it wasn't worth the risk of killing that magnificent fish to have a world record," Matheson said. "So after measuring the fish and taking some pictures, we slid it back into the lake."

Matheson's fish was caught during the inaugural "Fish'n Win" four-week tournament, hosted through Angling Masters' Web site, www.AnglingMasters.com. The angler who entered the best fish during each of the four weeks was awarded a cash prize of $1,000. Scoring was determined by Angling Master's unique points system, which levels the playing field for different species and locations throughout North America.

On October 21, 2006, 53-year-old Matheson - who owns and operates Kenanow Lodge on Manitoba's Kississing Lake - landed his fish of a lifetime.

"It's a fish of a lifetime. But this isn't only my fish, it belongs to Angling Masters as well," Matheson said, implying that if it hadn't been for his drive to win the "Fish'n Win" tournament, he likely wouldn't have traveled 130 km to Barbe Lake, Manitoba that day.

"Fish of a lifetime?" asked Dave Abbott, founder of Angling Masters International. "The last time a human being held a brook trout almost this big was a century ago. I'd say it's the fish of a thousand lifetimes. Congratulations, Tim!"

For more information, interested individuals can
· Read about the catch - in Tim Matheson's own words - at
http://www.AnglingMasters.com/brooktrout;
· Review information about the tournament, winners and other details at http://www.AnglingMasters.com/fishnwin; and
· Download print-quality imagery at http://media.AnglingMasters.com.