Santee Cooper survival
EverStart anglers have one more day to qualify for top-10 cut, earn berth in semifinals
MANNING, S.C. – Although the gusting winds that dominated Wednesday’s competition have finally died down, anglers weren’t able to escape another day of uncomfortably cold weather. By the time the field of 396 pros and co-anglers departed John C. Land marina shortly after 7 a.m. Thursday, temperatures were recorded at a bone-chilling 28 degrees – conditions that all but guaranteed another day of stubborn bass angling.
However, for the majority of the field, there is no time to be distracted by the unseasonably cool weather, as today represents the final day to qualify for Friday’s semifinal round of competition. While most of the field fared poorly out on the water yesterday – only a total of 12 competitors returned with their five-fish limits – the good news is that nearly every angler still has a reasonable shot at qualifying for the top-10 cut. The reason is simple: Santee Cooper is one of the few lakes in the country that can produce mammoth stringers – sometimes record-setting ones at that – in a matter of minutes.
Allan Glasgow’s catch in yesterday’s competition of 32 pounds, 13 ounces – an all-time EverStart record – only serves to underscore that point. Glasgow’s amazing catch gave him an unheard-of 12-pound, 10-ounce lead over his nearest rival heading into today’s competition in the Pro Division. However, only six of 198 pros recorded weights over 15 pounds – meaning that the majority of the bunched-up field still has a reasonable shot at qualifying for the top-10 cut.
Co-anglers face pretty much the same scenario. Although Keith Iddins of Knoxville, Tenn., has the overall lead with a catch of 17 pounds, 3 ounces, 195 of the remaining 198 anglers have weighed in less than 10 pounds.
Action continues at today’s weigh-in, scheduled to take place at 3 p.m. at John C. Land III landing, located at Lake Marion in Summerton, S.C.
Thursday’s conditions:
Sunrise: 6:47 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 28 degrees
Expected high temperature: 55 degrees
Water temperature: 46-49 degrees
Wind: from the southwest at 1 mph
Humidity: 65 percent
Day’s outlook: mostly sunny