A hard rain’s a-gonna fall
Anglers face wet weather, heavy cut weight on day two
MANNING, S.C. – While temperatures rose, the skies opened up over South Carolina this morning and dumped rain on the EverStart Series tournament field at takeoff on day two at Lake Santee Cooper. The forecast calls for continued thunderstorms throughout the day, which will potentially roughen up boat-running conditions on the big waters but probably won’t hurt the fishing much.
Yesterday’s field brought in a surprising number of big bass, considering how far temperatures fell. Because overnight temperatures were warmer last night, expect more big bass caught on shallow beds to come to the scale this afternoon – as long as water in the shallows remains relatively clear.
After today’s competition, both the pro and co-angler fields will be trimmed to 30 anglers apiece for tomorrow’s semifinal round. Pro competitors tagged a hefty 30 pounds as the two-day weight to beat to make today’s cut. Co-anglers will be shooting for an opening-round weight in the 11- to 12-pound range to make the cut.
Weigh-in begins today at 2:30 p.m. at John C. Land III Boating and Sportfishing Facility near Summerton. The four-day tournament lasts through Saturday, when the winning pro will receive $15,000 and a Ranger boat. The winning co-angler will receive $6,000.
Day-two vital statistics
Sunrise: 6:12 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 43 degrees
Expected high temperature: 56 degrees
Water temperature: 56 degrees
Wind: From the North at 10 mph
Relative humidity: 93 percent
Day’s outlook: Cloudy with thunderstorms likely