Hunter Shryock’s 5-pounds-plus bass just before 11 a.m. is typical of what Elite Series anglers have found in the Santee River going back to the 2016 tournament. It’s high-risk, high-reward. It was in the Santee that John Murray caught the 8-pound, 9-ounce big bass of the 2016 event. It was also the only fish he caught that day. It was in the Santee where Kelly Jordon sacked the biggest bag of the tournament – 24 pounds, 7 ounces, which was nearly half his four-day, third-place total of 55-3 in 2016.
“Those better fish are everywhere,” said John Crews at Thursday’s weigh-in. “They’re in the Waccamaw, they’re in the Pee Dee, they’re in Santee. Obviously, they’re in the Cooper. I think the Santee probably has the biggest fish, but it’s really hard to get five there.”
Shryock has added a third keeper to his bag today. He did manage to catch a limit in the Santee yesterday. But he only had seven bites all day.