Fantasy Fishing: Heavy hitters at Santee

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Minnesota

The legendary fishery at Santee Cooper just keeps getting better and better. After a thrilling heavyweight battle at Lake Murray, Santee could deliver even more excitement. While we’re back to a no forward-facing sonar tournament, Santee’s endless shallow cover and expanding vegetation should keep this event fishing at full throttle.

For this event, I’m leaning on heavy hitters who know what it takes to succeed on a fishery like Santee and can adapt whether the winning pattern develops shallow or offshore. I could easily see the leaders doing a little bit of everything this week and adjusting as conditions change. In tournaments like this, momentum can also play a huge role, sometimes even more than previous finishes on a particular fishery.

I’m excited to see this one play out. Let’s get into the picks.

Bucket A: COBB

Brandon Cobb is one of those momentum anglers who can be tough to stop once he gets rolling. Pair that with multiple previous Top 10 finishes on Santee, and this event could set up perfectly for him. He hasn’t claimed a Bassmaster win since 2019 and feels overdue for another one. He’s dangerous both shallow and offshore, which should allow him to adjust to whatever pattern develops.

Solid secondary pick: Justin Atkins hasn’t had great finishes on Santee, but he’s been catching them everywhere this season and excels in shallow cover situations. I could easily see him landing his first Santee Cooper Top 10 this week.

Bucket B: CHRISTIE

Jason Christie is another heavy hitter who has been strong in shallow-water dominated events. With forward-facing sonar out of play, this setup could create a great opportunity for him. Christie can sometimes be a risky fantasy pick because he tends to be boom-or-bust, but with the momentum he’s carrying, he feels like a safer play this time around.

Solid secondary pick: Drew Benton has also been very consistent this season and is coming off a Top 10 finish at Lake Murray. With the fish likely further along in the spawn this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him weigh in a few quality bed fish this week.

Bucket C: PALMER

Luke Palmer may be the most consistent angler on Santee Cooper and won the last Bassmaster Elite Series event there in 2023. Outside of that win, he hasn’t finished worse than 18th, and I don’t expect that trend to end this week. Palmer is simply one of those versatile anglers who can adjust even if Santee fishes differently than it has in the past.

Solid secondary pick: Brandon Palaniuk is probably the obvious choice, but he’ll also be one of the most popular picks. A sneaky value option could be Pat Schlapper, who has previously finished 10th and 36th at Santee.

Bucket D: GORE

Wesley Gore checks a lot of boxes for this event. Big fish, shallow water, and power fishing all play directly into his strengths. He’s also very comfortable without scope and breaking down expansive fisheries like Santee. This will be Gore’s first major event on Santee Cooper, and I’m curious to see what he can do. He’s coming off a couple of tougher tournaments, but I don’t expect him to stay down for long.

Solid secondary pick: I don’t have a ton of statistical reasons behind it, but I like Matt Messer here. He loves shallow grass fishing and has performed well on big-fish shallow fisheries like the Harris Chain of Lakes.

Bucket E: KUPHALL

Caleb Kuphall has had a tough start to the season, but Santee Cooper has treated him well in the past. This could be the event that gets him back on track. In 2022, he narrowly missed the win with a second-place finish. A shallow flipping bite would especially favor Kuphall, as it’s one of his biggest strengths. I think he makes a move this week.

Solid secondary pick: Logan Parks is in need of a breakthrough after a rough start to the season, but it feels like only a matter of time for such a talented angler. He’s hard to ignore in Bucket E.