Bernie Schultz's Pattern, Baits & Gear
Schultz caught two quality fish from lily pads on day 3 that helped him make the Top 10. Otherwise, his focus was entirely on cypress trees. "(Fellow Floridian) Cliff Prince and I worked together and the bite was tough as nails in practice, but we both got some bites doing the same thing and we knew it'd work in parts of the lake," he said. "I really had nothing else to do, so I just settled in with it. It was kind of a blessing that I wasn't on a whole lot.
"The lake's full of trees Ð they're everywhere. I stayed on the upper lake (Marion) and had fish on both sides. It was best on the takeoff side where the major creeks are developed, but when we had the bad wind on day 3 I had to improvise and I went to the other side and caught some over there." He caught 90 percent of his fish by skipping an unweighted Senko to the base of a tree. Most of them bit in 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 feet of water and never deeper than 3 feet. "Patience was a big thing. It seemed like I'd have to hit 300 trees to get a bite."
Gear:
Senko gear: 7' medium-action Shimano Ci4 Complex rod, size 3000 Shimano Sustain spinning reel, 10-pound Sufix 832 braid (main line), 10-pound Sufix Advance fluorocarbon (10' leader), 2/0 VMC Ike Approved Neko Weedless Hook, 5" Yamamoto Senko (green-pumpkin/watermelon laminate).
Buzzbait gear: 7' medium-heavy Shimano Expride rod, Shimano Chronarch or Calais casting reel (7:1 ratio), 30-pound Sufix 832 braided line, 3/8- or 1/2-ounce Hildebrandt SqueakEasy buzzbait (black).
His smaller buzzbait had a black silicone skirt and he threw the larger one with a Zoom Horny Toad trailer.
Bassmaster Elite Santee Cooper Lake 4-5 Pattern - BassFan 10/15/20 (John Johnson)
