Home-Lake Knowledge Pays for Walters on Santee

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Todd Walters celebrates with his wife Leiding and son Patrick.

March 12, 2016  by Rob Newell

Co-angler Todd Walters of Summerville, S.C., has fished and duck hunted on Santee Cooper all his life, and today he proved how well he knows it with a victory in the co-angler division of the Costa FLW Series event presented by Frabill.

After weighing in 20 pounds, 13 ounces on day one and 13-13 on day two, Walters saved the best for last, checking in 21-1 on the final day for a three-day total of 55-11.

“This feels great to win here in front of all my friends and family,” Walters says. “We are all going to celebrate tonight.”

With all his experience on lakes Marion and Moultrie – the two lakes that are joined together by a canal to create the Santee Cooper system – Walters knew exactly what he was going to throw and where he was going to throw it at every spot that his pros took him. Some of the places Walters visited this week he has waded while duck hunting, so he knows where all the stumps and depressions are located.

“Bradley [Dortch] took me down to the hatchery today, and that’s my home. I know a lot of things about that place,” Walters says.

Walters’ bait of choice all week was a green pumpkin Zoom Ol’ Monster worm rigged with a 1/16-ounce weight and fished on a spinning rod. He used 30-pound-test braid joined to 12-pound-test fluorocarbon by a uni-knot.

“The fish on Santee Cooper like big plastics fished real slow,” Walters says. “I mean, I don’t just throw to a stump; I want to rub that stump, get hung up on it, and sort of shake it free, and then just let it soak for 15 seconds. Then you’ll just feel your line tighten up, and it’s game on.”

For his win, Walters received a Ranger Z117 with a 90-hp outboard and $6,100 in cash.

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