While some people visit the Lake Greenwood area for the nightlife on the shoreline, Brian McDade from the city of Greenwood prefers the nightlife on the lower end of the lake. He’s one of a number of local anglers who regularly fish night bass tournaments there.
“We have two local club tournaments during the summer: Wednesday and Saturday,” he said. “Both are out of The 45 (Landing) at the US 221/SC 72 bridge.”
At night, McDade targets brushpiles in deeper water, which explains his preference for the lower end of the lake.
“The water is deeper, it’s clearer and the thermocline will set up down the lake better as it gets hotter,” he said. “The thermocline steers the baitfish — the shad — and that is the key to catching big bass, keeping up with (where) the baitfish are.”
Although bass can be caught at night all over the lake, McDade believes the lower end consistently produces bigger fish, though maybe not the numbers.
“You can catch more 3- to 5-pound bass in the rivers, but the depth is not there, the ledges are not as deep and that goes back to the baitfish situation,” McDade said. “I’d rather fish a brush pile in 40 feet of water if bass are holding at 18 feet than one that’s in 20 to 25 feet of water.”
McDade won’t argue that Greenwood bass get pounded a lot by tournament anglers and see about every combination of shaky head, drop-shot and Carolina rig common in most anglers’ tackle boxes.
“It’s no secret to fish big baits for big fish, but these fish get pounded, and they see the same thing over and over,” he said. “I have learned that the way to catch these educated fish is to throw baits that a lot of other anglers never think about throwing.”
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