I live on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and a lot of fish like Striped Bass and Speckled Trout move shallow this time a year. I was looking for a new spinning rod to bomb cast little 3 inch paddle tails from my kayak in the shallows but not so long I couldn’t skip underneath shady docks. I’ve never owned an Abu Garcia product but when I saw these were on sale I decided to pull the trigger, and I’m very pleased with it. I love the guides and balance of the rod, and especially how comfortable the reel seat is. I put a 2500 Fuego and 10 pound braid and I am thrilled with how the setup performs, I have been beating the stripers up with this thing. I am definitely coming back to buy more, most likely will be grabbing the swim jig rod next. For $99 this is an unbeatable value.