GEORGETOWN, S.C. — Fishing is shrinking the world for Bassmaster Elite Series pro Scott Canterbury, who’s become somewhat of a jet-setter.
In his first trip to Europe, the 47-year-old from Odenville, Ala., helped Team USA win the Black Bass World Championship this past weekend. With travel delays in Amsterdam and a missed connection in Atlanta, Canterbury got home at 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. By 6 a.m., he was repacking and heading to South Carolina for the Yamaha Bassmaster Redfish Cup Championship presented by Skeeter Boats.
“It’s pretty neat,” the 2019 Bassmaster Angler of the Year said. “I was actually in Portugal two days ago bass fishing, and now I’m going to Georgetown to catch redfish.
“Six more hours of driving. I wish I was there yesterday.”
Teaming with fellow Elite and USA captain Scott Martin, Canterbury has competed in the international events since US Angling began a push to get bass fishing in the Olympics. While the anglers aren’t paid, Canterbury has enjoyed the travel, meeting passionate anglers from around the globe and winning medals.
“It’s been a great ride,” Canterbury said. “We went to South Africa and got silver. Scott and I won double gold in Mexico, and we won gold in the United States (Lake Murray). This was the first time I’ve ever been to Europe, so to win gold in Portugal was a really cool experience.”
After a slow first day, Martin and Canterbury came in with 17.93 pounds of largemouth bass on Lake Sabor. The U.S. tied with Germany in the points system and won the tiebreaker on overall weight.
“That lake is healthy, 8 years old,” Canterbury said. “The (largemouth) are just like ours, short and chunky. They said in Europe that catching a 5-, 6-pounder is a really good one. We had a 5 and a 4 1/2 that brought us back.
“It was probably the closest finish that’s ever been.”
Canterbury will team up with Florida redfish guide Krista Miller as one of the 10 two-person teams competing Oct. 27-29 for the Redfish Cup’s $75,000 first-place prize. Fellow Elites Justin Atkins, Drew Cook and Pat Schlapper will form all-star teams with redfish pros and the six other teams are top-tier redfish duos.
Bassmaster.com will air Redfish LIVE starting at 8 a.m. ET each day, and FS1 airs the broadcast weekend mornings.
Martin, who fished last year’s Redfish Cup, was incredulous when Canterbury told him he was paired with Miller.
“He was like, ‘No way! Krista Miller from Florida?’” Canterbury said. “He said that’s crazy. That’s his wife Suzanne’s best friend all through high school and college, and she was in their wedding. It’s a small world.”
While Canterbury knows his way around bass the world round, redfish are something relatively new.
“I’ve watched the redfishing just like I watch bass fishing,” he said. “If it’s on, I watch it.”
The 47-year-old from Odenville, Ala., has saltwater fished for grouper and snapper, and he’s only caught the occasional misplaced redfish chasing bass in places like the Suwanee River. Although he finished second at the 2019 Elite at Winyah Bay during his Bassmaster Angler of the Year season, Canterbury only passed by thousands of redfish as he ventured inland up the Cooper River.
“We’re not going up the Cooper,” he said.
Being from St. George Island, Miller told Canterbury she wasn’t well-versed in tidal fishing but had been trying drifts as well as other Florida techniques in her day and a half scouting before he arrived.
“She has never been there until this week, hasn’t really developed a plan yet,” Canterbury said. “We’ll just merge brains. It’s the first tournament she’s ever fished, but I imagine she catches a ton of redfish.
“The tournament aspect is going to be left up to me, how we actually handle our rotation, etc. But she knows more about redfishing than me.”
In the past two events out of Port Aransas, Texas, the Bassmaster anglers have been learned quickly from the redfish pros, and vice versa. Elite pro Chris Zaldain teamed up with Capt. Ryan Rickard of Tampa, Fla., to win the 2021 Redfish Cup before finishing second last year to Louisiana redfish pros Sean O’Connell and Eddie Adams, who are back to defend.
“I’ve brought all my bass fishing tackle,” Canterbury said. “I’m sure they’ll be some techniques I don’t know about we’ll be using, but I’m sure they’ll be some bass fishing I use.
“I’m going to try to do the bass style, swimbaits and ChatterBaits. If she finds something better, we’ll be in tune.”
Canterbury said he was excited to see what passions the redfish anglers hold, just as he has in meeting diehard bass anglers from around the globe at the Black Bass World Championship.
“It was such an honor to represent your country, and we’re not doing it for money,” he said. “It’s the love of the sport and the passion we have. I’ve met friends from other countries, South Africa, Spain and Italy. I’ve got to know these guys and they have the exact same passion we have.”
After this week, win, lose or draw, the world will become an even smaller place for Canterbury.
