St. Croix RodsTriumph Salmon & Steelhead 2-Piece Spinning Rod, TRSS

I decided to treat myself for Christmas and bought, "the best rod on earth" paired with a Penn reel. I'm keeping the reel, it works as expected. The rod, however could be shorter by four inches on both the base and the tip. It is a beautiful dark blue rod with sealed rod guides. The rod tip is expertly installed- look at the picture. But the base is unwieldy to the point that it actually interferes with casting, and the rod end does not add anything to the fight. I caught a couple of trout on a freezing cold morning, where the water flicking off the line clogs up the rod tip in a ball of ice. Then you have to hold your ungloved hand on it to melt it for another cast. It was an ideal trout morning. I didn't catch any really big ones, but I found out all I needed to know... for the money, this is not a good rod. Guess I'll get another Ugly Stick. P.S. the sticker on the base disputes their advertising that says made in Wisconsin.

Only received 1/2 of the fishing rod