The Victory is a very solid rod! I actually like the feel/balance of the MH & H Victory better than the Avids & Legend Tournament series... It is a different rod for St.Croix in that a MH fishes like a Loomis 3 power- not a 3.5-4 like the Legends and Avids do. IMO the Victory has the better blank and Avid has better guides... handle is personal preference-both are good. I prefer the Victory, but you can't go wrong with either.