Hey Jared,
I’m glad to see that you still think that a fortune is not needed to be spent. Value is value and top quality is top quality. Often, a person gets what they pay for, but just as often, a person ends up paying more than is really needed.
Some years ago, Gary Morales (of Shasta Tackle) used to recommend the Ugly Sticks and Shakespeare Intrepids (the forerunner to the Agility rods - I think). That was probably before he got into designing and selling his own, so, I don’t know if he would still be recommending those two rods. I have both and would recommend either for that application as well.