| When
fishing with artificial lures that you cast out and then reel steadily
back to the boat near the surface — swimbaits, spoons or lightweight
metal jigs, for example — always point your rod at the lure while
retrieving it. If you hold your rod tip high or off to one side, the rod bends when a fish bites. With the rod pointed at the lure, though, there's less "give" and the hook is more likely to find purchase. Also, if your rod is already raised above the horizontal, you've got less room to swing back and set the hook. You should never swing past vertical when setting the hook, so if you start your swing at say 45 degrees, you've only got 45 degrees left to swing and thus can't "pick up" as much line as you can if you start your swing from the horizontal or below. |