playing fish

I have been struggling with bringing in the fish. ! i have lost 6 bass one that was 20+ inches and 2 others that would have been keepers in two days of fishing.this is alittle frustrating to lose 3 out of 6 keepers. I know they were good solid hook sets. Hooks ups haven’t been a problom this year thankfully! now i am just having trouble playing the fish. I started the day off crappy catching a catfish on the first cast of the morning. then i picked up two smallies (no probloms) then the trouble started I lost a largie that would have gone 12 in. Then i lost one that would have gone 15-16 . I picked up a northern(no problom)went 26in. Picked up a decent largemouth 15in. Then lost a smallie that was a dink. kind of frustrating! but like i said all good hook set i have just lost them when i go to lip em’. monday was great i got out in the boat caught 14 bass 7 keepers. But had some probloms again getting fish in the boat! I lost on that was a dink. Lost one that would have gone15-16 in. and lost a pig. any help would be greatly appriciated. I am happy to have all the fish that i have goten but the 3 keepers that i lost can make a big differance in a tournament situation! any help is greatly appricitaed thanks

what are u losing them on? switch to something w/ owner hooks

Some basic suggestions:

1) Make sure your hooks are sharp. I personally think the majority of fish hook themselves and sharp hooks help that a lot.

2) Pay attention to where your rod is pointed. It’s like a rifle, it has to be pointed at the target.

3) Pay attention to slack in the line. Setting the hook on a slack line doesn’t work very well. Sometimes you have to crank down on the fish and then set the hook.

4) What presentation were you using? There are situations where you have to have nerves of steel and wait a second or two before setting the hook, like with topwaters.

5) Sometimes you just can’t stick them. It happens! I’ve had days when I literally stuck 20 Bass in a row just like a machine. The next time out I lose 4 out of the first 5 fish. Frustrating yes but sometimes they just don’t hit it very well and don’t get hooked.

Hang in there, it will get better. You’ve found some quality fish and figured out what they’ll hit and that’s 99% of the job. Well done!

Rootski

I agree with Root. Keep swining and stay on fish. The rest will come. Most of it is feel and experience. The rest is luck! I have had the same experiences. One day everything gets to the boat. The next day you can’t find you a$$ with both hands.

Good luck and have fun.

one thing i will say is don’t waste your time trying to lip the fish if its 15-16 inches. I swing them in right away, keeping the line tight. When you go to lip them, its harder to keep the line tight and I have lost fish doing this. Another important thing is to keep your rod tip down and don’t let them get air. Take your time with a big fish and let him go where he wants. Some people might disagree with me about lipping the fish, but i’ll swing a 20 incher aboard if i have to. I’ve done it many many times from shore and in the boat with 4+ lbers.