Hey serious bass guys

Why don’t you use landing nets?

Never really thought about it before, but watching some bass master this am has me curious why it is what it is

I’m not a serious bass guy but when i bass fish, my line is pretty tough and high poundage. When I walleye fish, my line is super light so it’ll snap if I yank it out of the water enough times. but maybe there’s more to it…

If you can’t flip a bass into your rig the other guys laugh you off the circuit.

The bigguns they wrastle with along side the boat and I just sit there like grab a freaking net man, that fish could be like $10grand. Just curious how it came to be that way

It’s purely to look cool.
Kinda like how walleye guys do the overhead way to dramatic hook set.

My clients and I have landed a crazy amount of smallmouths the last 30 yrs….As a guide….I would guess 90% or better met the bottom of a net.

It’s bass fishing , gotta make it somewhat challenging .

The Bassmaster Elite Series rules do not allow nets. That’s why you’re not seeing nets.

RT wrote:

The Bassmaster Elite Series rules do not allow nets. That’s why you’re not seeing nets.

Gotcha.

Generally, most bass fisherman don’t net all that much though it seems.

RT is correct, the Bassmaster Elite series prohibits the use of landing nets. Most other circuits allow them.

As for flipping a bass in, it can be done if the bass isn’t too big and you’re using a bait caster. Can’t be done using a spinning setup. It’s also very risky if you’re using a lure with treble hooks. Bear in mind the gunnels still much lower on a bass boat than a standard boat so it’s easier.

Why does it matter? If you’re strictly C&R then does it really matter if you lose 1 or 2 at the boat? I have a rubber net in my boat strictly for the occasional northern and larger (20+) picture worthy bass. I can see using if a tournament allowed them, however not all do. But if you’re just out for a recreational day fishing does a guy need to net every 1 pound fish like you see with walleye?

I fish Mille lacs every weekend from opener til mid October last year and rarely netted a Walleye or a smallie, Since it was C&R anyway 99% of the fish never made it over the gunwale, just reached down and pulled out the hook and let em swim. I have even given up on pictures, since my wife said enough fish pics. Only exception I can think of was for Father/Daughter tourney I did.

It doesn’t really matter to me, was just curious.

If one wanted to argue for nets tho, regardless of the big fish, the pics, the lost hogs etc, it would be to promote care for the fish and yourself. Flopping against side of boat ain’t good for fish, trebles flying around aint good for you, and chucking the fish in boat can’t be too good for it either. Just saying

Deuces wrote:

It doesn’t really matter to me, was just curious.

If one wanted to argue for nets tho, regardless of the big fish, the pics, the lost hogs etc, it would be to promote care for the fish and yourself. Flopping against side of boat ain’t good for fish, trebles flying around aint good for you, and chucking the fish in boat can’t be too good for it either. Just saying

B.A.S.S. just called, they want your card back.

Deuces wrote:

It doesn’t really matter to me, was just curious.

If one wanted to argue for nets tho, regardless of the big fish, the pics, the lost hogs etc, it would be to promote care for the fish and yourself. Flopping against side of boat ain’t good for fish, trebles flying around aint good for you, and chucking the fish in boat can’t be too good for it either. Just saying

I agree dropping and swinging fish against the boat is not healthy for any fish, and I do my best to prevent any of that. However have you ever seen the injuries caused by most nets? Scratched eyes, ripped gills, injured scales, cut fins, etc… Which is the reason I use a rubber net as they are proven to show the least injury to a fish. Some people call rubber nets trampolines, that’s because they aren’t catching large enough fish to stretch them out.

There’s arguments on both sides of the net issue – which one is healthier for the fish.

The one technique that has become popular in recent years is playing the fish until it’s laying flat next to the boat, then scoop your hand underneath and bring aboard. The thought is this puts pressure against the fish’s swim bladder and they lay still. Maybe true but how many times does a smallie come back to life and embed a jerkbait in the fisherman’s hand? If I had to guess, ER visits are up a bit, especially with amateurs trying to master the technique.

No place in a bass boat to put/store a net without trippin’ on it.

Back when the rule was established with BASS, you didn’t see rubber nets or quality coated nets. I think it’s an outdated rule myself. But many fish in nets have scales ripped off and that can be very detrimental to fish. Is that arguable, yes. Additionally many tours don’t want the fish to hit the carpet either, which I agree with for C&E.
Personally, I love rubber webbed nets and easy to get cranks out of

guthook1 wrote:

No place in a bass boat to put/store a net without trippin’ on it.

Only boat manufacturer I’ve seen to figure out how to store a net for easy access is the Scabbord on BassCat boats…

munchy wrote:

Why does it matter? If you’re strictly C&R then does it really matter if you lose 1 or 2 at the boat?

I think Mr. Beads asked a fair question.

Because sometimes it does matter.

A few years back I had the honor of hosting a couple Viet Nam veterans at a TAV fishing event on Mille Lacs. It was their one and only chance and they wanted to target bass.

We didn’t get many that day, a few smaller one’s we easily swung in the boat. The couple better one’s caught I was taking no chances especially if you heard their excitement and also anxiety of losing the fish as they were bringing them in.

I slipped the net under them and the vets were “high-fiving”

The bass went back released with no harm.

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I will swing a Bass if using anything other than a treble hook. Trebles I tend to use a net.

Andy, thanks for helping the vets out. I’m sure they had fun.

munchy wrote:

Some people call rubber nets trampolines, that’s because they aren’t catching large enough fish to stretch them out.

My rubber net is definitely a trampoline. I stood in that thing and stretched it like crazy. I lost my best sauger and my son his best walleye due to that bouncey house. Still sticking with rubber but gonna go to a deeper basket this year.

Try flinging some big walleyes into the boat with a high end spinning rod and it wont take long before you have a two piece rod.

tangler wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>munchy wrote:</div>
Some people call rubber nets trampolines, that’s because they aren’t catching large enough fish to stretch them out.

My rubber net is definitely a trampoline. I stood in that thing and stretched it like crazy. I lost my best sauger and my son his best walleye due to that bouncey house. Still sticking with rubber but gonna go to a deeper basket this year.

Sounds like your hoop diameter is to big.

Mike W wrote:

Try flinging some big walleyes into the boat with a high end spinning rod and it wont take long before you have a two piece rod.

Me and my buddies got the biggest laugh in the world of all the walleye guys at red wing. 4 guys in a bathtub and as soon as one sets the hook instantly the giant salmon net is grabbed. Up comes the baby sauger and the net is still extended half the time for an 8″ fish. Meanwhile my buddy who has a knack for vertical jigging that puts him in the cream of the crop, but is a bass fisherman, boat flips anything up to 4 pounds. On a baby pole(spinning rod) w/10lb braid.

We pull out the net because of the “Ritual” and if someone yells for the net and they have something really small or a Bullhead it gives us something to kid about.

Man I love fishing!

I think it’s more fun without the net personally. Adds a little more challenge. I will not flip a larger bass in though. Bad for your poles, and probably bad for the fish as well. I’ll get down and lip/scoop it into the boat. I think the pro circuits have bass anglers accustomed to not landing bass in nets. It’s not wrong either way.

We do however have the net ready in tournaments if we have a big fish on. Just in case we see it isn’t hooked well. Then we definitely use the net.

In addition to what others have said, another big reason is because it’s so easy to reach down and lip a bass. Because of that I never net a largemouth, but do net smallmouth if I’m using baits with treble hooks to avoid getting one buried into my hand.

In my multi-species fishing league my partner is a walleye guy and I tend to flip or lip most of my bass rather than waiting for him to grab the net since it’s just easier for me, and I don’t think I’ve lost a single bass because of not using a net during league.

The dilemma for me are jerkbaits. A) if you don’t net the fish you have a higher risk of getting a hook in the hand with those small light sharp trebles flying everywhere. B) If you do net the fish, those light sharp trebles get unbelievably buried in the net. I had to cut 2 of them out last year during a tournament. Ruined my net…

FryDog62 wrote:

I had to cut 2 of them out last year during a tournament. Ruined my net…

Don’t you carry a heavy duty wire cutter in the boat?
I’d think you’d be happier cutting a treble than wrecking a net.