Now that we are in the season when you can expect to get into some large smallmouth bass let’s look at a few of the refinements that can make the difference between a strike where you just roll the bass but don’t really hook him solidly and a bass you bring to hand.
1. Mash down the barbs on all hooks to assure a high percentage of hooked bass.
2. Sharpen your hooks frequently to get good hook penetration.
3. Check your fly and tippet knot every 15 minutes to be sure it’s strong.
4. When you get a strike set the hook firmly with a fast line hand strike while lifting the rod forcefully in order to transmit the power of the rod butt to the fly in order to penetrate the bass’ hard jaw.
5. Quickly recover all of the slack line and put the bass on the reel so you can control his strong runs.
6. Use a large landing net so you can easily lead your bass into it.
After short experience on the stream these steps will become automatic and you’ll do them without thinking about them.
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