And so the curse continues

[basswipe]

Hooked into another over 30#er lastnight only to lose it at my feet again.

Someone please shoot me.

["uffah!!"]

Be glad to, BUT, you have to supply the bullet!!

[NIB]

OK give me a gun
I usually have no problem when a fish gets unbuttoned at my feet.I figure I got the better part of em.Now if the fish takes my lure thats another thing.It's probably one of the hardest parts of catching trophy bass.Ur line is short so any pressure or little runs are amplified.I use a long rod so when in the water on a rock u have to bend i back over ur head an do the unthinkable grab the line.I pretty much never liked touching the line if I don't have to.In the surf it can be even harder sometimes a good surf will add alot of tension,the waves receeding an all U gotta hold the rod softly an now when to bow to the fish.The best thing to do if u plan on keepin em is lettem play out.before u try to land em.Make ur drag lighter a few clicks when he gets close so he can take line for that last run.the hook holes are big ur hooks could be taxed.There's so many things that can an do go wrong.Hopefully u learned something from this.I am a firm believer u have to lose a bunch of good ones before it becomes second nature.Sometime's I give em no quarter an sometimes I let em go.There are no 2 situations that are alike.It's all part of the learning process.Not sure of ur cituation but hopefully this will help.
Ur hooking em so thats good go out tonite an do it again.
Good Luck

[Redsoxticket]

If you grap the line say braid and wrap around your hand like twice to prevent the line from moving(slipping), would it still cut your hand?

[afterhours]

better not get braid too close to norms wrist

[Mike P]

What NIB said--loosen up your drag when she's in close. If you're using braid--loosen it A LOT!!

Braid is a two edged sword---you feel more fish but you also drop more. Sometimes, you feel them too soon and your hooks don't get as good a bite on the jaw as they would if you delayed the hook-set or were using mono.

I love braid for jigging, but I've gone back to mono for most plugging. Or, I use a much softer rod if I want to plug with braid.

[basswipe]

20lb mono/50lb leader.

I did loosen up on the drag not doing so in the past has cost me fish.I couldn't really see how well the fish was hooked but when you play a fish for a solid 10 minutes or so you kinda assume its well hooked which in itself is a mistake.

Its frustrating because I've not really caught anything particularly large this year.It also has been quite some time since I've had bass on a plate.

Next time.

[striprman]

Sounds like I'm in good company.