First Cast Curse

[Tidalist]

To me, the first cast curse is when I break out the conventional gear in March for a maiden run, and end up with a nice rat's nest to start off the day right!

[Joe]

I did not read the article yet. But I've always found that the first cast is the highest percentage cast you'll make. The longer the time between presentations, the less finicky the fish. It's why you so often hear people say "it started off as good night, we had action right away." It's also why trying several spots in a night is often a good strategy.

But the first cast is also when things are most likely to go wrong with your tackle. More fish are lost on the first cast due to problems that could have been circumvented with better preparation. It's important to be technically and mentally prepared. Too many people are surprised at a first cast hit. They cast, then set their drag or look at the reel to make sure everything is working or make a couple of casts then re-tie thier knots, etc, etc.

[fishsmith]

That's why it alway good to use someone elses gear

[MarshCappa]

I've never had the 1st cast snap off but I've caught plenty of fish on the 1st cast and nothing after that. It is a curse that keeps you at a particular spot for maybe a little longer than you should have. My biggest problem is knowing when to stop casting, just ask my wife!

[Rockport24]

Joe, good thing you replied to this thread because you are in one of the pics that accompanies the article and named in the caption.

I think it is because the first cast is so high percentage, as Joe pointed out, that the first cast curse is actually a real thing. I know it's incorrect to draw behaviorial comparisons to humans, but if I saw one of my buddies get yanked out of the water, I would get the hell out of there!

[Mike P]

IMO it's usually because a single fish is holding on that one piece of structure you made your cast to. I've had situations where I had that hit on the first cast, missed it because my brain wasn't fully engaged yet, made the next cast and had the same fish hit in the exact same spot--and usually, that second time, I'm ready for it Then, it's a question of whether it was a single fish lurking there, and whether another fish will eventually take up the spot.

[Finaddict]

Originally Posted by Mike P

IMO it's usually because a single fish is holding on that one piece of structure you made your cast to. I've had situations where I had that hit on the first cast, missed it because my brain wasn't fully engaged yet, made the next cast and had the same fish hit in the exact same spot--and usually, that second time, I'm ready for it Then, it's a question of whether it was a single fish lurking there, and whether another fish will eventually take up the spot.

Yeah Mike P. makes the most sense on this topic IMO ... don't waste your time falling for that cursed garbage ... just move on to another spot or change up your tactics if what you are doing is not working ... not every spot holds a big group of fish all the time ...