How America's best bass anglers adjust drag systems based on baits and conditions
Losing a bass is a real drag. Unfortunately, it always happens when you forget to properly set the reel drag.
Every fishing situation requires a different method for landing a bass as it relates to drag settings. What it takes to put a bass in the boat on light line and a finesse-type bait, for example, will not work for heavy line and a big jig. Thus, professional anglers carefully manipulate the amount of line they're willing to surrender to a fish once it's hooked.
And properly setting the drag system on a fishing reel is a highly subjective factor in bass fishing. Some BASS veterans never trust the drag systems on their baitcasting reels and depend solely on manual manipulation with the thumb to release line to a surging bass. Others set their reel drags according to the lures and type of cover they're fishing.
Here's a quick look at how some well-known anglers adjust their reels based on the lures they're throwing.
Jigs: Because former Classic champion Denny Brauer usually pitches and flips jigs on 25-pound-test line, his objective is to quickly haul a bass out of heavy cover. There's nothing subtle about Brauer's approach. "You really need to have your drag locked down when pitching and flipping because you need to move that fish out of the cover," he advised. "So, I totally lock it as tight as I can turn it by hand."
Tube baits: Light-line expert Dion Hibdon adjusts his spinning reel's drag system based on the type of water he's targeting. "If I'm in open water, I keep it pretty loose. But if I'm around any type of cover, I keep it really tight, and I'll back reel," explained Hibdon. "I want the fish to come to me the first 2 or 3 feet, so I keep the drag pretty tight, even on a spinning reel." He advises other anglers to become familiar with the location of their reel's anti-reverse button if they want to back reel after hooking a fish. He sets his drag by bending his rod as he pulls line through it rather than stripping the monofilament straight off the reel. In open water situations, Hibdon usually has his drag adjusted to where a surging bass can pull out about a foot of line at a time.
Stickbaits: Stacey King will adjust his drag while fighting a fish. "A lot of times I like to have my drag tight enough so that it doesn't slip when I set the hook. But then if I feel like I've hooked a quality fish and it's making a surge, I can loosen the star drag or thumb the spool to let it go." The Missouri pro has also discovered that a hard-charging smallmouth requires more line slippage than a largemouth of comparable size. "A big smallmouth will run a long ways (up to 15 feet), whereas a largemouth just makes a 5- or 6-foot surge." Therefore, when King enters "big bass" territory, he wants his drag set relatively loose to prevent a heavyweight from straightening out the lure's light wire hooks.
Spinnerbaits and buzzbaits: Although he throws these lures on Berkley XT 20-pound test, Ken Cook still wants his drag to steadily release line. "Over the years, I've learned that setting the drag is just a matter of 'feel' for me. Until you develop that, the best way to do it is to tie your line to a tree or the bumper of a truck, get back 20 or 30 feet and load your rod up as heavy as you can pull to where the drag slips," said the former Classic champ from Oklahoma. Cook recommends setting the control so that 1 to 2 feet of line slips from the spool on a steady pull.
Topwater baits: "I like to be able to set my drag so when a 3- or 4-pound fish loads up on the bait, it will strip a little bit," said topwater guru Zell Rowland of Texas. "That way, I'm not pulling the hooks out of the fish." Rowland said that approximately 5 to 8 inches of line will strip off his baitcasting reel when his drag is properly adjusted before a hard surface strike.
Plastic worms: BASS veteran Tommy Martin sets his drag as tight as possible when fishing soft plastics on heavy line in thick cover. "When you're worm fishing and have that drag too loose, if you set the hook on a good fish that's down 10 to 15 feet deep in a brushpile, that drag slips and you can't get the hook in that fish," warned Martin. The noted Texas pro will loosen the drag if he's fishing plastic worms on light line for bedding fish. In this scenario, he wants 3 to 4 inches of line to slip off his reel when a hefty fish takes the initial run.
Crankbaits: Legendary crankbait king and four time world champion Rick Clunn never completely trusts a reel's drag system when money is on the line, so he tightens down the handle and often "free spools" a fighting fish. "Even as sophisticated as drag systems are today, they're still not intelligent," explained Clunn, who relies on his thumb to control line release. "No two fish are going to exert the same amount of energy on the drag even if they are the same size fish. So, the only thing intelligent enough to know that, is your own brain and your thumb. Besides, bass are not marlins, so they are not going to burn your thumb off."
Carolina rigs: "With a 3-foot leader, a lot of times you don't know where a lot of that leader is when you start to set the hook. So, you don't want any drag slippage at all on the hook set," said Georgia pro Tom Mann Jr., who's considered one of the best with a Carolina-style rig on the tournament trail. Thus, Mann recommends that other anglers keep the baitcasting reel's spool locked down tight while making presentations. Then, after the initial strike occurs, he will carefully "back off" the drag during the fight if conditions warrant it.