How to keep a bass from jumping? 2024

NJfishinGuy reply :

almost every bass ive ive hooked into lately has been a jumper, and ive lost to many of them in mid air even tho i try to keep tension on the line at all times, so what technique do you guys use to keep the bass in the water?

.ghoti. reply :

keep the rod tip as low as you can, pull off to one side to put some extra pressure in the fish to make it roll over, and, if that doesn't work, step on it's tail.

Bassassasin12 reply :

I like to get down low and reel while kneeling, as soon as I feel a fish coming up I get down and then you can still keep pressure on the fish while being low and also makes it easier to land them when they get up to the boat. But in general just keep your rod down and they won't jump too often on you, but every now and then you will get a fiesty guy that still insists on jumping, in that case just hope you got a good hookset on him.

Rattlinrogue reply :

As was said,keep a low rod tip,amd when she comes up to jump stick your rod tip down into the water.Stick it as deep as necessary to keep her head down.You'll lose a lot less fish.

guest reply :

What Rattlin said!!!!!!

But tell the truth everyonce in a while Dont you just luv it when the JUMP :

basser89 reply :

Yet another vote for the low rod tip!

If I'm bank fishing, I keep the rod tip no higher than my knees, lower if possible! As fluke and RR stated putting the rod tip down in the water works real well! I've had my 7'6" flippin stick down in the water all but to the reel. It's saved me several times on crankbaits and ratltraps too!

roadwarrior reply :

the_muddy_man,

I'm with you, but I ALWAYS want them to jump!

New Bass Man reply :

I find it extremely exciting when they jump! I do keep the rod tip low but I still like to see em' jump.

BD reply :

If I know I got in a good hook set, I let them jump too.

To keep them from jumping, stick your rod tip in the water and keep line tight.

NJfishinGuy reply :

ok thanks guys ill give it a try next time. i do love seeing them launch out of the water but at the same time if im gonna loose alot of them id rather see them out of the water when my thumb is on there lip hehe

Alpster reply :

How do you keep bass from jumping??

My daughter said to take away his jump rope sorry I coudn't resist.

Ronnie

Way2slow reply :

Thier jumping is why I fish for them. I want them to jump and try to coax them to the surface as far out as I can to make them jump.

Of cousre, if I loose one, no big deal, didn't cost me a thing in points or money so to answer your question, hold the rod down, even bury the tip in the water and crank like mad. If he's small enough you don't need to net him, when you get to the boat with him and start working him to the surface, as he clears the surface to jump, just keep him coming right on over into the boat. If you have a patner, have him have the net ready so as your swinging him in the boat, he has the net under him. That's when ounces matter, the rest of the time, enjoy their aerobatics.

guest reply :

all the right advice was given. But i'm with the crowd that loves the jumpers. Another difference between the tournament angler and recreational.

spotaholic reply :

Let me go against the tide. I don't think sticking the rod tip in the water works. Keeping it low yes but if you stick it in the water you loose what the rod tip is for. A shock absorber. With the water it stiffens the rod tip and I think you are more likely to have a fish throw the hook especially with trebles when you want that play in the tip. Just my thoughts.

Valascus reply :

I'm with BD on this one. If I know for a fact I got a good solid hookset, then I'll let 'em jump once or twice. But if it is a bigger fish or the hookset felt off or weak then that rod tip stays as low as I can get it. I would rather see the fish landed then jumping through the air.

Rattlinrogue reply :

When I stick my rod tip into the water,their head never gets clear of the surface to throw the hooks.

Tom Bass reply :

I love to see 'em jump. Even if they get loose, it's still a blast!

NJfishinGuy reply :

yeah like i said the jumpings sorta cool but id rather land fish than see them jump and get loose, im not a tournament angler recreational for now, i may start with some small local tourneys buti just wanna catch when i go out not loose thats all

guest reply :

I agree, a jumping bass is cool, and it's a little hard to interrupt such a sight, but if you are counting on getting it in the boat, the fun had better be ended immediately. All that advice above is great for fixing a jumping bass, pulling it over on its side, but there's something to do to prevent the jumping most of the time. It's called setting the drag properly. I believe bass jump because they become more aggressive in response to more pressure. If they feel less pressure pulling up they often choose to swim deep. This has to be managed well considering what kind of cover/structure is available. I'd rather the bass jump than wind up in tree tops or scrape line against boulders. Sometimes it's necessary to horse a bass out of tangle territory by forcing it to stay shallow, but that doesn't give a bass the run it needs to surface dance as easily as when swimming up from 8 feet down. It's a lot easier to yank the bass over and back into the water when kept shallow. Between setting the drag to let a bass play out line, and letting the properly matched rod work, you should have fewer jumping bass and more kept bass.

Jim

guest reply :

I think Avid hit the nail on the head.Some of us, me included fish for fun so every fish doesnt have to get to the boat. Me and the other 1/2 of 2 mooks in a boat have our own category we count FISH THAT GOT MOST OF THE WAY TO THE BOAT 8-)

FreddoB reply :

Hey all -

I know this is VERY old post but to the point. I thought I was having hook setting issues. But this past Monday I had a monster LM jump and throw my bait. This EASILY was a PB for me (beating my 3-4 lb). I found that bass jumping and tossing my bait was a pattern and I'm new to targeting LM and this now makes more sense than so many bad hook sets. So it appears from my research that I'll be trying to keep the pigs from jumping until I weigh them and then release them! The smaller ones can JUMP all they want, I think it's fun too!

Thanks to all that shared here for us newbs to glean from!

Best - Freddo

TOXIC reply :

Here's another angle that after reading the old thread no one touched on.....Why do you think the pro's "water ski" their fish across the surface? There's a couple of reasons....They want the fish in the boat asap to minimize the risk of loosing it. Too much "Bill Dance" (what we call it when you play a fish too long) will elongate the penetration point of the hook and if it gets large enough, the hook will be easier to throw. Also, a fish that jumps gets leverage on the lure making it more apt to be thrown, so if you muscle them to the top and skate them along, they may splash but they won't get the leverage to go airborne and risk throwing the lure.

The Patriot reply :

You can tell when they're about to jump. When they're about to jump, they're moving either straight up, toward you, or to the side a bit. I've never seen a fish jump while pulling away from you. So what I do, is when I see or feel them coming to the surface, I reel faster and pull the rod back with the tip low to keep enough pressure on them. And I pull it back hard. By doing this, if the fish still jumps, when hit it does rather than being able to flop around and throw the hook, it just gets pull toward me at the surface of the water. Using a high speed reel helps in this because I really put some crank on it and get that line in and keep it tight. If you're not keeping up with the slack just by reeling, keep pulling. Take a step back if you need to or turn in to the pull. This has greatly decreased the amount of fish I've lost from a spit out. It still happens some times but I chalk it up to user error and a poor hook set. I dont fish many treble hooks so this feedback comes from mostly buzzbait and single hook soft plastic use.

I wish the pickerel would throw my hook my often. I hate those things.

NHBull reply :

Another surfaces from the bowels of the forum........I like the little ones to go airborne, but if it might be a personal best I lay down on the deck to keep everything as low as possible.

I have been known to have my hands in the water. ?

Brayberry reply :

Years ago in Bassmaster magazine, they were interviewing a pro, and this question came up. His response was he always wore a hat while fishing and when he could feel the fish swimming up to jump, he'd toss his hat into the water where the fish was trying to surface. This would scare the bass, and keep him from jumping, then after landing the bass he'd retrieve his floating hat and keep fishing. I've done this trick many times and it's been 100% successful.

FreddoB reply :

On 6/16/2017 at 10:30 AM, Brayberry said:

Years ago in Bassmaster magazine, they were interviewing a pro, and this question came up. His response was he always wore a hat while fishing and when he could feel the fish swimming up to jump, he'd toss his hat into the water where the fish was trying to surface. This would scare the bass, and keep him from jumping, then after landing the bass he'd retrieve his floating hat and keep fishing. I've done this trick many times and it's been 100% successful.

*Yikes* : I don't wear hats (i.e., I don't prefer to). I'll need another plan I suppose.

Thanks "ALL" for your replies. They are all helpful and insightful. It's great getting info from the experienced.

Best regards - Freddo

bostonsox2904 reply :

On 6/15/2017 at 9:31 PM, The Patriot said:

I've never seen a fish jump while pulling away from you.

That's because of your drag. It's hard for them to pull drag and go airborne heading away from you. I bet if you had the drag set really light, you'd see bass jumping while running away from you.

the reel ess reply :

Don't do what Bill Dance does. He wants you to see them flopping beside the boat until tired out. It takes some time, but you just counter what the fish does. If he wants to jump, lower your tip in the opposite direction of him. If he goes left, you go right. He goes right, you go left keeping pressure. Only get your rod tip up if he's just going deeper.

The Patriot reply :

On 6/16/2017 at 11:49 PM, bostonsox2904 said:

That's because of your drag. It's hard for them to pull drag and go airborne heading away from you. I bet if you had the drag set really light, you'd see bass jumping while running away from you.

Probably. My point in that was about the tension on the fish. If hes jumping, add tension.

Willerman reply :

I'd suggest switching species. White bass can't jump.

Doelman reply :

Maybe I'm in the minority but I love it when they jump, I also fish with light tackle so maybe I'm one of those anglers that's more about the experience of fishing than actually bringing fish into the boat. Different if it's a tournament, or if you're food fishing, or if it's a big one you want to get some pictures of. Otherwise, the higher they fly the better!

long island basser reply :

The more they jump and the higher they jump the happier I am. Thank you.

Gundog reply :

This resurrected thread is timely. I just had a day on the water where every fish I hooked with a spinner bait jumped and threw the hook. 10 bass in all never made it to my thumb. Caught 5 on a football head jig with a twin tailed grub. Didn't have a problem landing them and they jumped too. Normally I "ski" them to the boat, today I didn't and lost them. That'll teach me to play Bill Dance.

RoLo reply :

"How to keep a bass from jumping".

In truth you can't, but you can reduce the odds.

The first rule of the road is to hold the rod-tip low. Nonetheless, on more than one occasion

I've had the rod dunked almost to the reel, only to watch a jumping bass at POV.

Another approach depends on at least a med-hvy rod and perfect timing.

Allow the bass to jump, but the instant her lips emerge, yank down fast and hard!

If your timing is perfect, the odds are good that you'll abort the jump (like tilting a pinball machine).

A third and typically the most effective way to prevent a jump,

is to skate the bass briskly across the surface. I should add however. that it doesn't work so well

with bass over 7 pounds

Roger

Bucky205 reply :

On 9/6/2006 at 12:46 AM, New Bass Man said:

I find it extremely exciting when they jump! I do keep the rod tip low but I still like to see em' jump.

Blowing up on a topwater bait is really cool also.

Koz reply :

A few weeks ago I lost a 5-6 pound jumper when it spit a 2" swim bait. It was disheartening and memorable at the same time. I was bank fishing in the evening and there was a beautiful orange-red sunset as the backdrop. The fish was probably 60 feet away when it breached fully out of the water so all that I saw was the dark outline of the fish and the splash against the sunset. When it happened my first thought was, "Wow! This would be a really cool picture or painting."

And then the fish was gone...

FreddoB reply :

I'm learning too but I can offer you keep the rod tip down (close to the water) and force the fish to roll over; NEVER slacken the line. Here's the hard part if you are any part as "green" as I am while fighting these "jumpers".... WE'RE EXCITED! Make it a point to concentrate on the "fight" after the hookset. My son and I were out on our local lake and the bass were biting well (wacky rigs and jigs/trailers). This gave me lots of opportunities to "learn" to fight them. But as I've been told here in the forum, we'll still loose some. I don't get them "all" in the boat and doubt I ever will but more will make it in with time. Time and experience will help. For me, realizing I needed to "think" about how to fight these fish is as important as learning new baits and techniques to get them to bite. It's all part of the passion of an angler. When I was learning to fly fish, setting the hook in a trout was a new lesson in science and physics for me...go figure!

Djman72 reply :

If the fish is running left near the surface, quickly change the pressure to the right and vice versa. Keeping the rod tip low helps too. A lot of times, it doesn't matter too much. If i had a hook in my mouth attached to a line you bet i'd be going crazy to get off it too.

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