what's worse?

[Catt]

4 hours ago, geo g said:

It doesn't happen often, but it doesn't affect me much.  It's all part of the game.  Sometimes you're the bug, sometimes you're the windshield!  I know where she lives so I let it quiet down and then go back for more action.

 

Doesn't bother me at all

 

At least I know I was in the right place at the right time using the right presentation.

 

It bothers me more getting shunked!

[lo n slo]

it’s no secret that i’m a texas rig guy and losing fish, once hooked up, doesn’t happen all that much. but hook set break offs, especially with the fluoro, became a problem until i found the right combination of line size and knot, for me (emphasis on the “for me”). it was maddening!

 

now i don’t intend to turn this into a discussion on fluoro vs mono. they both have their positives and i caught plenty of fish on mono down through the years, but i love the fluoro for what i do. carry on

[roadwarrior]

Well, the good news is whenever you lose a fish it's always 2 lbs heavier!

 

[BassinCNY]

9 hours ago, Catt said:

 

Doesn't bother me at all

 

At least I know I was in the right place at the right time using the right presentation.

 

It bothers me more getting shunked!

I agree. It doesn't bother me at all to lose a fish. I look at it as a learning experience. Especially from a dialling in the tackle perspective. The exception is if I'm in the running for a tournament win. Then it really bothers me. If I'm middle of the pack it doesn't bother me nearly as much.

[deadadrift89]

      For me seeing a PB and then losing it can haunt you for a long time and I mean a looooong time??

      

[MickD]

I don't want to see it.  Then it can be any size I want it to be.  ?

[PhishLI]

I had two legit tanks shake off in right front of me within a week in early July. I got over that quickly, but convinced myself at the time that it was an omen and that would be it for me getting big ones after that. But it wasn't as I did get a few more. Having a fish break off with a hook/lure stuck in it's mouth really takes the shine off the experience for me. Pretty much ruins that day. It's a close second to killing a fish. Our lakes are small, like 20-60 acres, so it somehow seems worse to me.

[N Florida Mike]

It doesn’t bother me near as much if the fish jumps and throws the hook. I work hard to not let them jump in the first place though.

what bothers me the most is if I lose a big fish because of some stupid mistake, like the drag not being set just right, or knowing there’s a little Knick in the line and you should have retied.

[flyfisher]

Seeing it and losing it is way worse to me.  I was reaching down to grab a bass out of my kayak and it was big enough that I knew it was my PB.  It had a mouth that was big enough that i could easily fit both my fists in his mouth.  He had one treble hook in and a little shake and he swam away.  What made it more painful was the next week I heard rumors from a guy who lives on the lake that they shocked the lake for fish study stuff and they pulled out a double digit largemouth in the area I had him on.  I am 99% convinced it was the same fish I had on but I was never able to catch or see him again....

[schplurg]

I think I prefer to see it before it gets away. Sometimes a small fish feels big. That's probably where a lot of the "it was a lunker" stories come from.

 

I lost a maybe 28 inch catfish right next to shore. Was going for stripers. He rolled over in 1 foot of water just before my buddy could reach him. Devastated. Would have been my biggest fish to date.

 

But I'm glad I got to see it. I KNOW how big it was, no mystery. It's a bummer but it's also motivating to me.

[Spankey]

Great post. Like all of you I been handed the same scenarios. Takes me a while to get over it. I have to blame myself 7 ways to Sunday first. Have all the could-a, would-a, should-a’s play through my mind first. It’s what keeps you/me fishing. 

[PourMyOwn]

I lost a 6+ smallmouth when the belly hook came out of a torpedo. The screw that held the hook in was pulled out of the body of the lure, the threads were gone and everything. The bass slid out of my hand as I pulled her out of the water. That was particularly horrible...and it was a limited edition bait that is now useless.

[billmac]

Break offs are the worst, because then you have left a fish with your lure stuck in it.

[Columbia Craw]

SCORE

 

Doug 0  Fish 1

 

It happens

[Dogface]

On 1/13/2020 at 11:07 AM, Jermination said:

losing a big fish on a jump and spit, break off, or lose them and never see them?

 

 

Never seeing them!!!

 

I release just about everything so if I loose one at the boat after I got a decent look its no big deal. But I have had some big fish on that I never got a look at and they leave me wondering.  

[WRB]

Breaking a PB bass off after getting a good look at it is the worst experience and tends to stay with you a lifetime.

I broke off 2 potential record size LMB that were a few inches longer then my PB.

If they jump off that's fishing, breaking them off is on my nickle.

Tom

[A-Jay]

13 minutes ago, WRB said:

Breaking a PB bass off after getting a good look at it is the worst experience and tends to stay with you a lifetime.

I broke off 2 potential record size LMB that were a few inches longer then my PB.

If they jump off that's fishing, breaking them off is on my nickle.

Tom

Having read about what was happening at that time and in that area in bass fishing,

that must have been an amazing and inconceivably heartbreaking deal.

I can't even begin to imagine how that felt.

Thanks for sharing.

A-Jay

 

 

[WRB]

The 1st giant bass was Lower Otay during it's heyday and wrapped a nearby anchor rope. I knew the angler and he treid to net the bass but it broke off.

The 2nd was at lake Castiac where I caught my PB and this bass managed to make it over a rock ridge after being within 5' of the boat and got a very good ook at the bass and it still haunts me.

Tom

[Boomstick]

I honestly think it might be worse if you actually see them. I lost the biggest fish I ever hooked, I caught it right after a 30" pike and if I didn't see it, I would have thought it was a 40"+ pike, but I got a good look at the belly of the fish and it looked bass shaped. I have since to hook anything close to that, but on the other hand knowing I lost el mondo just makes me want to go back up there and try harder.

On 1/21/2020 at 4:35 PM, Dogface said:

Never seeing them!!!

 

I release just about everything so if I loose one at the boat after I got a decent look its no big deal. But I have had some big fish on that I never got a look at and they leave me wondering.  

Not like when you lose the biggest fish you ever hooked and didn't get to weigh or measure it!

[Mr. Aquarium]

Losing it after seeing it. I’ve lost some heartbreakers mostly bass m, big browns and steelhead fishing. I’ve lost PBs after seeing them. 

[SC53]

Breaking off probably bothers me more than anything because like Jay said, it’s probably on me.

But one fish comes to mind that got away and was a lure fail. I was fishing the Stick Marsh years ago throwing a golden eagle spinnerbait.  Hooked a giant on it. Got to see her a couple times when she surfaced. She came up the last time and was gone. Didn’t know what happened until I reeled in the bait.  The spinnerbait had broken in two and all I got back was the blades portion.

That one hurt.