A lot of people wonder what hooks are used by the top specialists in competitions like the Surfcasting World Cup and the top European Surfcasting leagues.
This is of course a hard question, but the best probable answer is that top fisherman use the best hooks from each one of his own sponsor brand provides. And this answer of course, doesn't help you much.
Like in every sport there are also some trends that come and go that are launched by top experts that later everyone tends to copy. There is also some rules of thumb that everyone can apply to almost any brand on the market.
- Hooks with ring eye are better than others in surfaces - Why? Because worms slide better from needle to hook and then to line through the ring rather than the knot tie on other hooks. This addresses better baiting and better bait presentation. Also, during competition making a Palomar knot is faster than making any other knot, specially under rough conditions. Time matters.
- Use hooks of the color that matches better the bait. - White hooks for sardine, black hooks for worms, flat fish tend to be attracted by red. We want to disguise well the hook if needed, we want to use attractor properties if needed.
- Long shank hooks are better for fish with sharp teeth, thus diminishing the number of possible losses.
This year my rigs will be based on Sasame Wormer and Gamakatsu F31 brand hooks. The first are awesome hooks used by most fisherman of Division One and the latter is also very good having longer shanks and should be used accordingly.
