How to Land a Fish

The bite is just the beginning. Plenty of anglers feel a fish, get excited, and then lose it halfway to the bank. Hooking, fighting and landing a fish is a sequence of skills. This guide follows the Missouri Department of Conservation’s fishing tips, NOAA Fisheries’ catch-and-release best practices and South Carolina DNR’s notes on circle hooks.

Step 1: Detecting the bite

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) notes that fish may hit ferociously, tentatively or anywhere in between, so bites are hard to predict:

• A bobber may jiggle, plunge or skate across the water; if the fish swims upward with the bait, a stick bobber may lie flat or float higher.
• Bottom fishing: the rod tip may plunge or quiver, or the line may suddenly go slack.
• Holding the rod: you may feel a tap, a tug or a pull, or the line may go slack.

Step 2: Setting the hook

The standard hookset

MDC’s advice: when you suspect a bite, reel up any loose line and drive the hook home with a powerful upward sweep of the rod. Setting the hook with slack or a loop in the line usually won’t drive the hook in and will probably make the fish drop the bait. If your drag is set correctly, you can set the hook firmly: the stretch in the line, the drag and the bend of the rod absorb much of the shock.

Circle hooks: don’t jerk

South Carolina DNR explains that with a circle hook, instead of setting the hook by jerking the rod, you apply steady pressure and bring the line in slowly but steadily; if you jerk, the hook will often pull out of the fish’s mouth. Its research found that non-offset circle hooks hooked red drum in the lip over 90 percent of the time, and that more fish were released alive than with J-hooks. NOAA Fisheries lists circle hooks among the gear that can increase survival and make hook removal easier.

Step 3: Fighting the fish

MDC’s advice for the fight:

• Keep the rod up high, so your arms and the bend of the rod absorb some of the fish’s power.
• Let the fish run, taking line off the reel.
• Pump the fish in: recover line by lifting the rod, then lowering the rod tip as you reel, pumping the fish closer.
• Ease the drag near the end: a fish’s last-moment struggles can surprise you, so when playing a large fish, loosen the drag slightly as it gets close.

Slack line and a locked drag are the classic ways to lose a fish; set your drag before you start fishing.

Step 4: Landing the fish

Using a net

MDC: put the net in the water and pull the fish toward it; when the fish is over the bag, lift the net firmly and quickly. NOAA Fisheries recommends a wet, soft knotless mesh or rubber net, which does less damage to a fish’s eyes, fins, scales and protective slime.

Landing by hand

MDC: if you have no net, play the fish until it is tired and cradle it in your hand. It also gives species-by-species advice:

• Bass, crappie and small catfish can be held safely by putting your thumb in the mouth and pinching the lower lip. MDC notes that black bass, crappie, carp, suckers and catfish can be grasped and lifted by the lower lip, which, it says, tends to paralyse them. This works well on a largemouth bass.
• Walleye, gar and large trout have sharp teeth that can cut you if you lip them; grip them around the back of the head, above the gills. That includes the walleye; a northern pike is also better handled with a net.
• Catfish carry a mild but painful venom in the spines at the front of the pectoral and dorsal fins; hold them from the underside, with your fingers firmly beneath the pectoral spines.
• White bass and stripers have sharp edges on their gill plates.
• Sunfish, bass and walleye raise rigid fins when threatened; slide your hand down over the fins of small fish, and grasp larger fish over the back of the head.
• Use hemostats or needle-nose pliers to remove hooks, and keep your hands away from a flopping fish so its hooks don’t end up in you.

If you’re releasing it

NOAA Fisheries: dehook in the water whenever possible, keep air exposure under 60 seconds, handle the fish only with wet hands and as little as possible, and support its weight along the length of its body; never suspend a fish you are releasing by the lip or mouth. Revive a sluggish fish by facing it into the current until it swims away on its own. Our catch and release guide covers more.

Common reasons fish get away

• Slack line when setting the hook (MDC).
• Jerking a circle hook instead of reeling steadily (South Carolina DNR).
• No give at the end - loosen the drag slightly as a large fish nears the net (MDC).
• Holding the rod low instead of high, so the rod can’t absorb the fish’s power (MDC).
• A bad knot or a dull hook - check both before you fish.

Conclusion

Detect the bite, set the hook firmly on a tight line (or reel steadily with a circle hook), fight the fish with the rod high and the drag doing its job, and land it with a net or a safe grip. If it’s going back, keep it wet and in the water as much as you can.

Sources

• Missouri Department of Conservation, Fishing tips. Read 28 October 2026.
• NOAA Fisheries, Catch and Release Best Practices. Read 28 October 2026.
• South Carolina DNR, Marine Resources Research Institute, Circle hooks for red drum. Read 28 October 2026.

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