3 Tips For Maximizing Your Casting Distance

Casting distance can be an important aid in the hunt for more and bigger fish. Longer casts allow you to stay farther away from your intended target (and minimize your chance of spooking the fish), and they also allow certain baits, like crankbaits, to dive deeper and perform better.Although the largest factor in casting distance is certainly time on the water – think practice makes perfect - there are also a few things you can control that will help you get more distance with your casts.Here are the top three ways to maximize your casting distance:

1. Use The Right Rod/Reel

To maximize casting distance, you need to choose the proper rod, reel, and line. They all need to be perfectly in sync to get the most out of each product. Use too light of a rod and it won’t have the power to propel the bait a long distance. Too heavy of a rod is equally bad, as it won’t load properly and you’ll come up short. Pay attention to the weight rating on the rod – and use lures that fall into the approved range. Another way to get more distance is to make sure your reel’s spool is full. A full spool means more line will come off the spool each turn and give you proportionately longer casts. Lastly, ensure your reels have been cleaned and lubed, as friction in the bearings quickly eats away at casting distance.

2. Use Lighter Line

Remember this when spooling up – the same plug on the same rod and reel will cast farther with 12-pound test line than it will with 20, and so on. Don’t go so light you’ll risk breakoffs, but top anglers routinely fish diving plugs on 10 or 12-pound line to get maximum casting distance. Lighter line will also help your plugs attain steeper and deeper dive curves.

3. Don’t Throw As Hard

This rule applies most directly to baitcasting tackle, but for some reason many anglers think casting far needs to be a home run swing every time. In reality, casting as hard as possible is probably costing you distance due to imbalanced spool speed. Since the spool spins with a baitcaster, the longer and smoother it spins, the longer the cast will be. Instead of swinging for the fences, try for smoothness – it’ll pay off quickly with longer distances.