I drop the rod and set straight up like im trying to break something as soon as I feel a tap.

If I even think it's a bite I swing for it. Hooksets Are Free (heard that one on here many years ago).

 

Not if you're fishing in a stump field  

 

Roger

Really good advice here folks. It depends on the circumstances

Generally the overhead hook set with a pause is the best way to get the set . But if you are trolling and get hit the modified overhead hook has worked for me

This is sweep the rod away from the bite and then up.

For some reason I have visions of hooksets all over the place....Cross their eyes hooksets, sweep hooksets , over the head hooks sets, slingshot hooksets , behind the head hooksets, between the legs hooksets, broken rod hooksets, underhanded hooksets, hooksets...  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!........

Not if you're fishing in a stump field

Roger

Yelp! Especially with braid!

Y'all ever set hook on a stump?

At my age that hurts!!!

When in doubt...I cross their eyes. Sometimes a fish, sometimes a stump. or log. I set the hook hard. I hate losing a fish to a wimpy hookset.

Never wait on nothing!

Drop the rod, reel the slack, & set the hook straight up like you're trying to break some thing!

My thoughts exactly!

Never thought to do a vertical hookset.. Imma try it. I fish with a lot of plastics, and have also had my fair share of yanking it from their mouth. Vertical hooksets with jigs also?

Never thought to do a vertical hookset.. Imma try it. I fish with a lot of plastics, and have also had my fair share of yanking it from their mouth. Vertical hooksets with jigs also?

Yes, especially with a jig.  The jig is what taught most people to set the hook vertically.  If you pull toward your collar bone, that's also fine, it avoids getting hit in the head  

I usually do a diagonal hookset with my plastics and jigs.. And i actually have a decent miss ratio so Imma have to train myself to try and start hooking vertically.

I usually do a diagonal hookset with my plastics and jigs.. And i actually have a decent miss ratio so Imma have to train myself to try and start hooking vertically.

Yup, you will start to get more hook-ups.  I just call it upping-your-odds.  It's like changing dull hooks or when you retie your line, you're not gonna know when it paid off, but you'll know when it didn't.  Add all of these little up-your-odds tricks and suddenly things fall in your favor.  In a tournament, I retie after every fish and often when fishing rocks or lumber. 

 

Good luck to you and post some piggies

Went out yesterday to work on the ol vertical hook set again.  Sheesh....the first dozen hook sets (this is no kidding) I missed.  I was beside myself.  Then after that it was bout 95% hookups.  They weren't huge fish 1 to 2 pounders but wow....was one of those I wasn't holdin my mouth right days.

Alright, heres my update for you guys:

Today I went out after work and fished a local neighborhood pond with nothing but my jig rod. It rained like crazy all day today until right as I got out of the truck, so that was great. I found a spot where water was rushing out of the drain feeding into the pond. Bass were busting shad all in the little cove where I was fishing. I caught four today, out of five hookups, so Im satisfied. I made myself set the hook vertically on every fish today to get in the habbit of doing this rather than my usual horizontal set. Pic included is of the two largest I cought today.

 

here is a video of several hook sets while fishing a T-Rig

Like the others are saying, you have to make sure you wait a few seconds before setting the hook. This took me a long time to train myself to not pull it right out of their mouths as soon as you feel a bite. I have the most success pulling the rod directly upwards with everything I have. I always taught to set the hook like its a world record bass on the other end. You do have to be careful though, watching your bait come flying right back at you with the hook out isn't the greatest feeling!

My uncle taught me to push your rod out then slowly reel in, when the fish starts to run with it, the pull up over the head..... after he taught me to do this my strike-to-catch ratio whent way up

I usually set to a ten o clock position with enough force to cause the fish to get a concussion...if the fish heads rihht at me i go to 12 o clock

Set it hard and high is what I was always told.