If you follow most tournaments rules down to the exact letter of the law, foul hooked bass do not count.  Does this apply to any bass who's hook is on the outside of the mouth? I would think so.  Thoughts...

Unless it's caught off a bed and hooked outside the mouth, or intentionally snagged, they're legal catches in the tournaments I've fished. Sometimes in the spring when I'm fishing jerkbaits, probably close to half of them are hooked outside the mouth somewhere. A lot of times they'll have a hook in the mouth and another one or two down the sides and the one in the mouth pulls out so I only have them in the side. So then that fish doesn't count anymore right? A lot of fish get foul hooked on spooks too despite the fact they were obviously trying to eat them. 

Here in Michigan, any fish not hooked inside the mouth, is considered foul hooked and must be immediately returned to the water. B.A.S.S. tournament director Tripp Weldon pointed that out last summer when the elites were in St. Clair. According to him rules like that were needed in the dark ages and should not be on the books anymore. Several pros also complained about the rule during the tournament.

It depends on the state. In PA and MD, must be hooked inside the mouth. 

I dont know what Missouris law is .I catch several fish a year on a texas rig hooked underneath the mouth .I have never figured out why . Are they trying to pin the lure to the bottom ?

27 minutes ago, scaleface said:

I dont know what Missouris law is .I catch several fish a year on a texas rig hooked underneath the mouth .I have never figured out why . Are they trying to pin the lure to the bottom ?

I've always assumed those fish just had the tail of the bait but they either turned, or grabbed it on a slack line so when I lifted the bait wrapped under their chin and ended up getting hooked under their mouth. 

Everywhere I have fished tournaments snagging is not legal, but its for sight fishing where it can be done on purpose which is not sporting. If you are not sight fishing a foul-hooked fish is a legal catch. Snagging and foul-hooked are two completely different things.

On 1/3/2016 at 8:48 AM, Bluebasser86 said:

I've always assumed those fish just had the tail of the bait but they either turned, or grabbed it on a slack line so when I lifted the bait wrapped under their chin and ended up getting hooked under their mouth. 

I'm still trying to figure out how I was hooking trout in the belly and gill plate while drifting artificial salmon eggs. My brother caught an 18" wild brown drifting an egg in the bottom of a deep, slow pool. Hook was right in his belly