Saw something about this in another thread and this newbie was wondering everyone's opinion. Would you rather have a more expensive rod and an average reel or vice versa? Thanks.

Depends on the situation.

To me, the rod is most important with contact baits (jigs, soft plastics, drop shot/shakey, etc).

Spinnerbaits, I don't really care as long as I am not backlashing all day.

  I believe the rod is really more important. Not to say you can put a $20 reel on a $300 rod and it work well. I usually like to spend twice on the rod as I do on a reel. a Steez reel will not do any good if you cannot feel the bite to begin with. A Citica/Sahara on a say a good $150ish rod will have the best of both worlds. 

Rods are probably more important for "bottom contact"

fishing, but reels make fishing fun!

8-)

i would rather have an average rod and a good reel. eventually youll learn the difference of feel of an average rod to a high end rod, i cant say that about the reel. plus because the reel is made with moving parts and such, id rather that be quality...

I agree on the moving parts comment.  Therefore I say reel by a nose.

Rod.

ROD, without a doubt !  The rod supplies the casting distance, gives the backbone to handle larger fish and furnishes the sensitivity.

On a side note I purchased a new rod last week 

( caught a 30# Jack with an old reel I had).  Went into Bass Pro this morning to buy a new reel for it and got my ego stroked even more when the staff was ooing an ahing over this rod.  Tsunami airwave inshore split handle  8' med 8/17 rod and light as a feather with a solid backbone.

The rod for sure.  I fish mostly texas rigged and weightless plastics so therefore "feel" is very important. 

Rod.

Well Put Road Warrior  ;D 

Rod by a mile. First you have to feel the "tap", then you need a good rod to set the hook, then last on the chain is the reel. You can look at the reel two different ways. Way #1, it's there to winch the fish in. Way #2, it's the funest part of the outfit, it's neat to shop for, it has moving parts, and it looks cool on that expensive rod you just bought.

as long as theyre both good quality, i dont mind fishing a setup where either is more expensive than the other.

ill pair my avid with a core

ill pair my glx with curado

that being said, i tend to spend more on rods as i do alot of bottom bait fishing.

Bass fishing professional Skeet Reese:  Revo Skeet Reese model $229.99, W & M Tessara $89.99,  royalty checks: priceless

I'd have to say the rod is more important to me.  My rods all cost more than my reels.  I just couldn't see myself being as comfortable or as effective with a $300 reel on a $150 rod as I would be with a $150 reel on a $300 rod.

I have to say the REEL, I use braid 100%, braid will make any ROD have good feel, casting and the power to bring in a deep driving cranks is the ticket for me.

Rod by a long shot. It doesn't matter how smooth the reel is, or how long of a cast it makes. If you don't feel the bites you might as well be casting in the parking lot, because you aren't going to catch the fish.

I have heard all of the woes and warnings about getting cheap bait casters because they will be torture. I learned to throw a bait caster on a $20 wally world special. Even now, I think the "best" bait caster I own is a Quantum PT. Am I missing out on smoothness and casting distance? Maybe.... but I would sacrifice that for feeling the bites and getting the fish in the boat any day of the week.

IMHO a sensitive rod is a necessity, a nice reel is a luxury. I said sensitive on purpose, because you can get some pretty sensitive rods for a good price.

Rod.

Rod takes precedence over reel.  Lifetime warranty on the rod doesn't hurt either. 

I'll say that for most fishing, the rod is more important than the reel. However, in reality I often spend more on the reel. You can get a very nice stick in the sub $200 range. A good reel often runs over that figure.

Rod!

Agree with bigfruits!

Rod by a long shot. It doesn't matter how smooth the reel is, or how long of a cast it makes. If you don't feel the bites you might as well be casting in the parking lot, because you aren't going to catch the fish.

I have heard all of the woes and warnings about getting cheap bait casters because they will be torture. I learned to throw a bait caster on a $20 wally world special. Even now, I think the "best" bait caster I own is a Quantum PT. Am I missing out on smoothness and casting distance? Maybe.... but I would sacrifice that for feeling the bites and getting the fish in the boat any day of the week.

IMHO a sensitive rod is a necessity, a nice reel is a luxury. I said sensitive on purpose, because you can get some pretty sensitive rods for a good price.

I agree with you. The rod is much more important IMHO.

I will say while I also learned to cast with junk, I don't recommend it. For ~$100 you can buy a quality reel that will make fishing more enjoyable. I agree with RW that a good reel makes fishing more fun; we would likely disagree on the definition of a "good" reel. 8-)

Rod by far but a good reel does make fishing more enjoyable.

For me, it's all about the "rod" because I use canepoles ;D

Roger