I run all 9-inch lures during ahi season and nothing smaller, and the reason comes down to bycatch. Here's the spread I've been running for four years and why bullets and inverts stay where you put them in rough water.
I get asked all the time whether the trailer hook needs to hide inside the skirt. It does not, and there is a good reason: marlin swat the back of the lure first, and a hanging hook that flops at trolling speed looks like a fish tail. I also cover when to size up from 9/0 to 11/0 and 10/0 hooks based on skirt bulk.
I fish slower than most guides recommend, and almost all of my bites come on the downwind pass. Here is the zone system I use, including the exact speeds and the two-mile radius rule that keeps me in the fish.
Ahi don't behave the same way year-round. Water temperature, bait migration, and current patterns all affect what's working on any given day. Here's what we've learned about matching lures to conditions in Hawaiian waters.
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