5 Reasons that Slow Pitch Jigging is the NEW way to catch fish!
As passionate fisherman we are always looking for the next best way to target trophy fish. Slow Pitch Jigging is taking off all over New Zealand and we want to share the in's and out's of the NEW craze. There is nobody who has studied the art of Slow Pitch Jigging more than Kaz Otsubo.
Introducing Kaz Otsubo
Kaz Otsubo is a Japanese born professional who started his interest in fishing when he was 2. He spent a lot of time on fishing in rivers and lakes in Japan, chasing their domestic freshwater species. In his teenage years, lure fishing for freshwater bass became his hobby and he was casting lures whenever he had time. He moved to New Zealand 20 years ago and quickly got into saltwater fishing. With his background, it was easy for him to understand Japanese saltwater lure fishing styles and techniques remotely, and he tried many of their gear in NZ waters. He started learning about slow pitch jigging 5 years ago and soon became a huge fan of the new fishing style “the art of falling”. He was a Daiwa sponsored angler and later he met Ocean’s Legacy and became their leading product tester. He fell in love with not only their products but also their design philosophy and their vision of saltwater lure fishing and slow pitch jigging. There was no question for him when being asked to take over the Ocean’s Legacy business in New Zealand. His knowledge, skills and experience in slow pitch jigging have been enriched as he developed his Ocean’s Legacy business. He is currently the owner operator for Ocean’s Legacy NZ and holds wealth of knowledge and experience in lure fishing, particularly in slow pitch jigging.
We call the techniques “the art of falling”. Slow Pitch Jigging (SPJ) is all about falling actions. Imagine there are two types of bait fish. One is fleeing from you and the other one is wounded and cannot really move. You know which bait will be an easier target for the predator fish. The SPJ imitates the wounded bait and entices the bite. This is the original concept of slow pitch jigging. It is versatile lure fishing that you can target multiple species with. It is an enjoyable style of fishing that everyone can do. It is a creative form of fishing that you constantly mix up and try different actions with. It is the future of lure fishing.
What is Slow Pitch Jigging?
Slow Pitch Jigging originate from Japan where vertical speed jigging was the only jigging style. Norihiro Sato, who was known as the originator of SPJ, studied the behaviour of fish and understood falling actions are more effective than fleeing actions. After his hundreds of thousands of attempts and errors, he established this own personal style which is now widely spread all around Japan. In comparison to conventional jigging, SPJ works for a wide range of species e.g., snapper/bottom fish, kingfish, hapuka, bass, bluenose and even tuna. Adding to its species variety, it is a much slower action so you can comfortably fish all day. In recent years, when someone says “jigging” in Japan, it quite often means SPJ, giving you an idea of how popular the style has become.
What is the technique of Slow Pitch Jigging?
I am continuously asked about the fundamentals of the SPJ action. The basic jig actions that you want to create are falling actions which imitate wounded bait. To do so, you need to lift the jig and let it fall. That is the basic action and quite simple. There are 3 basic actions that you should learn for lifting the jig as follows:
- Wind the reel in full, half or even quarter while keeping the rod parallel to the sea surface and still. Make sure to give it a pause every time you wind so it will give the jig time to fall. And repeat the action. Remember, a falling action is what we are trying to create here, unless you are intentionally not giving it a pause to create constant flipping actions of the jig which can be good too.
- Lift the rod and bring the rod tip down as the jig falls, and repeat.
- Complete ACTION 1 and ACTION 2 together, so lift/wind and drop the rod tip down, and repeat.
Now, you can change how high you lift the jig and how fast/slow you lift the jig. Different combinations of these 2 actions can create different jig actions. Depending on how you lift the jig, the jig can flutter straight down, it can slide, it can hover and/or it can do combined actions of these.
One of the wonderful things about SPJ is that you can entice the bite by increasing the speed of the jigging motion too, exactly like the conventional jigging. Yes, you can mechanically jig with the SPJ gear. It can be amazingly effective when falling actions are not working well. Ultimately a mixture of speed and slow falling actions can be deadly. Our overall goal is to meet the demands & feeding habits of the target species. SPJ provides us will all the tools we need to match the hatch.
What gear do I use?
As mentioned above, you are tasked to lift the jig and let it fall. You can lift the jig with any type of fishing rod, but if you are not using an SPJ rod, it can be challenging to bring the jig sideways. Why do you have to bring the jig sideways? Because that is the optimal position for the jig to start fluttering down. Specialised rods like Ocean’s Legacy Origin, Elementus and Slow Element series of rods have a responsive tip which recovers quickly. When the rod recovers quickly, the jig gets flicked (pitched) and it goes sideways. The jig goes sideways not only because of the fast recovery rod tip but also the jig itself. SPJ jigs like Ocean’s Legacy Contact jigs, are centre-weighted and an asymmetrical shape which naturally moves the jig sideways to create irresistible falling actions for predator species as it tries to stay sideways while falling. SPJ is considered vertical jigging therefore it is most common to use an overhead reel. A typical SPJ setup for snapper and kingfish in the Hauraki gulf is a specialised 6’2”-6’4” overhead SPJ rod, 1000/1500 size overhead reel, PE1.5-2.0 (24lb to 32lb) braid, 30lb-40lb leader, 100g-250g SPJ jig and 2 sets of twin assist hooks #2/0 or #3/0. Thanks to the evolution of fishing gear, many of the latest SPJ rods are as powerful as mechanical jigging rods. Ocean’s Legacy Elementus SPJ Rod for example boasts a PE4 rating & has the ability to lift 31kg/70lb at 45 degrees. You can now target 20+kg kingfish with SPJ with no problem!
5 Reasons Why Slow Pitch Jigging is the NEW way to Catch Fish?
People often ask me why I now spend 95% of my time on the water Slow Pitch Jigging (SPJ) & What are the benefits of SPJ, compared to other styles of lure fishing? Here are some of the reasons why we enjoy slow pitch jigging & why we believe you will too:
- Due to the slow enticing falling actions, SPJ works for endless numbers of varied species such as snapper/bottom fish, kingfish, bass, hapuka, bluenose, tuna and many more... and it is often more effective than other styles of lure fishing when fish is not biting. One challenge in New Zealand waters is the lack of diversity in our sports fishery with Snapper making up over 80% of the target species of North Island fisherman. As SPJ increases in popularity more and more people are experiencing & enjoying the capture of species they have not been targeting in the past.
- Unlike conventional speed jigging, the slow lifting action is easy to do all day, and everyone can enjoy it. This simple factor is a big reason we have seen SPJ increase in popularity including families & female anglers. It doesn't take the same level of strength required as conventional jigging therefore making the art more appealing.
- The art of SPJ is so diverse you can create multiple actions with you're own personal flare, so you are constantly thinking about how you lift your jig and what is the best action to entice the bite. It never gets boring. It is a genuine sport.
- The gear of which is used for SPJ is more versatile than any other style of fishing so your initial investment into the rods and jigs can be considered & justified. You can use kabura/inchiku jigs with a SPJ rod, whereas you cannot use SPJ jigs with a kabura/inchiku rod. You can speed jig with SPJ jigs but you cannot slow pitch jig with speed jigging jigs. There you go - a pre provided explanation to your wife when purchasing your next SPJ Rod.
- Those of us who are old enough will remember when Softbaiting was first introduced into the New Zealand market. More recently we have seen the addition of slow jigging which has made catching fish easier and less complicated. As the Kiwi angler transitions into more of a sport fisherman I believe Slow Pitch Jigging to be the next form of fishing that takes over the industry and revolutionises how we hunt our prey. The future of lure fishing.
The concept, techniques and the modern technology in gear are all coming together and making slow pitch jigging more accessible and easier to fish with than ever before. Brands like Ocean’s Legacy are also growing the SPJ market by not only promoting their products but also educating consumers with the art of falling techniques. We believe SPJ will be the future of jigging in New Zealand as many other countries are already seeing the transition.
Where to Fish?
Now you understand what SPJ is, how to do it and you know what gear you need. It is time to get out and do it. SPJ is considered vertical jigging, so you need to fish in a certain depth of water. Ideally, 30m or deeper. Anywhere less than 30m, you will be too close to fish and they often move away from you & the boat. Remember, you can target all species you would target with other types of lure fishing, but below are some typical fishing spots for targeting snapper/bottom fish and kingfish with SPJ.
- Reef/pins: this is a typical place where bait hide from predators. If you find a school of bait on your sounder, drop a SPJ jig down and entice the bite! Remember your jig is a wounded bait, an easy target for your target species.
- Sand bottom. You are in the middle of nowhere. No sign on the sounder. Dead flat sandy bottom. Do not just move away. Often a free drifting above the sand bottom will find good fish!
- Workups: Any lure works in workups, but if you use a heavy SPJ jig and get it down to the bottom. The SPJ falling actions at the bottom can be the most effective way of catching a big fish in workups as they are often waiting for the bait to fall.
Outside of fishing myself my passion sits largely with educating people in the New Zealand market on the techniques we find so successful. We work incredibly closely with the team at Land & Sea NZ and they are a great source of knowledge when it comes to modern techniques along with everything else you may need to know. For a full range of SPJ gear and a retail experience you cannot beat in New Zealand be sure you pop in and visit the team in Central Auckland.
Tight Lines & Good Luck.
