Texas "Weedless" Rigging

One of the Simplest and Most Effective Rigging Techniques Around

"Texas style" rigging or "Texas rigging" is a highly effective hook style that is nothing more than hooking a bait so that the tip of the hook is pulled through the bait body creating in essence a "closed loop", making the rig virtually weedless. It's a very simple rig style that you'll find yourself going to when fishing weedbeds, drop-offs or other potential snag-points.

Choosing a Hook

Many companies now offer "worm-style" or "offset" hooks that are bent specifically for this type of rigging style. For our illustration we are using a 1/0 Gamakatsu® Monster EWG (Extra Wide Gap) Hook which we find to give us superior hook performance with an ideal shape profile.

Figure 1

Start by hooking the bait from the backside and at an angle where the hook will exit at approximately a 45° angle from the entry point. For our demonstration we are using a Berkley® Power Bait Chigger Craw (Black/Blue flake).

Figure 2

Next, pull the length of the hook through the bait until the line knot touches the nose of the bait.

Figure 3

Rotate the hook 180° so that the point of the hook is pointed back inward.

Figure 4

Finally, take the tip of the hook and poke back into the bait body just enough to secure the set. This will "close the loop" and reduce weed snags while still allowing for quality hooksets when being chomped by a largemouth bass.

It's that simple! No elaborate tricks or fancy knots. Texas-style rigging will virtually eliminate weed tangles and you can find yourself fishing even the heaviest cover without snags.