Two Small Hooks are Better than One Big Hook

A Game-Changing Lesson in Mexico

Several years ago I did a boat trial on a new Hatteras for Motor Boating and Sailing Magazine. I knew the captain, Pete Grosbeck, had a great reputation in California, but I had not yet gotten to know him personally. What he taught me that day in Mexico, has helped me catch hundreds of billfish and win copious amounts of money in tournaments all over the world.

The Grosbeck Secret: Not a Secret Anymore

I deliberately did not write about it, until now! Over the decades I have passed on this knowledge to many of my anglers and deck hands; I really don’t consider it to be a secret anymore (sorry Pete). When I share this information with new customers, or crew members, who have not yet used the tactics that Grosbeck taught me, they are usually skeptical. Once they see the success that comes along with the unusual set-up, they always put the rig into their own bag of tricks.

A Surprising Challenge: The Grosbeck Lure

After I climbed through the boat and tested its ability with me at the controls, Captain Pete asked me if I wanted to catch a couple of sailfish. Of course I did! He handed me a light, 20 pound, outfit and a huge, plastic headed marlin lure with multiple skirts! I blinked and said, I can’t catch sailfish on that! He replied, Do you want to bet, in a tone of voice that put me on guard immediately.

The Realization: It’s All About the Hooks

He was way too confident in what looked like a ridiculous set up for me to bet any real money. I knew Pacific sailfish were larger than the Atlantic ones I grew up on, and I had caught several, large sails in Australia.

At the time, I rarely used lures as large as the one Pete had handed me, even on full grown blue or black Marlin!  My hookup ratio was not high enough using large lures compared to smaller lures. Only after using this Grosbeck lure was I able to realize it was the hooks, and not the lure size that made the difference.

Unprecedented Success: The Test of Time

I could not believe a sailfish would even try to eat such a huge artificial lure. If it did, I was sure that the hook up ratio would be near zero!  Little did I know in a short period of time that day, I would have 5 strikes from sailfish, and tag and release 3 of them! I was amazed! When I carefully checked out the hook-set that Grosbeck was using, it was like nothing I had ever seen before. He was using 2 small, short shanked “J” shaped hooks, sized about 5/0.

I can best describe them as being similar to what we used during live bait fishing for small Florida sailfish before switching to circle hooks. I tested the hooks on a line testing machine and it takes right at 100 pounds of pull to straighten one out. Each hook was on its own individual leader, and the hooks were not completely inside, or outside, the skirt tail! The skirt just barely covered the eyes of both hooks! Each leader had a loop eye and the main leader passed through the eyes of both leaders.

Tournaments and Records: The Proof of Efficiency

Years later, while, trying to catch angler Fonda Huizenga her first world record spearfish, we would catch a 300 plus pound Big eye tuna, and tag an estimated 500-pound blue marlin, which became the first Atlantic blue marlin ever to wear a satellite tag! We finally got the Ladies Spearfish Record late that day!  All the fish were caught on IGFA 50 pound class line, with the Grosbeck hook set on small Mold Craft needlefish lures!

I have won several tournaments using that same set-up. Including the Dunk Island classic, a 12 pound IGFA class line competition for Sailfish and Black Marlin. 

The Ultimate Challenge: A Lesson in Resilience

Trailing my old deck hand, Laurie Wright, by 3 fish on the last day, I figured there was no way we could get 5 releases before Laurie got at least a couple more.  Sailfish and small Black Marlin tagged and released were worth something along the lines of 35 points each.  Marlin over a certain size could be gaffed and boated, and were worth a point per pound of body weight.

I knew we could catch a decent Black on 12-pound so we went for broke and ran outside the edge of the reef to where the big ones lived. Almost immediately we got a bite!  Instead of being worth 5 sails or small blacks the fish we were fighting on 6 Kg. line was a full grown female in excess of 800 pounds! And worth a point a pound!

Lessons for Future Generations: The Grosbeck Legacy

If we could catch her, we would win by a mile! My mistake was in not changing from the 80-pound test leader we used on the little blacks to something much heavier! I managed to get the leader to Doug Haig over 10 times! Each time he pulled as hard as he could, without breaking it, then dumped it, turned to me and said Sorry Pete, I was going to break it.

Great job Doug, was my reply. We still have her on! We were never able to get a tag on her and get the release points but it was one of the best fights we ever had! Moral to this story is whenever I show amateur crew members and anglers how to use the Grosbeck Rig I tell them to always use heavy leader and go fast.

One new friend called me up recently and told me It works!. What works? was my puzzled reply. I got my wife her first sailfish, then we hooked a marlin right here in front of Stuart, Florida. We messed up trying to tag it and broke the leader at the boat.

Conclusion

In the end, the lessons taught by Captain Pete Grosbeck have not only revolutionized my approach to sportfishing but have also left an indelible mark on those fortunate enough to learn and apply them. This journey of discovery, skepticism, and eventual triumph underscores the power of innovation and the enduring value of sharing knowledge within the sportfishing community.

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