Help.. Treble hook question

[Dave Clark]

If I could only have one hook on a lure to be legal and my crank bait had two. Which one would you guys remove, the front or the back one?

[The Legend]

I'd leave the the front hook on only for the reason that it seems like the the majority of fish I catch on a crank bait are hooked on the front hook better than the rear hook, if the rear hook is even in the fish at all.

[sweetwater]

If I could only have one hook on a lure to be legal and my crank bait had two. Which one would you guys remove, the front or the back one?

I'd remove the front hook and replace the rear treble with the next larger size than what was originally on it. As I do with all of my crankbaits I would use a Gamakatsu short shank ewg hook as the replacement. I would think if a fish swipes at or short strikes a crankbait the rear hook would stand a better chance of sticking the fish. Also, depending on the type of crankbait being used the rear hook is pulled in basically the same direction as the line is going. With that in mind it seems logical that it would be easier to maintain constant pressure to reduce fish loss as well as getting a better hook set since the rear hook would not pivot as much as the front one would.