Blowup
Also called topwater strike, explosion
What is a blowup in topwater fishing?
The explosive surface strike when a fish comes up and hits a topwater lure.
It is what people fish topwater for, and it is also the moment most topwater fish are lost. The instinct when a bass detonates on your lure is to set the hook immediately, and immediately is wrong: the fish often has not got the bait yet, or has it sideways, and setting pulls it straight out of its mouth.
The fix is to wait until you feel weight. Not to see it, to feel it. That gap can be a full second, which feels endless when the water just erupted.
Some anglers fix it mechanically by using a moderate-action rod, which slows the hookset down for them, or by looking away as they retrieve so the visual trigger never fires.
Reel down until the line comes tight, then sweep. Do not snap the rod up at the splash.
Where this comes up
The guides that use blowup and show it on real gear.
Last reviewed . Blowup is one of 222 terms in the fishing glossary.