Put plainly, one of the easiest ways to improve your fishing success is to improve your casting.
Understanding fish behavior, weather patterns, and knowing how to choose the right lure are all very important in the grand scheme of things but if you can't make a cast to where the fish are none of the other stuff matters.
Here's some things to consider to improve your casting ability...
Make Practice a Priority
Improving your casting is something that takes time and repetition but thankfully it's also something that can be practiced just about anywhere.
Whether it be your yard, a parking lot, or your living room, you're never short of options when it comes to practicing and improving your casting abilities.
Always put an emphasis on accuracy AND precision when practicing.
For the Mel Gibson fans, there's a scene in The Patriot where Mel's character tells his sons to "Aim Small, Miss Small" when having to defend themselves against enemy soldiers.
The same quote can be applied when practicing your casting.
The point is to always draw your focus and attention to a small point which in turn leads to better accuracy and precision.
Having this much attention to detail becomes the difference in being able to consistently cast a lure into a kitty pool versus a shot glass.
Because, as you may already know, sometimes all you will have is a shot glass sized space to fit your lure in order to trigger a bite.
Whether it be for distance or short, target casts consider applying the "Aim Small, Miss Small" mindset when practicing as well as when on the water.
TIP: To avoid messing up lures and other expensive tackle when practicing, use something durable and snag proof such as a sinker. Also, do your best to match your "practice lure" sinker weight to the weight of the lures you tend to use when fishing. If you fish a lot of lures in the 1/4-3/8oz range be sure to practice with a sinker of the similar weight.
Be Versatile
Versatility in terms of casting means that you are able to make different types of casts for each situation you're given.
Work your way up to being confident with overhand casts, underhand casts and side arm casts from both sides of your body.
An overhand cast doesn't do an angler any good when trying to fit a lure underneath an overhanging tree branch.
This is why it's important to be well-versed with each type of cast.
Overhand casts are a must for open water situations when trying to make long casts whereas accurate side arm casts are a huge benefit when fishing around overhanging trees and docks.
Lastly, being able to perform underhand pitches to your target will skyrocket your ability to place lures into hard to reach places (small slivers between boat slips, openings in fallen timber, punching through thick vegetation, etc.).
Underhand pitching is something great for baitcasting and spinning tackle alike.
Many anglers are familiar with pitching jigs or something similar with baitcasters but pitching has its place when using spinning tackle as well.
Most spinning tackle can be easily skipped with side arm casts (Texas rigs or Wacky rigs) but for things that don't skip well, such as a dropshot or spinnerbait, a well executed underhand pitch can accurately and quietly get your lure in tough to reach places.
TIP: Many anglers, when practicing underhand pitching, work towards the goal of casting into a standing cup - which is a great goal. However, this encourages a high, lofty cast. To get the most out of your cast while maintaining accuracy, lay the cup over on its side and try landing your lure inside without moving the cup. This casting approach keeps your lure closer to the water which allows the same casting technique to also be used when around overhanging obstacles - not to mention, it makes for a soft, quiet landing that won't spook fish.
Learn How To Skip
This goes for spinning and baitcasting tackle.
Having the ability to skip a lure increases your game in two ways...
A successful skip often results in placing your lure into hard to reach places that don't receive a lot of fishing pressure
The presentation of a successfully skipped lure will often trigger reaction strikes from a fish without them even knowing what they're biting
TIP: If you're new to skipping consider starting with a spinning setup and a Texas or Wacky rigged worm (Zoom Trick Worm or Senko). Both of these lures are easy to learn with and are also reliable fish catching baits.
Know Your Equipment
Being well in tune with your equipment (rod, reel, line, lure) is an often overlooked piece of improving one's casting ability.
Understanding your own unique combination of rod-reel-line-lure and how it performs from a casting standpoint will help you in the long run and save you the headache of making poor casts to your target.
For spinning tackle, this often comes down to having the correct size line to accommodate your lure weight and using a rod that matches up well with the size lures you intend to throw.
If unsure, there's a good chance your fishing rod has these details on it (Ex: Medium action, lure weight (oz) 3/16-1/2, line weight (lb) 6-12).
If you feel your casting distance or accuracy suffers with spinning tackle the first thing you can try is downsizing the pound test of your line.
The lighter the line, the easier it will come off your spool and through your rod guides which translates to better distance, and in the long run, better accuracy.
For baitcasters, casting success has a lot to do with properly setting the braking and spool tension of your reel. Once braking and tension is set right, it's all about having good thumb control.
Being aware of all the small details with your equipment and understanding how to get the most out of each will ultimately improve your casting, whether it be distance, accuracy, or both.
TIP: If you're still learning how to cast a baitcaster make note of your rod and reel orientation during your cast. Many folks starting out will have the reel and rod guides face the sky for overhand casts and face behind them when making a side arm cast. By doing this you will subconsciously apply too much pressure on the spool with your thumb and negatively impact your cast. To overcome this, think about having your reel and rod guides face you when making an overhand or underhand cast and face the sky when making a side arm cast.
In Conclusion
A lot of this sounds simple and boring and you wouldn't be wrong to think that.
However, having confidence in properly executing the things listed above is often times the difference between your lure finding a tree or the inside of a fishes mouth.
Time to go catch em'!
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