Here’s a topic likely to provoke a shouting match in just about any waterfront bar nationwide.
Are women, in fact, better anglers than men?
The question is not, COULD they be better anglers than men, but ARE they actually better at catching fish?
Several of my Florida guide buddies tell me that when they have “cisgender” couples on their boats, the women almost always outfish the men. But this is a specialized type of fishing—live baits fished for snook, reds and trout, for the most part. The reason the women often catch more than the men in this case is that they do what the guide tells them—put the bait out there and then leave it alone until a fish eats it.
Guys, who mostly think they know how to fish, are constantly reeling in the bait and trying it in another spot rather than letting the fish find it. Or when there’s a nibble, they set the hook immediately, jerking the bait away from the fish. This often results in less successful catching.
But when it comes to artificial lure fishing, the vast majority of women just don’t fish at the same level as the typical serious guy angler. Most women are not all that interested in fishing, they don’t put a lot of time into it except maybe to accompany a significant other who loves fishing, and consequently not a lot of them get really good.
If they did, there would be at least a few women in the top professional bass circuits—there are none. There would not be separate IGFA records for women and men—women’s records are nearly always smaller than men’s records.
The reason most women are not all that renowned in fishing is the same reason that most men are not all that good at designing jewelry—they are not interested in it, they don’t grow up doing it and they don’t put much time, effort or money into it.
The few women who have grown up in the fishing fold are very good indeed. Aptly named Kristine Fischer, for example, is one of the top five or so kayak anglers on the planet, and has proved her abilities repeatedly against all-male fields.
Joan Wulff was one of the best flyrodders ever, though she was not raised as an angler—her long marriage to the legendary Lee Wulff naturally resulted in a whole lot of casting and fishing lessons.
Florida captain Leiza Fitzgerald has won numerous “top 10” fishing titles at events such as the ESPN Redfish Cup and FLW Redfish Tour. She is a professional saltwater guide and Star Tournament Director for the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA). She is also the only angler named to the Florida Sports Hall of Fame. Captain Lori Deaton Hall is not just a saltwater guide, she concentrates on catching monster tarpon at Boca Grande Pass, no game for sissies, to be sure.
April Vokey is a cold water fly fishing guide, TV fishing personality and outdoors writer who can outfish just about all of us. There are hundreds of them like this out there.
Many women on average are patient, persistent and detail-oriented, and those things can go together to make very good anglers, for those who take an interest in the sport.
Of course, getting a young girl—or a young boy for that matter—interested in something that does not originate on a screen is increasingly challenging these days. They are Tik-Tokking and Instagramming instead of learning to tie the Bimini Twist and the Uni-knot.
Bottom line is if you want your daughter to become a serious angler, start her right and give her lots of opportunity and all the instruction she wants. If you’re lucky, someday she’ll outfish you.
— Frank Sargeant
Frankmako1@gmail.com