I like to use a 9 foot rod when I am in my WaterMaster Raft or my pontoon boat. Since I usually anchor to fish a spot for a while, the 9 foot rod allows me to keep the fish I catch away from the anchor lines. I use two anchors, one off either side towards the back. I tried using a shorter rod but couldn't keep the fish away from my anchor line.

I like to use a 9 foot Sage XP 3 weight rod for Crappie and Bluegills and perch. If I should hook up on a slightly bigger bass, the Sage XP has enough backbone to handle it.

If there are a lot of LMB in the lake I am fishing then I use either a Sage 5 wt or a Sage 6 wt 9 foot rod. If I am going only after LMB then I prefer a Sage 8 wt rod to horse them out of their holes.

Larry ---sagefisher---