Q: Often while I'm casting, my fly line will wrap around the reel and butt end of the rod. How do I prevent this, Lefty?

Arnold Markowitz

A: This is certainly not unusual, but it's easily fixed, Arnold. It occurs when the two hands are well apart at the beginning of the forward cast. As the rod hand moves forward, it creates slack, which causes the line between the hands to sag. The forward rod stroke removes the sag, and the drooping line wraps around the oncoming reel or rod butt.

One of the most common mistakes when double hauling is having the hands well apart at the beginning of the forward cast. As soon as a haul and backcast are completed, the line hand should be brought close to the reel, eliminating any slack and discouraging the line from wrapping around the reel or butt.

If not hauling, the line hand should follow the reel on the backcast. At the end of the backcast, the line hand should be close to the reel. Do it right, and bingo, no tangles!