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Accidently deep hooking a bass is a sad, no-win situation.
According to the latest research, a deep hooked bass is in a lot of trouble.
In a no-harvest situation, the best thing you can do is cut the line about eighteen inches from the hook and say a prayer for the little fighter.
Here is a really good article about the latest research on catch-and-release of deeply hooked fish:
http://www.recycledfish.org/safe-ang...ooked-fish.htm
Other than what the article states, the only thing you can do to prevent deep-hooking a bass is to set the hook quickly, before the bass has a chance to swallow the bait or lure.
When I fish from the bank, I use a fairly tight line and then hang a ring made from the top of a styrofoam cup from the line. The moment the line goes out, I can see my strike indicator move (the ring goes up when the line goes out) and I can set the hook.
If an angler creates a situation where he can't set the hook quickly, he is going to inadvertently kill a lot of bass. For example, if he sets up 17 rods on the shore then goes and plays volleyball until he sees a rod bouncing out of the rod-rest. That bass had a lot of time with the bait and has long since swallowed it by the time the angler sets the hook.
It is better to use some time of strike indicator if an angler isn't holding the rod in his hand and then set the hook in a reasonable amount of time to minimize the chance of deep-hooking the bass.
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