An 80-gram Yudomaru jig, 90 metres down, braid running dead straight to the bottom — no belly, no sweep. That line told me everything about the conditions, and the grouper came out of deep structure because of it.
The soft current is the story
Goto carries a serious reputation in Japanese offshore fishing. After dropping that light a jig that deep with the line holding vertical the whole way, I understand why. The value of soft current isn’t comfort — it’s precision. When 80g holds bottom at 90m, you can actually fish: feel the jig, feel the structure, feel the bite. No fighting the drift, no constant re-drops to stay in the zone.
One-pitch, let the jig do the work
With the line falling clean and vertical, you can run a one-pitch rhythm honestly — one sweep, one turn, let the jig flutter and reset, then again. That clean contact is exactly what makes the descent to 90 metres worth it.
Grouper from the bottom third
The fish was a grouper — a bottom-hugger holding tight to rock and broken ground at depth, with the yellow-orange spotting typical of the kelp grouper family. These are the fish you go deep for: they hit on the lift or just as the jig pauses on the fall. A vertical line is what gets you into their kitchen and keeps you there long enough to draw the strike.
Next drop, knowing the current behaves this well, I’d stay with the light jig and work the bottom third of the column harder. When the line falls this clean, the deep fish are yours to find.