What is slow pitch jigging?

Slow pitch jigging is a vertical fishing technique that uses fluttering metal jigs to mimic dying baitfish. It's effective in both saltwater and freshwater and works especially well when fish are not chasing fast-moving lures.

What size jig should I use?

Choose jig weight based on depth and current. Use 10–20g for docks and shallow water, 40–100g for nearshore, and 300g+ for offshore or deep water. Match the weight to how quickly you want to reach the strike zone.

Can slow pitch jigs be used in freshwater?

Yes! Submission Jigs are used successfully in lakes and rivers for bass, walleye, trout, and more. Their lifelike flutter action triggers bites when other lures fail, especially in cold or pressured conditions.

Do I need special gear for slow pitch jigging?

While you can start with standard rods and reels, a true slow pitch setup includes a soft-tip rod, high-speed conventional reel, braided line, and fluorocarbon leader. Lighter gear helps you feel the jig’s action and detect subtle strikes.

What types of fish can I catch with Submission Jigs?

Submission Jigs catch bass, redfish, black sea bass, snapper, grouper, yellowtail, tuna, and more. They're designed for both freshwater and saltwater action, from docks to deep sea.

How do I rig and use your assist hooks?

Attach the assist hook to the top eyelet of the jig, we like two on the eye side for the 10g and 15g jigs, and one on each end for 10g through 80g. For best results, use one or two assist hooks depending on the jig size. All Submission Hooks are saltwater-rated and matched to each jig size.

Choosing Jig Colors Based on Water Clarity and Light Conditions

Start Here:

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At some point, every angler has stood over their jig box for way too long.

You're burning daylight. The boat is already drifting over the spot. And you're holding two jigs — one pink, one blue — having what can only be described as a serious internal debate.

Here's the truth: color matters. But it matters a lot less than most people think, and it matters in a much simpler way than the jig manufacturers would like you to believe.

Once you understand the two factors that actually drive color selection — water clarity and light conditions — you stop overthinking it. You make a decision in ten seconds and get your jig in the water where it belongs.

That's what this is about.

Start Here: Color Is About Visibility, Not Preference

Before anything else, get this framing right.

You are not picking a color you like. You are picking a color the fish can see.

That's the whole job. A jig that fish can't detect doesn't get eaten, no matter how perfectly you work your cadence or how dialed in your slow pitch technique is.

→ Read: How Slow Pitch Jigging Builds Angler Skill Faster Than Other Techniques

Water clarity and light penetration control what colors actually transmit at depth. A color that pops in three feet of crystal clear water on a sunny afternoon becomes invisible at 200 feet in stained water at dusk. Those are not the same situation, and they don't get the same jig.

Start with conditions. Color follows.

Factor #1 — Water Clarity

Water clarity is your primary variable. Get this right first, then layer in light.

Clear Water

Clean, high-visibility water rewards natural, realistic presentations.

In clear water, fish can see your jig from a distance. That gives them time to inspect it. A jig that looks unnatural or too loud will get rejected before it ever gets a bite.

What works:

Natural baitfish tones — silvers, blues, greens, whites
Subtle flash rather than aggressive brightness
Two-tone or gradient profiles that mimic real forage

What to avoid:

Solid neon or overly aggressive colors in bright conditions
Anything that looks like it came from a carnival

Clear water is where jig action matters most. A natural-looking jig doing the right thing outperforms a flashy jig doing the wrong thing every time.

→ Shop Slow Pitch Jigs

Stained or Murky Water

When visibility drops, you need contrast. Fish are hunting by lateral line and visual cues simultaneously, and your jig needs to give them something to lock onto.

What works:

High-contrast colors — chartreuse, orange, hot pink, yellow
Two-tone combinations with strong light/dark contrast
UV-reactive finishes (more on this below)

What to avoid:

Natural, muted tones that disappear into the water column
Anything subtle — subtle does not exist in low-clarity water

In stained conditions, your jig needs to announce itself. Give the fish something to find.

Off-Color or Heavily Murky Water

This is the deep end of the visibility problem. Strong current, runoff, algae bloom, or post-storm conditions.

In truly poor visibility, you're relying on contrast and movement more than color accuracy. Your jig needs to be detectable above everything else.

What works:

Dark silhouettes — black, deep red, purple
Maximum contrast combinations
Glow finishes activated before the drop

Dark colors in very murky water create a silhouette effect. Fish aren't seeing color at that point — they're seeing shape and movement against a murky background. A dark jig gives them the clearest possible target.

Factor #2 — Light Conditions

Once you've matched color to clarity, adjust for light.

Light changes throughout the day and with depth. What works at 10 AM on a clear day is not the same as what works at 6 PM or at 300 feet.

Bright Conditions — High Sun, Shallow to Mid Depth

High sun pushes light deep into the water column. Colors stay relatively true. Natural profiles and moderate flash perform well.

This is the best window for natural-looking jigs. Fish can see clearly and will reject presentations that look wrong.

→ Read: Reading Fish Behavior Through Jig Feedback

Low Light — Early Morning, Late Afternoon, Overcast

As light fades, colors shift. Reds and oranges disappear first. Blues and greens hold longer. High-contrast and UV-reactive colors start to separate from the pack.

What works in low light:

Chartreuse
Pink and hot orange
UV-reactive finishes
Glow, especially in the deeper part of your target range

Low-light windows are often the most productive bite periods of the day. The right color in these conditions can mean the difference between a good session and a slow one.

Deep Water — Below 150 Feet

Depth is its own light filter.

Red disappears around 15–30 feet. Orange follows. By the time you're past 100 feet, most of the warm color spectrum is gone. What fish see at 200 feet is almost entirely in the blue-green range — or they're detecting silhouette, contrast, and movement.

At depth, focus on:

Blues, greens, and purples — these wavelengths penetrate deepest
High-contrast two-tone combinations
Glow finishes for very deep applications
Dark silhouettes for maximum contrast against the ambient light

If you're dropping a bright red jig to 250 feet, it doesn't look red down there. It looks dark brown. Worth knowing.

A Word on UV and Glow

These two tools are worth having in the box. They're not magic, but they fill specific gaps.

UV-reactive finishes absorb ultraviolet light and re-emit it at a visible wavelength. In stained water or low-light conditions, they create a brightness that standard colors can't match. Effective in the right scenario — not a replacement for a correct base color choice.

Glow finishes work by storing light and releasing it slowly in darkness. Charge them with a light source before the drop. Most effective below 100 feet and in low-light conditions where other colors are working hard to be seen.

Neither one saves a jig that's wrong for the conditions. But in the right situation, they give you an edge.

→ Browse Styles and Colors in Our Jig Collection

The Simple Decision Framework

This doesn't need to be complicated. Run through this in the time it takes to look up at the sky and back at the water.

Step 1 — Read the water.

Clear water → natural tones, subtle flash
Stained water → high contrast, brights, UV
Murky water → dark silhouettes, glow

Step 2 — Read the light.

High sun, shallow → natural profiles, moderate flash
Low light → chartreuse, pink, UV, glow
Deep water (150+ feet) → blues, greens, contrast, glow

Step 3 — Check your cadence, not your color box.

Seriously. Once you've made a reasonable color call, stop second-guessing it and focus on presentation and technique. More bites are lost to bad cadence than bad color.

What Doesn't Matter (As Much As You Think)

Your favorite color.

We all have them. There's probably a pink jig in your box that you throw more than anything else because you caught a good fish on it in 2019. That's not science, but it's also not the worst strategy — confidence in your presentation translates to better technique.

Just don't let personal preference override the conditions.

The fish doesn't know you like pink. It knows what it can see.

Building a Functional Color Selection

You don't need fifty jigs. You need coverage across the key scenarios.

A basic but effective slow pitch jig color spread:

One natural silver/blue/green — clear water, bright conditions
One high-contrast bright — chartreuse, orange, or hot pink for stained water
One dark silhouette — black, deep purple, or dark red for murky or deep applications
One glow or UV finish — low light, deep water, or when nothing else is working

Four jigs in four categories covers most situations you'll face. Everything beyond that is refinement.

→ Shop the Full Slow Pitch Jig Collection

The Bottom Line

Color selection is a real skill. It's just not as complicated as the jig market wants you to think.

Water clarity tells you how visible your jig needs to be. Light conditions tell you what wavelengths will actually survive the depth. Put those two things together and you've got a rational, repeatable decision every time.

Stop staring at the jig box. Read the water. Pick accordingly. Get the jig in the water.

The rest is technique.

Ready to build out your color spread?

→ Shop Slow Pitch Jigs at Submission Fishing Co.

→ Read: Why Slow Pitch Jigging Creates More Memorable Fishing Experiences

→ Read: How Slow Pitch Jigging Builds Angler Skill Faster Than Other Techniques

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