Choosing hooks: Hook eyes: which way and what angle

A hook eye is described on two separate axes. Mixing them up is why "flat eye" means different things to different anglers.

Axis	Options	What it means
Which way the ring faces	In-line (vertical) eye · Flat eye (turned 90°)	In-line: the ring is in the same plane as the bend, so with the point up you look through the hole from the side. Flat: the ring is turned 90° and lies flat with the point up
Angle to the shank	Straight · Turned up · Turned down	Whether the eye is bent away from the point, toward it, or not at all

Hook / rig	Usual eye	Why	Examples
Japanese offset for Texas and weightless	Flat eye	Easy to rig; the bait drags without riding up	Hayabusa TNS Offset, Decoy Kg Hook Worm17
Offset for drop shot / direct rigs	In-line eye	Main line leaves the top of the eye, the sinker line the bottom: the point locks up	Owner Marui Multi Offset, Decoy Worm29 Rock'n Hook
Drop-shot hooks	In-line, often bent	Point up, angled pull	Owner Mosquito 5177 (turned-down eye), Nishine DS Hook (bent eye)
Rubber jigs	In-line more common; flat eyes can be bent to adjust	Adjustability	–
Plug singles	Both, by how they should hang on the split ring	–	Vanfook PL-41B (in-line)

Whatever the eye, for a drop shot pass the tag end back through the eye from the top after the Palomar: the hook stands out point-up.

← Drop-shot hooks by rigging

Choosing hooks

Straight or offset, fine or heavy wire (with a formula), the wire for your line and rod, hook size for each soft bait, every way to hook a drop shot, and hook eyes: which way they face and at what angle.

Choosing hooks