I have a couple rods, on a typical day I'll fish my 11ft sage, if I'm going deeper I use my 9 ft st Croix. The 9 foot pops off the clip with ease even at 200ft. The 9 ft is easier to net with. The long rod is way more forgiving with erratic action close to the boat. The longer rod is a bigger shock absorber. I always have both with me. I also like stacking better with a 9 off the back and 11 off the side. However I think the nine footer should be a decent quality rod. I have a couple cheaper 9 footers and the action isn't great.