Zander Fishing in the Netherlands – Complete Guide to Hollands Diep

The Best Techniques for Zander on Hollands Diep

On Hollands Diep many techniques work “in theory,” but in practice everything revolves around control. Not finesse, not tricks, but the way you present your shad in conditions that constantly change. Vertical jigging, longlining and casting are not styles you choose at random — they are methods to keep your lure in the strike zone for as long as possible.

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Vertical Jigging — Only Useful When Conditions Allow It

Vertical jigging on Hollands Diep only works when you are truly on top of the fish and when conditions are calm enough to keep your shad directly under the boat. On days with too much current or too much wind, vertical jigging simply becomes unusable. You lose control, your line angle drifts away and you fish past the fish.

When conditions do allow it, vertical jigging is an efficient way to target fish on compact schools or on zones where you know exactly what lies beneath you. But it is not a technique for searching water — it is a precision technique.

Longlining (Diagonal Fishing) — The Most Effective and Most Demanding Technique

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Longlining is the most effective technique on Hollands Diep, but also the one that demands the most technically from the angler.

It is not a finesse technique. It is a method that keeps your shad in the strike zone for as long as possible while covering hundreds of metres of water in a single drift. The biggest problem for most anglers is simple: it is difficult to present your shad just above the bottom when fishing deep water with wind and current. And that is exactly where things almost always go wrong.

Fishing too high is the most common mistake. You think you are fishing correctly, but your shad is simply hanging far above the bottom. Only a zander that is actively hunting will come up to take it — but those are not the fish that matter. You will catch the active ones anyway. The skill lies in catching the fish that are not hunting, and you only catch those when your shad passes right in front of their nose. And where is that most likely to happen? Just above the bottom — nowhere else.

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The good news: this can be learned.
And once you master it, an entirely new world opens up.

And yes — it is absolutely possible: you can feel a zander bite 30 metres behind the boat, in 10 metres of water.
But only if you use the right gear and understand how drift, line angle and weight work together.

Longlining is the technique that allows you to read Hollands Diep — and catch fish consistently.

Casting (Jigging) — The Most Spectacular Method

Casting for zander (jigging) is the most spectacular way to fish Hollands Diep.

Conditions must allow it — with too much wind it becomes difficult to fish your shad cleanly and hit the slope correctly — but when it works, it is pure adrenaline.
A bite at distance, when you let your shad hang against a slope, is indescribable.
You feel the strike not only in your rod, but through your entire body.

It is the technique that gives you the most direct contact with both the structure and the fish.

Casting is ideal when zander are actively hunting, when you are fishing clear edges or when you want to cover zones that cannot be longlined effectively.

Depth and Structure on Hollands Diep

Zander on Hollands Diep do not follow fixed patterns. They respond to structure, current and depth differences — not to the calendar. That is why rules like “deep in winter” or “shallow in summer” simply do not exist. What you do see is that certain zones are often logical, but never guaranteed.

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Depth — Always Determined by the Situation

Zander are not “always deep” or “always shallow.” In practice, they are often found near places where deep and shallow water lie close together. These are zones where current changes, where the water “works,” and where more happens in general. A steep slope is usually better than a very gradual transition, because it creates more dynamics.

But it is not a law.

Sometimes zander hold in places that theoretically offer nothing: ten metres deep, soft bottom, no transition, no logic. Why? No idea. That is part of big water. You cannot explain everything.

What does often hold true: areas where deep and shallow lie close together produce fish most consistently. Not because there are “routes,” but because zander can position themselves easily — on top of the shallow, against the slope, or just on the deeper side. Where exactly? That changes day by day.

Structure — The Most Reliable Factor

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Structure is the most reliable indicator on Hollands Diep. Not because these places are “hotspots,” but because zander prefer to hold near transitions:

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• deep ↔ shallow

• hard ↔ soft

• slope ↔ flat

But even that is not a guarantee.
It is a direction — not a rule.

Tackle That Works on Hollands Diep

Fishing Hollands Diep revolves around one thing: contact. And you only get contact when the entire combination is correct: rod, weight, line and shad.

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No single component is more important than the others. The whole system must give you immediate feedback about what is happening underwater: where your shad is, how it reacts, whether it rises, whether you are fishing against a slope, or whether that last tap was a bite.

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A rod must transmit your shad directly, without delay and without damping. From the boat, relatively short rods work best. The ideal length is somewhere between 2.00 and 2.15 metres. Around 2.00 metres gives maximum control for vertical jigging; around 2.15 metres works slightly better for casting. But within that range, one does not exclude the other. What matters is that the rod is fast and crisp enough to fish 20–30 grams without effort and to let you feel exactly what your shad is doing — high, low, slope, bottom, drift, bite.

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The line is just as important.
Braided, thin, smooth, preferably with a PE coating to reduce resistance. A maximum of 0.10 mm, otherwise you will not reach the bottom due to wind and current pressure.
The reason we fish braided line is simple: no stretch. Without stretch, information comes through instantly. With stretch, you cannot feel when your shad hits the bottom, when it rises, or when a fish bites.

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Fluorocarbon has nothing to do with invisibility. It prevents your main line from being cut by mussels or stones, and again: no stretch, direct feedback.

Weight determines whether you can control your shad at all. Too light means no contact, and therefore you are fishing on luck — and luck does not catch zander.
Too heavy is never ideal, but always usable. With too heavy you know where you are and you can correct. With too light you know nothing. That is why on Hollands Diep the rule is simple: better too heavy than too light.

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The perfect height is always the same: five to ten centimetres above the bottom. You must be able to keep your shad there, regardless of depth, current or wind. If you cannot do that, nothing else matters.

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Shads must run stable and give clear feedback. Tail shape is mechanics, not magic.
A paddle tail creates more pressure, helps you lift off the bottom and keeps your shad stable in the strike zone. But in strong current or too much water pressure, a paddle tail can push your shad upward. Then you need a V‑tail or pintail: less pressure, easier to return to the bottom, more control in current.

The practical rule is simple:
If you cannot lift off the bottom → paddle tail.
If you cannot get back to the bottom → V‑tail or pintail.

Colour does not change height, drift, stability or contact. But colour influences you. If you believe in a colour, you fish tighter, more focused and more consistently. The colour does not catch — you catch because you fish better.

Tackle is not a collection of separate choices.
It is one system that must give you direct information.
If that system is correct, you have control.
And control catches zander — not luck.