Needle nose gar hooks

I am an avid crappie fisherman. Today the crappie stopped biting at 10:45. Actually I believe they moved to deeper water. After a couple of hours of hunting I got bored and decided to feed some needle nose gar some of my leftover minnows. It was a lot of fun hooking at least 15 gar anywhere from 3-4 feet long on a 4'6" ultra light. I got several to the boat and fought them a while but they all eventually got off. I don't want to keep them but I was wanting to get one of the larger fish in the boat for a pic. Does anyone have any tips on a type of hook that will stick in those bony mouths, or any other tips????

Try a rope lure , we use 3/8 rope about 4 inches long with a knot on the end , then fray it a little , use the knot to put it on a hook , a little super glue stops the knot from coming loose . the hook also holds the bait , the gar's teeth get tangled in the rope and you just pull them in . Be sure to have leather gloves , between the teeth and the scales it can be rough on the hands . I have not caught any over maybe 2 lbs, they fight for a moment then give up and come in like they are dead , then when they see you the fight comes back . I have had consistent luck with lures with big spinners getting their attention in muddy water .

A #4 or #2 not to be confused with a 4/0 or 2/0 treble should work with a live bait. Back the drag down a little to avoid bend out. You can let them run and swallow it for majority hook up or you can set it as they run, you will miss often but it's to be expected.