it allows the bait to swim somewhat freely. think of it like a heavy duty carolina rig. ive done a ton of shovelhead fishing over the years and honestly the best rigs to use are heavy braided line with a 1oz slip sinker tied above a barrel swivel then tie on about 20' of heavy mono as a leader with a 4/0 hook. 6' to 8' goldfish, 8' creek chubs, blugill(i think its illegal but nothing beats a lively gill). If there are indeed 'fat cats' in this pay lake then use some large live bait, especially if you want to catch a monster shovelhead.
