Hawgdog, I don't think it matters, all I was saying if Kent Driscoll and Russ Bailey both use snap swivels. It can't be a bad thing. Experiment with it and find out what works best for you. Heck try half your poles with and half with out and see what happens. I used snap swivels on my polesast year and caught plenty of fish. I plan on using them this weekend too. I use a lot smaller size than they do. They were using a #8 I use a #0. Just saying. Do what feels best to YOU!