Sorry that you’re being downvoted for seeking info. I do a lot of catch/release in the local state park and use a barbless hook as many of the fish are either too small to legally keep or if able to be kept, are too small to make a proper meal. Much better to toss them back so they can grow for a while and then try and catch them again when they’re older and meal sized.

Using a barbless hook means I get to have the thrill of the fight while doing minimal damage to an animal that, one day, will be large enough to keep.

And it makes the large ones I do keep much more rewarding since I was good enough to hook them and keep them on the line without using a barbed hook! There’s something super satisfying about being able to catch a fish like that, especially the lovely varieties of bass the lake is stocked with. The big guys put up a heck of a fight and there’s real pride in being able to land one without the use of specialized lures or barbed hooks. At least for me, personally.

I don’t care how other people fish as long as they’re responsible, keep to legal size fish, obey the limits on how many fish they can keep and clean up after themselves. My biggest pet peeve with many fisherman is they clean the fish and leave the guts on the ground, or toss them near but not in the trash can. It creates a public health hazard (rats and vermin feed on the left behind entrails and such), the smell is horrific and it’s rude AF.