Lateral Thinking #23- A Fishing Rod Too Tall -

A man is standing in line at a bus stop with his newly purchased fishing rod. When it's his turn to board the bus, the driver measures his fishing pole and informs him that he can't bring it on board. The maximum length of items allowed on the bus is 4 feet and the fishing pole is 5 feet long.

The man goes back to the store to return the fishing rod but fortunately the sales clerk is clever and proposes a simple solution that will allow the man to bring his fishing rod on the bus. The man returns to the bus with the same fishing rod and this time the driver allows him to board. The man did not bend, break, cut, collapse, or alter the fishing rod. So what did he do?