Evansville teenager turns limited fishing time into a winning 9-pound, 9-ounce bag at Rocky Point to capture his first Phoenix Bass Fishing League victory
Noah Woodring has spent the past two years coming painfully close to a breakthrough victory. On the Ohio River at Rocky Point, the 18-year-old Evansville angler finally turned those near misses into a championship.
Woodring caught five bass weighing 9 pounds, 9 ounces to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine event, earning $3,530 and a major milestone in his young fishing career.
The victory came during the third event of the Hoosier Division season and the opening event of a double-header weekend on the Ohio River at Rocky Point. Facing a challenging river system and a field of experienced competitors, Woodring relied on familiarity with the water and a simple but highly effective strategy to put himself at the top of the leaderboard.
Woodring regularly fishes the Ohio River several times a week, and that local knowledge proved invaluable.
After launching, he locked through the dam and headed downriver toward an area he had practiced the previous Sunday. His target was a series of stumps sitting in approximately three to five feet of water.
His primary weapon was a spinnerbait.
Rather than constantly moving around in search of new water, Woodring focused on the stumps and looked for the areas offering the highest percentage opportunities. According to the young angler, the larger stumps were particularly productive.
Once he reached his fishing area, Woodring had very little time to work. He estimated that he had only about 1½ hours of actual fishing time after locking through the dam.
In that limited window, however, he made every minute count.
Woodring caught eight keeper bass, enough to quickly assemble a competitive limit. Once his five-bass limit reached 9 pounds, 9 ounces, he made a calculated decision to protect his position rather than continue gambling for a potentially heavier bag.
At that point, Woodring believed his weight would likely be good enough for a Top 5 finish.
Instead, it proved to be enough to win the entire tournament.
The decision to head back toward the weigh-in was also influenced by the logistics of fishing the Ohio River. Woodring did not want to risk getting delayed or locked out by barge traffic later in the day.
It was a conservative decision that ultimately paid off in the biggest possible way.
For Woodring, the victory was about much more than a tournament check.
It represented redemption after two frustrating seasons filled with missed opportunities.
In his first BFL event, Woodring broke off one fish and lost another that he believes would have been enough to give him the victory. Last season, he experienced another painful setback at the same fishery. He caught only three bass but managed to catch the event's big bass. Two additional lost fish, he believes, could have pushed him into the Top 5.
Those experiences made the 2026 victory especially satisfying.
“It feels like a little redemption,” Woodring said after securing the win.
At only 18 years old, Woodring is already demonstrating the composure and decision-making that can make a major difference in tournament fishing. His victory was not built around catching a huge number of fish or producing an enormous bag. Instead, it came from understanding the river, identifying a productive pattern and recognizing when he had enough weight to make the smart decision.
His spinnerbait bite around submerged stumps proved to be the difference.
The Ohio River can be an unforgiving tournament venue, where changing conditions, current, barge traffic and limited productive water can force anglers to make difficult choices throughout the day. Woodring's familiarity with the river allowed him to eliminate unnecessary water and concentrate on an area he trusted.
The result was a clean and efficient tournament strategy.
Woodring's five-fish limit of 9 pounds, 9 ounces was enough to edge the field and give the young angler his first Phoenix Bass Fishing League victory. It also provides an important confidence boost as the Hoosier Division season continues.
While the win is a significant personal achievement, it could also mark the beginning of a promising stretch for Woodring. His knowledge of the Ohio River, combined with the lessons learned from previous disappointments, appears to be translating into stronger tournament decisions.
This time, there was no broken line, no lost kicker and no frustrating “what if.”
There was simply a limit of bass, a winning weight and a championship.
Woodring's victory at Rocky Point is a reminder that tournament fishing is often decided not by who catches the most fish, but by who makes the right decisions when opportunities appear.
At 18, Woodring has already experienced the highs and lows of competitive bass fishing. Now he has something he was missing: a BFL trophy.
And after two years of near misses, the Evansville angler finally has his breakthrough moment.
