Connor Merritt

Angler Alexendra Spring has officially set her 10th IGFA world record with an accidental halibut catch off the coast of Cape Cod. On July 22, during what was supposed to be a tuna fishing trip, Spring reeled in a catch that was just recently finalized as her 10th IGFA world record fish: a 33-pound, 14-ounce Atlantic halibut. This catch, as Spring described it to On The Water, felt “like reeling in a door from the bottom of the ocean” and added an exciting chapter to her already impressive angling story. 

An Annual Fishing Trip 

Spring, along with her fiancé and fishing partner CJ Peppe, makes an annual trip from Florida to Massachusetts to fish with Captain Ian Leonard, whom she met at Florida Atlantic University in 2014. This trip was no exception — except that instead of their usual targets, a halibut stole the show. 

Frustrated by the slow pace of live-bait fishing, Spring switched to an ultralight slow-pitch jigging setup. After 15 minutes, she thought her A87 diamond jig had snagged a ledge. “I hit it with a second hookset for good measure,” she recalled, “and felt the head shakes.” What followed was a grueling battle: “It was like reeling in a 2×4,” she said.

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A Record-Breaking Halibut 

The halibut wasn’t just a personal victory; it shattered the existing IGFA women’s Atlantic halibut record for the 30-pound line class, which had stood since the 1980s. After verification, including line strength testing, the record was officially certified. 

Spring’s journey doesn’t end here. “My fiancé and I share the goal of catching a fish in each of the 50 states,” she revealed. With 10 world records already in the bag, it seems the next chapter is just waiting to be written.

Read the full story on On The Water.

Read about more record-breaking fishing stories on iSportsmanUSA. 

Cover photo courtesy of Alexandra Spring.