A fishing rod holder and retainer include a top plate that includes a main opening, and a retainer opening. A cylindrical tube extends downwardly at an angle away from the top plate. A rod retainer includes a retainer cable having a retainer clasp adjacent the retainer opening. A retainer channel is coupled to the top plate and aligned with the retainer opening and configured to extend downwardly to guide the retainer cable so that the cable extends down into the retainer channel. A biasing device is coupled to the retainer cable and configured to bias the retainer cable downwardly within the retainer channel.