After six long months of speculation, endless stacks of documentation, fact checking and a decisive polygraph test, Japan’s Manabu Kurita and his monster largemouth bass have been accepted by the IGFA, tying George Perry’s longstanding mark (22 pounds, 4 ounces) as the all-tackle world record for the largemouth bass.
Long considered the “Holy Grail” of fly fishing records, Kurita’s 22-pound, 4-ounce catch caught on July 2, 2009 was approved for the record on Jan. 8, 2010 -- 77 years after Perry’s unthinkable record was set in Georgia.
Perry's behemoth was caught on Montgomery Lake, on June 2, 1932, near Jacksonville, Georgia. Kurita, 32, pulled his bass from Lake Biwa, an ancient reservoir northeast of Kyoto, catching the record bass on a Japanese bluegill, Deps rod, Shimano Antares DC7LV reel and 25-pound Toray fluorocarbon line.
It was Kurita’s first cast to a piling where he had seen a monster bass swim past. He twitched the bait only a couple of times before it hit. After a three-minute tussle, he landed a fish that was much bigger than he had envisioned.
“I knew it was big,” Kurita said in a statement released by the IGFA, “but I didn’t know it was that big.”
Big was an understatement. Using certified scales, his fish weighed in at 10.12 kg. It had a fork length of 27.2 inches and a girth of 26.7 inches.
IGFA rules for fish caught outside the U.S. allow anglers 90 days to submit their applications from the date of their catch. The documentation was received through the IGFA’s sister association, the Japan Game Fish Association. IGFA conservation director Jason Schratwieser said Kurita’s application was meticulously documented with the necessary photos and video.
“The moment Kurita weighed his fish, word spread like wildfire,” Schratwieser said. “We knew this would be significant so we immediately contacted the JGFA for more information. Established in 1979, and JGFA compiles and translates all record applications of fish caught in Japan before forwarding to the IGFA.
“It works out well because they not only translate applications but can also contact the angler if more documentation is needed.” And IGFA did its homework as rumors and skepticism surrounded Kurita’s legendary catch for some six months.
“Since the IGFA requires three months from the time of capture before a record can be approved, the official word would have to wait until October 2,” Schratwieser said.
“However, almost right away rumors began to circulate that Kurita may have caught his fish in a ‘no-fishing zone.” In response, the IGFA immediately corresponded with the JGFA to speak with the angler about this issue and to gather information regarding the legality of fishing where Kurita caught his bass. Official word came back that the location of the catch was not a no-fishing zone, but was an area where anchoring or stopping was prohibited. This spurred more correspondence with the JGFA and the angler, including affidavits asking the angler if he stopped his boat at anytime. Again, the testimony and affidavits that came back indicated that the Kurita did not violate any laws and that his catch was indeed legitimate.”
The IGFA even went as far as to give Kurita a polygraph test on Dec. 15, which concluded “that the catch was legitimate,” the IGFA noted in a press release.
“The IGFA wishes to applaud Kurita on his outstanding catch and would also like to commend him on his patience and candor during the entire review process,” Schratwieser added. “We would also like to thank the JGFA for their diligence and tireless assistance in corresponding with Kurita and fisheries officials.”
So what's the biggest largemouth bass caught on a fly? Well, according to the IGFA, that's the 14-pound, 8-ounce largemouth Larry Kurosaki landed at Castaic Lagoon in California on 12-pound tippet in Feb. 24, 2007.
