IGFA Luck played a role in Kurita’s record bass catch in Japan

There was a “back story” to Manabu Kurita’s catch of the 22 lb 4 oz largemouth bass from Japan’s Lake Biwa, which led to his recognition of an IGFA All-Tackle World Record (see: the main news story at http://igfa.org/Records/World-Record-Largemouth-Bass.aspx )

He considered it luck.

On July 2nd, Kurita, 32, of Aichi, Japan, fishing on his country’s largest lake caught what is considered by millions of anglers, especially in North America, as the “holy grail” of freshwater fish because of the popularity and the longevity of George Perry’s 77 year old record. Perry’s same sized catch was made June 2, 1932, on Georgia’s Montgomery Lake, near Jacksonville, Georgia.

IGFA conservation director Jason Schratwieser said during the record review process undertaken by the IGFA, and its sister association the Japan Game Fish Association, “We corresponded with Kurita via the JGFA. One of the interesting sidelights of his pursuit was his unusual recovery of a favored rod and reel from the lake where he would soon catch his record fish.”

In May just two months earlier Kurita was on Lake Biwa using his favorite combo, fishing a live Ayu baitfish. After casting his bait, he laid down the rod on the deck of the boat to organize some tackle. As luck (the bad kind) would have it, a bass inhaled his bait and, before he knew it, dragged his rod and reel overboard. Since Lake Biwa happens to be Japan’s largest lake and can reach depths of over 300 feet, Kurita thought that he had seen the last of his favorite rod and reel.

Fortunately for Kurita, luck (this time the good kind) would visit him again. Several weeks later, back on Biwa, Kurita saw a large, dead bass floating on the surface. When he motored up to the fish, he saw that it had line coming out of its mouth. Kurita began pulling in the monofilament and, after several minutes, he was amazed to see that his lucky rod and reel was attached to it!

“It was that same rod and reel he used in early July for the world record tying catch,” said Schratwieser. “A Deps Sidewinder rod and a Shimano Antares DC7LV reel loaded with 25 lb Toray line.”
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