Bass fishermen dream of the chance to catch that giant largemouth which breaks the long-held world record.

An angler in Japan may have just realized his dream earlier this month.

There is much controversy and mystery surrounding what really has been the biggest largemouth ever caught.

The current recognized world-record bass was caught in 1932 by George Perry in Georgia. It weighed 22 pounds, four ounces.

This record was set so long ago that it seems more legend than historical fact.

There have been many challengers to the title over the years, and countless rumors of largemouth that eclipsed the record but did not qualify for one reason or another.

But 77 years later, Perry’s fish still stubbornly clings to what is perhaps the most sought-after record in the entire sport of fishing.

The latest challenger is Manabu Kurita, a pro fisherman who just two weeks ago landed a bass in Japan’s Lake Biwa weighing 22 pounds, five ounces — just one ounce heavier than the existing record. The weight was verified on a certified scale.

The controversy on this fish surrounds the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) and its criteria for breaking a record.

Its rules state that a new record must break the old one by at least two ounces, otherwise it is considered only to have tied the existing record.

The theory here is that, since fish lose weight every minute after being caught, and since fishermen generally do not tote around certified scales on their bass boats, it’s impossible to verify down to the ounce that one fish was truly bigger than the other.

It’s a fair bet that Kurita was able to get his bass to a certified scale more quickly and carefully than Perry got his to the post office in 1932.

If both anglers did have a certified scale on site at the time of the catch, who’s to say which one would have weighed more? So the IGFA will most likely take the safe road and call them co-record holders.

And so the legend of George Perry lives on.

There have been several other bass caught in recent years that were purportedly world-record size. Southern California’s Dixon Lake, near Escondido, was home to a bass famous enough to earn a name.

“Dottie” — named for the distinguishing mark on her gill — was landed on several occasions, the first time in 2003 when she weighed in officially at 21 pounds, 11 ounces (less than a pound from the record).

She was caught again in 2006 and weighed an unofficial 25 pounds, but it turns out she had been accidentally foul-hooked and was disqualified for that reason.

Finally, just last year, she was found floating dead at the lake.

Santa Rosa’s tiny Spring Lake has been the source of two incidents of claimed world record bass. The first was in 1997, when a fisherman named Paul Dulcos caught a bass there that weighed 24 pounds on an unofficial bathroom scale.

He was unable to get anyone to bring out a certified scale right away, and since the fish was plump full of eggs, he released it instead of killing it to claim the record.

Then in 2003, a woman caught a bass at Spring Lake claimed to weigh 22 pounds, eight ounces.

But the evidence seemed a little “fishy,” as there was only one photo submitted and the length and girth measurements didn’t calculate out to the claimed weight.

So the application was thrown out as a hoax.

California has become the popular speculation for the home of the next true, certifiable world record bass.

Clear Lake is widely recognized as the bass fishing capital of the west, with more fish caught over five pounds than anywhere else in the nation.

Could the next world record live there? Thousands of fishermen work this lake hard all year long, and yet the current lake record is only 17.52 pounds.

So it clearly holds plenty of trophy bass, but maybe not the world record.

What about Lake Berryessa? The continuous stocks of trout provide easy meals for giant bass, allowing them (in theory) to grow to record sizes.

And with its steep shorelines and deep underwater canyons, the lake offers many areas for the lunkers to elude fishermen. So far, the biggest bass ever caught out of this lake has been a 17.5-pounder.

It’s possible the world record could live here, but probably a long shot.

San Pablo Reservoir has relinquished bass over 18 pounds, as has the San Joaquin Delta. Both locations offer plenty of feed for bass to grow big.

Perhaps a 23-pound bass lurks in one of these waters?

The stories about Spring Lake are intriguing, but the 70-acre impoundment seems an unlikely home for the largest largemouth in the world.

Southern California has a number of likely homes, including Dixon, Diamond Valley, Castaic, Casitas, Otay and several others famous for giant bass.

Like all records, this one will someday be officially and indisputably broken. It could be a caught by seasoned pro tossing a $50, hand-tuned swim bait, or it might be landed by a youngster fishing with a night crawler on a Snoopy pole.

That’s the great thing about fishing — just throw your bait in the water and anything can happen!

Guy Carl is a CPA and partner with BDCo Accountants and Advisors in St. Helena (www.bdcocpa.com). Contact Guy at GC.outdoors@sbcglobal.net.