The 33-year-old Tokyo native, who came to America in 1992 to become a professional angler despite knowing only one person and little English, caught his two largest bass with fewer than five minutes remaining Saturday to nail down the $200,000 top prize, trophy and title.
"This is the best day of my life," said Omori, who pounded the stage repeatedly and cried openly before the 13,200 spectators in the Charlotte Coliseum. "I've waited 18 years for my dream to come true – since I was 15.
"The money is great, but it's not about the money. It's the trophy, really. It's awesome."
Omori's final-round catch of 131/2 pounds gave him a three-day total of 39 pound, 2 ounces, and a 2¾-pound margin over California's Aaron Martens (36-6).
On Sunday, he abandoned the jig and creature baits in favor of the crankbait as his allotted fishing time wound down, and it proved to be a timely switch. It produced bass at 1:45, 2:10 and 2:12 p.m. He stopped fishing at 2:15 p.m. to make the run back to Buster Boyd ramp by the 2:30 p.m. deadline.
"I had lost two 5-pounders (earlier in the day) and I thought it cost me the Classic," said Omori, a Japanese citizen with an immigrant visa who lives full time in Emory, Texas. "But I never give up. With fishing, you never know what is going to happen."
For the second time in three years, Martens, 31, finishes second in the Classic.
Former Classic champion Kevin VanDam of Michigan brought in a five-bass limit weighing 13-6 on Sunday to climb into third place with 35-11. Second-round leader Dean Rojas of Texas struggled to catch 9-1 to drop to fourth with 35-5, followed by fellow Texan Kelly Jordon's 34-7 on the strength of a 13-6 limit Sunday.
VanDam scored by fishing fairly deep rocks with a Strike King Series 6 crankbait and 10-inch Zoom worm.
Local favorite Jason Quinn managed just 9-13 Sunday to finish sixth with 33-14.
"It's been a good tournament," the Lake Wylie pro said. "I didn't get the bites I thought I could get. But, hey, that's fishing; I'll get them next time."
On Sunday, defending Classic champion Michael Iaconelli pocketed a second $1,000 Big Bass of the Day award with a 4-14 largemouth. Iaconelli also won the Big Bass of the Tournament award, boating a 7¼-pounder on Day 1 for another $2,000.
In addition to his Classic title, Omori earned the final berth in September's Busch Shootout, an invitation-only tournament on a mystery lake that hearkens back to the early days when the Classic location was kept secret until competitors arrived on site via a chartered plane.
Shootout competitors earned their berths by bringing in the heaviest sacks of the season on the Tournament Trail. The final spot was reserved for the angler with the heaviest single-day catch at the Classic, which Omori won with his 16-2 catch in the first round.
2004 Bassmaster Classic
Lake Wylie, N.C.
July 30-Aug. 1, 2004
Final standings
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Takahiro Omori Emory, Texas 15 39-02 $200,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 9-08 Day 3: 5 13-08
2. Aaron Martens Castaic, Calif. 15 36-06 $50,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 10-09 Day 3: 5 12-10
3. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich. 15 35-11 $40,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 11-08 Day 3: 5 13-06
4. Dean Rojas Grand Saline, Texas 15 35-05 $35,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-08 Day 2: 5 10-12 Day 3: 5 9-01
5. Kelly Jordon Mineola, Texas 15 34-07 $25,000.00
Day 1: 5 9-15 Day 2: 5 11-02 Day 3: 5 13-06
6. Jason Quinn Clover, S.C. 15 33-14 $20,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 10-13 Day 3: 5 9-13
7. Denny Brauer Camdenton, Mo. 11 33-09 $16,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 1 4-07 Day 3: 5 13-11
8. Stacey D King Reeds Spring, Mo. 15 33-00 $15,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 11-13 Day 3: 5 10-07
9. Marty Stone Linden, N.C. 14 32-07 $14,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 10-12 Day 3: 4 9-05
10. John Murray Phoenix, Ariz. 14 32-04 $13,000.00
Day 1: 5 8-15 Day 2: 4 8-10 Day 3: 5 14-11
11. Skeet Reese Auburn, Calif. 13 31-09 $12,000.00
Day 1: 3 8-12 Day 2: 5 9-07 Day 3: 5 13-06
12. Davy Hite Prosperity, S.C. 11 30-12 $12,000.00
Day 1: 2 5-04 Day 2: 5 14-09 Day 3: 4 10-15
13. Brent Chapman Shawnee, Kan. 13 29-02 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 10-07 Day 2: 4 9-01 Day 3: 5 9-10
14. Jay Yelas Tyler, Texas 14 28-09 $9,500.00
Day 1: 4 6-14 Day 2: 5 8-14 Day 3: 5 12-13
15. Randy Blaukat Lamar, Mo. 13 28-07 $8,900.00
Day 1: 3 4-13 Day 2: 5 12-01 Day 3: 5 11-09
16. David Walker Sevierville, Tenn. 12 27-01 $8,800.00
Day 1: 3 5-04 Day 2: 5 13-01 Day 3: 4 8-12
17. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, N.C. 14 26-02 $8,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 8-01 Day 3: 4 7-05
18. Tom Biffle Wagoner, Okla. 10 26-01 $8,200.00
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 3 6-06 Day 3: 2 4-09
19. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 5 20-13 $12,100.00
Day 1: 4 15-15 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 1 4-14
20. Steve Sennikoff Forney, Texas 10 19-11 $8,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 4 7-07 Day 3: 1 2-00
21. Russ Lane Prattville, Ala. 11 19-01 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 4 5-10 Day 3: 2 3-02
22. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky. 10 18-13 $5,500.00
Day 1: 3 5-05 Day 2: 5 10-03 Day 3: 2 3-05
23. Thad Takes Center Point, Iowa 8 18-09 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 2 4-10 Day 3: 1 2-01
24. Zell Rowland Montgomery, Texas 7 16-07 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 2 3-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
25. Chad Brauer Osage Beach, Mo. 7 16-02 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 2 5-02 Day 3: 0 0-00
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Big Bass
Day
1 Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 7-04 $1,000.00
2 Davy Hite Prosperity, S.C. 5-06 $1,000.00
3 Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 4-14 $1,000.00
Big Bass of Tournament
Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 7-04 $2,000.00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 19 164 380-15
2 18 169 352-02
3 13 90 214-03
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50 423 947-04