2026 Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Preview: Harris Chain of Lakes

The 2026 rebirth of the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by MillerTech gets underway on the Harris Chain with Stop 1 Presented by B&W Trailer Hitches in central Florida on Feb. 6-8. With multiple former Angler of the Year winners in the field and a bevy of bass-fishing millionaires, the season could be as exciting as we’ve seen in a long time.
 

This year, pros are allowed up to 3 hours of forward-facing sonar use per day, which will be a major factor in some events and a non-factor in others. As was the case in the past, there will again be three full days of MLFNOW! livestream coverage, and the top five at the end of the season will qualify for the 2027 Bass Pro Tour.
 

Typically, the season kicks off in Texas or Florida, and, as far as the weather goes, Florida is the safer bet for sunshine and flip-flops. This year, things start at the Harris Chain, where MLF has a lot of recent tournament history.

The 2025 season on the Harris Chain was a tale of contrasting styles. In mid-February, Bobby Lane won the Bass Pro Tour event there. He made the trek to Apopka and fished shallow, catching 19 scorable bass for 56 pounds, 5 ounces on the final day. Then, in March, Dylan Quilatan tallied 83-8 over three days in the Toyota Series event, which is the heaviest winning weight ever for a three-day Series event in Florida.
 

Lane never turned his forward-facing sonar on in the event, and though he started his tournament in Harris, he and most of the rest of the Top 10 finished the fight in Apopka. In that event, flipping shallow vegetation was huge despite a front that rolled in on the final day of the tournament.
 

Later in the year, Quilatan showed off the maximum potential of modern, offshore fishing on the Harris Chain. Wielding a glide bait, a minnow and a Neko rig, the young pro blasted 33-6 on Day 2 and was in command of the event from then on.

A perennial favorite on the Harris Chain, Bobby Bakewell thinks we’re in for a pretty interesting event, though perhaps not a slugfest as we’ve seen in years past on the chain. For Bakewell, an ordinary tournament on the Harris Chain would see him spend a lot of time offshore; but that may not be as good of an option without a full day of forward-facing sonar.
 

“It’s the golden question,” he said. “If a wave pulls up, I don’t know that offshore would be able to beat shallow, like they usually do. But, with the chain not fishing great, even if someone does catch a big bag offshore, I don’t know that they’ll be able to replicate it. And there aren’t many offshore areas, because we don’t have the grass we used to.”
 

According to Bakewell, a prespawn or spawn event is in the cards, and the chain isn’t in quite the shape it has been some years.
 

“There’s hardly any hydrilla anywhere on the chain,” he said. “The water in the whole chain is dirty – even Beauclair, where it is usually crystal clear. It’s not looking great, to be honest. But then it should be better than it is now. Hopefully the spawn will be on.”
 

Of course, the spawn, or lack thereof, will come down to the weather. The event falls just after the full moon, which could help, and some warm weather could make the banks a very happening place. Still, counting out the offshore bite on the Harris Chain because pros can’t use all their tech the entire time is probably not wise. A Carolina rig and a crankbait have caught a lot of Florida bass over the years, and they don’t require pinpoint accuracy to ply.
 

One of the biggest factors recently at the Harris Chain is Apopka, the lake furthest south on the chain. A big lake, it’s got some offshore potential, but is most frequently a player on the bank. Of course, the calculation for Pro Circuit anglers is a lot different than it was for Lane in the BPT event. In that tournament, with a fairly small field, he could fish until lines-out – so, half of his travel time was off the clock. With a weigh-in to get back to, that isn’t the case here.
 

“It’s rough – in years past, the lock has broken down. When stuff like that is happening, and time is not on your side already, there’s been a lot of guys locked out,” Bakewell said. “You can only lock through three at a time. Without there being a ton of boats, it takes at least an hour and a half. And that’s without waiting at the lock. If a lot of boats don’t go, an hour and a half is not insane, but when it gets to be 3 hours, you don’t get much fishing time.”
 

Bakewell said that in some events, anglers haven’t made it through the lock into Apopka until noon, which leaves fishing time better measured in minutes rather than hours.
 

“If you’re scared to take a really big gamble, that’s not the play for you,” he said. “And you could get down there and not catch them. It’s not like the lake is golden, but it’s got big ones.”
 

As for a winning weight, be it a shallow bite or offshore derby, plan on some pretty good bags. The Harris Chain isn’t as good as it has been some years, but Florida always has a high ceiling.
 

“It could definitely be 75 pounds, but there’s a lot of variables involved,” Bakewell said. “Do we have a cold front? Does someone get caught on the other side of the lock? I think 68 pounds is reasonable and conservative.”

In every event, there are a few factors that can really shape the outcome. This year’s opener in Florida has a myriad of interesting storylines.
 

• Offshore vs. shallow – Though there’s potential for good weather that puts a lot of fish on the bank and makes this non-competitive, the Harris Chain is historically a great offshore fishery. Even without forward-facing sonar, seining grass flats with ChatterBaits and lipless crankbaits is a time-honored method. Plus, cranking or throwing a worm on hard spots has accounted for tons of wins.  While folks looking to target more individual fish will need to get it done quickly, don’t rule out someone winning off the bank.
   
• The clock is a factor – In last year’s BPT event, Apopka shone bright mostly because it was the best place to fish, but partly because the anglers were dealing with a scenario that most tournaments on the Harris Chain don’t see. Not having to beat the clock and get back meant that the BPT pros recovered a lot of fishing time not available in events with a weigh-in. In this one, the extended travel times sometimes needed on the Harris Chain might make the sonar limitations less burdensome, but that’s about the only thing they help with. Deciding how much time is worth on the Harris Chain is one of the most complex calculations in bassin’.

You can follow the action at Stop 1 Presented by B&W Trailer Hitches on the Harris Chain during all three days of competition, Feb. 6-8, on MLFNOW! and stay locked to MajorLeagueFishing.com for on-the-water galleries, daily stories and more.