FLW Halftime

Brett Hite dominated the FLW Tour season opener on Lake
Okeechobee. FLW Photo

Tomorrow's take-off at Beaver Lake will start the second half of the FLW Tour season and the points race for Forrest Wood Cup qualification. With three events completed and three to go, no one is absolutely in or out based on points. That said, some have pretty substantial hills to climb while others sit in a pretty nice position.

Halfway home, the top few spots in the Angler of the Year standings are occupied by Cody Meyer, Andy Morgan (last year's 2013 AOY) and Randall Tharp (2013 Forrest Wood Cup champion).

So far the Tour has visited Lake Okeechobee in Florida, Lake Hartwell on the Georgia/South Carolina border, and Sam Rayburn in Texas, and the pros have seen three totally different types fisheries. It's been an eventful first half, with many story lines playing out. Check out FLW's Top 10 Highlights.

For the next four days, FLW Tour pros will fish Beaver, in the Arkansas Ozarks, with some anglers fishing ultra clear water in the lake's lower end and other fishing in heavy stain up the White River. The tour season will conclude with stops on two big Tennessee River impoundments --  Pickwick and Kentucky Lake -- both in June.

The championship, the Forrest Wood Cup, will be held on South Carolina's Lake Murray August 14-17.

Big Bass Fishing Names Battle in Texas this Weekend

Texans contend that everything is bigger in their home state, and I won't step into that debate. I do know that the list of anglers competing on Lake Conroe in this weekend's Toyota Texas Bass Classic includes many of the biggest names in the sport of bass fishing. Looking at the list of 50 competitors, which is built based on Angler of the Year final standing from the Elite Series, FLW Tour and PAA Tournament Series, I'm not certain there has been a more power-packed field with a blend of B.A.S.S. and FLW pros.

As the boats stage for blast off on Lake Conroe tomorrow morning, Kevin VanDam, Edwin Evers and Terry Scroggins will be right beside Brent Ehrler, David Dudley and Andy Morgan and many other best-of-the-best pros. Combined accomplishments of the TTBC field include more than 70 million dollars in career earnings, 22 Angler of the Year titles and 17 major championship wins.

I'll definitely be watching what happens throughout the weekend and posting updates on my facebook fishing page. Be sure to like that page if you have not done so already. To watch weigh-ins and follow live scoring, visit the TTBC website.