Brownies Marine Lake Santee Open News

Lake Santee Open Information, Regulations, Tournament Rules, and Registration

***Please check this page prior to each Tournament.   Any changes or cancellations will be posted on here up until 9:00 PM the night before a scheduled tournament.*

***Please be sure to read the Important Information contained below concerning eligibility for this tournament.

September 8, 2025

On Sunday, September 8^th, ten teams took part in the final tournament of the 2025 season at beautiful Lake Santee. With morning temperatures dipping into the 40’s, it was obvious that fall was in the air! True to form, when those first cold fronts come through, the fishing becomes challenging to say the least.

The team of Chandler Jennings and Bryce Lower continued their winning ways as the pair brought five keeper bass to the scales which weighed 11.68 pounds to secure the victory. Long-time USA Bassin members, Craig Duncan & Kyle Hohenberger, certainly made things interesting, however, with a 11.18 lb. catch in just three bass. Craig and Kyle’s bag included the day’s big bass, a 4.75 lb. lunker! Congratulations on an extremely close second place finish, Craig & Kyle! Each team was able to take home the beautiful plaques sponsored by Brownies Marine in Fairland, IN. Third place was captured by Matt and Scott Perkins with their 7.39 lb. catch. Congratulations to all our fishermen!

Following the tournament, the anglers, plus several guests, enjoyed quite the meal that several of our fishing friends pitched in to provide. It was a great time of fellowship and conversation after the long season of catching Lake Santee bass. Special thanks to Bob Kassee, Stacey Tuley, Pam Duncan, Carrie McQueen, Eric Johnson, Steve Hanson, Lisa Ayers, and Katie Egielske (with her state champion cookies!) for making sure no one went away hungry!

With the onset of fall, many watercraft owners’ thoughts rightfully turn to preparing for the Hoosier State’s colder temperatures. Be sure to give Brownies Marine a call to schedule your boat’s winterization by their factory-certified personnel or, for you do-it-yourselfers, go see Scott for everything you need to ensure your vessel is ready for next season with manufacturer’s recommended products. Not only is Brownies Marine one of the Tri-State’s most trusted marine dealers, Michael and all the Brownies Marine folks support many of our Lake Santee community’s activities. Support those businesses who support us!

Next on the agenda to get completed before the snow flies will be the purchase and stocking of adult largemouth bass from Clear Creek Fisheries in Martinsville, IN. As we have done for well over a decade now, our anglers donate additional money to enhance the fishery at our Lake Santee, ensuring great angling for everyone for years to come. This on-going project will be highlighted in an upcoming Smoke Signals, so stay tuned!

Until next time, please remember to PRACTICE CATCH AND RELEASE ON ALL OF LAKE SANTEE’S BASS!

God Bless,

Chip & Lisa Ayers

The complete standings are posted below:

1. Jennings/Lower       11.68

2. Duncan/Hohenberger  11.18

3. Perkins/Perkins        7.39

4. McQueen/McQueen  6.16

5. Johnson/Hanson      5.02

6. Fuentes/Fuentes      4.98

7. Ems/Patton              4.66

8. Tuley/Tuley              2.28

9. Hembree/Hembree   0.00

9. Farissier/Kane          0.00

September 7, 2025

The results for the September 7, 2025 tournament are posted.

These results only include those teams who are current members of USA Bassin.

The complete standings will be posted in the News Section of the Brownies Marine Lake Santee Open Page in the coming days

God Bless,

Chip & Lisa Ayers

October 5, 2024

On Sunday, September 22nd, ten teams took part in the final Lake Santee Bass Tournament of the 2024 season.  This annual event, often referred to as the “End of Summer Tournament”, is officially the Brownie’s Marine Open and is a great opportunity for our members to not only take part in an awesome bass tournament but share a meal afterwards along with some great fellowship and a chance to trade fish stories.

In a repeat of 2023, the winners of this year’s tournament were the team of Chandler Jennings and Bryce Lower.  Chandler and Bryce have been on fire recently and this day was no different as the team brought a five bass limit to the scales which totaled 20.11 pounds. Their bag included the day’s big bass, a 6.40 giant! Wow!! Finishing in second place was the team of Trey Lowder and Eric Bowser with five bass weighing 18.29 lbs. while third was captured by Brynt and Ron Tuley with five bass weighing 14.73 pounds. Great job to all our teams!

As mentioned earlier, once the tournament was concluded, there were some great eats that were provided for our anglers. Between the hotdogs, BBQ brisket, sloppy-joes, and a table full of sides and desserts, nobody left hungry.

A grateful THANK YOU once again goes to Michael Massey and all the awesome folks at Brownie’s Marine just up the road in Fairland, IN for their continued sponsorship of our tournaments.  We couldn’t do all that we do without them.

As in the past dozen plus years, the next project so to speak will be the annual purchase of adult largemouth bass to be stocked in our Lake Santee.  As most are aware, U.S.A. Bassin anglers donate cash at each tournament for the supplemental purchase and subsequent stocking of bass into Lake Santee. To date, our anglers have voluntarily purchased and stocked well over 2,200 adult largemouth bass into Lake Santee for everyone’s benefit.  We will once again be purchasing the bass from Clear Creek Fisheries, LLC of Martinsville, IN.  It should be noted that Clear Creek Fisheries meets and exceeds all the requirements in Lake Santee’s continued invasive species initiative protocols implemented by the L.S.P.O.A. board.  THANK YOU to our anglers for helping improve our community by continuing to pay it forward for over the last twelve years and thank you to Clear Creek Fisheries owner Eric Hess and the entire Hess family for partnering with us to make this possible!

With the fishing season officially winding down (sorta!!), many boat owners are faced with winterization of their vessels.  Indiana’s frigid temperatures can quickly destroy many of the systems on today’s computer advanced boats.  Remember Brownie’s Marine offers professional and certified winterization services as well as a full line of winterization products for those owners inclined to do their own. 

Until next time, please take time to introduce your children to the beautiful Hoosier outdoors by taking them fishing, hunting, or simply getting them outside to enjoy our great state for themselves… And as always, don’t forget to PLEASE PRACTICE CATCH AND RELEASE on all of Lake Santee’s bass!

God Bless,

Chip & Lisa Ayers

September 22, 2024

The results from the Lake Santee are posted. These results only include those teams who are current members of USA Bassin.

The complete standings are posted below.

1. Jennings/Lower                  20.11   (6.40 BB)

2. Bowser/Lowder                  18.29

3. Tuley/Tuley                        14.73

4. McQueen/McQueen            14.09

5. Fuentes/Fuentes                8.77

6. Duncan/Hohenberger         5.55

7. Johnson/Hanson                4.77

8. Mcqueen/Stepp                  3.92

9. Perkins/Perkins                  0.00

10. Farissier/Seaver               0.00

God Bless,

Chip & Lisa Ayers

June 19, 2024

We are extremely happy to announce that Michael Massey and all the wonderful folks at Brownie's Marine in Fairland, Indiana will once again be the title sponsor for the September 2024 Lake Santee Open! Brownie's Marine be providing the Champions with beautiful one-of-a-kind plaques for being the top points earning team for the entire season as well as awards for each and every event of the 2024 season. WOW! Thank you, Michael!! These beautiful awards have been designed by Tournament Wear of Ocklawaha, Florida.

If you are in the market for a new or pre-owned boat, be sure to check out Brownies Marine just up the road in Fairland, IN. You won't be sorry! Also, REMEMBER... as one of America's Top Thirty White River Marine Dealers, Brownies' Marine has factory trained and certified service technicians on site to service all you watercraft's needs!

God Bless,

Chip & Lisa Ayers

Please be sure to read the Important Information contained below concerning eligibility for this tournament.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THE USA BASSIN LAKE SANTEE OPEN

Lake Santee is a private lake managed by a home owners association, the Lake Santee Property Owner’s Association.  With that being said, all rules and bylaws enacted by the homeowner’s association must take precedence, first and foremost.  We have received several inquiries concerning eligibility to take part in our tournament.  According to the by-laws, only boats registered to property owners who are members in good standing of the association are permitted access to the lake.  In addition, one member of the tournament team must be an association member or immediate family member (spouse, child, etc.).  This rule, unfortunately, does sometimes exclude participation by teams who don’t meet those rquirements.

With all that being said, THERE ARE NUMEROUS LOTS FOR SALE at Lake Santee!  These lots can be purchased for very reasonable prices and, in doing so, allows the owner(s) full access to the lake and all included privileges.  Interested parties may contact the Lake Santee Property Owners Association office at (812) 527-2943 six days a week to learn more about the community and obtain lists of lots for sale and local real estate agents contact information.

If you are interested in becoming a part of one of the Midwest’s best bass fishing lakes, take a few minutes and research Lake Santee.  As tournament directors, our goal is to include as many anglers in our events, not exclude them.  However, we must abide by the association’s bylaws to do so. 

Thank you to everyone for their understanding in this matter.

God Bless,

Chip & Lisa Ayers