South Dakota
A Sporting Oasis At South Dakota’s Sutton Bay
A bird’s eye view of Sutton Bays dramatic lodge and surrounding landscape.
Few states have managed to brand an outdoor activity any better than South Dakota has with its famous pheasant hunting. For an introduced game bird that didn’t take hold in America until the late 1800s, the ring-necked rooster has found a welcomed home in the state where more than 130,000 hunters took roughly 1.2 million of the birds last year. The state estimates that the roughly three-month pheasant season generates some $400 million in economic impact including seasonal salaries. For a state with fewer than one million people, that’s not chicken feed.
A ring-necked pheasant flushes from the wealth of native grasses surrounding Sutton Bay.
According to state estimates, there are nearly 300 pheasant lodges and guide services across the state catering to mostly out-of-state hunters, places where sportsmen and women from across the country descend to pay homage to one of America’s favorite game birds. Come October, the South Dakota grasslands look like animated pumpkin patches as orange-clad hunters line up and march through cover to unearth the colorful roosters within shotgun range. South Dakota native son and fellow pheasant hunter Tom Brokaw describes opening day of pheasant season here as a religious holiday.
The rolling terrain of the Missouri River breaks makes for beautiful and productive pheasant cover.
And if there’s one cathedral where pheasants are especially revered it’s Sutton Bay, a sprawling resort community located atop the rolling hills of the Missouri River breaks, a dramatic landscape overlooking the big water created by the Oahe Dam, completed in 1962 near the capital city of Pierre. Lake Oahe is one of the largest reservoirs in the U.S., some 231 miles long and is home to some of the best walleye and smallmouth bass fishing in the country.
The author, Norden and Orzi celebrate the end of a productive pheasant hunt at Sutton Bay.
In addition to hosting a remarkable fishery, the lake provides a spectacular backdrop to Sutton Bay’s massive lodge and cabin complex. Drive across mostly empty prairie for an hour and come upon Sutton Bay and the place feels nearly surreal. Surrounding the dramatic lodging is a sprawling golf course carved out of the breaks and overlooking the big waters of Oahe. It’s a long way from anywhere and that’s just the way members like it. If the apocalypse happened, this is as close to a safe haven as you’re likely to ever find.
I traveled here chasing rumors about the place and its unrivaled setting and epic sporting activities—pheasant hunting, fishing and golf—but my November focus was the property’s abundant and fast-flying pheasants. Joining me was dog trainer Domenico Orzi, an Italian expat who made his way to America after a lengthy stint in South Africa. Orzi owns a kennel full of classic Old-World pointers, slightly smaller than their American counterparts and famous for their pleasant dispositions and keen noses.
The sunset view from the main lodge of Sutton Bay.
Guiding Orzi and me is Sutton Bay’s Jeff Norden, the resort’s hunting director who happens to own one of the finest Labrador retrievers I’ve ever encountered. While the traditional South Dakota pheasant lodge experience entails a line of hunters walking fields of corn, milo or sorghum, we opted to focus on native cover with emphasis on working the dogs through ribbons of cattails and grasses.
Sutton Bay has nearly 5,000 acres of habitat that holds a mix of wild and early released pheasants, so it’s difficult to tell the difference in bird behavior because all of them launch like feathered rockets—especially late in the season when they’ve survived their share of gunners and their dogs.
Orzi intercepts a rising rooster, one of many encountered daily at Sutton Bay.
Unlike most of the relatively flat Dakota prairie, the Missouri breaks that make up much of Sutton Bay’s landscape create an assortment of coulees with cattail bottoms, perfect lairs to hide the shifty late-season pheasants. Norden’s Lab, however, had an especially effective knack for flushing the birds from the dense cattails, sending the roosters past Orzi and me as we paralleled the dog on either side of the draws. The Lab provided the one-two punch of flusher and retriever and seldom missed marking and fetching the downed birds. For many bird hunters, watching a skilled dog work is the highlight of the experience, and Norden’s Lab was the marquee attraction.
Gourmet dining is also a part of the Sutton Bay experience.
Following each hunt, we returned to Sutton Bay’s main lodge to enjoy gourmet meals that made certain; despite hiking the better part of each day, we didn’t lose weight on the visit. While enjoying Sutton Bay’s hospitality, we learned about the rich history of the property.
The Sutton Ranch began in 1896 when Ed Sutton purchased roughly 1,500 acres from a Chicago land company. Long before the Suttons settled the land, however, many Native American tribes thrived in the area. In 1804, intrepid explorers Lewis and Clark camped near what would become the Sutton Ranch as they searched for a waterway to the Pacific. Highway 1804, located near the ranch, is named in honor of the Lewis and Clark expedition.
Norden and his world class gun dogs.
While South Dakota might be flyover country to many, for tens of thousands of American hunters the state is a dream destination, the kind of place any bird hunter aspires to visit at least once in their lives. For the 400 members of Sutton Bay, however, South Dakota is more than a bucket list stop, it’s become a seasonal home. One visit here and you’ll understand why.
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 5, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from Jan. 5 drawing
04-18-24-51-56, Powerball: 14, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 5 drawing
02-07-08-21-45, Lucky Ball: 15
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from Jan. 5 drawing
12-19-21-30-47, Star Ball: 05, ASB: 03
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 4, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 4 drawing
03-08-13-38-47, Lucky Ball: 02
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
GRAND FORKS — UND senior guard Garrett Anderson had shot 1-for-7 from the field before he pulled up for a deep 3-pointer in overtime.
It was a make-or-break shot for the Fighting Hawks, who trailed South Dakota State by two points with 20 seconds remaining.
Anderson’s triple fell. On a Saturday afternoon at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center where several Hawks provided clutch shots late, it was his 3-pointer that iced the victory.
Gabe and Reed Uelmen / Grand Forks Herald
“That was a huge three by Garrett,” UND head coach Paul Sather said. “Happy for him, because you feel it with him — when that floodgate opens a little bit of confidence, and not just as a scorer but just as a player, he keeps fighting for it, keeps working for it, keeps keeping the right mindset.”
UND won 90-87, earning its third-straight win over the Jackrabbits and improving to 2-0 (8-10 overall) in Summit League play.
South Dakota State, hot off the heels of a commanding New Year’s Day win over Omaha, fell to 1-1 in conference (8-9 overall).
“These two first league games, you need to protect your home court if you want any chance to be in play at the end of this year,” Sather said. “It’s a great way to start. But you also need to go on the road and win some games. And as I tell the guys, it’s not who, when or where, it’s how you show up to play. And having that mentality, it’s not home and road, it’s ‘Are you ready to go today?’”
The Hawks needed just about everyone to stave off SDSU.
Redshirt sophomore guard Zach Kraft and freshman guard Anthony Smith III led the way with double-digit point totals in a first half that was a high-scoring, fast-paced affair.
Gabe and Reed Uelmen / Grand Forks Herald
UND shot 64.3%, South Dakota State 55.6%. By halftime, the Hawks had a slight 50-45 lead.
The shooting cooled down in the second half and in overtime. In those final two frames, the Hawks turned to a variety of players, from the starting lineup to the bench, to keep up with the Jackrabbits.
“It’s hard to sustain that for 40 minutes, but we were able to kind of get ourselves back,” Sather said. “Our bench was fantastic in that first half. … We sustained it, we got back in, we stayed there within distance of it, and guys made plays. We had opportunities to make plays and close the game, but we had plays that were made to get us into overtime and win in overtime.”
Redshirt freshman Greyson Uelmen finished with a team-high 17 points and nailed the final two free throws in overtime to seal the win.
Gabe and Reed Uelmen / Grand Forks Herald
Kraft, who ended with 14 points, splashed a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left in regulation to take a 79-77 lead.
Junior forward George Natsvlishvili came off the bench and tied up the game just minutes earlier with a clutch second-chance layup. He also nabbed a key basket with 1 minute, 56 seconds left in overtime.
Before South Dakota State managed to rally back for its first lead of the second half, a free throw and a layup from Smith kept the Hawks’ offense on pace with the visitors. He finished with 16 points.
UND’s bench contributed 39 points.
Gabe and Reed Uelmen / Grand Forks Herald
“I felt like our bench won the game today,” Kraft said. “In the first half, (Smith) came into the game, knocked down that three at the end of the half, and then Wylee (Delorme) in the second half, five rebounds, scoring off the offensive rebounds, it’s huge for us.”
Delorme put together his best game as a Hawk in the win. The sophomore guard from Devils Lake constantly attacked the offensive glass, flexing some creativity with slick drives to the rim.
He earned a season-high 12 points.
Gabe and Reed Uelmen / Grand Forks Herald
“We’ve seen him more of a shooter (in practice), I haven’t really seen the behind-the-back, step-through and float,” Anderson said. “That was kind of new, that was a tough move. But he’s gotten to it in practice for sure.”
Kraft, Uelmen, Smith, Delorme and senior guard Eli King all finished with 12 or more points.
“We just relied on our guys that make those tough shots and are built for those moments,” Delorme said. “Seventh, eighth man off the bench — like Marley (Curtis), Marley can have a double-digit day too. All of us can go for 10 points, but it’s just a matter of making the easy plays and just using each other.”
UND will face its first road test of the conference slate this Thursday, when it travels to Omaha.
Gabe and Reed Uelmen / Grand Forks Herald
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