Rodeo Recap: July 1 – July 7

They don’t call it Cowboy Christmas for nothing! In the past seven days, over $5 million in total payout was up for grabs, making it the single largest paying week in professional rodeo’s regular season. 49 rodeo events took place in 18 states and two Canadian territories with most states and provinces hosting multiple rodeos to celebrate the Cowboy Christmas “holiday.”  

The major payday saw some athletes hold their spot at the top of the leaderboard while others merrily cashed in and made their way to number one. Don’t be mistaken!

Just because you may not see much overlap between winners at the covered rodeos below doesn’t mean your favorite athletes didn’t nod their head there. That’s the fun of Cowboy Christmas – long drives over lots of miles to hit as many rodeos as possible in one week for a chance at a piece of that Cowboy Christmas magic.

Ponoka Stampede | Ponoka, Alberta – Total Payout: $570,400

Each year, more than 600 contestants vie for a piece of Ponoka Stampede’s hefty prize money pool. In the end, only the top four contestants in each event compete in the Stampede Showdown where $105,000 of the Stampede’s total payout, this year totaling over $570,000, is awarded amongst the winners.

Ponoka fans witnessed impressive scores in the roughstock events during the Showdown. Montana Bareback rider, Weston Timberman rode Calgary Stampede’s, Agent Lynx for 90 points while New Mexico Saddle Bronc rider, Zachary Dallas rode Calgary Stampede’s, Tokyo Bubbles for 90.25. Each ride was good for a $7,500 winning check!

2019 World Champion and 5x NFR qualifier, Tie Down Roper Haven Meged led the average going into Ponoka’s final Showdown, then won himself the rodeo and a $7,500 check after a 7.8 second run. Meged is currently 9^th in the 2024 Tie Down World Standings! 

Greeley Stampede | Greeley, Colorado – Total Payout: $443,451

NFR qualifier and Utah Bareback rider, Dean Thompson won Greeley Stampede’s first round, covering Beutler & Son Rodeo’s, Black Kat for 88 points, then was second in the finals with an 86.5. His average of 174.5 on two head won Thompson the rodeo and nearly $9,500 in total earnings. Thompson is currently 5^th in the 2024 Bareback World Standings!

NFR qualifier and Australian Saddle Bronc rider, Damian Brennan grabbed a piece of Greeley’s prize money, taking home the win and over $9,000 in earnings. Brennan was second in the first round with an 87-point ride and tied for first in the finals, scoring an 89 on Beutler & Son Rodeo’s, Rage. Brennan is currently leading the 2024 Saddle Bronc World Standings!

Texas’s Halyn Lide began her Cowboy Christmas with a win in Greeley. Lide won the average after running 51.92 seconds on three head, earning nearly $10,000 in total from the Stampede. These earnings helped kickoff Lide’s week which would eventually end in her being the WPRA’s most winningest cowgirl of the Cowboy Christmas 2024 run. Lide is unofficially 16^th in the 2024 Barrel Racing World Standings!

Home of Champions Rodeo | Red Lodge, Montana – Total Payout: $188,181*

*includes Breakaway

In the Breakaway Roping, it was a three-way tie for first. Maddy Deerman, Kierra Hougen and Jill Tanner all roped in two seconds flat for a winning check worth $3,600 each. Deerman is unofficially 6^th in the 2024 Breakaway World Standings!

4x World Champion Saddle Bronc Rider, Zeke Thurston covered Brookman Rodeo’s, Flirtacious for 89 points, taking home the win and $3,500. Thurston is currently 7^th in the 2024 Saddle Bronc World Standings!

Black Hills Roundup | Belle Fourche, South Dakota – Total Payout: $192,782

The Bareback riding at the Black Hills Roundup saw a three-way tie for first! Mason Clements, Orin Larsen and Bradlee Miller all rode for 88 points in South Dakota and a winning check worth $3,700 each. 

3x NFR qualifier and Montana Saddle Bronc rider, Sage Newman rode Championship Pro Rodeo’s, Smoke Wagon for a whopping 90 points to win in Belle Fourche. The ride won Newman the rodeo and a $5,200 check. Newman is currently 3^rd in the 2024 Saddle Bronc World Standings!

Killdeer Mountain Roundup PRCA Rodeo | Killdeer, North Dakota – Total Payout: $220,140*

*includes Breakaway

It’s no surprise 2x NFBR qualifier and Louisiana Breakaway roper, Josie Conner won this year’s Kildeer Mountain Roundup. Conner roped in a blazing-fast 1.8 seconds. Her speed and precision earned her a $6,300 prize. Conner is unofficially 5^th in the 2024 Breakaway World Standings!

Up-and-coming Tie Down roper, Texas’s Dylan Hancock beat out veterans in Killdeer with a 7.8 second run good for a near $5,000 check. Hancock is currently 10^th in the 2024 Tie Down World Standings!

The Barrel Racing in Killdeer was stacked with names such as Hailey Kinsel, Lisa Lockhart, Jordon Briggs and Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi. In the end, it was Tonozzi who took home the win and $5,000 in winnings after edging out Kinsel by two-hundreths of a second with a 16.86 second run.

Mandan Rodeo Days | Mandan, North Dakota – Total Payout: $209,219

The roughstock events in Mandan were also a tight and exciting race for rodeo fans. NFR qualifier and Wyoming Saddle Bronc rider, Tanner Butner won by half-a-point with an 89 over second place’s 88.5. In the Bull Riding, first place was a tie between Oklahoma’s Wacey Schalla and Texas’s Brody Yeary, both scoring an 86.5, again, just a half-point ahead of second place’s 86.

Livingston Roundup Rodeo | Livingston, Montana – Total Payout: $262,412

The Livingston Roundup in Montana is consistently a must-hit destination on any rodeo athlete’s Cowboy Christmas itinerary. Some of the PRCA and WPRA’s biggest names hit Livingston last week. 

Holding steady at 4^th in the world, 2x NFR qualifier, Bareback rider Rocker Steiner placed third with an 84. Montana’s own and 8x NFR qualifier, Richmond Champion took home the win with an 86-point ride on Bailey Pro Rodeo’s Candy Coated worth $6,500 in winnings. 

The Saddle Bronc riding ended in a three-way tie between Layton Green, Dawson Hay and Traylin Martin, each scoring an 84-point ride and earning nearly $5,000 each for their efforts. 

3x NFR qualifier and Texas Tie Down roper, John Douch tied with fellow Texas roper Cash Enderli. Each roped in eight seconds flat for runs worth just under $6,000 each.

Cody Stampede | Cody, Wyoming – Total Payout: $370,121

Utah Bareback rider Bronc Marriott scored big in Cody, both in total payout and his markings. Marriott was 91.5 on Frontier Rodeo’s, Breaking News, earning himself a check worth nearly $10,000. Marriott is currently 15^th in the 2024 Bareback World Standings!

In the Tie Down roping, it was Oklahoma who came out on top. Chance Thiessen roped a 7.7 seconds to win the Cody Stampede and a check worth $8,700. Thiessen is currently 12^th in the 2024 Tie Down World Standings!

Basin City Freedom Rodeo | Basin City, Washington – Total Payout: $210,538*

*includes Breakaway

NFBR qualifier, Alberta Breakaway roper Kendal Pierson won Basin City by one-tenth of a second, roping for 2.3 seconds and a $4,200 check. Pierson is unofficially 9^th in the 2024 Breakaway World Standings!

7x NFR qualifier and Wyoming’s very own, Saddle Bronc rider Brody Cress rode to victory in front of a hometown crowd. Cress covered Corey & Lange Rodeo’s, Monster for 87.5 points, earning $5,000 in winnings. Cress is currently 10^th in the 2024 Saddle Bronc World Standings!

Texas’s Abby Phillips has been winning barrel races by narrow margins all summer long, and Basin City was no different. The barrel racer won the rodeo by a single hundredth-of-a-second with a 16.83, winning her a $5,500 check. Phillips is unofficially 4^th in the 2024 Barrel Racing World Standings!

Eugene Pro Rodeo | Eugene, Oregon – Total Payout: $136,309

Reigning World Champion Keenan Hayes made his mark on this year’s Cowboy Christmas in Eugene, Oregon, winning the Bareback riding with an 82-point ride on Western Rodeo’s, Fat Tony’s Count. The ride was worth $2,700 in winnings. Hayes is currently leading the 2024 Bareback World Standings!

The dominant duo, 6x NFR qualifier, header Dustin Egusquiza and 3x NFR qualifier, heeler Levi Lord claimed their second win of this year’s Cowboy Christmas at the Eugene Pro Rodeo. The pair tied for first with Tyler Wade and Wesley Thorp, both teams roping in 4.1 seconds. Egusquiza and Lord are currently leading the 2024 Team Roping Header and Heeler World Standings! 

It’s been a merry Cowboy Christmas for Tie Down roper Ty Harris indeed. The 5x NFR qualifier and Texas cowboy won his third rodeo of the week in Eugene after roping in 8.4 seconds. Harris is currently 2^nd in the 2024 Tie Down World Standings!

Western Stampede | West Jordan, Utah – Total Payout: $144,941

4x NFR qualifier and Wyoming Bareback rider, Cole Reiner tied 2x NFR qualifier and Texas’s Rocker Steiner for the win in this year’s Western Stampede’s Bareback competition. The two rode for 85 points and each earned a winnings check for $4,800. Steiner is currently 4^th in the 2024 Bareback World Standings, Reiner is 10^th!

The Team Roping at the Western Stampede also ended in a tie. This year’s champions are 8x NFR qualifier, header Coleman Proctor with 4x NFR qualifier heeler, Logan Medlin, and 3x NFR qualifier header Andrew Ward with World Champion heeler and 5x NFR qualifier, Kollin VonAhn.

Wyoming Saddle Bronc rider and 7x NFR qualifier, Brody Cress took home the Western Stampede’s classic event title this year after riding Cervi Championship Rodeo’s, Hero for 86.5 points, winning a check for $5,200. Cress is currently 10^th in the 2024 Saddle Bronc World Standings!

Of just four qualified rides at the Western Stampede, it was NFR qualifier and Oregon’s Chase Dougherty who won the Bull Riding at this year’s Western Stampede. Dougherty covered Generations Pro Rodeo’s, Smokin Guns for 85.5 points, a ride worth nearly $6,000 in winnings. Dougherty is currently 5^th in the 2024 Bull Riding World Standings!

89^th Annual Independence Day Rodeo | Oakley City, Utah – Total Payout: $275,631

Utah was good to Saddle Bronc rider Brody Cress. The Wyoming cowboy and 7x NFR qualifier first won in West Jordan, then rode United Pro Rodeo’s, Ropin Dreams for 89.5 points to win again in Oakley City. This Utah rodeo paid Cress $7,000. Cress is currently 10^th in the 2024 Saddle Bronc World Standings!

Barrel racer Halyn Lide’s second win of the Cowboy Christmas week took place in Utah where the Texas cowgirl beat second place by two-hundredths of a second with a 17.27, a win worth $7,700. The win helped propel Lide to be the WPRA’s winningest cowgirl of the 2024 Cowboy Christmas run. Lide is unofficially 16^th in the 2024 Barrel Racing World Standings!

St. Paul Rodeo | St. Paul, Oregon – Total Payout: $469,876

The second-highest paying rodeo of 2024’s Cowboy Christmas is Oregon’s St. Paul Rodeo. 

In the Bareback riding, NFR qualifier and Idaho cowboy, Jacob Lees covered Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics’, Mustard for 88 points. The winning ride earned Lees a near $14,000 check. Lees is currently 12^th in the 2024 Bareback World Standings! 

Oregon’s Dalton Massey bookended his Cowboy Christmas with wins in the Steer Wrestling. He began with a win at the Ponoka Stampede in Alberta, then ended with a win a little further south in St. Paul, Oregon. Massey won St. Paul with an average score of 7.1 seconds on two head, totaling almost $15,000 in winnings. Massey is currently leading the 2024 Steer Wrestling World Standings! 

$11,000 was paid out to two bull riders at this year’s St. Paul Rodeo. Oregon’s own TJ Gray tied with Kase Hitt with an 85.5 point ride to win the rodeo. Gray is currently 10^th in the 2024 Bull Riding World Standings!

World’s Oldest Rodeo | Prescott, Arizona – Total Payout: $339,400*

*includes Breakaway

Arizona Breakaway roper Macy Young pulled through in front of a hometown crowd at this year’s World’s Oldest Rodeo in Prescott, Arizona. Young tied for the win with LeighAnn Scribner, each roping 5.9 seconds on two head. Young earned over $6,500 in total over two rounds and her average win. Young is unofficially 11^th in the 2024 Breakaway World Standings!

4x NFR qualifier, Idaho steer wrestler Stetson Jorgensen went 11.2 seconds on two head, winning the average after placing second in the first round and fourth in the second. In total, Jorgensen earned nearly $6,000 from the World’s Oldest Rodeo. Jorgensen is currently 3^rd in the 2024 Steer Wrestling World Standings!

The World’s Oldest Rodeo? Up for debate. 2x NFR qualifier Trey Holston winning this year’s Bull Riding after an 88-point ride? Undoubtedly. For covering Salt River Rodeo’s, Tatonka, Holston earned himself nearly $8,000 in winnings. Holston is currently 12^th in the 2024 Bull Riding World Standings!

Check back next week and each week thereafter for all the highlights on your favorite contestants as they work their way down the 2024 rodeo road.