Texans seek world titles in Las Vegas |
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By LYNN MONTGOMERY | East Texas Edition |
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Dec. 1, 2005 - Thirty-nine Texas cowboys and cowgirls have roped, wrestled, and rode their way to the 47th annual 2005 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (WNFR) scheduled Dec. 2-11 in Las Vegas, Nev. The top 15 money-earners per division are the ones who will now compete for the world championship titles at the Finals.
No stranger to the finals, Will Lowe of Canyon returns to Vegas in the No. 1 spot. Lowe has won $127,811 heading into the event. Eric Swenson of Bonham will also compete. Swenson, so far this year, has won $78,684 and is sitting in eighth position. Right behind Swenson is Jason Jeter of Mansfield. Jeter is another cowboy who is no stranger to Vegas, but he barely made it in to the finals. Winning the Pace Picante ProRodeo Classic Nov. 12-13 in Dallas jumped Jeter from 19th position to the 10th spot. Money earnings so far for Jeter are $75,783. Next in line behind Jeter is Wes Stevenson of Kaufman with $73,105. Another Texas cowboy making it to the Finals is Cimmaron Gerke of Fort Worth; he’s won $69,265. � � � �Steer Wrestling� Athens’ own Cash Myers, coming in with $62,635, will have to wrestle quickly in order to move up in the standings. � � � Team Roping Header Tee Woolman of Llano has roped his way to another WNFR. Woolman’s roping has won him $70,938 and a fifth place going into the event. Hereford’s Steve Purcella will also make a return trip. Purcella has won $64,485 and is in the eight position. Last year’s world champion, Speed Williams of Llano, has made another WNFR. Williams, along with his partner, have a practice roping pen in the exact dimensions of the Thomas and Mack Center in Vegas. So far, Williams has won $60,297 and is in ninth place. Eleventh place finds David Key of Caldwell, who’s won $51,325. Rounding out the heading category is Matt Tyler of Lipan. Tyler is in 13th place and has won $48,760. � � � �Team Roping Heeler Texans sure no how to heel. The top four positions are all Texans. In first place en route to the finals is Patrick Smith of Midland. Smith’s partner is Clay Tryan of Montana. So far, Smith has won $95,521. Kory Koontz of Sudan is in second. Koontz, whose partner is seven-time world champion Jake Barnes of Arizona, is only $7,425 behind the leaders. Look for some fast roping. Another old hat at Vegas is third place Allen Bach of Weatherford. Poolville’s Richard Durham has heeled to a fourth place going into the finals. Winnings thus far are $72,633. Kinney Harrell of Brady is back for another shot at the title. Harrell is in the sixth place and has won $65,033. World Champion Rich Skeleton of Llano is in the ninth place. Skeleton and Williams are always a team to consider at the Finals. They have won it eight times. � � � �Saddle Bronc Only one Texan qualified in this category. Weatherford’s Bradley Harter has won $73,401 and is in the eight position. � � � �Tie-down Roping With numerous world champion titles, Fred Whitfield of Hockley is once again going into the Finals in first place. Whitfield has tied lots of calves on his way to over $124,000 in winnings so far this year. Positions four, five and six are all held by Texans. Stran Smith of Childress is holding onto the fourth spot with $96,000 thus far. Decatur’s Trevor Brazile roped his way to the fifth spot. Brazile, with earnings over $92,000, will also compete for the All-Around title at the 47th annual event. Last year’s world champion Monty Lewis of Hereford has proven himself again. Sitting in the sixth position, Lewis has won over $87,000. Former world champion Cody Ohl of Hico is another cowboy making a repeat performance to the finals. Ohl is in the ninth position, with winnings over $78,000. Positions 11th and 12th are also retained by Texans: Ricky Canton of Navasota is 11th with $76,000; and Gidding’s Justin Maass is 12th with over $74,000. Rounding out the category are two more Texans. Fourteenth place belongs to Houston Hutto of Del Rio and in 15th place is Cade Swor of Winnie. � � � �Barrel Racing Last year’s world champion Kelly Kaminski of Bellville is ready to turn-and-burn her way to another title. Kaminski is sitting in third and has won over $84,000. Lufkin’s Denise Adams Fea is also returning to the Thomas and Mack. Fea is in fifth. Brittany Pozzi of Victoria is in seventh with over $71,000 in earnings thus far. Liz Pinkston of San Antonio rides into the finals in ninth place. Pinkston has won over $61,000. Melaine Southard of Scurry finds herself in 12th place AND has won over $53,000. Less than $1,000 behind Southard is Talina Bird of Post. Bird will be gunning to overcome those ahead of her. The last Texas cowgirl to make it to the big show is Molly Powell of Stephenville. Powell, who is no stranger to the Thomas and Mack arena, has won over $49,000. � � � �Bull Riding With a substantial money lead, Wills Point’s Matt Austin needs to stay focused. Currently in the No. 1 spot, Austin maintains over an $80,000 lead over another Texan – Bryan Richardson of Dallas – who is in the No. 2 spot with over $142,000. The No. 6 position belongs to Koutze’s own Howdy Cloud, who himself has won over $100,000. El Campo’s Clayton Foltyn has ridden to the 10th spot, and riding out the category is D. J. Domangue of Wharton. Domangue is in the 13th spot. |
