PHOTO COURTESY OF THE AMERICAN ROYAL
The American Royal Rodeo took place in Kansas City, Missouri this past weekend and you might recognize some of your champions.
In the bareback riding, No. 7 in the World, Chad Rutherford, took home the win with an 87.5-point ride on Cactus Black adding $2,200 to his season earnings. Garrett Shadbolt came in second while Keenan Hayes and rookie Rocker Steiner tied for third.
The top eight in the steer wrestling were split by a tenth of a second each. World Champion Jacob Edler tied with Tanner Brunner to be first with 3.9 second runs and the cowboys took home $2,365. Dolly Rumley’s 4.0 was second while Jeff Miller was fourth.
The team roping came down to just two tenths of a second. Ricky Decuir and Clay Green secured their win with a 4.4 second run while three other teams split the second place finish. Among those teams were Nick Sartin and Austin Rogers, Andrew Ward and Buddy Hawkins as well as J.C. Yeahquo and L.J. Yeahquo.
Riggin Smith added to his earnings in the saddle bronc and climbed to No. 30 in the world after making an 86-point ride on Stace Smith Pro Rodeo’s Levi the Boss getting him $2,200. Colt Gordon was second and Kirk Nelson third.
The top five runs in the tie-down were all under 9.0 seconds but Cash Hooper came out the winner with a solid 8.1 second run. Tyler Milligan was second with an 8.3 and rookie Tom Crouse cashed in as well with an 8.4 second run and Crouse now sits No. 5 in the Resistol Rookie Standings.
The rookies had an outstanding showing in Kansas City. Bayleigh Choate in the barrel racing stopped the clock at 15.09 seconds to claim the win and $2,970 beating some of the top barrel racers in the business. Sadie Wolaver was second while fellow rookie Bugg Beeler tied with the legendary Sherry Cervi for third.
Four qualified rides were made in the bull riding. The winning ride came from Matt Palmer when he rode Stace Smith Pro Rodeo’s No. 8151 for 83.5-points adding $3,430 to his winnings. Trevor Reiste when 82.5 while rookies Lukasey Morris and Cash Toews each brought in money to climb both the World and Resistol Rookie Standings.
Overall, over $100,000 was paid out at the American Royal in Kansas City and both veteran contestants and rookies thrived.
For full results and playout, click here.
