Wrangler Million Dollar Tour Justin Boots Championships in Omaha help set the 2011 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo field with big payouts.

By Kellie Carr

Jerrad Hoffstetter ropes his way into the WNFR. (PRCA photo by Kerri Allardyce.)

For a rodeo cowboy, making the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo is the ultimate goal. It’s not only a dream come true – it’s the difference between making money on the year and breaking even. And when only 15 in each event get to go, the competition heats up big time.

So when it comes down to the last weekend of the season, the rodeo with the second-largest payout in the world can make or break a season. A qualification to Omaha, Nebraska, could be a cowboy or cowgirl’s ticket to the NFR, or give one a lead on a gold buckle. So yeah, it’s kind of a big deal.

The competition format at Omaha is a little different than most rodeos. The top 12 competitors from the Wrangler Million Dollar Tour qualify, and the first two nights of preliminary competition determine the average winners. The top eight in the two-round average move to the semifinals, where competitors have a clean slate. The top four from the semifinals go to the finals, where the top two finishers in each event earn the biggest checks of the weekend – $13,251.43 for first and $9,938.57 for second, to be exact.

Nobody knows what a big deal it is more than Heppner, Oregon, cowboy Blake Knowles. The steer wrestler punched his ticket to Vegas for the second time at the Justin Boots Championships, earning enough money to move up to 10th in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association world standings. Blake won the sudden-death final round to pocket $19,763.27 in all at the event.

“I was real confident going in,” Blake said. “I believed in myself. I felt like the ball was in my court, and if I didn’t make it to Vegas, it would be my fault. As a competitor, this is what you love to do.”

Texas cowboy Tuf Cooper was already No. 1 going into Omaha, but after having an opportunity to win the gold buckle in Vegas every year he has qualified – only to lose out to a relative – Tuf was riding with some extra incentive in Omaha, looking to extend his lead and earn as much money as possible. To accomplish that goal, he called in a trusted partner – AQHA world champion mare Twisters Enola Gay, owned and trained by 11-time AQHA world champion and AQHA Professional Horseman C.R. Bradley of Collinsville, Texas

With “Roanie’s” help, Tuf tied for second in the semifinals and then won the final round in 7.4 seconds to earn $30,499 for the weekend, putting more than $29,000 distance between himself and second-place cowboy Hunter Herrin in the world standings.

“She’s the best horse I’ve ever ridden. I’m really happy C.R. brought her up here this weekend. She makes it so easy to win on. She really fits me and fits set-ups like this. He lets me ride her for the big ones, and I’m really grateful for that,” Tuf said of his mount. “That $29,000 (lead) won’t be enough, I can tell you that right now. I’ve had chances to win (the gold buckle) before, but I haven’t done it. I just try to work harder every year. But I’m planning on riding Roanie there again if she’ll let me!”

Jerrad Hoffstetter used Omaha to move up from 21st in the world standings to 13th, securing his position in Las Vegas after earning an impressive $21,906.27. In fact, five cowboys earned their NFR qualification from money earned in Omaha: saddle bronc rider Chuck Schmidt; steer wrestlers Blake Knowles and Seth Brockman; and bull rider Tate Stratton.

Despite winning the team roping and earning $28,123.05 each, team ropers Derrick Begay and Cesar de la Cruz actually saw their lead in the world standings (a mere $56 lead) disappear as second-place winners Clay Tryan and Travis Graves out-earned the pair and will head to the NFR, with a $1,176 lead.

Other winners in Omaha included bareback rider Steven Dent, who tied with Jason Havens to win the final round, sharing $11,595 and pocketing a total of $23,738.69; Wade Sundell who won an amazing $36,306.84 in the saddle bronc riding; and Jacob O’Mara in the bull riding. Sue Smith topped the barrel racing, with a 13.94-second run over Sherry Cervi’s 14.05, winning $9,325 for the win and pocketing a total of $15,005.