Watch Texas Circuit Finals Rodeo Live TV>>>>
The 2017 PRCA Ram Texas Circuit Finals Rodeo Contest (the "Contest") is sponsored by Channel 6 (the "Contest Sponsor") and will take place between the following date(s) in the year 2017: 12/18 through 12/21. Winners will be notified via email or phone. The winner will receive 4 tickets to see the PRCA Ram Texas Circuit Finals Rodeo at the Extraco Events Center in Waco on Friday, Dec. 29, 2017. The winner will be determined by a drawing from the entries Channel 6 has received. The drawing of the daily winners shall be held at the offices of Channel 6, which are located at 215 N 3rd St, Temple, TX 76501. Eligible participants may enter by going to the kcentv.com website and filling out the entry form; or mailing a post card with name, address, phone number, age, and birth date to KCEN-TV (215 N 3rd St, Temple, TX 76501.) The random method of drawing/selecting the winner shall be at the sole discretion of the Contest Sponsors, and odds of winning for paper entries and electronic entries may differ. Participants must be 18 years of age or older. Participants must be living in the following counties of the Waco-Temple-Bryan DMA, Mills, San Saba, Lampasas, Coryell, Bell, Bosque, Hill, McLennan, Falls, Milam, Limestone, Robertson, Burleson, Brazos, Leon, Madison, Grimes and Williamson. Employees of the Contest Sponsors, and their immediate families and members of their households, any other broadcast stations or companies are not eligible to participate in the Contest. The Contest Sponsors may, at their discretion, limit entries to one each day. No entrant shall be eligible to receive more than one daily prize. If any winner cannot be reached within 7 days of the date of the drawing, an alternate winner will be selected. Each winner will be required to provide identification; proof of name and address; valid driver's license; social security number; and shall sign a receipt of prize. The Contest Sponsors shall have the right and power to determine eligibility; to determine and declare the winner of each drawing; to decide the random method of determining the winners; and to decide any matters in dispute. All decisions of the Contest Sponsors shall be final.
Winners and entrants agree to release, discharge, indemnify and hold harmless the Contest Sponsors and each of their respective officers, directors, employees, representatives and agents from and against any claims, damages or liability resulting in whole or part, directly or indirectly, from acceptance, possession, misuse or use of any prize or participation in the Contest. Each winner will be responsible for reporting and paying any income taxes (an IRS Form 1099 may be issued by the Contest Sponsors) associated with the prize, and the winner of the grand prize will also be responsible for paying all registration, licensing and title transfer fees associated with the grand prize.Imagine a super talented receiver playing football for Texas Tech on Saturday and then suiting up for the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. In reality, that could not happen. Athletes are not allowed to play for the NCAA and the NFL at the same time. But in the sport of rodeo, athletes are allowed to compete on the collegiate and pro circuits at the same time. One cowboy who has thrived on both the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association circuits within the past year is Wesley Thorp, a 22-year-old Texas Tech student who has homes in Throckmorton and Stephenville. In June, Thorp and Cole Wheeler clinched the NIRA’s 2016-2017 team roping title at the College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyo. The two men represented Texas Tech. At the same time, Thorp also was thriving on the PRCA circuit. In late June, for example, he and his partner Cody Snow won the Reno Rodeo in Nevada, which is the first major summer pro rodeo. Thorp and Snow each earned $7,574 in Reno, which in turn helped them qualify for the PRCA’s Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. The 2017 National Finals began Thursday, Dec. 7, and ends today (Saturday) at the Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus. Thorp entered the 2017 NFR ranked 10th in the team roping heeling world title race with $80,836. Snow entered the NFR ranked 10th in the heading world race with $79,236. After clinching the team roping title last summer at the Casper-based collegiate rodeo championships, Thorp has opted to only compete on the pro circuit from this point on. But he clearly demonstrated how a cowboy can thrive on the collegiate and pro circuits at the same time when he successfully competed for Texas Tech’s rodeo team in 2016-2017 while he successfully worked on qualifying for the PRCA’s National Finals.“It comes down to just managing time,” Thorp said. “Fortunately, when we’re rodeoing, we have a lot of down time. In the fall, when college rodeo is going on, there are not as many pro rodeos. And in the winter and spring, we’re home most of the time. The summer is the busiest time for pro rodeo and so I don’t take any college classes.”On the college circuit, Texas Tech students compete in only five regional rodeos during the fall semester and five more during the spring semester as they attempt to qualify for the June College National Finals, which gives a world class competitor such as Thorp plenty of time to also pursue a pro rodeo career.
Thorp also competed in the PRCA’s 2016 National Finals Rodeo while he was enrolled at Texas Tech and was faring well on the school’s rodeo team in the NIRA Southwest Region. He pocketed $74,519 at the 2016 NFR while roping with heading partner Zac Small. He finished ninth in the PRCA’s team roping title race after earning $138,221 throughout 2016. But this year, Thorp teamed up with Snow on the PRCA circuit and the duo has had remarkable success. At the 2017 NFR, for example, Thorp and Snow tied for first in Round 6 on Tuesday, Dec. 12, after turning in a time of 3.7 seconds. Thorp and Snow each earned $23,481 for splitting the round win with Riley Minor and Brady Minor who also turned in a 3.7. Though Thorp opted to not compete on the college rodeo circuit during the 2017 fall semester as he heavily concentrates on the PRCA circuit, he has continued to chip away at completing a bachelor’s degree at Texas Tech. Thorp said he’s working on an online degree called university studies that has a heavy emphasis on taking business classes. Thorp said he took 12 hours online during the 2017 fall semester. He said he will attempt to graduate from Texas Tech in December 2018.“My main job right now is rodeoing, but my priority also is getting my degree,” he said. The National Finals Rodeo’s barrel racing arena record at the Thomas & Mack Center was broken twice during the Round 3 performance on Saturday, Dec. 9. The record was first broken in Round 3 by Kassie Mowery who turned in a time of 13.36 seconds, which broke the arena record of 13.37. Shortly afterward, Hailey Kinsel shattered Mowery’s arena record time by turning in a 13.11 in Round 3. In an interview with prorodeo.com at the NFR on Dec. 9, Kinsel, who is from the South Texas town of Cotulla, said she knew something special might be happening as she and her 6-year-old palomino horse, DM Sissy Hayday (nickname Sister), were making their run.“Sister was a little different than normal tonight,” Kinsel said. “She felt a little bit more focused than ever. I felt like she was going to do something good. I mean, I didn’t know it was going to be that good. She smoked the first barrel and then she smoked the second, and I sat up and rode my third good, so I can take a little credit there, but I let her work and I don’t know what else to say. This is one night I sure won’t forget.”Kinsel has thrived on the pro and collegiate circuits at the same time during the past year. In other words, she’s won big on the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association and the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association circuits at the same time. In June, Kinsel clinched the NIRA’s 2016-2017 barrel racing title at the Casper-based College National Finals Rodeo while competing for Texas A&M. Kinsel graduated from Texas A&M in May 2017 with a degree in agriculture economics. In July, Kinsel earned the Gold Medal as the result of clinching the barrel racing title at the Days of ‘47 Cowboy Games and Rodeo in Salt Lake City and the $50,000 prize that went with the medal, which in turn helped her qualify for the NFR for the first time. Kinsel also commanded respect when she clinched the barrel racing title at the RFD-TV’s The American at AT&T Stadium in Arlington in February. She pocketed $433,333 in prize money. Superstar rider Austin Shepard and a young stallion named Dual Reyish clinched the National Cutting Horse Association World Championship Futurity open division title after turning in a lofty final round score of 228 on Sunday, Dec. 10, at Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum in Fort Worth. The victory earned the horse’s owner, Billy Wolf of Whitesboro, the coveted $192,762 prize. Shepard, who is from Summerdale, Ala., said Dual Reyish has the essential elements of an outstanding cutting horse.“He’s one of the nicest horses that I’ve brought here,” Shepard said. “He does everything that I want a horse to do physically and mentally, but he has a confidence about him that comes naturally. He’s really mature for a 3-year-old.”Lee Francois and a stallion named The Animal finished as reserve champion at the 2017 Futurity after turning in a 225.5. Owners Richard and Beth Carney pocketed $169,404. In the non-pro division, Chad Bushaw of Weatherford clinched the title after turning in a finals score of 225 aboard a 3-year-old filly named Bittersweet on Friday, Dec. 8. Bushaw earned $61,162.In recent years, Tuf Cooper has become famous for turning in blistering times in tie-down roping on the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association circuit. Cooper, a native of Childress who currently is from Weatherford, has three gold buckles in the popular event. But this year, Cooper qualified for the National Finals in both steer roping and tie-down roping events for the first time. Though he fell short in his attempts to win a world title in the two roping events, Cooper’s versatility helped him snare pro rodeo’s coveted world all-around title as the 59th Wrangler National Finals Rodeo concluded its 10-day run Saturday night at the Thomas &Mack Center. After the dust settled, Cooper edged superstar cowboy Trevor Brazile, an Amarillo native who lives in Decatur, in the 2017 world all-around title race, $341,560 to $319,337.
Marcos Costa of Childress clinched the world tie-down roping title. Other 2017 world champions were Scott Snedecor of Fredericksburg in steer roping; Tim O’Connell of Zwingle, Iowa, in bareback riding; Tyler Pearson of Louisville, Miss., in steer wrestling; Erich Rogers of Round Rock, Ariz., and Cory Petska of Marana, Ariz., in team roping; Ryder Wright of Milford, Utah, in saddle bronc riding; Nellie Miller of Cottonwood, Calif., in barrel racing; and Sage Kimzey of Strong City, Okla., in bull riding. For Cooper and Brazile, rodeo is a family affair. Brazile, who has a record 23 PRCA world titles, is Cooper’s brother-in-law. The two men have a friendly rivalry and often practice together. After clinching the world all-around title, Cooper credited Brazile for helping him become a world all-around contender.“I always wanted to be just a calf roper, but he pushed me to do more events,” Cooper said as pointed out that Brazile helped him become a world class steer roper in addition to tie-down roping. In order to win the all-around title, a competitor must win substantial prize money in two or more events. Some of the sport’s biggest stars such as Jim Shoulders (1950s), Larry Mahan (1960s and 1970s) and Ty Murray (1990s) became legendary mainly as the result of a record number of world all-around titles in their era. Brazile has won a record 13 world all-around titles, and it appeared he was on track to win another one this year. Brazile entered the National Finals ranked No. 1 in the world all-around race, and Cooper was ranked No. 2. But in the latter part of the Dec. 7-16 NFR, Cooper rallied and moved to the No. 1 ranking. Cooper also is walking in the bootsteps of his legendary father, eight-time world champion Roy Cooper of Decatur. In 1983, the elder Cooper won the world all-around title and lassoed world championships in tie-down roping and steer roping events. This year, the younger Cooper finished second in the tie-down roping world title race and came in 12th in the steer roping world race en route to winning his first world all-around title. Cooper is a grandson of Clifton Smith of Childress, who qualified for the National Finals in tie-down roping in 1960 and 1962. He’s also a nephew of 2008 world tie-down roping champion Stran Smith of Childress. In the 2017 tie-down roping world race, Cooper was ranked No. 1 going into Saturday night’s National Finals 10th round. But Costa clinched the title after turning in a speedy time of 7.8. Cooper posted a so-so time of 11.0 after facing a calf that strained and was difficult to tie. After all that, Costa clinched the world tie-down roping with $317,421, and Cooper finished runner-up with $301,983. Costa earned $195,519 throughout the NFR and received the coveted Wrangler Top Gun Award as the result of winning the most money throughout the Las Vegas championships in a single event. In recent years, Costa, a native of Brazil, has lived in Childress while he competed on the PRCA circuit in North America. Costa has been mentored by Smith who became acquainted with Smith several years ago when Costa attended a roping school in Brazil that was taught by Smith. Smith liked what he saw in Costa and helped the Brazilian move to the United States and showed Costa how to effectively compete on the PRCA circuit. Costa has qualified for the National Finals the past three years.“This is a blessing to be a world champion,” Costa said. “Thank you, God. I give all the credit to him. He surrounded me with a lot of great people since I was a little kid. I didn’t have much growing up, and Stran went down to Brazil, found me and brought me here. Stran taught me almost everything about roping here (in the PRCA). I’m happy to be here. God is great to me.”Audy Reed of Spearman and Kellie Collier of Hereford competed in the NFR for the first time. Reed, a saddle bronc rider, earned $57,384 at the NFR and finished 12th in the world title race with $133,033. Collier earned $24,807 at the NFR and finished 14th in the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association’s barrel racing world race with $108,145.Imagine a super talented receiver playing football for Texas Tech on Saturday and then suiting up for the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. In reality, that could not happen. Athletes are not allowed to play for the NCAA schools and the NFL at the same time. But in the sport of rodeo, athletes are allowed to compete on the collegiate and pro circuits at the same time. One cowboy who has thrived on both the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association circuits within the past year is Wesley Thorp, a 22-year-old Texas Tech student who has homes in Throckmorton and Stephenville. In June, Thorp and Cole Wheeler clinched the NIRA’s 2016-2017 team roping title at the College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyoming. The two men represented Texas Tech. At the same time, Thorp also was thriving on the PRCA circuit. In late June, for example, he and his partner Cody Snow won the Reno Rodeo in Nevada, which is the first major summer pro rodeo. Thorp and Snow each earned $7,574 in Reno, which in turn helped them qualify for the PRCA’s Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. The 2017 National Finals began Dec. 7, and runs through Saturday at the Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus. Thorp entered the 2017 NFR ranked 10th in the team roping heeling world title race with $80,836. Snow entered the NFR ranked 10th in the heading world race with $79,236. After clinching the team roping title last summer at the Casper-based collegiate rodeo championships, Thorp has opted to only compete on the pro circuit from this point on. But he clearly demonstrated how a cowboy can thrive on the collegiate and pro circuits at the same time when he successfully competed for Texas Tech’s rodeo team in 2016-2017 while he successfully worked on qualifying for the PRCA’s National Finals.“It comes down to just managing time,” Thorp said. “Fortunately, when we’re rodeoing, we have a lot of down time. In the fall, when college rodeo is going on, there are not as many pro rodeos. And in the winter and spring, we’re home most of the time. The summer is the busiest time for pro rodeo and so I don’t take any college classes.”On the college circuit, Texas Tech students compete in only five regional rodeos during the fall semester and five more during the spring semester as they attempt to qualify for the June College National Finals, which gives a world-class competitor such as Thorp plenty of time to also pursue a pro rodeo career. Thorp also competed in the PRCA’s 2016 National Finals Rodeo while he was enrolled at Texas Tech and was faring well on the school’s rodeo team in the NIRA Southwest Region. He pocketed $74,519 at the 2016 NFR while roping with heading partner Zac Small. He finished ninth in the PRCA’s team roping title race after earning $138,221 throughout 2016. But this year, Thorp teamed up with Snow on the PRCA circuit and the duo has had remarkable success. At the 2017 NFR, for example, Thorp and Snow tied for first in Round 6 on Tuesday after turning in a time of 3.7 seconds. Thorp and Snow each earned $23,481 for splitting the round win with Riley Minor and Brady Minor who also turned in a 3.7.
Though Thorp opted not to compete on the college rodeo circuit during the 2017 fall semester as he heavily concentrates on the PRCA circuit, he has continued to chip away at completing a bachelor’s degree at Texas Tech. Thorp said he’s working on an online degree called university studies that has a heavy emphasis on taking business classes. Thorp said he took 12 hours online during the 2017 fall semester. He said he will attempt to graduate from Texas Tech in December 2018.“My main job right now is rodeoing, but my priority also is getting my degree,” he said. The National Finals Rodeo’s barrel racing arena record at the Thomas & Mack Center was broken twice during the Round 3 performance last Saturday night. The record was first broken in Round 3 by Kassie Mowery, who turned in a time of 13.36 seconds, which broke the arena record of 13.37. Shortly afterward, Hailey Kinsel shattered Mowery’s arena record time by turning in a 13.11-second time in Round 3. In an interview with prorodeo.com at the NFR last Saturday, Kinsel, who is from the South Texas town of Cotulla, said she knew something special might be happening as she and her 6-year-old palomino horse, DM Sissy Hayday (nickname Sister), were making their run.“Sister was a little different than normal tonight,” Kinsel said. “She felt a little bit more focused than ever. I felt like she was going to do something good. I mean, I didn’t know it was going to be that good. She smoked the first barrel and then she smoked the second, and I sat up and rode my third good, so I can take a little credit there, but I let her work and I don’t know what else to say. This is one night I sure won’t forget.”Kinsel has thrived on the pro and collegiate circuits at the same time during the past year. In other words, she’s won big on the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association and the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association circuits at the same time. In June, Kinsel clinched the NIRA’s 2016-2017 barrel racing title at the Casper-based College National Finals Rodeo while competing for Texas A&M. Kinsel graduated from Texas A&M in May 2017 with a degree in agriculture economics. In July, Kinsel earned the Gold Medal as the result of clinching the barrel racing title at the Days of ‘47 Cowboy Games and Rodeo in Salt Lake City and the $50,000 prize that went with the medal, which, in turn, helped her qualify for the NFR for the first time. Kinsel also commanded respect when she clinched the barrel racing title at the RFD-TV’s The American at AT&T Stadium in Arlington in February. She pocketed $433,333 in prize money. Superstar rider Austin Shepard and a young stallion named Dual Reyish clinched the National Cutting Horse Association World Championship Futurity open division title after turning in a lofty final round score of 228 last Sunday at Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum in Fort Worth. The victory earned the horse’s owner, Billy Wolf of Whitesboro, the coveted $192,762 prize. Shepard, who is from Summerdale, Alabama, said Dual Reyish has the essential elements of an outstanding cutting horse.“He’s one of the nicest horses that I’ve brought here,” Shepard said. “He does everything that I want a horse to do physically and mentally, but he has a confidence about him that comes naturally. He’s really mature for a 3-year-old.”Lee Francois and a stallion named The Animal finished as reserve champion at the 2017 Futurity after turning in a 225.5. Owners Richard and Beth Carney pocketed $169,404. In the nonpro division, Chad Bushaw of Weatherford clinched the title after turning in a finals score of 225 aboard a 3-year-old filly named Bittersweet on Dec. 8. Bushaw earned $61,162.