Snedecor Makes Move for Third Gold Buckle
MULVANE, Kan. – Winning a steer roping gold buckle isn’t a foreign concept to Scott Snedecor.
The Fredericksburg, Texas cowboy won world championships in 2005 and 2008.
After the opening night of the 2017 Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping Friday, he’s put himself in good position to make a run at gold buckle No. 3.
Snedecor placed in four rounds and earned $30,307, the most of any contestant on Day 1 at the Kansas Star Arena.
“It was fun (Friday night),” Snedecor said. “It hadn’t been fun for me in a while, at least in the last couple of months it had not been good for me. We’ve been working on it at the house and it was back to fun again and it felt like it used to.”
The highlight Friday for Snedecor came when he won Round 3 with a 9.8-second time. That, however, was only part of his story.
Snedecor was second outright in Round 1 (11.1 seconds), and he tied for second place in Round 2 (10.7 seconds) and Round 5 (10.5 seconds).
Those results helped Snedecor move from fourth to second in the WEATHER GUARD® PRCA World Standings with $98,391. He’s only $906 behind standings leader Vin Fisher Jr.
More importantly for Snedecor is he’s leading the average with a 58.1-second time on five head. He’s only the cowboy who recorded a time on all five of his steers Friday. Trevor Brazile, a six-time steer roping world champion, is second in the average with a 44.2-second time on four head. Fisher Jr. is third with a 47.1-second time on four head.
“My horse (Possum, who is nine years old) was working outstanding,” said Snedecor, who is competing at the NFSR for the 16th time in his career. “This horse belongs to a buddy of mine, Stephen Stransky, and this horse worked on the spot every time. Stephen raised the horse and I trained him to be a steer horse about three years ago. Stephen lives close enough to me and he’s good enough to let me come and get him when I need one.”
Snedecor won the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo in February while riding Possum. That was the first time in his career he won Sam Antonio and he departed town with $27,417, which jump-started his season.
“I won San Antonio on him and I took him out again in the summer and I won a lot of money on this horse,” Snedecor said. “I’ve never rode him (Possum) at the (NFSR) before. I brought (Possum) to the NFSR last year with me, but I didn’t ride him. (Friday night), I had good steers to work with and he makes a steer really good and he makes it easy for me. I just had to back in there and try and go make practice pen runs and stick to what I do and what I’ve been practicing and don’t take too many chances and stay with what I work with.”
After a stellar performance in day one, Snedecor is going to try and keep a simple mindset for Saturday’s final five rounds.
“(Saturday) is going to be like another Friday for me,” Snedecor said. “I’m just going to back in there and hope I draw good ones and I’m going to go at them and tie them as fast as I can. This is event is very humbling, just as fast as it can get good, it can get bad very quick.”
2017 Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping
Here are the results from Friday at the Kansas Star Arena:
Round 1: Chet Herren, 10.2 seconds, $9,155; Scott Snedecor, 11.1 seconds, $7,577; Tuf Cooper, 11.6 seconds, $5,998; Rocky Patterson, 11.8 seconds, $4,420; J. Tom Fisher, 12.2, $2,841; Cody Lee, 12.5, $1,579; John Bland 12.6 seconds; Trevor Brazile, 13.2 seconds; Tony Reina 13.2; Vin Fisher Jr., 15.3 seconds; JoJo LeMond, NT; Shay Good, NT; Bryce Davis, NT; Troy Tillard, NT
Round 2: 1, Bryce Davis, 10.5 seconds, $9,155; 2, (tie) Scott Snedecor, 10.7, $6,788; Vin Fisher, Jr., 10.7 seconds, $6,788; 4, Trevor Brazile, 10.8, $4,420; 5, JoJo LeMond, 11.1 seconds, $2,210; Jason Evans, 11.1 seconds, $2,210
Round 3: 1, Scott Snedecor, 9.8 seconds, $9,155; 2, Trevor Brazile, 11.0, seconds, $7,577; 3, Vin Fisher Jr., 11.2, $5,998; 4, Jason Evans, 11.8 seconds, $4,420; 5, Chet Herren, 12.0 seconds, $2,841; 6, Bryce Davis, 14.1, $1,579
Round 4: 1, JoJo LeMond, 9.2 seconds, $9,155; 2, Vin Fisher Jr., 9.9 seconds, $7,577; 3, Bryce Davis, 10.3 seconds, $5998; 4, Cody Lee, 10.6 seconds, $4,420; 5, Jason Evans, 12.3, $2,841; 6, Rocky Patterson, 14.0, $1,579
Round 5: 1, Trevor Brazile, 9.2 seconds, $9,155; 2, (tie), Scott Snedecor, $6,788; Tuf Cooper, 10.5 seconds, $6,788; 4, Rocky Patterson, 11.1 seconds, $4,420; 5, Shay Good, 11.3 seconds, $2,841; 6, JoJo LeMond, 11.8 seconds, $1,579
2017 Clem McSpadden NFSR
Average leaders (after Rounds 1 through Round 5): 1. Scott Snedecor, 58.1/5 head;. Trevor Brazile, 44.2/4; 3. Vin Fisher Jr., 47.1/4; 4. Rocky Patterson, 51.5/4; 5. JoJo LeMond, 51.9/4; 6. Jason Evans, 54.1/4; 7. John E. Bland, 55.4/4; 8. Bryce Davis, 34.9/3; 9. Cody Lee, 37.4/3; 10. Chet Herren, 42.3/3; 11. Tuf Cooper, 44.2/3; 12. Troy Tillard, 50.1/3; 13. Tony Reina, 53.6/3; 14. Shay Good, 25.4/2; 15. J. Tom Fisher, 12.2/1
WEATHER GUARD® PRCA World Standings
(Unofficial standings after the completion of first 5 rounds of NFSR): 1. Vin Fisher Jr., $99,297; 2. Scott Snedecor, $98,391; 3, Jason Evans, $93,627; 4, Trevor Brazile, $85,418; 5. Chet Herren, $84,973; 6. JoJo LeMond, $62,253; 7. Rocky Patterson, $59,765; 8. J. Tom Fisher, $59,709; 9. Bryce Davis, $58,645; 10. Tuf Cooper, $57, 003; 11. Cody Lee, $51,080; 12. Tony Reina, $50,109; 13. Shay Good, $49,902; 14. John E. Bland, $48,184; 15. Troy Tillard, $42,848
Courtesy of PRCA