PRCA Standings Shuffle: 31 Move Up in Top 15
By Matt Naber
The final stretch of the 2019 season is in full swing. With only 13 days left, cowboys are racing to the finish line in hopes of finishing in the Top 15 of the PRCA | RAM World Standings to qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
The second week of September featured 19 ProRodeo competitions across North America worth a collective $1.1 million, the bulk of which stemmed from three rodeos with payouts in excess of $100,000.
The biggest checks during Sept. 9-15 came from the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up, where there was $540,649 on the table. Meanwhile, the New Mexico State Fair & Rodeo in Albuquerque paid out $163,287 and the West Texas Fair & Rodeo in Abilene offered $106,669.
With so much money up for grabs, 31 cowboys saw their positions improve within the Top 15, largely thanks to successful trips to last week’s biggest rodeos.
Cowboys know it’s easier to maintain a position at the top than it is to play catch-up when trying to qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Every dollar counts, and making the Top 15 in the world standings during the final month of the season puts a cowboy in a great position in the race for the gold buckle at the Wrangler NFR.
Nobody knows this better than steer roper Landon McClaugherty as he launched 10 spots last week, from 15th to fifth, largely thanks to winning $10,839 in Pendleton. He also won some money for placing fourth in the second round in Abilene.
The Tilden, Texas, cowboy is a two-time qualifier for the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping (2009 and 2012) with more than $630,500 won since beginning his multi-event ProRodeo career in 2006. Although he’s primarily known for steer roping, McClaugherty also competes in team roping and tie-down roping, helping him win all-around titles at many of the biggest ProRodeo competitions.
So far this season, McClaugherty won the all-around title at the Deadwood (S.D.) Days of ’76 Rodeo. Not too far from home, McClaugherty won the steer roping and all-around titles at Rodeo Corpus Christi (Texas) in the spring.
At this point, it’s safe to say that McClaugherty will be at the Clem McSpadden NFSR in November. But with 34 ProRodeo competitions left in the regular season, there are plenty of opportunities to climb the world standings and finish the season within the Top 15.
In the last week, the following cowboys moved up within the Top 15 of their respective events.
Six Spots
• Stetson Jorgensen moved from 11th to fifth in steer wrestling.
• Chet Herren moved from 12th to sixth in steer roping.
• Jason Evans moved from 21st to 15th in steer roping.
Five Spots
• Riley Pruitt moved from 14th to ninth in tie-down roping.
• Bridger Chambers moved from 17th to 12th in steer wrestling.
Four Spots
• Spencer Wright moved from seventh to third in saddle bronc riding.
• Taylor Santos moved from 10th to sixth in tie-down roping.
• Cole Davison moved from 19th to 15th in team roping heeling.
Three Spots
• Koby Radley moved from 14th to 11th in bull riding.
Two Spots
• Jake Long moved from fourth to second in team roping heeling.
• Josh Frost moved from 10th to eighth in bull riding.
• Cody Lee moved from 13th to 11th in steer roping.
• Jake Cooper moved from 14th to 12th in team roping heading.
• Jeff Askey moved from 15th to 13th in bull riding.
• Mason Clements moved from 17th to 15th in bareback riding.
One Spot
• Tilden Hooper moved from fifth to fourth in bareback riding.
• Ty Blasingame moved from fifth to fourth in team roping heading.
• Jade Corkill moved from fifth to fourth in team roping heeling.
• Sterling Crawley moved from fifth to fourth in saddle bronc riding.
• Tyler Bingham moved from sixth to fifth in bull riding.
• Cody Snow moved from eighth to seventh in team roping heading.
• Clint Laye moved from ninth to eighth in bareback riding.
• Chase Tryan moved from 11th to 10th in team roping heeling.
• Mitch Pollock moved from 11th to 10th in saddle bronc riding.
• Matt Sherwood moved from 12th to 11th in team roping heading.
• Wesley Thorp moved from 12th to 11th in team roping heeling.
• Caleb Anderson moved from 14th to 13th in team roping heeling.
• J.J. Elshere moved from 15th to 14th in saddle bronc riding.
• Colt Gordon moved from 16th to 15th in saddle bronc riding.
• Daylon Swearingen moved from 16th to 15th in bull riding.
Cowboys on the bubble for a spot in the Top 15 can find themselves a few dollars short of qualifying for the Wrangler NFR. This was the case for team roping heeler Nano Garza, as he moved from 20th to 16th and is $2,792 away from breaking into the Top 15.
With the Amarillo Tri-State Fair and Rodeo set for Sept. 19-21 and the Pasadena (Texas) Livestock Show & Rodeo scheduled for Sept. 20-26, big jumps such as McClaugherty’s are sure to happen again.
Check back with ProRodeo.com next week to see who the leaders are in the PRCA | RAM World Standings.
Courtesy of PRCA