Two-time World Champion Heeler Paul Eaves is back in a big way, winning his set at RodeoHouston with Derrick Begay and $4,500 a man along the way. 

Eaves spent the last two years nursing a shoulder injury he got at the 2020 HorkDog when a horse got tangled up with a steer and fell on him, and when he didn’t make the cut for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in 2021, he opted for surgery on the lingering rotator cuff injury. 

“I started rehab two weeks after the surgery, and for eight or nine weeks it was mainly stretching and real light strengthening. I couldn’t pick up more than two pounds for two and a half months. But I went up with more and more weight, and they work it hard. It gets real sore, and then we let it heal again. It’s still not 100%.”

Eaves has been back to roping for two and a half weeks, somedays running 50 and somedays running 10. 

“Honestly, it didn’t feel rusty,” Eaves said. “It felt pretty good, and I’m not saying it was perfect, but I spent a lot of time going slow, and when I went full speed for the first time I made a few mistakes but it felt good.” 

This was the first time Begay and Eaves have ever entered a rodeo together, and it’s been years since the duo jackpotted together a few place in Arizona.

“Those runs were just some average, good runs,” Eaves said. “We didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. He did a great job and made it to where it felt easy.”

While Begay is still borrowing Keeta from his nephew James Arviso (the mare he rode to much acclaim at the 2021 NFR), Eaves was back on his World Champion mount Docs Gunslinger Chic, owned by Highpoint Performance Horses. 

“It was so important to have a horse that was solid, through any of the roping I’ve done really,” Eaves said. “I can totally work on my roping. I took her to Northside Friday before we left and roped on her there and she did good. It was nice to be able to not worry about it.”

Begay and Eaves will rope again March 17 in the second semifinals, with the finals Saturday March 19 at 2:45 p.m. TRJ

Full RodeoHouston Results So Far: 

SUPER SERIES 1

First round: 1. Tyler Wade/Trey Yates, 5.4 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Andrew Ward/Buddy Hawkins II, 6.3, $2,000; 3. Coleman Proctor/Logan Medlin, 6.8, $1,000; 4. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 8.6, $750. Second round: 1. Andrew Ward/Buddy Hawkins, 5.2 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Tyler Wade/Trey Yates, 5.4, $2,000; 3. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 5.5, $1,000; 4. Colby Lovell/Shay Carroll, 5.6, $750. Third round: 1. Chad Masters/Cory Petska, $3,000 each; 2. Colby Lovell/Shay Carroll, 4.7 seconds, $2,000; 3. Coleman Proctor/Logan Medlin, 10.4, $1,000; 4. Andrew Ward/Buddy Hawkins, 10.6, $750. Super Shootout qualifiers: 1. Andrew Ward/Buddy Hawkins, $5,750 each; 2. Tyler Wade/Trey Yates, $5,000; 3. Chad Masters/Cory Petska, $3,000; 4. Colby Lovell/Shay Carroll, $2,750.  

SUPER SERIES 2

First round: 1. Tyler Waters/Tyler McKnight, 5.6 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Braxton Culpepper/Brad Culpepper, 5.8, $2,000; 3. Luke Brown/Hunter Koch, 6.6, $1,000, 4. Aaron Tsingine/Kyle Lockett, 7.2, $750. Second round: 1. Kolton Schmidt/Wyatt Cox, 7.0 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Aaron Tsinigine/Kyley Lockett, 7.3, $2,000; 3. Tyler Waters/Tyler McKnight, 8.4, $1,000; 4. Tanner Tomlinson/Patrick Smith, 10.3, $750. Third round: 1. Tanner Tomlinson/Patrick Smith, 4.5 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Aaron Tsinigine/Kyle Lockett, 4.8, $2,000; 3. Luke Brown/Hunter Koch, 5.0, $1,000; 4. Tyler Waters/Tyler McKnight, 5.2, $750. Super Shootout qualifiers: 1. Tyler Waters/Tyler McKnight, $4,750 each; 2. Aaron Tsinigine/Kyle Lockett, $4,750; 3. Tanner Tomlinson/Patrick Smith, $3,750; 4. Kolton Schmidt/Wyatt Cox, $3,000.  

SUPER SERIES 3

First round: 1. Jr. Dees/Levi Lord, 5.3 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Britt Smith/Jake Smith, 6.6, $2,000; 3. (tie) Levi Simpson/Ryan Motes and Kellan Johnson/Carson Johnson, 11.2, $875 each. Second round: 1. Levi Simpson/Ryan Motes, 5.3, $3,000 each; 2. Jr. Dees/Levi Lord, 6.9, $2,000; 3. Rhett Anderson/Max Kuttler, 8.1, $1,000; 4. Britt Smith/Jake Smith, $750. Third round: 1. Curry Kirchner/Austin Rogers, 5.5 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Jr. Dees/Levi Lord, 5.6, $2,000; 3. Kellan Johnson/Carson Johnson, 5.8, $1,000; 4. Levi Simpson/Ryan Motes, 6.7, $750. Super Shootout qualifiers: 1. Jr. Dees/Levi Lord, $7,000 each; 2. Levi Simpson/Ryan Motes, $4,625; 3. Curry Kirchner/Austin Rogers, $3,000; 4. Britt Smith/Jake Smith, $2,750. 

SUPER SERIES 4

First round: 1. Quinn Kesler/Caleb Hendrix, 5.1 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 5.3, $2,000; 3. Garrett Tonozzi/Garrett Busby, 5.7, $1,000; 4. Clint Summers/Ross Ashford, 6.3, $750. Second round: 1. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 5.1 seconds, $3,000; 2. (tie) Garrett Tonozzi/Garrett Busby and Charly Crawford/Jake Minor, 5.6, $1,500 each; 4. Quinn Kesler/Caleb Hendrix, 15.5, $750. Third round: 1. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 4.3 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Quinn Kesler/Caleb Hendrix, 5.1, $2,000; 3. Rhen Richard/Jeremy Buhler, 7.0, $1,000; 4. Coy Rahlman/Douglas Rich, 10.6, $750. Super Shootout qualifiers: 1. Quinn Kesler/Caleb Hendrix, $5,750 each; 2. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, $5,000; 3. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, $3,000; 4. Garrett Tonozzi/Garrett Busby, $2,500.

SUPER SERIES 5

First round: 1. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 4.8 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Derrick Begay/Paul Eaves, 4.9, $2,000; 3. Jake Clay/Billie Jack Saebens, 5.0, $1,000; 4. Erich Rogers/Payden Bray, 7.1, $750. Second round: 1. (tie) Riley Minor/Brady Minor and Derrick Begay/Paul Eaves, 5.1, $2,500 each; 3. Dustin Egusquiza/Travis Graves, 5.2, $1,000; 4. Trevor Brazile/Joseph Harrison, 9.9, $750. Third round: 1. Jake Clay/Billie Jack Saebens, 4.3 seconds, $3,000 each; 2. Trevor Brazile/Joseph Harrison, 4.4, $2,000; 3. Erich Rogers/Payden Bray, 4.8, $1,000; 4. Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 4.9, $750. Super Shootout qualifiers: 1. Derrick Begay/Paul Eaves, $4,500 each; 2. Jake Clay/Billie Jack Saebens, $4,000; 3. Riley Minor/Brady Minor, $3,250; 4. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, $3,000.