The Hooey Jr. Patriot in Fort Worth concluded on Sunday, Mar. 16, with a thrilling performance that saw four youth rodeo athletes split the $100,000 Patriot Bonus Prize: Merrick Moyer in the pole bending, Jayden Broussard in the tie-down roping and Ketch Kelton and Michael Calmelat in the team roping.
They each took home $25,000 on top of their individual event winnings.
“Whenever I backed into the box for the $100,000, I was actually less nervous than I was for the semifinals or finals,” Broussard said. “I felt like I had nothing to lose, so I just went at it as fast as I could.”
But wait, how did these winners find themselves in the chairs of the EQN Sports Desk?
Each of them finished in the top three of their individual events and competed again at the end of the performance in an exclusive Patriot Bonus Round.
The trick to cutting themselves a piece of the $100,000 pie was posting a time that was faster than the time that originally won their event. For example, the 3.73-second winning the Open Team Roping time meant a 3.72 or faster run was needed to become eligible for the pot in the bonus round. There were no ties allowed within events—only between them—meaning it was a knife fight for the ropers, wrestlers, tyers and racers that had been pushing each other all week long.
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Open Team Roping: Ketch Kelton & Little Michael Calmelat
- Kelton’s Total Patriot Finals earnings: $36,500
- Calmelat’s Total Patriot Finals earnings: $32,500
- Time to beat: 3.73 seconds
- Bonus Round time: 3.25 seconds
Kelton and Calmelat won the Open Team Roping with a time of 3.73 seconds, earning $15,000. Kelton noted in his interview that he’s wished their time wasn’t so fast, because it would be difficult to beat in the Bonus Round. That comment became an ironic foreshadowing for the rope slinging that commenced.
Kelton made it to the Bonus Round with two partners: Denton Dunning and Calmelat. The second team out, Kelton and Dunning posted a shocking time of 3.26 seconds that had the arena roaring with excitement. Kelton just walked “Peaches” back up the pen to back in the box for his second run, seemingly unphased.
He nodded and laid another neat head loop on a spotted steer, spinning him for Calmelat’s turn. Calmelat completed the lay-up with a heel loop he said—in the moment—he wasn’t sure he’d gotten on.
“I threw as fast as I could,” Calmelat said. “I am truly blessed to be 3.25.”
The win comes on the heels of Kelton’s win at the Cinch Timed Event Championship, where he rode against men twice his age and came out on top. When asked about his perspective on his recent successes, Kelton seemed at a loss for words.
“This is unbelievable, what’s gone my way these last few years,” Kelton said.
19-and-Under Pole Bending: Merrick Moyer
- Total Patriot Finals earnings: $40,000
- Time to beat: 20.119 seconds
- Bonus Round time: 19.119 seconds
Moyer topped the 19-and-Under Poles with a time of 20.119 seconds on French This Redneck, earning herself a trip to the Bonus Round on the mare she calls “Paris.”
Neither of Moyer’s competitors had bested her time in the Bonus Round, and the door was wide open for Moyer to write her name on the $100,000 check. She delivered a 19.932-second run.
“I definitely had a better first-end pole in the Bonus Round,” Moyer said. “She wasn’t as close in between them as she was in my [event] run, where it feels like I ticked every single one. I got by the [pole] last turn, and she made up the time.”
Moyer is no stranger to the Patriot Bonus, either. In 2024, Moyer split the $100,000 bonus with goat tyer Alli Autrey, and used the money to purchase a barrel mare “Rosie” she ran in the Patriot this year.
19-and-Under Tie-Down Roping: Jayden Broussard
- Total Patriot Finals earnings: $35,000
- Time to beat: 8.97 seconds
- Bonus Round time: 8.53 seconds
Broussard was the only Bonus Round winner to not have won his individual event, making the $25,000 payday even sweeter.
“I am kind of speechless,” the 19-year-old from Broussard, Louisana, said. “I am just so grateful to be here today. I couldn’t ask for a better family to take me down the road. I’ve got great horses, I’m just so thankful.”
Broussard’s calf stumbled before he reached the barrier line, and he was able to float on mare “Chick” before laying his loop on the heifer’s neck. According to Broussard, when he threw his hands and saw his time, he was surprised.
“Because she stumbled, it felt like everything was going slow,” Broussard said. “I’m just so grateful it worked out.”
In all, the 2025 Hooey Jr. Patriot paid out $1.6 million to youth rodeo competitors in events spanning from roughstock and goat tying to team roping and barrel racing. Special thanks to those who made this legendary event possible.
