The last Sunday of the ProRodeo regular season will reshape both NFR team roping lines in two rodeos—the Cinch Governor’s Cup and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s PRCA Pro Rodeo—heading into the 377 Last Hoorah in Stephenville, Texas, on Sept. 30.
At 2 p.m. Central, eight teams rope in the Governor’s Cup semifinals. The top four advance to a clean-slate final that pays $34,000 a man to win. Three of those 16 men have National Finals Rodeo spots riding on the afternoon: Cory Kidd V, Carson Johnson and Dawson Graham.
Four hours later, the Sheriff’s PRCA Rodeo in San Bernardino, Calif., holds its final performance, with six bubble teams in it and Nelson Wyatt and Jonathan Torres leading the rodeo.
Sioux Falls
James Arviso and Levi Lord lead the average at 8.5 seconds on two head after winning Saturday’s second round in 4.0. Kaleb Driggers and Junior Nogueira are second at 9.6 on two. They won Friday’s first round in 3.8 and have banked $18,800.10 a man. The aggregate determines the order in Sunday’s clean-slate, eight-man round.
Seven of Saturday’s 12 teams did not make a qualified run. That put four teams into the semifinals on one head: Lightning Aguilera and Ross Ashford, the Grahams, Kidd and Johnson, and Andrew Ward and Jake Long.
The semifinal money has already moved the world standings. Teams that don’t advance earn $4,500 a man, and every finalist earns at least $9,000.
The heading line
Kidd came to Sioux Falls No. 20 at $100,208.65. He and Johnson no-timed Friday, then went 4.4 Saturday for second in the round, worth $9,400.05 a man. With the semifinal floor, Kidd is at no less than $114,108.70. That makes him the No. 15 header. A trip to the final would put him at $118,608.70 or more, past Clay Smith.
Dawson Graham started the weekend at No. 15 and moved to No. 13 with Friday’s third-place check of $6,266.70. With the floor, he’s at $118,044.59. Any finish in the final would put him at $122,544.59 or more.
Smith won Poway, Calif., with Wesley Thorp on Saturday for $3,376 a man and placed fifth at Mona, Utah, with Caleb Hendrix. He’s No. 14 at $117,157.32. Brye Crites placed at both Poway and Mona and is No. 12 at $122,773.41.
Wyatt and Torres won Bakersfield, Calif., in 4.7 seconds for $1,767 a man. The check moved Wyatt past Ketch Kelton to No. 16 at $110,215.99, $3,892.71 behind Kidd. Kelton, who no-timed at Poway on Friday, is No. 17 at $110,184.73.
The heeling line
With the semifinal floor, Rich is at no less than $126,483.48, Long at $126,015.85 and Dillon Graham at $125,339.59. All three have passed Trey Yates and Lane Mitchell.
Johnson’s afternoon could decide who holds the last heeling spot going into Stephenville. He started Saturday No. 25 at $97,419.99 and is now at no less than $111,320.04. Wyatt Cox holds No. 15 at $117,053.67 after placing second at Amarillo, Texas, with Brenten Hall.
- Fourth in the final would put Johnson past Colter Todd but leave him $1,233.63 short of Cox.
- Third or better would put him at $123,820.04 or more, past Cox and Yates.
- After Sunday, his only remaining rodeo is the Last Hoorah.
Todd is No. 16 at $115,215.36, $1,838.31 behind Cox. He won Amarillo with Jake Clay and placed second at Mona with Derrick Begay.
Yates and Mitchell are finished in Sioux Falls. Yates is No. 12 at $123,488.75, and four more heelers would have to pass him to drop him out of the top 15.
San Bernardino
The Sheriff’s PRCA Rodeo adds $20,000 per side, the second-richest open purse left in the season, and pays on one head. Wyatt and Torres lead at 4.4 seconds. Riley and Brady Minor are second at 4.6, and Aaron Tsinigine and Ty Romo are third at 4.9. If Wyatt’s lead holds and the check is big enough, he could pass Kidd’s floor for No. 15 in the heading. Torres, No. 19 in the heeling at $110,215.99, needs $6,837.68 to pass Cox.
Six bubble teams rope in Sunday night’s final performance:
- Smith and Thorp. Thorp, who took Yates’ San Bernardino spot with Smith, is No. 17 in the heeling at $111,727.70 and needs $5,325.97 to pass Cox.
- Kelton and Denton Dunning. Kelton needs $3,923.98 to pass Kidd’s floor and would also have to get back past Wyatt. Dunning is No. 14 in the heeling at $119,040.04, $1,986.37 clear of Cox.
- Begay and Todd. Todd needs $1,838.32 to pass Cox.
- Crites and Denim Ross.
- Clint Summers and Jade Corkill.
- Coy Rahlmann and Logan Medlin. Medlin is No. 20 in the heeling at $106,071.67.
Where the lines will land
TRJ‘s calculations now puts the final NFR heading line between $114,108.70 and about $118,000, and the heeling line between $117,053.67 and about $120,000. The bottom of each range is a hard floor. It’s where the No. 15 man sits today, counting the $4,500 guaranteed to every Governor’s Cup semifinalist, and since money only goes up, neither line can finish lower. The top of each range is where the line lands if the men chasing it cash the checks still available on Sunday at Sioux Falls and San Bernardino and on Sept. 30 at the Last Hoorah.
Those ranges are lower than the $119,500 heading and $123,500 heeling projections TRJ published Sept. 21. Those projections assumed the lines would keep climbing as men below them passed the men on them, and the final week didn’t deliver enough money to the right people. JC Flake, Dunning and Cox, three of the heelers closest to the line, didn’t cash from Sept. 20 through Saturday. For the heeling line to reach $123,500, four more heelers would have to get there, and most of that money would have to come from one rodeo, the Last Hoorah, where they would all be competing for the same checks. On the heading side, Dawson Graham, Smith and Kidd would all have to reach $119,500, and Kidd would need a top-three finish in Sunday’s Governor’s Cup final to do it.
What’s left
Every bubble team is entered at the Last Hoorah, where 90 teams rope three go-rounds, a short round and an aggregate. A round win pays $4,194.28 a man, the aggregate pays $8,388.56 to win, and a perfect day is worth $22,203.90.
Sunday’s Governor’s Cup semifinalists
| Average | Header | Heeler | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Arviso | Levi Lord | 8.5 on two |
| 2 | Kaleb Driggers | Junior Nogueira | 9.6 on two |
| 3 | Tyler Tryan | Nicky Northcott | 14.7 on two |
| 4 | Jake Smith | Douglas Rich | 21.6 on two |
| 5 | Lightning Aguilera | Ross Ashford | 4.1 on one |
| 6 | Dawson Graham | Dillon Graham | 4.2 on one |
| 7 | Cory Kidd V | Carson Johnson | 4.4 on one |
| 8 | Andrew Ward | Jake Long | 4.8 on one |
Governor’s Cup money won so far
| Team | Round 1 | Round 2 | Total per man |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira | $12,533.40 | $6,266.70 | $18,800.10 |
| James Arviso/Levi Lord | — | $12,533.40 | $12,533.40 |
| Lightning Aguilera/Ross Ashford | $9,400.05 | — | $9,400.05 |
| Cory Kidd V/Carson Johnson | — | $9,400.05 | $9,400.05 |
| Dawson Graham/Dillon Graham | $6,266.70 | — | $6,266.70 |
| Tyler Tryan/Nicky Northcott | $3,133.35 | $3,133.35 | $6,266.70 |
Sunday’s Governor’s Cup payout, per man
| Finish | Payout |
|---|---|
| Final, 1st | $34,000 |
| Final, 2nd | $26,000 |
| Final, 3rd | $17,000 |
| Final, 4th | $9,000 |
| Semifinals, 5th-8th | $4,500 |
San Bernardino leaders, going into Sunday’s performance
| Place | Header | Heeler | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nelson Wyatt | Jonathan Torres | 4.4 |
| 2 | Riley Minor | Brady Minor | 4.6 |
| 3 | Aaron Tsinigine | Ty Romo | 4.9 |
| 4 | Caden Clay | Zach Varian | 5.1 |
| 4 | Ryan Dodds | Randy Stanley | 5.1 |
| 4 | Jeff Flenniken | Jake Minor | 5.1 |
Heading bubble
| No. | Header | Earnings |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Brye Crites | $122,773.41 |
| 13 | Dawson Graham | $118,044.59* |
| 14 | Clay Smith | $117,157.32 |
| 15 | Cory Kidd V | $114,108.70* |
| 16 | Nelson Wyatt | $110,215.99 |
| 17 | Ketch Kelton | $110,184.73 |
Heeling bubble
| No. | Heeler | Earnings |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Lane Mitchell | $125,128.12 |
| 12 | Trey Yates | $123,488.75 |
| 13 | JC Flake | $121,788.58 |
| 14 | Denton Dunning | $119,040.04 |
| 15 | Wyatt Cox | $117,053.67 |
| 16 | Colter Todd | $115,215.36 |
| 17 | Wesley Thorp | $111,727.70 |
| 18 | Carson Johnson | $111,320.04* |
| 19 | Jonathan Torres | $110,215.99 |
*Includes the $4,500 Governor’s Cup semifinal minimum.
Standings are unofficial TRJ math: the Sept. 20 standings plus posted payouts from Sioux Falls, Amarillo, Mona, Poway and Bakersfield. San Bernardino is not included.