World Series Richest Team Roping - Tops 5 Million

Las Vegas, NV – The World Series of Team Roping, started just six years ago as a recreational diversion for cowboys during the National Finals of Rodeo, has exploded into the richest team roping event in the world, and the fifth richest equine event in the world.  The World Series Grand Finale VI, which finished on December 10^th at South Point Equestrian and Events Center in Las Vegas, NV, paid out $4,735,000 in cash and $300,000 in prizes for a total of Five Million. The payout for each division smashed all previous historical records for the sport.

Las Vegas can proudly lay claim to two of the top five richest equine events in the world. Individually they are both impressive, but together they distribute $10.7 Million in prize money to the cowboy industry within a 10-day period.  For fifteen days, Vegas is transformed by a barrage of cowboy hats, trucks, trailers, and horses. Set up for the trade shows begin two days before the rodeo and vendors from all over the world work tirelessly to construct booths that will ultimately handle 20,000 Christmas shoppers per day once the doors open at all of the 10 plus “Cowboy shop till you drop” venues up and down the strip. 

Between the WNFR, the trade shows, and everything the city of Las Vegas has to offer, one might ask; “How or what else could elevate this experience to even greater heights?” Nineteen hundred and ninety eight (1998) individual team ropers representing Canada, Mexico, Italy, and the United States competing for unbelievable purses, that’s what!

The event each year brings over five thousand strong to the Casino’s on the southern throws of the Las Vegas strip. The World Series of Team Roping Finale brings a big attraction to the city and, by piggy backing on the NFR, makes these 10 days in December the number one overall event to take place in the city annually.

Team Roping is the largest economical component of the recreational horse world producing over $60,000,000 in purses each year. The World Series of Team Roping Grand Finale has quickly become the richest and most prestigious showcase for the sport.  The event will return to South Point Casino Equestrian Center December 10^th, 2012.

Cactus Saddlery #13 Pro-Am Finale 

$1,165,000 Cash

The Pro-Am was truly one of the toughest World Series Ropings of the year with an 80% catch ratio and only four seconds separating 44th call from high team back.
The top team to the short round, Tyson Campidilli of Vinita, OK  and Cody Brown of Oolagah, OK,  had to be 8.60 to maintain their number one spot.  After the dust settled and the final flag dropped, a time of 7.91 put the capstone on a $200,000 payday for the Oklahoma team. Tyson has been winning a lot in this past year, as he placed a couple of times at the USTRC Finals.  Tyson is a switch hitter and is equally comfortable heading as heeling. When we caught up with him following the roping, he was laughing about the fortunes of team roping, “ I was king of the mountain on Wednesday, and on Thursday missed three heel shots in the #11”.

Cody Brown, a saddle maker, celebrated his one year wedding anniversary in Vegas two days before his big win. He brought his own cheering squad to Vegas with him and said, “that scream was my mom”.  Cody confessed that he had second thoughts about the big entry fees, but his friends Larmon and Amos, the team that won the #13 the previous year had, “assured me that this would be a roping contest and not a drawing contest, and they were right.” He also had a secret weapon. He borrowed Clint Peverley’s super horse “Glory” that placed in the top five of every roping event at the AQHA world show, and with this win the horse had over $175,000 won on him this year.

James Gililland of Belen, NM and Cody Wilson from Capitan, NM stepped up their game in the short round and stopped the clock in a 7.62 to secure them the reserve championship and $140,000 in team earnings.

Fast Back Ropes #12 Finale

$1,230,000 Cash

This was the biggest division, the largest payoff ever at a World Series Finale and second only to the WNFR itself. Just like the winners of the #13, this team came in to the short go as number one in the aggregate and solidified their victory with an 8.93 on their final steer. Jake Stephenson of Gouldbust, TX was working the horns for his partner Bobby Simmons of Breckenridge, TX.  Simmons is in the oil field construction business, but was a well know PRCA header for many years. Bobby laughed as he waited to take the stage to receive his check and prizes, “Wait ‘til I tell all the boys this. My biggest check ever was roping feet!” Bobby had quit rodeoing  in 2004 because he, “ had a horse buck me off and fall on me. He broke my back in two places, my neck and several ribs.  I’m happy to be competing, and really enjoyed the cattle, they were very ropeable”.

Jake, a 22 year old with a big personality, won previously in the year at a roping in Abilene. The college student from Angelo State brought an entourage of about thirty people with him from Coleman County, and they were plenty vocal. It didn’t stop at the roping, when the stewardess from Southwest Airlines asked if anyone on the plane won anything in Vegas, he quickly became the star of the flight. It ended with pictures with the entire plane crew, which means Southwest Magazine might be on the horizon. Funny side note here, Bobby and Jake discovered at the roping that they were both riding horses purchased from Troy Morrison, one nicknamed “Meat”, and the other “Taters”.

Jimmy Ruiz of Three Rivers, TX and Marcus Becerra of Alvarado, TX made the jump from the fourth back to claim the reserve champion title banking  $140,000! Jimmy walked out of the South Point arena with $95,000 in his Wrangler Jeans, which included a check from the #12 roping.

Heel O matic #11 Amateur Finale

$1,188,000 Cash

One of the most unbelievable short rounds in memory was witnessed in the #11 Finale. Forty third high call placed 6^th over all, and the reserve champion team of Cody Britten, a farmer and rancher of Groom, TX and heeler Junior Crump of Lelia Lake, TX, who had already been in the short round earlier in the week, jumped all the way from the thirteenth spot to claim $140,000, buckles and Cactus Saddles.

Announcers with their hats on backwards, the crowd in amazement, and the WSTR people saying they have never witnessed anything like this in short round Finale history, added to the jaw dropping excitement as the number eight high team back of Q.B Cobb of Pampa, TX and heeler Trew Cates of Booker, TX caught their steer in 8.66. They sat and watched as the top seven teams in the short go could not stop the clock, ultimately leading to their big win. When it was all said and done, Q.B and Trew went on to bank roll $200,000 and the prizes.

The two feedlot cowboys roped together in high school, but roped with Trew heading and Q.B. heeling. At the Wiley Hicks, they found themselves one partner short and decided to give the switch a try. The win provided plenty of money for the entry and trip to Vegas. Q.B. works for Quien Sabe Feedyards in Happy, TX and brought a lot of family with him to Vegas. Trew Cates works for his father some at Cates Feeders and trucks for himself. The pair said they were Facebook sensations for the past week.  As for the seven teams that missed in the short round, Trew said, “I feel bad for them, but we sure were happy they let us have it”.

Bloomer Trailers #10 Lo-Am Finale

$1,160,000 Cash

It looked for a moment like the high call team of Shayne O’Hotto of Ft. Lupton, CO and Terry Lindner of Sedalia, CO would win it all to claim the $200,000 payday. Shane said about their final run ,“That steer backed into me a little and I didn’t want to wave it off so I took an extra swing. It made us a little longer but hey, for $140,000 I’ll take that extra swing every time”.

The second high call team of Michelle Rezzonico of Queen Creek, AZ and partner Shawn Hastings of Gilbert, AZ made an absolutely great run of  8.09 on their last steer  and clinched the victory with a 35.51 on four.  Michelle was all smiles as she stepped onto the stage at the after party to receive her check for $100,000. “This is awesome!” she said.  The pair split $200,000 and took home a truck load of prizes. Michelle who double dipped with her husband in the #11 for an additional $21,000, left Vegas as the biggest winner with $121,000. “I had my number increased a few months ago and I think a lot of this is my little mare. She is out of John McFarland’s great stud ‘Gilligan’.”

Shawn Hastings is a farm and ranch broker who is also the co-owner of RopeSteer Superior rope tools.  Shawn said, “ I don’t go to many team ropings, but this is certainly the best event I have ever been to. When you pull up and get valet service for your horses, it is pretty obvious this isn’t a normal jackpot.”

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For more information and a full schedule of events, go to www.WSTRoping.com

For information contact:

Audra Gentry – 505-898-1755