BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN @PRORODEOBRETT
It has been a banner year for saddle bronc riders in the PRCA. Not only have Damian Brennan, Kade Bruno, Wyatt Casper, Zeke Thurston, Ryder Wright and Lefty Holman crossed the $200,000 mark, all six of them have a realistic chance to break Sage Newman’s regular season earnings record of $253,190.
1. Damian Brennan, $224,967
The Aussie has missed out on a check on just two rides in the last month and won over $7,500 at the Cinch Playoffs in Puyallup, where he made four rides between 86.5 and 87.5 points. Brennan also won more than $8,000 between Ellensburg Rodeo and Walla Walla Frontier Days (Washington). During the second week of September, he re-took No. 1.
2. Kade Bruno, $219,387
Bruno has made about $9,000 in September between Puyallup, Pendleton and Walla Walla, about half of it came from the Playoffs, where he won the First Performance of Playoff 1. Bruno has locked in a third NFR after finishing third in the World a year ago.
3. Wyatt Casper, $215,659
Between Aug. 18 and Sept. 2, Casper won checks on seven straight rides and all of them worth at least $1,200. Casper has not competed since Sept. 6. Since Aug. 18, he has moved up three spots in the World Standings.
4. Zeke Thurston, $207,774
Thurston is going to make his 10th straight NFR and is gunning for a three-peat. In Pendleton, he was 174.5 points on two to win $11,000 total. Thurston made $221,000 in the regular season a year ago.
5. Ryder Wright, $206,680
Since Sept. 3, Wright’s last six qualified rides have been between 84 and 89 points, the highest marked of which was on Flying Carma in the Finals of Puyallup was worth $11,375. Wright has finished in the Top 10 eight straight seasons.
6. Lefty Holman, $205,590
Holman has won big at the last two big rodeos by tying Ryder Wright for the win in the Puyallup Finals and then following it up with 171 points on two in Pendleton. He won $19,000 total between the two events.
7. Brody Cress, $195,488
Since Sept. 4, Cress has won six $1,000 checks, including $5,386 for winning the Tri-State Rodeo (Iowa) and $3,642 third in the Average in Pendleton. Cress has five straight Top 6 finishes in the World Standings.
8. Sage Newman, $187,940
Between Aug. 29 and Sept. 4, Newman won checks on five straight rides. Since then, he has won $2,588 between Pendleton and Puyallup.
9. Statler Wright, $154,268
Wright is going to make his first NFR and sits in strange place in the World Standings as there is noone within $19,000 of him in either direction. He recently added $5,000 to his season earnings by being part of a three-way tie for the Round 1 in Pendleton.
10. Kolby Wanchuk, $134,750
The lion’s share of Kolby Wanchuk’s September earnings came from riding Tokyo Bubbles for 89 points in Puyallup, it got him third and paid him $6,500.
11. Dawson Hay, $129,827
The four-time NFR qualifier pocketed $4,400 with his win at the Magic Valley Stampede in Idaho on Aug. 31, though his next five checks have all been under $1,000.
12. Zac Dallas, $128,794
Dallas has been able to keep pace in his quest for his first NFR despite not having big performances in Puyallup and Pendleton. Instead, he has won $8,650 between the Jim Baier Chute Out (Iowa), New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo and Lion’s Dixie Roundup (Utah).
13. Ben Andersen, $125,248
Andersen has gotten on just seven horses since Aug. 29, but has won more than $2,900 on three of them. Most recently, he rode Risky Mistress for 88.5 points to take second at Utah’s Own PRCA Rodeo.
14. Brody Wells, $122,740
Wells won about $9,000 between three rodeos the first nine days of September, but has not gotten on the board since. He has held steady in the No. 14 spot for a few weeks.
15. Logan Hay, $120,452
Hay has won three checks in September and two of them have been worth more than $3,000. On Sept. 9, he was 89 points to win Utah’s Own PRCA Rodeo.
16. Ryder Sanford, $115,248
Sanford is coming off a win at the Othello PRCA Rodeo (Washington) on Sept. 14. The weekend prior, he won $5,000 in Puyallup. He has closed the gap on Logan Hay slightly, it was $7,000 to start the month and is now $5,000. Both cowboys are looking for their second NFR qualification.
17. Logan Cook, $99,883
The bubble appears to stop at Ryder Sanford, but stranger things happen, especially considering Cook’s No. 11 spot in the PRCA Playoff Series has him in the Governor’s Cup field. This month, his biggest check has been $2,858 for second at the Lewiston Roundup (Idaho).
18. Layton Green, $94,177
Green has not won a check since the Kitsap Stampede (Washington) on Aug. 23.
19. Allen Boore, $93,831
Boore has won two checks in rodeos that ended in September and they totaled about $1,700.
20. Lucas Macza, $85,437
Macza’s last check came at the Bozeman Stampede on Aug. 10. He has won six rodoes in Alberta this year.
