By winning at the George Paul Memorial, 19-year-old TJ Gray earned almost $10,000 and immediately shot himself into Wrangler NFR contention. Gray went from just inside the Top 30 to No. 17.
“I don’t like to think too much about the standings or where I’m sitting because then I put too much pressure on myself,” he said. “So, I like to just have fun and enjoy each bull riding I go to.”
Gray got going early in the season with an 89.5-point ride in Rapid City on Dakota Rodeo’s Dr. Campbell. He said that ride in February really opened his eyes on how far he could go this year.
The Oregon cowboy’s other notable finishes include a win in Nacogdoches and a third-place finish at Rodeo Killeen.
Gray is currently about $1,500 behind Trevor Kastner for the final spot in the Wrangler NFR and about $10,000 back of Creek Young in the Resistol Rookie of the Year race.
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