Lefty Holman is off to another great start in the 2024 season as he looks to make his fourth career NFR and earn his first Gold Buckle. Holman is coming off a second-place finish at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo which helped him jump to No. 7 in the PRCA Saddle Bronc World Standings.
The Texas Swing continued to be fruitful for Holman as he turned around and won the first Super Series in RodeoHouston and quickly advanced to the Semifinals.
With some time between the Super Series rounds and the Semifinals, Holman took a trip back to Hawaii, where his wife is from to take a break from the grind of the Texas Swing.
“Every time we got a little break I like to come over here and I call it recharging my batteries. Staying fresh.”
It’s becoming more common to see athletes go all out at the big rodeos, which allows them to take more time off the rest of the season if they can get a big win.
“This is such a huge time of year, if you are riding well and riding sharp this time of year you can get a huge advantage in the standings. I’ve only gone to three or four rodeos this year and moved up to sixth in the world,” Holman said.
Holman got that big advantage after his showing in San Antonio. After opening his bracket with an 87 and an 84-point ride he was marked 87.5 points on Shady Jacket to lock in his spot in the Semis.
“This horse (Shady Jacket) spurs itself, guys. This is probably one of my favorite rides all winter.”
Moving to the Semifinals in San Antonio, Holman drew Toma Jo, a horse he knew would be a tough matchup.
“This is one you’re nervous getting on because you know it’s the toughest horse in the pen,” Holman said. “Toma Jo may not look like she is hard to ride, but that is one of the hardest-to-ride horses going down the road.”
Holman was able to tame Toma Jo to the tune of an 89-point ride which sent him to the Finals.
San Antonio is one of the few winter rodeos where athletes draft their bucking horse in the finals, something Holman says comes with a good amount of stress.
“It puts a lot more pressure on us cowboys. You don’t want to make the wrong call,” Holman said about the draft. “I went with a younger Calgary horse and a lot of guys in the locker room were giving me a hard time not picking X9. I saw potential in this Exotic Warrior.”
He made a great choice, going 87 points and finishing in second place. In total, Holman made around $20,000 at the rodeo to jump inside the top 10.
As for now, Holman will remain in Hawaii for a few more days before getting back to the grind of the Texas Swing in both Austin and Houston.