BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN @PRORODEOBRETT
Tuf Cooper has four Gold Buckles and now 15 NFR qualifications and he has never had to fight harder than he did in 2023.
On the bubble in the season’s final weeks, he competed at 11 rodeos over the final 10 days of the regular season - winning four of them and making $12,659 in total.
All told, it was just enough to get him to Las Vegas as he finished the year with $114,326 in the No. 15 slot in the PRCA Tie-Down Roping World Standings.
BIGGEST PAYDAYS
Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, $14,920
Cooper had to battle to make it to the Finals, fighting his way through the Wild Card and totaling less than $3,000 along the way. However, it’s about how you finish, and he was 7.9 seconds in the Finals, which was his fastest run of the rodeo and paid $12,000 for second place.
Rodeo Austin, $7,315
Cooper made the Finals once again in Austin and won his money in a much more consistent manner than in Fort Worth. He won at least $1,800 in all three rounds, the highest paying being $3,067 for a 7.8-second run in Round 1. All three of Cooper’s times were 8.6 seconds or faster.
FASTEST RUNS
National Western Stock Show and Rodeo, 7.6 Seconds
At the first PRCA Playoff Series Rodeo of the season, Cooper won the first PRCA Playoff Round of the season with a 7.6-second run in Denver. What is more impressive is the round money is counted based on all competitors in the first two rounds, so Cooper made one of the fastest runs of the entire rodeo.
Horse Heaven Round-Up (Washington), 7.6 Seconds
Cooper finished fifth in the three-head in Average in Kennewick much thanks to another 7.6 in Round 1. This one paid him more $3,500 of the roughly $6,000 he made there.
NOTABLE WINS
Springhill PRCA Rodeo (Louisiana), 8.1 Seconds
The win that started Cooper’s hectic run to close the year came in Louisiana during a rodeo that concluded on Sept. 24. He was 8.1 seconds there to win by just a tenth of a second.
Sheriff’s PRCA Rodeo (California), 8.7 Seconds
The first one came in Louisiana, but the highest paying came in California. The same weekend as his win at the Springhill PRCA Rodeo, he also $3,200 for an 8.7-second run in San Bernardino.
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