The ladies running barrels are throwing down everywhere they go this winter. With the National Western, Fort Worth and San Antonio all complete, the standings are starting to shape up for the 2023 season.
No. 1 Jackie Ganter, $45,768
Ganter had an outstanding trip at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo that ended with her as the Champion. Riding Tycoon, Ganter would win a go-round, the Wildcard and the Finals to collect the $20,000 check at the end of it. She went on to San Antonio where she would ride her young horse, Sailor, to dominate her bracket and tie to finish third. Ganter’s year is starting with a bang.
No. 2 Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, $29,973
Pozzi Tonozzi took the first rodeo of the 2023 year by storm in Odessa, Texas when she won the Sandhills Stock Show and Rodeo with a 13.53-second run that would be worth over $6,000. She would go on to thrive once again in Denver making three sub-15 second runs and finishing third. So far in 2023, Pozzi Tonoozi has brought out the big guns with Birdie while Pickles has also had her moments to shine.
No. 3 Lisa Lockhart, $29,842
Lockhart and Levee found their stride in Las Vegas and have not let it go. After earning over $5,000 and finishing fourth overall in Denver, they came south. Lockhart advanced to the Semifinals in Fort Worth and the Wildcard in San Antonio on Levee. Rosa was Lockhart’s equine partner in Tucson where they added to her season earnings with a fourth-place finish in the finals.
No. 4 Sissy Winn, $28,658
Winn has had impressive outs in Fort Worth before and this year was no different. With a check from two go-rounds she moved on to the Semifinals where she would stop the clock at 16.24 seconds, collect another $4,000 and go on to the Finals. Winn left Fort Worth $13,760 richer. In San Antonio, she laid down one of the fastest runs of the rodeo in Round 2 of her bracket with a 13.75-second run to continue her success.
No. 5 Margo Crowther, $27,535
Crowther’s success this season has come from some big indoor rodeos but also smaller one’s a little to the east. A third place finish in Florida, second-place in Mississippi and a win in Louisiana kept Crowther rolling until big checks came from San Antonio and Dixie Nationals. Earning over $4,000 for her go-round win in San Antonio, Crowther and her horse, Sissy, racked up $6,525 with the win in Jackson.
No. 6 Kassie Mowry, $27,302
Mowry had some luck in Fort Worth but she hit the jackpot in San Antonio. Riding her always steady mount, Will, Mowry pulled a check in the bracket that sent her to the Wildcard that she would win. Later on that same day, Mowry and Will made a run one hundredth of a second faster and Mowry is now you San Antonio Champion with $15,099 added to her season.
No. 7 Hailey Kinsel, $24,306
Reigning World Champion Kinsel has a rodeo count of five as she sits inside the Top 10 in the World. At Fort Worth, Kinsel and Sister would cinch two go-round wins to sweep their bracket before finishing third in the Semifinals and second overall. They left with $17,520 added to her earnings. In San Antonio, the duo would go on to the Wildcard where they would split a second-place finish.
No. 8 Jordon Briggs, $23,467
Having even fewer rodeos on her count this year is Briggs with four. One being Fort Worth where she swept her bracket and went on to the Finals. In San Antonio, it was a series of sub-14.00-second runs that got her through to the Finals.
No. 9 Emily Beisel, $21,148
Beisel’s Congo and Beau have been unstoppable this year with Chongo flying through Fort Worth and San Antonio while Beau was a powerhouse in Tucson. Chongo has helped $13,140 between Fort Worth and San Antonio go-round wins while Beau’s Tucson runs alone totaled over $2,000.
No. 10 Ilyssa Riley, $20,279
Riley got an early start to this season in Hempstead, Texas where she cashed in a winning run for $3,224. It was then at the Texas Circuit Finals that she won two of three go-rounds and the average bringing her total to $9,472. It was a second-place finish in Round 1 of the National Western that added another $3,000 and a win in Los Fresnos that kept it going.
No. 11 Bayleigh Choate, $19,598
After her first National Finals Rodeo, Choate and her horse Dash have returned with a bang. The two pulled a check in Fort Worth before packing a punch with every run made in San Antonio. From San Antonio, Choate added $17,000 to her season earnings to give her a jump into the Top 15 in the World.
No. 12 Kelly Allen, $19,316
Allen has taken advantage of the early season rodeos that took place in October 2022. Finishing second at the Waller County Fair and Rodeo got her started with $2,579 on October 1. She followed it up with five more checks from small Texas rodeos totaling $2,331. She cashed in another $4,191 when she won Rodeo Rapid City.
No. 13 Jimmie Smith-Tew, $18,456
Smith-Tew captured the title at the National Western to send her to the top of the standings. Over $5,000 was added to her earnings and another $4,371 came from winning the first round of Tucson. Smith-Tew’s horse Nicky stepped up at the indoor pen of Denver and kept it rolling in Tuscon. Between those two rodeos, another almost $3,000 came form placing in Fort Worth and at the Dixie National Rodeo.
No. 14 Erin Wetzel, $18,430
Wetzel capitalized in the Southeastern Circuit Finals but before then, the Florida cowgirl raked in $2,819 to start 2023 off right. At the circuit finals it was two second place finishes and one go-round win that made Wetzel the No. 1 lady in the average. These circuit finals brought in $10,026 for Wetzel.
No. 15 Dona Kay Rule, $16,386
Fan favorites Rule and Valor did not have much luck in Fort Worth but it all turned around at San Antonio. A go-round win and one second place finish moved her on to the Semifinals when she finished second with a 14.04-second run. It would be the tie for third that would add another $4,000 to Rule’s $8,500.
No. 16 Taycie Matthews, $15,127
Matthews had a little success with a go-round win at the Southeastern Circuit Finals before she pulled a check at the National Western in Denver, Colorado. From there, it was a ninth place check in Jackson, Mississippi and a second-place finish in Los Fresnos.
No. 17 Tiany Schuster, $14,648
Schuster is another cowgirl to take advantage of the early season. She brought in $6,210 before January 1. She kept the momentum rolling when a second place finish in Odessa, Texas added another $5,058 to her earnings.
No. 18 Nicole Love, $14,535
Love’s 2023 season has been full of bigger paydays. A second-place finish at Dixie National Rodeo brought in $5,220 while winning the 150th Silver Spurs Rodeo in Kissimmee added $3,850. She also took home first place money from Brighton Field Day and Rodeo and the Georgia National Rodeo.
No. 19 Sara Winkelman, $13,828
Success found Winkelman at the North American Championship Rodeo in Louisville, Kentucky. Getting faster with each round, Winkelman ended up winning the average and taking home a total of $6,967. Another almost $2,000 came her way when she won a round at the Denver qualifiers after hitting a barrel in the first.
No. 20 Ivy Hurst, $13,325
A successful Ram Prairie Circuit Finals helped Hurst find her way inside the Top 20 in the WPRA Standings and that include two go-round wins. The average paid out $2,890 bringing Hurst’s total from the circuit finals to over $8,000. Her next payday came at the San Antonio qualifier and was worth $1,703.
With big money left to be won in Houston, Austin, and San Angelo before the California run starts, it is anybody’s game in the barrel racing as they battle it out for an early season lead.
