GARDEN CITY, Kan. – Saddle bronc rider Jeffery Willert says he received a big surprise last Saturday at the Beef Empire Days Rodeo.

The second-year cowboy out of Belvidere, S.D., turned in a whopping 90 points on Korkow Rodeo Company’s Dippin’ Vidalia to win his event and take home $1,889.

“That horse was really nice,” Willert said. “I about got bucked off. I was surprised. I didn’t think he was that good, he’s just a hopper and everybody wants to get on him.”

Willert says the horse is one of the better horses in the Korkow pen and he obviously underestimated the horse.

“I was off to the side and he bucked right back under me and I was able to get my rein,” Willert said. “He was more than I expected. I would take him again.”

Willert, 21, is having a good season and could be on his way to reaching his first Wrangler National Finals Rodeo this weekend when he competes at the Pace Picante ProRodeo Tour Finale at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“Yeah, I’ve had my ups and downs, but for the most part it’s been pretty good,” he said. “It seems that I get a check when I need one. I’ll be falling down in the standings then I win a check.”

Willert says he’s looking forward to his first trip to Las Vegas and the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

“Hopefully I will draw good and ride good,” he said. “I’m looking forward to making a lot of money – another Garden City, Kansas.”

Even though Willert is looking forward to riding in Las Vegas this weekend, he doesn’t like to think about the possibility of qualifying for the Wrangler NFR, also in Las Vegas in December.

“I’m not really thinking about that,” he said. “I’m focusing on riding broncs. All of my family keeps my friends posted on where I’m going and what I’m doing. My family keeps me posted on where I am at in the standings. I don’t look at that.”

If he keeps riding as he did in Garden City, his family will be telling him that he qualified for the WNFR.

Other champions from Garden City included Royce Ford (Kersey, Colo.), bareback riding, 81 points, $1,812; Tooter Silver (Warner, Okla.), steer wrestling, 8.9 seconds on two, $2,875; Steve Purcella (Hereford, Texas)/Kirt Jones (Piedmont, Okla.), team roping, 12.0 seconds on two, $2,424; Ty Massey (Lookeba, Okla.), calf roping, 19.2 seconds on two, $2,006; Corey Navarre (Weatherford, Okla.), bull riding, 91 points, $3,761; and Lawson Plemons (Chilton, Texas), steer roping, 46.3 seconds on four, $5,021.

Pace Foods will become the title sponsor of the PRCA Championship Series, giving the company a significantly expanded presence in professional rodeo.

The series begins this weekend at the Pace Picante ProRodeo Tour Finale at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It continues this fall following the summer ProRodeo Tour with the Pace Picante ProRodeo Challenge, Sept. 25-27 in Omaha, Neb., and concludes with the Pace Picante ProRodeo Classic, presented by the Texas Stampede, Nov. 7-9 in Dallas.

In 2004, the Las Vegas Tour Finale will become the Pace Picante ProRodeo Chute Out.

Pace signed on as a PRCA national sponsor last December and has promoted its partnership at multiple events throughout ProRodeo.

Butch Thurman has covered professional rodeo for 23 years. His email address is