Bareback rider Tim O’Connell leaves NRG Stadium with a nice paycheck.
Tim O’Connell wasn’t happy.
The two-time RodeoHouston bareback riding runner-up earned only $2,500 in his super series, which wasn’t enough to move on.
He is feeling a lot better after Sunday’s showing at NRG Stadium.
The Iowa native won the long and short rounds in his return to Houston for the one-day RodeoHouston Super Shootout: North America’s Champions, sending him home with a much bigger $25,000 payout.
“That was a very tough pill to swallow because it was the first time I didn’t advance out,” O’Connell said. “So I sat at home and chomped at the bit for two weeks. It was tough, but it helped me refocus and make sure I showed up ready to give it my all for 16 seconds on two great bucking horses. I was hungry. I was really ready to come back down here.”
The Super Shootout takes the champions of five fan-favorite events — bareback, steer wrestling, saddle bronc riding, barrel racing and bull riding — from eight of the biggest rodeos in North America, including Houston, Calgary, Cheyenne and Reno, and pits them against each other in a team format.
O’Connell represented Fort Worth, which ran away with the team championship. Fort Worth boasted two more champions — barrel racer Ivy Conrado and bull rider Riker Carter — giving its competitors $82,000 in winnings.
Sterling Lambert (Austin) won in steer wrestling.
RodeoHouston put three champions in the short round and finished fourth with $24,833.
“You don’t get to compete on a team very often, so it’s cool to root for your teammates,” O’Connell said. “We’re always there to help each other and cheer each other on, but when you have a format your team can win, it’s special.”
O’Connell won the long round with 87 points on Jason’s Pride, which gave him the first pick for the short round. He chose Special Delivery without hesitation.
“That’s very big,” O’Connell said. “I knew I could get a lot of points and win the rodeo on that horse. I was 91 on that horse a few weeks ago, so the opportunity to do it again presented itself, and I wasn’t going to shy away from it.”
He was 90 this time, pushing him past Jake Brown’s 88.
“I had a great start,” O’Connell said. “That horse fired right out of there, allowed me to get moving, and I was in the right position to keep my chin down, keep my feet moving and fire for the whistle.”
Taos Muncy earned redemption in saddle bronc and his second Super Shootout win.
The New Mexico native won his super series but placed fifth in the semifinal and then was bucked off in the wild card.
“It was embarrassing because I fell off pretty quick,” Muncy said.
Muncy tied for third in the eight-man round and selected James Bond, a horse he didn’t know well, with the third pick because fellow shootout finalist Zeke Thurston said he was a good horse. He wasn’t lying.
Muncy, riding for Reno, scored 90 points to claim his second $25,000 check.
“It’s been pretty slow for me here lately, so this is a great confidence booster,” Muncy said. “I’d been hurt for about six months, then came back and it wasn’t going well, so this one really helps out.”