Egusquiza and Koontz Split $154K at First-Ever Spring BFI

BFI Photo by Performance Horse Photography
BFI Photo by Performance Horse Photography

Fans watched the greatest jackpot team roper in history extend his record of wins and break the all-time earnings record at the world’s richest pro roping Sunday night in Oklahoma.
Kory Koontz, 49, of Stephenville, Texas, clinched victory at the Wrangler Bob Feist Invitational (BFI) presented by Yeti for the record third time, riding a horse he raised and nursed back to health after a horrific auto accident a year ago. Exactly 25 years after Koontz won back-to-back BFI titles with Rube Woolsey and Matt Tyler, he and Manny Egusquiza Jr. roped six steers in 46.48 seconds to earn $150,000 cash and epic prizes.

Read MoreEgusquiza and Koontz Split $154K at First-Ever Spring BFI

“King of Cowboys” and world’s best female among contenders

Photo by Larry Fulgham Photo
Photo by Larry Fulgham Photo

“Gunners” – or the first team out at the 44th edition of the Bob Feist Invitational (BFI) on March 14 – will be two of the wiliest veterans in the game. Not only has each man already won the BFI, but each has also ridden at least one horse awarded as the best of the event. Hall-of-Famer J.D. Yates, a 21-time NFR roper who won the BFI in 2010 with Jay Wadhams, will turn the first steer for eight-time NFR heeler Cody Cowden, who won “the Feist” in 1997 with Bobby Hurley.

Read More“King of Cowboys” and world’s best female among contenders

Desalvo Wins $29k as Charlie 1 Horse All-Girl Challenge Team Roping Champion During the Last Day of the Wrangler BFl Presented by YETI. Thompson Tops Headers for $21k.

Photo by Olie’s Images, LLC. | BFI.com
Photo by Olie’s Images, LLC. | BFI.com

At the Charlie 1 Horse All-Girl Challenge Team Roping on June 24, Whitney DeSalvo of Springfield, Arkansas, left no doubt about her status as the world’s best female heeler.
DeSalvo, just 25, took the top three placings with three different partners to haul a staggering $28,875 in cash back to Arkansas plus a truckload of prizes. The three-time WPRA world champion won the roping with Hope Thompson of Abilene, Texas, who raked in $20,750 total.

Read MoreDesalvo Wins $29k as Charlie 1 Horse All-Girl Challenge Team Roping Champion During the Last Day of the Wrangler BFl Presented by YETI. Thompson Tops Headers for $21k.

Okies Win First-Ever Cactus #10.5 for $61,500 During Wrangler BFI Week Presented by YETI

Good friends Mark Collins and Max Vincent were moved to tears and long hugs after their $61,500 win in the first-ever 10.5 roping during Wrangler BFI Week presented by Yeti, held at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma.
“To be able to drive two hours from the house and win life-changing money is incredible,” said Collins, who owns a lumber yard and hardware store in tiny Leedey.

Read MoreOkies Win First-Ever Cactus #10.5 for $61,500 During Wrangler BFI Week Presented by YETI

Fuller and Ward Win $155k at One-Of-A-Kind BFI in Oklahoma

By just seven hundredths of a second over six steers, professional team ropers Kal Fuller of Bozeman, Montana, and Reagan Ward of Purcell, Oklahoma, won the richest event of their sport and split a first-place paycheck worth a record $150,000 at the 43rd Annual Bob Feist Invitational. The event is part of Wrangler BFI Week presented by Yeti, held for the first time inside the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma, since its usual venue in Reno, Nevada, was shut down due to the pandemic.
“Words can’t describe this,” said Ward, who won in virtually his hometown, riding a horse he bought from world champion Kollin Von Ahn. “My header is pretty phenomenal. I’ve never met a 20-year-old that can do the stuff he can do. Most people can’t even do what he can do.”

Read MoreFuller and Ward Win $155k at One-Of-A-Kind BFI in Oklahoma

Lovins and Mcguire Win Hooey Junior Wrangler BFI Week Presented by YETI and $20k

Jordan Lovins of Canadian, Texas, had never been to the Bob Feist Invitational. But when he heard that Wrangler BFI Week, presented by Yeti, moved to his neighboring Oklahoma from Reno, Nevada, he “was all over it.”
Lovins, 17, hauled his steers to his local fairgrounds to practice under BFI-like dimensions and found someone with fresh steers so he could practice on a herd similar to the hard-running set of BFI Week. He capitalized by winning first and second – switching ends – for $15,900 in the third annual Hooey Junior BFI.

Read MoreLovins and Mcguire Win Hooey Junior Wrangler BFI Week Presented by YETI and $20k