Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Whitfield still fan favorite in Las Vegas

$2 MILLION CLUB

Cowboys who have hit that figure in career rodeo earnings

Roy Cooper(1976-96)

Joe Beaver(1985-current)

Fred Whitfield(1990-current)

The loudest cheers and most thunderous applause had already been reserved for Fred Whitfield on Thursday and Friday at the ProRodeo Winter Tour Finale at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Adulation for one of the world's most famous cowboys then hit a crescendo late Saturday night, when he passed the $2 million mark in career earnings near the end of the show.

As the dust settled, this 35-year-old calf-ropin' ace from Hockley, Texas, "raised the roof" with both hands to the arena ceiling, then he doffed his white Stetson to an adoring crowd of 5,236.

Most stood, clapping and hollering, when Whitfield executed the requisite victory lap behind a female rider holding the official flag of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association.

They moved counter-clockwise around the ring.

Then Whitfield took a victory lap of his own, clockwise.

"Oh, my goodness, you can't imagine," Whitfield said. "You know what? You just can't imagine the feeling I felt tonight when I tied that calf down, got back on (my horse) and everybody was screaming, and I raised the roof a couple of times.

"And they screamed even louder. It means a lot. I crossed another milestone."

Whitfield joined fellow ropers Roy Cooper (1976-96) and Joe Beaver (1985-current) as the only $2 million men in rodeo history.

"Everywhere I go, I manage to be a fan favorite," Whitfield said. "I like to get the crowd involved in what I do. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I'd win $2 million roping calves. It hasn't been a short process -- 14 years is a long time.

"The deal I'm most excited about is, I'm 14 years into my professional career and I still feel like I'm a contender. That's the thing, the reason I wake up every morning and rodeo all year long. That's what drives me."

A seven-time World Champion, Whitfield won three of the past four tie-down titles -- the politically correct name to which his event was recently changed -- at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas & Mack Center.

In 1999, he won the prestigious all-around championship.

That Whitfield, who is black, collects the most attention in a sport whose vast fan base is white is testament to more important barriers being broken in society than can be measured by dollar figures inside an arena.

White men in their 50s and 60s were giddy with anticipation as they waited for Whitfield's autograph on an arena concourse after Saturday's finals.

"It's the same thing with Tiger (Woods) to golf, everybody loves a star. It expands our sport, and that's what our sport needs," said saddle bronc rider Rod Hay.

"He's extremely important to the sport, in all phases of it," said roper Cash Myers. "He's taken the sport leaps and bounds. People don't leave their seats during calf ropin', and he's a big reason why. He keeps doing it better. It's not ending. It's only begun, maybe."

Whitfield understands the transcendent quality of his career, which will undoubtedly land him in the ProRodeo Hall of Fame with fellow African-American stalwart Charles Sampson.

In 1982, Sampson, a bull rider, became the first black cowboy to win a world title. In the 1960s and early '70s, Myrtis Dightman, also a bull rider, became the first black to participate in an NFR.

Sampson and Dightman were among the first class to be inducted into the Cowboys of Color Museum and Hall of Fame in Fort Worth, Texas, this spring.

"I know I've done a lot, and I know I'm a role model," Whitfield said. "I'd just like to tell young kids that the only way to be successful is through hard work, dedication and education. Those are the three keys.

"I never attended college, but I made dang sure I went to high school. Then I was able to go from amateurs to the pros, and be successful. It's not easy, but if you work at it somebody will provide a way for you."

He squeaked into the Tour Finale at the MGM with a 31-point burst April 27 in Clovis, Calif., and another strong performance May 4 in Guymon, Okla., giving him the 10th spot here in a 12-man field.

Whitfield honed his technique the first two days, which produced eight semifinalists. There, he beat everyone in 7.5 seconds. In the finals, a calf eluded Ricky Canton's rope, and Justin Maass and Trevor Brazile both recorded runs of almost 11 seconds.

"Some guys had some bad luck," Whitfield said.

Knowing he could cruise, Whitfield made history with a solid 8.3. He took $18,212.50 back to Texas. Excluding the NFR, it was the most money he has made at one rodeo.

Whitfield has earned $2,004,421 and some loose change since he joined the PRCA in 1990.

"To win $2 million doing what you love to do? I mean, I'm the boss. I make my schedule, and I rodeo when I want to," he said. "To squeak into (Las Vegas) and put $18,000 in the bank when you leave here? That's a milestone in itself."

Whitfield speculated that he would stay in the game for at least another 3-5 years. But he and his wife, Cassie, have a daughter, Savannah, who is about to start school, and he'd like to experience her youth instead of propelling himself at calves around the West.

A year ago, his victory here in the Winter Tour Finale launched Whitfield to the NFR and another world championship, and he's counting on repeating that series of events.

"Dang right," he said. "Can't have a National Finals without Fred Whitfield."

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