FORT WORTH, Texas (March 22) – History will be made in April at the storied Cowtown Coliseum in the Fort Worth Stockyards.

The inaugural Cowboy Channel Rookie Roundup presented by Resistol with a $100,000 purse will take place April 29-30 in the historic Cowtown Coliseum.

Sanctioned by the PRCA, this new event will bring together the top 15 contenders from the 2022 Resistol Rookie Standings.

The Cowboy Channel will produce and broadcast the event. There will be a matinee performance each day beginning at 2 pm. (CT).

The first performance on April 29 will feature all 15 contestants in a single go-round of competition. The top eight contestants in each event will be brought back to compete in the semifinals on April 30 with the top four then advancing to the championship round that same performance.

In addition to competing for $100,000, each of the contestants will also receive a gift bag of items from The Cowboy Channel that can be used to help them get down the road during their rookie year.

“We are so honored to support this program for the Resistol Rookies of the Year,” said Ricky Bolin, General Manager Resistol Hats. “This new event will continue to educate and elevate them as they begin their journey towards a professional career in rodeo. The youth are the future of our sport, and we love seeing this program grow.”

The Resistol Rookie of the Year Award is one of the top awards that can be earned by PRCA and WPRA members. Money won during the Cowboy Channel Rookie Roundup presented by Resistol will count towards the Resistol Rookie Standings but will not be credited towards PRCA | RAM World Standings for NFR qualification.

PRCA CEO Tom Glause is excited to have the sanctioning body part of this event as well.

“This Cowboy Channel Rookie Roundup presented by Resistol is a great opportunity to shine the spotlight on our young athletes and give them a boost during their rookie seasons,” Glause said. “They also have the chance to learn valuable lessons from Resistol Rookies of the past with roundtable sessions.”

The Cowboy Channel will also produce a series of roundtables with the participants in each event hosted by past winners of the Resistol Rookie of the Year.

Patrick Gottsch, founder of The Cowboy Channel, also understands the value of the Cowboy Channel Rookie Roundup presented by Resistol.

“There is so much great, young talent coming up in rodeo, we thought why not bring all these competitors together in one rodeo where they can be the sole focus for a couple of days,” Gottsch said. “The NBA does a rookie league, as do other sports. Especially with the rising popularity of the western lifestyle, why not rodeo? I think our audience will love to get the chance to get to know these great young people a little better and give rodeo fans a chance to really follow the Resistol Rookie Race all summer long with more interest and knowledge about the athletes.”

Entries will be open to qualified PRCA rookies on April 13 at 11 a.m. (MT), and close on April 14 at 11 a.m., through the PRCA’s PROCOM entry system. Tickets will be available on the Cowtown Coliseum website, or through a link on the Cowboy Channel website. Additional information and updates will be made on Western Sports Roundup and/or on the nightly “live” rodeos on The Cowboy Channel and on PRCA and Cowboy Channel social media platforms. 

About the PRCA Resistol Rookie of Year program

The annual Resistol Rookie of the Year award is given out to the first year PRCA and WPRA card members who are the high money winners of their event at the end of the season including money won at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (NFR).

While many of the top PRCA competitors have multiple chances throughout their career to win gold buckles, there is one award that a competitor has only one shot at, the coveted Resistol Rookie of the Year. Resistol, one of the original sponsors of the PRCA and official hat of the PRCA, celebrates the Resistol Rookies with its annual luncheon at the South Point Hotel & Casino to honor each of the recipients.

The Resistol Rookies are presented with a custom, personalized 30X Resistol felt hat and trophy HatPac carrying case, a beautifully fully tooled trophy Cactus Saddle, Resistol branded Yeti Cooler, and a Resistol PRCA Rookie leather trophy jacket. Previous World Champions and past Resistol Rookies of the Year address the new class of rookies each year including Joe Beaver, 26X World Champion Trevor Brazile, Tuff Hedeman, Luke Branquinho, Sherry Cervi, Taylor Santos, Rusty Wright, Ryder Wright, and Stetson Wright. The well-attended event congratulates the rookies and provides sentiments of what the title means. Their messages praise the Resistol Rookies’ hard work and note that it is a once in a lifetime achievement that only a special few achieve and a title they will carry throughout their career. PRCA CEO Tom Glause, and Resistol General Manager Ricky Bolin also congratulate the Resistol Rookies noting that they are the future of the sport and the PRCA.

The PRCA Resistol Rookies of the Year are recognized in the arena during Round 6 of the NFR and presented their Montana Silversmiths Rookie of the Year buckles and a check. 

Resistol is proud to have supported the Resistol Rookies since its inception. This notable accomplishment sets them up for future trips to the NFR and World Titles.

About RESISTOL

Since 1927, the Resistol hat brand has been synonymous with providing cowboys with the finest headwear available for the western lifestyle. A division of Hat-Co, Inc, the world’s largest fur-felt hat manufacturer, Resistol Hats are manufactured in Garland, Texas. Resistol is proud to be the only fur-to-felt cowboy hat manufacturer in the United States. This means we curate and purchase our own fur and make our own hat bodies in our factory in Texas. We truly are American made, from fur to finish. No other manufacturer can say this. Each felt hat goes through over 200 processes under the company’s high standard quality control, thereby producing the most consistent and finest hat known to the world. Resistol provides a full line of felt and straw cowboy hats, as well as a full line of Resistol men’s shirts and outerwear.

About the PRCA

The PRCA, headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo., is recognized as the unsurpassed leader in sanctioning the sport of professional rodeo. The PRCA’s mission is to unify membership in providing an innovative fan experience, to grow the sport of professional rodeo and provide new expanded opportunities for our membership and sponsors. Since 1986, the PRCA has paid out more than $1 billion in prize money to its contestants. The PRCA offers the best cowboys and the best rodeos, delivering the best fan experience while positively impacting our communities and embracing the spirit of the West. A membership-based organization, the PRCA sanctioned more than 840 events in 2021, and there are more than 40 million rodeo fans in the U.S. The sport’s marquee event, the National Finals Rodeo, has increased its payout to more than $10.9 million in 2022. The PRCA televises the sport’s premier events, with the world-renowned National Finals Rodeo on The Cowboy Channel and RFD-TV and streaming on the PRCA on Cowboy Channel Plus App. There were more than 600 rodeos streamed on the PRCA on Cowboy Channel Plus App in 2021. PRCA-sanctioned rodeos donate more than $40 million to local and national charities every year. For comprehensive coverage of the cowboy sport, read ProRodeo Sports News, the official publication of the PRCA. The digital PSN and daily updates of news and results can be found on the PRCA’s official website, www.prorodeo.com. 

About The Cowboy Channel

The Cowboy Channel is the official network of ProRodeo and the first 24-hour television network totally dedicated to western sports and the western lifestyle. Headquartered in the Fort Worth Stockyards, The Cowboy Channel also features a wide variety of “live” coverage from major western events showcasing the world’s toughest and most talented cowboys and cowgirls. The network reaches 42 million homes on cable/satellite systems on Altice, Charter Spectrum, DISH, DIRECTV®, AT&T U-Verse, Cox, Comcast, Mediacom, Verizon FIOS TV, and many other rural cable systems. The Cowboy Channel can also be streamed online via The Cowboy Channel Plus at cowboychannelplus.com, DIRECTV NOW, Roku, iOS, Android, Firestick, Apple TV, and Sling TV’s Heartland Extra package. For more information, please visit thecowboychannel.com.