2024 PBR Winton BAD Festival Post Event Game Notes
By: Sean Walsh Monday, April 8, 2024 @ 10:34 AM
Round 1
The PBR's BAD Festival returned to the Eric Lenton Memorial Ground for season 2024's edition of the richest regular-season event on the PBR Australia tour. As the action got underway on Friday evening, a prize pool of $50,000 was on the line.
It was eventual event champion Braydon Wellby who got the locals watching on into the action early during section one, taking Nine Ball (Dittmann Bucking Bulls) the required distance away from his hand for an 85.5-point effort to set the standard for the rest of the field to come.
Going into the event sitting in the fourth spot on the PBRA standings, Lane Mellers joined Wellby at the top of the leaderboard, grabbing 85.5 points himself out of Apache (Wallace Bucking Bulls) and shoring up his bid for a short-go qualification the following evening.
Boston Leather also continued his hot streak this season, joining the 85.5-point club on All In (Dunne Bulls) and ticking off qualifying ride number seven on the 2024 PBRA tour so far this season for the Australian #1.
After that, it was all about the bull power, with the bovine athletes able to get the better of the next sixteen trips, including 43.5-point bull scores for Humdinger (Dunne Bulls), who bucked off Bryn Francis in 3.52 seconds, as well as Pretty Boy from the Dittmann Bucking Bulls pen who was able to get the better of Brody Woodard after a fantastic 7.50-second battle between man and beast.
The most impressive trip from Friday evening belonged to Sorry For Partying Boss Hog (Dittmann Bucking Bulls), bursting out the chute gate with a massive jump and then turning back to the left with ferocity, dropping Jake Curr into the well in only 1.24 seconds to gain equal leading 43.5-point score and a share of bull score of the night.
Sarina product Toby Hale ended the rut for the Cowboys, with Bad Boy Brown (Peter Wallace) taking 4 seconds to settle into his anti-clockwise spin into the southpaw's hand for an 83.5-point score for Hale to set himself up for a shot at the title.
Round 2
As night two dawned with only four scores on the board, it was still all up for grabs for our riders and bovines alike, with the animal athletes getting the best of section one in the early goings on Saturday evening, after the first ten rides ending the way of a buck-off.
Dungog, NSW cowboy Thomas Hudson found the whistle and booked another short-go ticket in 2024, taking Dirt Road Dollars (Dittmann Bucking Bulls) away from his hand for the required journey for an 87-point marker.
Toby Hale became the first rider to couple multiple bulls on the event, getting Chewcudda (Peter Wallace) done for 86 points, taking his event aggregate to 169, and earning himself the first selection going into Saturday night's short-go bull draft.
Brumby Brandenburg doubled his qualified rides tally for 2024, with Blood In The Water turning back to the right away, not phasing the southpaw, and doing enough to hear the whistle for 84 points.
After his Round 2 matchup with Apache (Dittmann Bucking Bulls) was scratched due to a CGO from the bull, Ky Borghero was able to punch his ticket into another championship round with 82 on the judges' score sheets, with Big N Rich (TF Bucking Bulls) as a dance partner.
Round 3
As the bull draft wrapped up and we knew the matchups to come, it shaped up to be one of the most exciting short-go's of the tour this season and the bovine and cowboy athlete's didn't disappoint.
Ben Bode's frustrating weekend continued for the Queenslander, bucking off Seven Eleven in 4.95 seconds, with the bovine good for a 43-point trip during the out, meaning the #3 ranked bull rider in the country went home scoreless.
Roid Rage and Pretty Boy from the Dittmann and Wallace pens also provided some fantastic bull power, with Roid Rage bucking off Zane Hall in 3.09 for a 43-and-a-half marker. They were followed by Pretty Boy on the next trip, getting Rylee Ward down in 4.46 seconds with an unbelievable expression of bovine dominance for a 44.5-point out.
Braydon Wellby spoiled the party for Hale and took Ambush to the promised land away from his hand, weathering the storm early to get the desired 83.5-point distance to take the event win with 86 points for his eight-second effort.
Box Score
(Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Braydon Wellby, 85.5-0-86-171.50-129 Points.
2. Toby Hale, 83-86-0-169.00-84 Points.
3. Thomas Hudson, 0-87-0-87.00-64 Points.
4. Boston Leather, 85.5-0-0-85.50-40 Points.
(tie). Lane Mellers, 85.5-0-0-85.50-40 Points.
6. Brumby Brandenburg, 0-84-0-84.00-29 Points.
7. Ky Borghero, 0-82-0-82.00-22 Points.
Ben Bode, 0-0-0-0.00
Lachlan Richardson, 0-0-0-0.00
Clint Glass, 0-0-0-0.00
Bryn Francis, 0-0-0-0.00
Beau Willis, 0-0-0-0.00
Jackson Gray, 0-0-0-0.00
Zane Hall, 0-0-0-0.00
Lachlan Slade, 0-0-0-0.00
Josh Grant, 0-0-0-0.00
Tyson Smith, 0-0-0-0.00
Lijah Leather, 0-0-0-0.00
Sam Woodall, 0-0-0-0.00
Jake Curr, 0-0-0-0.00
Rylee Ward, 0-0-0-0.00
Dan Ruhland, 0-0-0-0.00
Brody Woodard, 0-0-0-0.00
Jono Couling, 0-0-0-0.00
Jack Cleaver, 0-0-0-0.00
Jake Whalan, 0-0-0-0.00
Matt Hollis, 0-0-0-0.00
Eli Bee, 0-0-0-0.00