Heeler doesn’t settle for NFR bleachers, partnering with veteran header pays off

For many rodeo athletes, a yearly visit to Las Vegas in December is a must, even if they’re not among the 15 taking part in their respective competitions. The Stephenville, Texas, native has made that trek several times on his own, but always to watch.

“The last time I went, it was one of those deals where it’s really motivating to go watch it and it was like, ‘I won’t be back in there until I make it.’ And I haven’t went back since,” Payne said. “This (is) a new look at it, backing into the box, rather than up in the bleachers or on the couch in the living room.”

Roping for the first time in the Thomas &Mack Center is a memorable career milestone on its own. The moment takes on additional context when considering the journey Payne and heading partner Clay Smith took to get here.

Smith is a longtime roper with two world championship buckles to his credit. The Broken Bow, Okla., product has roped 10 times at the Wrangler NFR during his 12-year career. That steady hand is what Payne was looking for when the duo partnered up last year.

When the 2023 regular season ended, Payne was listed as 17th in the PRCA’s heeler world standings. Because he had maxed out his rodeo count before the CINCH Playoffs Governor’s Cup in Sioux Falls, S.D., the money he won at that event initially did not count towards his standings.

Payne appealed to the PRCA Grievance Committee, hoping to get a waiver so that a 76th rodeo could be added to his ledger, which would vault him into the NFR with Smith. On Nov. 20, 2023, that request was granted.

Seven days later, the Grievance Committee reconvened and reversed that decision. Smith was headed to the NFR on his own, and Payne’s breakthrough bid was over.

Smith called it a terrible feeling, especially in the weeks leading up to the Grievance Committee’s announcement. He had been practicing with multiple partners in anticipation of various scenarios playing out.

“It made for a bad taste in our mouth last year,” Smith said.

A year later, the duo were struck with a lingering sense of déjà vu as the 2024 regular season began to wind down. Only this time the situation was reversed.

Heading into September, it was Smith who found himself flirting with the cut line, while Payne sat in position to reach Las Vegas. During the winter, Payne won $10,000 at RodeoHouston with a different partner, giving him an edge in the heeler race. For much of the year, that separation made all the difference in where each cowboy sat in the rankings.

It created a tense finish as the partners aimed to avoid a repeat of the previous season.

“I don’t like being in that spot. I would like to be able to go home the last 30 days and be able to go to the best (rodeos) that you can go to, instead of trying to go to everything,” Smith said.

“We don’t try to go to everything that there is (early in the season), because of reasons like this. Because at the end, it feels like if you’ve got some bullets at the end, that’s kind of the deal that can separate you from making it or not making it. We had enough shots at the end to where we could out-rodeo everybody we needed to and go to every place that paid.

“Being in those spots is not ideal. But we did catch a few (steers) there at the end that mattered.”

The tipping point came over the Sept. 20-22 weekend. Payne and Smith came up with some big showings at the Omaha (Neb.) River City Rodeo and the North Dakota Roughrider Cup in Mandan, N.D. Combined, the two events paid more than $10,500, giving them the needed boost to avoid missing out on the NFR as a pair again.

Once everything from the regular season was finalized, Payne finished 10th in the heeler ranks with about $122,000 earned. Smith was 11th in the header standings at around $113,000.

After five rounds of action at NFR, the duo have each earned $10,866, with sixth-place showings in Rounds 1 and 5. Plus, both got the $10,000 bonus awarded to all NFR qualifiers. Going into Tuesday’s sixth round, Smith is 13th in the header world standings at $133,950, and Payne is 12th in the heeler standings at $143,064.

Reaching this point together was always the focus, something Payne never lost sight of — even if the journey to get here was anything but easy.

“It felt like the worst thing that could possibly happen to someone. It happened last year,” Payne said. “It’s one of them deals where it’s all I’ve ever wanted and dreamed about, but I kind of had a mindset too of, we made it through that and we’re still alright. It’s about what good things can happen.”