The 2023 Turquoise Circuit Finals saw up-and-comer Maddy Deerman and all-arounder Kassidy Dennison secure the year-end and average championships Nov. 3-4, in Camp Verde, Arizona.

Deerman finished the year with $15,255 earned at eight rodeos, while Dennison was the only roper to stay penalty-free at the Turquoise Circuit Finals, roping three head in 9.6 seconds to win the average title.

Turquoise Circuit Year-End Champion Maddy Deerman

For 2023 NFR Open Champion Deerman, returning to the NFR Open in 2024 is a feat she thought may not happen mid-summer. Working a full-time internship in Midland, Texas, it wasn’t looking like Deerman could make the required rodeo count for the circuit finals.

“Luckily they added six rodeos at the end of the season, and three were hometown rodeos,” said Deerman, who hails from Hope, New Mexico. “I won money at every single small rodeo I went to. They didn’t have a lot of added money, but I got a check at every single one.”

The Lea County Rodeo in Lovington, New Mexico, was her biggest win of the season, where a 2.2-second run landed her No. 3 and earned her $3,660.

“Leading up to the circuit finals I was second, and I was only $600 behind Tayle Brink,” Deerman said. “I knew I could catch up and have a chance at the year-end.”

Deerman closed the gap in Camp Verde, winning  $5,856 with a No. 2 finish in Round 1, win in Round 2 and No. 2 finish in the average. She did it on Whopper, the bay gelding she rode to her NFR Open success.

Deerman’s year was peppered with unexpected wins at rodeos she’d dubbed “vacations” from her internship. Her NFR Open win led her to the Washington State Fair in Puyallup, where she won the rodeo and $13,000. Then she advanced to the rich Governor’s Cup in Sioux Falls, where—if she’d won it—she would have moved inside the Top 15. All told, it was a surprising year that led Deerman to make some changes to her 2024 plans.

“This year I finished No. 21 in the World, so I have a shot at the winter rodeos,” Deerman explained. “Having that shot at the buildings, I’ve decided I’m going to rodeo next year. Winning the year end means I am going to the NFR Open now, too. I have set the goal next year to make the Top 15. I want to make the National Finals Breakaway Roping.”

She plans to do this while finishing her master’s degree at Texas Tech and working a one-week-on-one-week-off at Mewbourne Oil, the company where she interned and has now accepted a job offer.

Turquoise Circuit Year-End Standings

Turquoise Circuit Finals Average Champion Kassidy Dennison

Kassidy Dennison of Tohatchi, New Mexico, laid low throughout the Turquoise Circuit Finals, cruising through the three go-rounds cashing checks. With times of 3.3, 2.8 and 3.5 seconds, Dennison earned $2,545 in round money. Her moment to shine came with the average title—her consistency paying an additional $3,055 to bring her total to $5,600.

Dennison’s a double threat in the rodeo arena, having advanced to the NFR in 2014 in barrel racing. She’s also finished No. 2 at The American Rodeo and won the Indian National Finals Rodeo eight times. Now, she’ll head to Colorado Springs to compete in breakaway roping.

Turquoise Circuit Finals Results

First round: 1. Shawnee Sherwood, 2.6 seconds, $2,037; 2. Maddy Deerman, 2.8, $1,528; 3. Hailey Schafer, 3.2, $1,018; 4. Kassidy Dennison, 3.3, $509.

Second round: 1. Maddy Deerman, 2.4 seconds, $2,037; 2. Tayle Brink, 2.6, $1,528; 3. Kassidy Dennison, 2.8, $1,018; 4. Hailey Schafer, 3.0, $509.

Third round: 1. Kaitlyn Harwell, 2.7 seconds, $2,037; 2. Lynn Smith, 3.0, $1,528; 3. Kassidy Dennison, 3.5, $1,018; 4. Macy Devenport, 4.0, $509.

Average: 1. Kassidy Dennison, 9.6 seconds on three head, $3,055; 2. Maddy Deerman, 17.5, $2,291; 3. Kaitlyn Harwell, 18.7, $1,528; 4. Macy Devenport, 20.3, $764.