A $16,346 week across four rodeos moved Suzanne Williams to No. 9 in the WPRA World Standings with $46,129.80 won, putting the 2025 National Finals Breakaway Roping qualifier back in position heading into the heart of the summer run.
Williams, of Standish, California, cashed across five separate payouts June 16-21, winning the Silver State Stampede in Elko, Nevada, with a 1.8-second run for $6,331 and Old Santa Ynez Days in Santa Ynez, California, with a 2.1 for $3,633. She also tied for fourth at Fallon’s 3C PRCA Rodeo in Fallon, Nevada, with a 2.4 for $1,445, and picked up both a first-round and average check at the Snake River Stampede in Nampa, Idaho
“I hadn’t figured it up, so that’s good to know,” Williams said of the $16,346 week. “It feels good. It’s kind of been a little bit of a dry spell. I’m not going to lie.”
The timing of a week like that and the cash that comes with it matter at this point in the season.
“It just helps with the momentum,” Williams said. “You’ve got a lot of long hauls coming ahead of you and a lot of miles and a lot of fuel bills. Anytime you can put a little padding in that bank account before you have to make those long treks, it just takes a little bit of pressure off.”
After fighting her timing the past few weeks, she said her focus was simply to settle down and get back to roping.
“I had been having some struggles just with timing on my horses and finally told myself just to settle down and get out of the winter rodeo one-second mind frame and just go rope a couple calves around the neck,” Williams said. “I did so, and it worked.”
At Nampa, Williams rode Ducker, her No. 1 horse, and tied Rylee George for the Round 1 win with a 1.8 worth $3,209 and ending up placing in the average for another $1,728.
“That was a great run,” Williams said. “My calf was just really good. He wasn’t one of the super soft ones, and those are hard to be fast on for sure. He was just good and true and kept on going through there.”
Ducker—registered as Ima Tee Jay Tucker— is the 11-year-old gelding Williams raised and trained herself that fits the short-score setups.
“He makes that shot really easy because he’s so fast across there but smooth,” Williams said. “That helps it to where you can kind of see your shot and take it when it’s there.”
Her biggest check came at Elko, where a 1.8 won the Silver State Stampede. The run took some adjusting after her calf made a move to the right as she was starting her delivery.
“I was pretty proud of that run really, because I had to do some angle changing right at the last millisecond and it worked,” Williams said.
The win meant more than money. Elko is home-state territory for Williams, who grew up in Nevada, and the rodeo has continued to honor her late nephew, PRCA bareback rider and NFR qualifier Trenten Montero. Her brother and Trenten’s son were there to accept the Garcia spurs and the Top Gun Award for being the highest money-earning Nevadan at the rodeo.
“It was a fun rodeo for me to win because it just kind of brings back old memories and good memories from the past,” Williams said.
Williams finished the week at Santa Ynez, flying in to save time and horsepower before riding a calf horse owned by her husband Dan’s team roping partner. The move paid off with a 2.1-second win and another $3,633.
“When he told me I could ride him down there, it was kind of a no-brainer,” Williams said.
That kind of flexibility has become part of Williams’ program. She and Dan both coach at Lassen Community College, and she is not rodeoing without responsibilities at home. Her summer plan has to fit her family, coaching schedule, horses and the miles that make sense.
Williams made her first NFBR in 2025 after a career-best season, and she is sticking close to the same plan in 2026: capitalize in the West, go where her horses fit and avoid making the season harder than it has to be.
“I’m trying to stick close to last year’s plan,” Williams said. “I didn’t hate it. The only part I hated was the last month when I had to drive my butt off to make sure I was in.”
Now, with $46,129.80 won and the No. 9 spot in the world, Williams has given herself the kind of cushion everyone wants before the summer gets even busier.
“Our game is a game of having confidence and short-term memory all at the same time,” Williams said. “Forget the past, move forward, look to the future.”
After a $16,346 week, Williams has both. She’s on the right horses, on the right plan and, as the summer run gets rolling, back in control of her own race to the NFBR.
