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Trell Etbauer claims Linderman Award

Trell Etbauer has won the Linderman Award three times now, and he says “each year has been a little different.” This is the one he will remember with a wince.

A groin injury in the spring cost him more than a month of competition, and a wrist injury at Deadwood, SD, on July 30 ended his season two months short of the finish line.

“It’s been frustrating,” Etbauer said. “When I strained my groin in the spring, it was the first time I’d really missed any rodeos due to injury. When I got hurt again in Deadwood, I thought, ‘Well, I’ve been real lucky all these years, and now it’s just my turn.'”



Instead of running away with the Linderman Award – for excellence at both ends of the arena – as it appeared he might do through the first half of the season, Etbauer had to scoreboard watch down the stretch to see if five-time Linderman recipient Kyle Whitaker could put together a run and overtake him.

Etbauer, of Goodwell, OK, finished the 2010 season with earnings of $39,515, the lowest total of his three Linderman titles, with Whitaker trailing by slightly more than $4,000.



It marks the first time that any competitor has won the Linderman Award the first three years of his professional career and the first time anyone has won the award three years in a row since Chip Whitaker (Kyle’s dad) managed it from 1977-79.

Whether Etbauer can win an unprecedented fourth consecutive Linderman will depend, in large part, on how quickly he can bounce back from his injuries.

“I dislocated a bone in my right wrist and tore ligaments,” Etbauer said. “I had three surgeries. The doctor told me it could be about a year before I can rope again. I’m kind of shooting for the first of January to get back to riding broncs and steer wrestling; I don’t know about the roping. To be honest, I don’t know if I can ride broncs that soon.

“I’m just out of a cast after two months, and now I’m in a splint. They’ve got me to where I can bend the wrist a little bit. I’m due to go back to Dallas and see (Dr.) Tandy (Freeman). They’ll see how I’m doing and if I’m healing OK, then I can get to work on getting my strength back.”

To qualify for the Linderman Award, a cowboy must win at least $1,000 in each of three events, and those events must include at least one roughstock event and one timed event. Etbauer earned more than $11,000 each in saddle bronc riding, steer wrestling and tie-down roping – the first time he’s ever reached five figures in all three events.

“I never knew what the award was until my senior year in high school and I was heading off to (Oklahoma Panhandle State) University,” Etbauer said. “I read about it in the ProRodeo Sports News (PSN) … Kyle was the man (to beat). Ever since then, it’s been one of my goals at the start of the season. It’s always neat to win.”

Etbauer will receive the award in the arena at the Thomas & Mack Center this December, during the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

Trell Etbauer has won the Linderman Award three times now, and he says “each year has been a little different.” This is the one he will remember with a wince.

A groin injury in the spring cost him more than a month of competition, and a wrist injury at Deadwood, SD, on July 30 ended his season two months short of the finish line.

“It’s been frustrating,” Etbauer said. “When I strained my groin in the spring, it was the first time I’d really missed any rodeos due to injury. When I got hurt again in Deadwood, I thought, ‘Well, I’ve been real lucky all these years, and now it’s just my turn.'”

Instead of running away with the Linderman Award – for excellence at both ends of the arena – as it appeared he might do through the first half of the season, Etbauer had to scoreboard watch down the stretch to see if five-time Linderman recipient Kyle Whitaker could put together a run and overtake him.

Etbauer, of Goodwell, OK, finished the 2010 season with earnings of $39,515, the lowest total of his three Linderman titles, with Whitaker trailing by slightly more than $4,000.

It marks the first time that any competitor has won the Linderman Award the first three years of his professional career and the first time anyone has won the award three years in a row since Chip Whitaker (Kyle’s dad) managed it from 1977-79.

Whether Etbauer can win an unprecedented fourth consecutive Linderman will depend, in large part, on how quickly he can bounce back from his injuries.

“I dislocated a bone in my right wrist and tore ligaments,” Etbauer said. “I had three surgeries. The doctor told me it could be about a year before I can rope again. I’m kind of shooting for the first of January to get back to riding broncs and steer wrestling; I don’t know about the roping. To be honest, I don’t know if I can ride broncs that soon.

“I’m just out of a cast after two months, and now I’m in a splint. They’ve got me to where I can bend the wrist a little bit. I’m due to go back to Dallas and see (Dr.) Tandy (Freeman). They’ll see how I’m doing and if I’m healing OK, then I can get to work on getting my strength back.”

To qualify for the Linderman Award, a cowboy must win at least $1,000 in each of three events, and those events must include at least one roughstock event and one timed event. Etbauer earned more than $11,000 each in saddle bronc riding, steer wrestling and tie-down roping – the first time he’s ever reached five figures in all three events.

“I never knew what the award was until my senior year in high school and I was heading off to (Oklahoma Panhandle State) University,” Etbauer said. “I read about it in the ProRodeo Sports News (PSN) … Kyle was the man (to beat). Ever since then, it’s been one of my goals at the start of the season. It’s always neat to win.”

Etbauer will receive the award in the arena at the Thomas & Mack Center this December, during the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.