Eric Turner,of Sellersville, Pennsylvania, won the Holiday Auto Group Challenge of the Champions Rookie division, sorting 26 head in 228 seconds at the 2026 Cinch RSNC World Finals in Fort Worth, Texas, for bragging rights and $1,000 in Cinch Bonus Money.
Turner Turns Up the Heat on Davis
Turner’s run to the World Finals kicked into high gear in December at the Challenge of the Champions Invitational as part of the Cowboy Town Showdown in Las Vegas. There, he swept three of the four Rookie rounds, winning the Rookie Challenge of the Champions title, and earning more than $4,500 in the Invitational alone. Combined with the additional checks he earned that weekend in Vegas, Turner added $8,016 to his early-season coffers and launched into the Rookie race’s Top 5.
After finding success at shows like the Southeast Regional Super Sort in Perry, Georgia, and the inaugural Dixie National Super Sort, by late March, Turner was reporting more than $16,000 won, which earned him the No. 2 position in the standings. The position had him chasing Jerry Davis of Odessa, Texas, who took an impressive lead with more than $27,000 before April.
By the World Finals, Davis’ lead had dwindled to a mere $272, and the clean-slate competition on the night of June 9 opened the door for Turner to claim the title.
To maintain the pace Davis set throughout the season, Turner covered a lot of ground attending events in Florida, Mississippi, Utah, Pennsylvania, Colorado and a $10,000-added Texas stop, flying home most weeks to run his two businesses in between.
“Without Kevin [Reese], there’s no way I could have done this,” Turner said, praising his trainer and the support system that kept him going.
Girlfriend Christy Hayes booked every flight, rental car and hotel room, while his 35 employees covered extra shifts, and his sister and her husband tended the horses at home.
“It’s a system, and it’s a team,” Turner said. “I’m not a one-man person. I’m just the outcome of a lot of people’s hard work.”
Glo-Up: Turner’s New Mare, Glorilla
Turner rode Glorilla (Im Countin Checks x High Style Royal), a 2022 sorrel mare he calls “Glo,” bought off Kevin Reese three months ago and finalized just days before the Finals. She’s already banked $9,200 for him.
“She’s great-minded and real quirky,” Turner said. “She wants to be held, she wants to be loved. But when she goes into that herd of cattle, that’s her job, and she’s amazing at it.”
In his final run of the round robin, Turner trusted his mare and tuned out every distraction, even his own trainer trying to tell him how many cows he needed.
“I ride each ride for each ride,” Turner said. “If you focus on the math, you’re going to get in your head and miss cuts.”
The strategy worked well, and Turner claimed the Rookie Champion of the Champions title, as well as a Reserve World Champion title in the Graduated Rookie #6 just a few nights later.
