11-Year-Old Reece Hooker and I’m Plumb Obvious Win 66 Entry Performance Halter Geldings

By: Brittany Bevis

Today’s win in a tough 66 entry Performance Halter Geldings class marked a number of firsts for 11-year-old Reece Hooker. This is his first trip to the AQHYA World Show, his first World Championship title earned, his first time being interviewed (not once but twice!) and his first time having his photo taken with a bevy of beautiful ladies.

Hooker was at the lead of I’m Plumb Obvious, his partner for the class today. The Reserve World Champion was Natalia Devencenty with KM Boalicious, and third place was Kyra Bouma with Unique Alibi.

Because this is Hooker’s first trip to Oklahoma City, he wasn’t exactly sure how the competition would take place. He was thrown for a bit of a loop when it was announced that the 66 entry class would be divided into two cuts and a finals.

“I didn’t know [there were going to be so many], but then they said they were going to split it,” he says. “I thought that would be easier than having all of us go in at once.”

When it came time to announce the results, and Hooker watched as Natalia Devencenty was named the Reserve World Champion, it took a few moments to register that he had won the class. Once he realized he was the new World Champion, he literally jumped for joy.

“When I first got here, I was anxious to find out what was going to happen and if I was going to win,” he says. “Then, when I was in the top two, I was jumping up and down because it was so cool!”

Hooker and “Landon” currently compete under the guidance of horse trainer Doug Landon. Before the pair entered the arena today, Landon gave Hooker some sage advice.

“He said to keep him set up and always show, because they’re always watching!”

Along with having his family in the stands, Hooker had a few more fans in the form of prior horse owners, Mark Harrell and David Pardue. Looking forward to next year, Hooker plans to continue to compete in halter classes.

“I think it’s the easiest thing to do, and [the horses] are really pretty,” he says. “Landon is like a big puppy dog; he always want to be loved on.”

Performance Halter Geldings-

1-Im Plumb Obvious/Reece Hooker

2-KM Boalicious/Natalia Devencenty

3-Unique Alibi/Kyra Bouma

4-One Hot Amigo/Kaylee Rampey

5-Lets Shake Em Up/Paulina Martz

6-Absolute Best Asset/Taylor Brown

7-A Good Storm/Mark Mowbray

8-I Got My Game On/Claire Dempijian

9-He Invested Wisely/Madelynne Herlocker

10- Red Hot Blazing Iron/Nya Kearns