GREEN COVE SPRINGS — Many attending the Clay County Pro Rodeo at the Clay County Fairgrounds will pull their cowboy hats, blue jeans and tartan-fabric Western shirts out of the closet. The rest will leave the barn and come straight from a long day’s work.

The two-day event, including as many as 200 of the nation’s top rodeo stars, will help determine who will make the final cut for the International Finals Rodeo 55 next January in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Presented by Clay Today, DARCARS Orange Park Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, Winn-Dixie and VyStar Credit Union, the rodeo will start at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 13-14 and will benefit Clay County 4-H.

“The money is going into the program here in Clay County toward scholarships for our youth members,” said Katrina Pierce, UF/IFAS Extension Program Manager. “Most of the scholarships are used to send them to either day camps, Summer Residential camps or different workshops. And for each activity throughout the year around the state or here in the county, that will help us provide the educational materials and supplies that we need, as well as toward local scholarships.”

The rodeo allows contestants to solidify their positions in the International Pro Rodeo Association standings.

“This is an event where the contestants earn money that qualifies them for the finals,” said JC Kitaif Pro Rodeos General Manager Jade Kataif. “They win money, and then at the end of the year, the top 15 that have the most money in each event go to the finals.”

Cowboys and Cowgirls will compete in eight categories – bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, cowgirl breakaway roping, cowgirl barrel racing, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, heeler team roping and header team roping.

The top-ranked cowboys and cowgirls in the Southeastern Region who will compete here are Tanner Phillips of Dalton, Georgia (Bareback), rookie Austin Beaty of Glade Hill, Virginia (Bull Riding), Kody Rinehart of Rienzi, Mississippi (Saddle Bronc Riding), Andrew Burks of Athens, Alabama (Tie-Down Roping), Justin Thigpen of Waycross, Georgia (Steer Wrestling), Julie Goodrich of Humboldt, Tennessee (Cowgirl Barrel Racing), Heath King of Leicester, North Carolina (Header Team Roping), Bryer Hamilton of Cleveland, Tennessee (Heeler Team Roping) and Maelee Wade of White, Georgia (Cowgirl Breakaway).

“We’re going to have some vendors there,” Kataif said. “We’re going to have a mechanical bull, and they got some good food. I hope everybody comes out and supports Clay County 4-H.”

Advance tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for children and $20 on the day of the show, and they are available at rodeometro.ticketleap.com.