Kelly Kenney
Kelly Kenney is a true cowboy himself, with spurs on his boots, a saddle stamped “Champion Team Roper,” and a knee encased in one of those ‘bionic’ braces often sported by steer wrestlers. Anywhere he performs as a rodeo announcer, Kelly always does his best “to give the fans the show they deserve, because they are the backbone of our sport.”
Now a veteran announcer at Spooner as well as at pro rodeos around the country, Kelly Kenney from southwest Missouri is coming back again this year to call the action at both the Spooner Rodeo in July and Spooner Bulls & Barrels in August. He has been a professional rodeo announcer since 2001.
While Kelly played country music and officiated at high school and college sports events during his college years in the mid-1990s, he entered the world of rodeo in the fall of 1995. He competed as a team roper and steer wrestler, while at the same time managing a 5,000-acre spread with 1,800 head of cows and calves. From 1996 to 2000, he became a popular amateur rodeo announcer throughout the Ozarks. During that time, Kelly’s knowledge and silky-smooth baritone earned him honors as “Announcer of the Year” in four different amateur associations. In the fall of 2000, Kelly became head rodeo coach at Missouri Valley College in Marshall, MO. During his first season there, both his men and women’s teams at MVC won reserve championships. Five team members took year-end event honors, and ten qualified for the College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, WY. To top off the season, Kelly was voted as Ozark Region “Coach of the Year” in 2001. Nevertheless, he still decided that year to resign from Missouri Valley College to pursue being a professional rodeo announcer. Kelly believes, “The American Cowboy is a big part of our everyday lives, and I’m honored to carry on the tradition.” He now announces more than 100 professional rodeos annually.