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For Immediate Release

December 7, 2009

Strong spirit of ill daughter inspires Jim Hertzog to stay calm, win LMA’s final WLAC qualifying contest, in Parsons, Kan.

     PARSONS, KAN.  – Jim Hertzog admits that winning Livestock Marketing Association’s final qualifying contest for the 2010 World Livestock Auctioneer Championship, held here at the Parsons Livestock Market, “kind of swept me off my feet.  I was hoping just to get picked one of the top eight scorers.”
     He also says that as exciting as it was to win, “I was totally relaxed during the actual competition,” and he credits that to his daughter, Rebecca, 20, who’s undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer. 
      “Her spirit is so strong, she’s inspired me,” said Hertzog, 48, of Butler, Mo. “She’s given me a new outlook on what’s important in life.”  Rather than being rattled by what he called the “unbelievable” competition at the Dec. 2 contest, “I felt calm, and just got up and did my best.”
     Hertzog is looking forward to taking Rebecca and his family to the 2010 WLAC in Oklahoma City.  “She’ll be finishing her treatment by the end of March, and she’ll be ready to go,” he said.
     Hertzog was sponsored by the market he’s owned in Butler for 17 years, the MO-KAN Livestock Market, Inc.   
     The reserve champion here was Bailey Ballou, Elgin, Okla., and the runner-up champ was Charly Cummings, Yates Center, Kan.  The three champions move on to next June’s WLAC, along with the next five highest scorers.
    Those five, from a field of 31 contestants, were, in alphabetical order, Lance Cochran, Medford, Okla.;  Kyle Elwood, Abilene, Kan.; Dustin Focht, Stillwater, Okla.; Brian Marlin, Inola, Okla.; and Jeff Showalter, Broadway, Va.
     This was his highest finish so far for reserve champ Ballou, who’s competed in the WLAC in 2006 and 2008, and two other quarterfinal contests.
     Asked about the level of competition in Parsons, Ballou, 29, said, “From top to bottom, it’s as good a contest as I’ve ever been in.  The quarterfinal contests have brought out a lot of new auctioneers, some of whom are a little green, and a lot of guys who’ve been in the contest, who are very consistent.”
     Contests are a learning experience for Ballou, who’s been an auctioneer for five years, and is a graduate of the Missouri Auction School. “Every time you show up (at a contest) you learn a little something, things you can put into your own chant.”
     Competition is what keeps him coming back to the contest.  “I’m a very competitive person.  When it looks like I’m going to be challenged, I want to be the winner.”
     Ballou was sponsored by the Waurika Livestock Commission Co., Waurika, Okla.
     Runner-Up Champion Cummings was “Rookie of the Year” – the highest scoring first-time semi-finalist – in the 2007 WLAC.  He was also one of the ten finalists that year, and in the 2008 contest.
     Winning the world championship “would be phenomenal.  It would mean I’ve attained a goal I’ve always wanted.”
     He said he was “kind of surprised” at his third-place finish here, but that was only because he admitted he set his goal too low. Like winner Hertzog, Cummings “just wanted to be in the top eight.”
     A livestock auctioneer for six years, Cummings said he “learns a lot” from listening to other auctioneers.
     He described, as “mentors and friends,” 1996 World Champion Lanny Ireland, along with auctioneers Brian Little and Lance Cochran.  He’ll be competing against the latter two in Oklahoma City.    
     Cummings was sponsored by Fort Scott Livestock Market, Inc., Fort Scott, Kan.; Allen County Livestock Market, LLC, Gas, Kan.; Anderson County Sales Company, Garnett, Kan.; and MO-KAN      Livestock Market, Inc., Butler, Kan.
      A cash award and a custom-made belt buckle are awarded the winner in each quarterfinal competition.  The reserve and runner-up champion in each contest also receive the custom buckles.
     Brian Little, Wann, Okla., won the first qualifying contest, in Billings, Mont. Russele Sleep, Bedford, Iowa, won the second qualifier, in Crawford, Neb., and Tye Casey, Plymouth, Ind., won the third, in Calhoun, Ga.
     The 8 qualifiers from each quarterfinal competition, along with the reigning International Auctioneer Champion – Paul Ramirez, Tucson, Ariz.—make up the field of 33 semi-finalists for the 2010 WLAC.
     At the WLAC, three titlists will be selected, and the winners will take home thousands of dollars in cash and prizes. For a complete list of the 33 semi-finalists competing in Oklahoma City, go to www.lmaweb.com, and click on World Livestock Auctioneer Championship.
     LMA conducts the WLAC and the qualifying contests to put the focus on competitive livestock marketing, and the auctioneer’s continuing vital role in that process.