Grant Setnicka on Ichis My Choice and Stuart Bozeman on Checkers Live Oak, won the Open and Non-Pro finals, respectively, of the Mercuria NCHA World Series of Cutting at El Rancho Futurity Friday. Both horse and rider teams were claiming their second major wins of the year.

Setnicka, who tied for top score of 226 in the go-round, came back with a 229 in the finals to beat veteran rider Tom Shelly and Metalic Al by one point. The win was worth $13,676, taking Ichis My Choice’s career earnings over the quarter-million dollar mark.

Ichis My Choice was bred by EE Ranches by Cat Ichi out of My Little Abra, an Abrakadabracre mare that was reserve champion of the Abilene Spectacular and that earned $64,000.

J Five Ranch of Weatherford, Texas owns Ichis My Choice. J Five’s Constance Jaeggi won the Non-Pro Pacific Coast Derby on the mare earlier this year. Setnicka was the Breeders Invitational champion with the 4-year-old. Setnicka was also an NCHA Futurity finalist and Super Stakes reserve champion on Ichis My Choice.

Fresh from his win in the Non-Pro NCHA Classic Challenge, Stuart Bozeman of Idalou, Texas, and Checkers Live Oak marked 225 to earn $11,146 in the Mercuria finals at El Rancho. Janet Westfall placed second on Just As Reckless with a 221.

Checkers Live Oak was bred by Dale Stallkamp by Im Countin Checks out of Cats Live Oak, a mare that won the Breeders Invitational Classic with Lloyd Cox in 2008.

Bozeman, an accomplished NRCHA competitor, bought the 6-year-old mare three years ago as a reined cow horse prospect, but switched her to cutting after the Snaffle Bit Futurity.

Since then she has taken him to finals at the Pacific Coast Futurity and Derby, The Ike, West Texas, Cattlemen’s, the Bonanza, Idaho, El Rancho, and the AQHA World Show, earning more than $120,000.