Matt Budge marked 229 on Arc Ruby Playgunia to win the Mercuria NCHA World Series of Cutting Open finals at the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo this evening.

Mississippi Cat, currently first in the NCHA World Standings, finished second with a 222.5.

Bred by Arcese Quarter Horses USA, and owned by Terry Green’s Jackpot Ranch, Arc Ruby Playgunia is a 7-year-old gray mare is by Playgun out of Ruby Bagonia, a daughter of $1.5 million-producer Playboys Ruby.

Budge won last year’s Abilene Spectacular 5/6-year-old on her, and also made the finals of the Super Stakes Classic and the NCHA Classic Challenge.

In Houston, she posted a 221, the sixth highest score in the go-round behind Ronnie Rice’s 225 on Center Ranch’s Jewel Bars Cat.

Nievas, a 6-year-old mare by Cats Merada out of Smart Little Boogie, has earned more than $224,000. Dufurrena, the 2012 NCHA Non-Pro World Champion, has won with her at El Rancho Futurity, the Southern Futurity, Idaho Futurity, as well as the Limited Non-Pro at the NCHA Derby.

“She’s bright on a cow like her mom, but this mare has a little better stop, but her mama and her both have the same way of trapping a cow,” Dufurrena said. “They both are really smart on a cow and they both have the way of drawing a cow to them.”

Between his second in the Non-Pro and his third with Russ Carroll in the Open, Crystal Lehrmann’s So Sweet Santana was the evening’s top money earner, taking home over $12,000. The 9-year-old by Short Of Santana has career earnings of mre than $126,000.

See the results.