LAS VEGAS – Seth Glause’s face has been bloodied, his ligaments stretched, his joints moved.

Still, he smiles.

It’s a testament to his personality, but more, it’s a sign he’s having his best Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in four tries, even though he’s suffered a broken nose and a dislocated riding shoulder.

Yeah, cowboys are tough.

“I knew I had a really good bull, and I just wanted to make sure I beared down and got him rode,” said Glause, 24, of Rock Springs, Wyo., who rode Growney Bros. Rodeo’s Canadian Tuxedo for 87.5 points to win Monday’s fifth go-round. “I’ve seen that bull take different kinds of trips; I’ve seen him go to the left or around to the right or both ways in the same ride. After bucking off at the whistle last night, I wanted to keep on riding right through it tonight.”

Glause earned $18,257 for the ride. That pushed his NFR earnings to $33,570 and his annual salary to $127,740. It also moved him from fifth to third in the bull riding standings.

But the cowboy who attended Central Wyoming College and Oklahoma Panhandle State University also dislocated his shoulder – a nice match to the broken nose he suffered in the second go-round.

“I guess getting popped in the face must’ve woken me up a little bit,” he said.

What about his shoulder?

“It feels OK, I guess,” Glause said. “It popped out, and then it went back in. I think it was the result of a few different things. I’m not real sure what happened, but I hit then bull and then the ground pretty hard, and it came out. But I’ll still be getting on the next five rounds no matter what.”

Winning money surely helps.

Glause has placed in three rounds by riding three of five bulls so far. He is second in the average with a three-ride cumulative score of 256 points, trailing world standings leader and three-time world champion J.W. Harris.

Now he’s got five more nights to continue his magical run.