By Shannon McFarlin WENK/WTPR News Director
Louisville, Ky.—Puryear Auctioneer Junior Staggs has had a lot of honors in the past three years, but Wednesday’s was one for the record books.
Because Staggs won the Kentucky Champion of Champions earlier this year, he had the honor of auctioning off the 2017 Grand Champion Ham at the annual Governor’s Breakfast. And he sold it for a whopping $325,000.
Staggs said this was the 11th time the ham has sold for $300,000 plus in its 54-year history. This year’s ham was the largest sold, weighing 21 pounds. It was produced by Broadbents B and B in Kuttawa. The winning bidder was Central Bank of Lexington.
Staggs told WENK/WTPR this morning, “Believe it or not, I wasn’t that nervous. I was a little nervous, but not as much as I thought I’d be.”
Staggs was spotlighted in interviews with several Kentucky television stations before the auction took place. Dignitaries at the auction were Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and several U.S. Congressmen and Congresswomen.
During the breakfast, McConnell joked, “What is it like being Senate Majority Leader? The best answer I’ve found is, it’s like being the groundskeeper at a cemetery. Everyone is below you and nobody is listening.”
Over the past three years, Staggs has won six national and state championships.
Photos courtesy of Junior Staggs.
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