I received 1099-misc for money I won at team roping competitions - my hobby. My expenses are far more than the winnings. Do I still have to claim the 1099-misc?

[RoperMom]

I received 1099-misc for money I won at some team roping (rodeo event) competitions.  This is a hobby not business income.  My hobby expenses are far more than the income.  Do I still need to enter the 1099-misc into my federal return?  Can I claim the expenses for the same hobby? 

[DS30]

Yes, you will need to report this 1099-MISC income on your federal and state income tax returns (even though you consider it your hobby, the IRS will still consider it taxable income). Just remember that since you received this 1099-MISC, the IRS also received a copy and will try to match their copy with what you are reporting on your tax return.

You have 2 choices on how you want to report this income.

If this is a one-off 1099-MISC and you did not intend to make money, you can report it as miscellaneous income which is not subject to self-employment tax but you will not be able to claim any expenses against this miscellaneous income.

If you did make this income with the intent to make money, then you will report this as self-employment income (subject to self-employment taxes). In this instance, you will be able to claim all your expense incurred to earn this income (including travel expense, registration fees, lodging - basically any ordinary or necessary expense incurred to earn this income). If your expenses exceed your income, you will be able to deduct the net loss as a business loss.

Please refer to this IRS link for more information about Business Expenses