Tom R. Ferguson

Last updated

Tom R. Ferguson (born December 20, 1950) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He was the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) World Champion all-around cowboy for six consecutive years from 1974 to 1979; breaking the previous mark of five consecutive titles held by Larry Mahan. He was also the 1974 World Champion calf roper and the World Champion steer wrestler in 1977 and 1978. In 1999, he was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.

Contents

Early life

Born in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, United States, on December 20, 1950, Tom Ferguson moved to California at the age of 3 and was later chosen for the California Polytechnic State University rodeo team. [1] The team took home multiple National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association championships, before Ferguson turned professional and returned to Miami, Oklahoma, in 1973. He joined the Rodeo Cowboys Association (RCA), which later renamed itself to the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). [1]

Rodeo career

Though Larry Mahan was the first to have six world all-around titles, Ferguson won six consecutively. [2] The 5-foot-11 Native American rodeo cowboy specialized in calf roping and steer wrestling. [2] In 1994, Ty Murray broke Mahan's and Ferguson's record of six titles and tied Ferguson's record of having won six titles consecutively. In 1998, Murray won his seventh title, surpassing both of them and holding the record for all-around titles at seven titles. [3] In 2010, Trevor Brazile won his eighth all-around title, surpassing them all. In 2018, Brazile won his 14th all-around title. [4]

In his first year as a professional rodeo cowboy, Ferguson came in second in the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) in the All-Around Cowboy event. [1] He accumulated more than $1 million in his rodeo career and was among the first rodeo cowboys to hire a manager. [1]

In 1974, he won the World Tie-Down Roping championship and came second in the Steer Wrestling event. In 1976 he won the World Steer Wrestling Championship. [1] Ferguson retired from rodeo in the late 1980s. [1]

Honors

Related Research Articles

The National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is the premier rodeo event by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The NFR showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money winners in the season for each event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association</span> American rodeo organization

The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) is the largest rodeo organization in the world. It sanctions events in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, with members from said countries, as well as others. Its championship event is the National Finals Rodeo (NFR). The PRCA is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ProRodeo Hall of Fame</span> Hall of fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado

The ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy was opened in August 1979 as a museum designed to "preserve the legacy of the cowboy contests, the heritage and culture of those original competitions, and the champions of the past, present and future." It is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and only inducts Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association and Women's Professional Rodeo Association members. It is the "only museum in the world devoted exclusively to the sport of professional rodeo."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ty Murray</span> American rodeo cowboy

Ty Monroe Murray, is an American nine-time World Champion professional rodeo cowboy. He was one of the top rodeo contestants in the world from the late 1980s to early 2000s. He is one of the co-founders and a board adviser of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR). From 2005 to 2020, he was also a regular color commentator for several televised PBR events.

Larry Mahan was an American professional rodeo cowboy. He won six all-around world championships and two bull riding world championships in the Rodeo Cowboys Association circuit at the National Finals Rodeo.

James A. Shoulders, also known as Jim Shoulders, was an American professional rodeo cowboy and rancher. He is commemorated at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. At the time of his death, he was one of the most successful contestants in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), having won 16 World Championships, which was the most of any performer at that time. He was known as the 'Babe Ruth of rodeo'.

Lewis Feild was an American professional rodeo cowboy. He specialized in bareback bronc riding and saddle bronc riding and competed on the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) circuit. He was the World All-Around Cowboy Champion from 1985 to 1987 at the National Finals Rodeo (NFR). He was also the World Bareback Riding Champion from 1985 to 1986. The ProRodeo Hall of Fame inducted him in 1992 in the all-around category.

The All-Around is an award given to a rodeo competitor who is most successful in two or more events. Most individual rodeos and championships determine the winner of this award at the conclusion of the other events or championships.

Make It Do,, better known as Peanuts, was a Quarter Horse gelding. Peanuts was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2009. He was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1979.

Everett Bowman was an American rodeo cowboy who competed from the 1920s to 1940s. During his career, he won the Rodeo Association of America (RAA) All-Around Cowboy championship in 1935 and 1937 and was second three times; he also won eight titles in individual disciplines. Bowman was involved in organizing cowboys, founding the first group for pro rodeo competitors, the Cowboys' Turtle Association (CTA), now known as the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). From 1936 to 1945, he served as president of the organization. Bowman was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1979.

Roy Dale Cooper is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who competed in Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) events for more than two decades. He won the All-Around Cowboy world championship in 1983 and claimed seven individual discipline championships, including six tie-down roping titles. Cooper won the PRCA's Rookie of the Year award in 1976, and was nicknamed "Super Looper" for his roping ability. The ProRodeo Hall of Fame inducted Cooper in its Tie-Down Roping category in 1979.

Trevor Brazile is a semi-retired American rodeo champion who competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) and partners with a cowboy named Miles Baker. He was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 2022. He holds the record for the most PRCA world championship titles with 26. He won his 26th title in 2020. He also holds the record for the most all-around cowboy world champion titles at 14, breaking the record of 7 titles held by Ty Murray; Murray's last earned was in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Jarrett</span> American tie-down roper (born 1983)

Ryan Jarrett, is an American professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in tie-down roping and competes in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) circuit. At the 2005 National Finals Rodeo (NFR), he won the PRCA All-Around world championship. He competed in steer wrestling, tie-down roping, and team roping during the season and at the NFR to win the title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional Bull Riders: Heroes and Legends</span>

The Professional Bull Riders Heroes and Legends celebration honors five divisions in the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) and Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), including the best bucking bulls.

Kaycee Feild is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bareback bronc riding and competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He is a son of PRCA World Champion all-around cowboy Lewis Feild. He has won six bareback riding world championships, the most of any PRCA bareback riders. He won them from 2011 to 2014, and again from 2020 to 2021. He is the first cowboy to win three consecutive bareback riding average titles at the National Finals Rodeo (NFR).

Phil Lyne is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who competed in the Rodeo Cowboys Association (RCA)/Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). Lyne was the RCA Rookie of the Year in 1969. Two seasons later at the National Finals Rodeo (NFR), in 1971, he won the all-around cowboy world championship and the tie-down roping world championship. At the NFR in 1972, he repeated as the all-around world champion cowboy and added a second tie-down roping world championship. Lyne won his first and only steer roping world championship at the National Finals Steer Roping (NFSR) in 1990.

Guy Allen is an American ProRodeo Hall of Fame cowboy and an 18-time steer roping world champion. He competes in rodeos sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He won the world title for the steer roping event 18 times when competing at the National Finals Steer Roping (NFSR) and also won the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) Average title five times. He had won the title 11 times in a row when Buster Record broke his streak. Allen is also inducted into eight rodeo halls of fame.

Ty Erickson is an American professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in steer wrestling. He competes in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) circuit. He is the 2011 PRCA Steer Wrestling Rookie of the Year and is the PRCA 2019 Steer Wrestling World Champion.

The National Finals Steer Roping (NFSR), organized by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), is the premier championship steer roping event in the United States. It showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money winners in the steer roping world standings at the end of the regular season as they compete for the world title.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ferguson, Thomas". The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Kings of Rodeo II". Indian Rodeo News. Archived from the original on April 14, 2012. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
  3. ↑ "PRCA World Champions (Historical)". Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. Retrieved May 30, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Trevor Brazile wins 14th all-around title in final NFR". Las Vegas Review-Journal. December 16, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Tom Ferguson | Rodeo Hall of Fame". National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Inductees". Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Tom Ferguson". ProRodeo Hall of Fame. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Ty Murray Top Hand Award". Professional Bull Riders. Retrieved August 19, 2023.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.