Tom R. Ferguson (born December 20, 1950) is an American former professional

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

. He was the

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

(PRCA) ''World

All-Around Cowboy 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. Championshi ...

Champion'' for six consecutive years from 1974 to 1979 breaking the previous mark of five consecutive titles held by

Larry Mahan Larry Mahan (born November 21, 1943) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He won six all-around world championships and two bull riding world championships in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) circuit at the National ...

. He was also the 1974 ''World

Tie-Down Roping Calf roping, also known as tie-down roping, is a rodeo event that features a calf and a rider mounted on a horse. The goal of this timed event is for the rider to catch the calf by throwing a loop of rope from a lariat around its neck, dismoun ...

Champion'' and the ''World

Steer Wrestling Steer wrestling, also known as bulldogging, is a rodeo event in which a horse-mounted rider chases a steer, drops from the horse to the steer, then wrestles the steer to the ground by grabbing its horns and pulling it off-balance so that it falls ...

Champion'' in 1977 and 1978. In 1999, he was inducted into the

ProRodeo Hall of Fame 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, pr ...

Early life

Born in

Tahlequah, Oklahoma Tahlequah ( ; ''Cherokee'': ᏓᎵᏆ, ''daligwa'' ) is a city in Cherokee County, Oklahoma located at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. It is part of the Green Country region of Oklahoma and was established as a capital of the 19th-century ...

, 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 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (California Polytechnic State University, Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt in Arcata, California or California State Polytechnic Univ ...

rodeo team. The team took home multiple

National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association The National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA), based in Walla Walla, Washington, was established in 1949. The NIRA sanctions more than 100 college rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practice ...

championships, before Ferguson turned professional and returned to

Miami, Oklahoma Miami ( ) is a city in and county seat of Ottawa County, Oklahoma, United States, founded in 1891. Lead and zinc mining were established by 1918, causing the area's economy to boom. This area was part of Indian Territory. Miami is the capital of ...

, in 1973. He joined the Rodeo Cowboys Association (RCA), which later renamed itself to the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA).

Rodeo career

Though

was the first to have six world all-around titles, Ferguson won six consecutively. The 5-foot-11 Native American rodeo cowboy specialized in calf roping and steer wrestling. In 1994,

Ty Murray Ty Monroe Murray (born October 11, 1969), 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 an inductee of the ProRodeo Hall of Fame ...

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. In 2010,

Trevor Brazile Trevor Brazile (born November 16, 1976) is an American rodeo champion who competes in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He holds the record for the most PRCA world championship titles with 26. He won his 26th title in 2020. He a ...

won his eighth all-around title, surpassing them all. In 2018, Brazile won his 14th all-around title. In his first year as a professional rodeo cowboy, Ferguson came in second in the

National Finals Rodeo 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. The NFR is held each year in the fi ...

(NFR) in the All-Around Cowboy event. He accumulated more than $1 million in his rodeo career and was among the first rodeo cowboys to hire a manager. 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. Ferguson retired from rodeo in the late 1980s.

Honors

* 2018 PBR Ty Murray Top Hand Award * 1999

* 1997

Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame The Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame is a cowboy hall of fame. The hall of fame for the Ellensburg Rodeo was established in 1997. The hall of fame writes a biography for each inductee in a permanent file. It also collects and stores inductee rodeo ...

* 1974

Rodeo Hall of Fame The Rodeo Hall of Fame was established by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1955. Located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., the Hall was created to celebrate the contributions of cowboys and cowgirls from around the world. The h ...

of the

National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and American Indian art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Ame ...

* The

Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture The Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) is an agency of the government of Oklahoma dedicated to promotion and preservation of Oklahoma's history and its people by collecting, interpreting, and disseminating knowledge and artifacts of Oklahoma. ...

by the

Oklahoma Historical Society The Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) is an agency of the government of Oklahoma dedicated to promotion and preservation of Oklahoma's history and its people by collecting, interpreting, and disseminating knowledge and artifacts of Oklahoma. ...

References

External links

Rodeo Hall of Fame Inductees
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Tom 1950 births Living people Steer wrestlers ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductees All-Around Roping (rodeo) Sportspeople from Oklahoma Professional Bull Riders: Heroes and Legends