Ty Murray

Born: 10/11/69
Hometown: Stephenville, TX
Height: 5'8"
Weight: 160
 
Biography
They call him the "King of the Cowboys." And rightly so.

When teenager Ty Murray hit the professional rodeo scene in 1989, more than one jaw hit the ground in amazement of the kid's awesome talents and versatility. He was better in all three roughstock events than most cowboys who devoted entire careers to one event dared dream about. His success wasn't shocking news to Murray, who'd worked at his craft every waking hour since he started riding calves at age 2, just after taking his first steps. It was obvious to him that success hadn't just fallen out of the heavens because he had the dream of being the best. With his early start and work ethic of daily devotion to his sport, he'd eaten more dirt than anyone else and then some. He didn't take the easy road to the top.

But his records and buckles and championships--including six straight world all-around championships from 1989-'94, and a single-season earnings mark of $297,896 (set in 1993) are going to have to speak for themselves, if it's going to be said that he's the greatest all-around cowboy the sport has ever known. Because you aren't going to hear it from Murray.

In 1993, Murray became the youngest cowboy millionaire in history at 23. The 1988 PRCA Resistol overall and bareback riding rookie of the year was the only cowboy ever to top $200,000 in a single PRCA season, and he's done it five times.

"PBR is such a big test for us," said Murray, 26. "It's not a traveling game. It's not who can get traded and who can get lucky and draw a good one. It's whoever rides the best gets the money. We're working to get cowboys treated like what's 50 years overdue."

When Murray says "we," he means it. The 5-feet, 8-inch, 150-pounder is one of PBR's original shareholders and founding board of directors members. The 1993 PRCA World Champion bull rider continues to serve on the PBR Board of Directors.

Murray of Stephenville, Texas, qualified for the NFR in all three roughstock events from 1989-'94, making the cut in bareback and saddle bronc riding in 1989. The champ put the finishing touches on an old knee injury last June at the PBR event in Rancho Murieta, Calif., and was sidelined nearly a year after major reconstructive knee surgeries in June and September. The knee injuries halted Murray's quest to win his seventh straight World All-Around Championship. But after many months of grueling therapy and rehabilitation, Murray rejoined the 1996 PBR Bud Light Cup Tour--proving once again that he's the closest thing to Superman rodeo may ever know.

Upon returning to battle, Murray was riding like he never left. He chose to strap his chaps back on for the first time in March at Tuff Hedeman's Championship Challenge IV in Fort Worth, where he thrilled capacity crowds by his mere presence. Two stops later on the Bud Light Cup Tour, Murray won a round and placed second in another on his way to placing in the average at the Official PBR Bull Riding at Portland's Rose Garden. He placed in two of three rounds and split third in the average at the Kansas City, Mo., PBR Classic a week later. Murray's masterful 92-point short-round thriller aboard Terry Williams' famous four-footed phenomenon Baby Face was yet another exciting exhibition of the king's unparalleled talents, and just a small taste of what's to come before Murray retires to Legend Land.

Putting his quest on hold again, the 1996 Bud Light Cup Tour stop number six in Del Rio, Texas, Murray brought an injury to Murray's free arm that required reconstructive shoulder surgery and removed him from competition for the remainder of the 1996 season.

Returning again to competition, hot on the come back trail, Murray's first 1997 Bud Light Cup Tour stop took him to 1997's inaugural event in Guthrie, Okla. Another devastating blow to Ty Murray fans and Murray himself came at Bud Light Cup Tour stop number two in St. Louis, Mo., where the impact from a fall onto the right elbow from Jerome Robinson's bull, "Bar Fly", knocked Murray's shoulder completely out of the socket. This time it was the riding arm. Another reconstructive surgery later, Murray's rehabilitation went well and had him back in competition for the 1998 season.

For the 1998 PBR Bud Light Cup Season, Ty Murray finished 20th with 3409.5 PBR Bud Light Cup points. His total earnings in 1998 placed him 10th in the money earned for the '98 PBR Cup season with total winnings of $112,685.98.

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