PRORODEO Media Guide - 2025

STEER ROPING

By Tracy Renck With a championship hanging in the balance in Round 10, Cole Patterson delivered a 10.6-second run, which split second in the round, and catapulted him to his third PRCA World Championship at the Kansas Star Arena in Mulvane. “I didn’t know the fourth or better, I just knew before Round 10 started that if the average stayed the same Scott (Snedecor) couldn’t catch me if I held my spot in the average,” said Patterson, who was the last roper to compete in Round 10. “But, if he moved up in the average, he could catch me and if he moved up in the average he was probably going to place in the round, so I knew it was a possibility (he could beat me)

and he goes out there and sticks it on one (with a 10.4-second run to take the Round 10 lead). “When I rode in the box I looked down at my dad (Rocky Patterson, a four-time steer roping world champion) and said, ‘I guess I have to get a check now,’ and he said ‘Yep.’ I just let it all hang out.” “That’s the most pressure-packed run you can have in this event (in Round 10),” Patterson said. “You back in there and you have to win good in the 10th round to secure (the world championship) and you’re laying a lot on the line because when I went at that last one, I put my average check on the line. It is a big risk, but we rodeo all year long to win the gold (buckle) and anytime I’m put in that situation that’s what I’m going to try for.” Back in 2021, when Cole won his first world title, he and his father Rocky became the third father and son to win steer roping world championships. They joined John McEntire (1934) and Clark McEntire (1956-57); Charles Good (1975) and Gary Good (1979). The Pattersons are the winningest father/son duo in PRORODEO steer roping history as they have combined to collect seven world championships. Rocky has four world titles in 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2016. “These are memories I will share for a long time and having my little boy (Pruitt) with me makes it even better,” Patterson said. Cole came to the NFSR as the season leader by $18,516 over second-place Slade Wood and he extended that to a $23,875 advantage through the first five rounds. Patterson earned $30,122 on Day 1, highlighted by him winning Round 2 with a 9.2-second run. On the second day, Patterson didn’t collect a check until Round 10, but he still earned $23,402 on the day, thanks to his average payday. “It has been a hard-fought year with ups and downs, and it felt like a grind some of the time,” Patterson said. “I was lucky enough to borrow a good horse here for Mulvane and it worked out this year.” Patterson praised his horsepower as he was riding a borrowed horse, Max, owned by Travis Sheets. “I’m super blessed, and I have so many people in my corner that I need to thank and if I started thanking (all of them) we would be here for the rest of the night. I can’t thank them enough,” Patterson said. Patterson roped eight consecutive steers but made his life more stressful when he received a no time in Round 9. “J. Tom (Fisher) goes out in the average right ahead of me and I needed to go into a catch mode, and I had been in attack mode all weekend,” Patterson said. “When you switch up your gameplan here it makes it hard. I just took an extra swing and hit him in the back of the head and made it interesting, but I was able to get the job done.” Indeed, he did.

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World Champions