Riley Webb Clinches First Tie-Down Roping World Championship

Riley Webb clinches his first PRCA tie-down roping world championship at the 2023 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, after breaking the regular season earnings record.

Photo by Hillary Maybery for SI Rodeo Daily

Rylie Webb, a 20-year-old from Denton, Texas, won his first PRCA tie-down roping world championship at the 2023 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (NFR) in Las Vegas, Nev. on Saturday, Dec. 16, after 10 rounds in nine days, a first in NFR history. 

Webb has had a track record of achieving success, beginning with his first year as a PRCA card holder, where he not only captured the Resistol Rookie of the Year title but also made his debut at the 2022 NFR, finishing 10th in the world standings with $188,597.

Webb had a record-breaking regular season in his second year, leading the world standings with a nearly $70,000 lead over the No. 2 contender, Shad Mayfield, from Clovis, N.M. Webb surpassed Mayfield's record of $203,508 for the most money won in a single regular season before the Finals event. He achieved this lead thanks to his win at the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo in Denver, Colo. This win marked the beginning of a historic winter run, spanning two months from Jan. 20 to March 25. Webb pocketed $94,429 during this period with significant wins at RodeoHouston (Texas) and the Roping Futurities of America in Abilene, Texas.

Riley Webb at the 2023 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo / Photo by Hillary Maybery for SI Rodeo Daily

At the 2023 NFR event, Webb placed in five of the ten rounds, including his first-ever NFR round win in Round 3. He finished second in the average, with a total time of 82.90 on ten head, just behind Haven Meged of Miles City, Montana, with a total time of 77.40 on ten head, who finished the season No. 2 in the world standings and set the new NFR average record.

“It really hasn’t even sunk in yet,” Webb told The Cowboy Channel. “I’ll tell you how it feels in the morning when we pull through Henderson, when I see my family in a bit here, I know it’s going to sink in. I’m just so very blessed.”

Webb's 2024 season is highly anticipated, and he is expected to break more records and achieve remarkable feats in the rodeo world.

2023 PRCA Tie-Down Roping World Standings

1. Riley Webb $452,851.79
2. Haven Meged $411,262.92
3. Shad Mayfield $309,383.38
4. Caleb Smidt $296,165.21
5. Tuf Cooper $265,724.37
6. Cory Solomon $246,330.50
7. Shane Hanchey $216,186.67
8. Kincade Henry $211,028.13
9. Hunter Herrin $207,426.31
10. John Douch $199,343.88
11. Westyn Hughes $196,964.43
12. Blane Cox $176,658.12
13. Ty Harris $170,234.98
14. Beau Cooper $145,741.67
15. Brushton Minton $134,475.71