Tyke Kipp Savoring Long-Awaited Moment Among Steer Wrestling Leaders

A PRCA veteran, Kipp finds himself in unfamiliar territory going into the summer run – a contender for a spot at NFR and the bulldogging World Title.

Tyke Kipp has gone from plucky underdog to bona fide contender in the PRCA's steer wrestling race, building off momentum last season with a strong showing in 2026. | Fernando Sam-Sin/@fsamsin

Tyke Kipp stared at the highway unfolding before him, unable to shake a gnawing feeling. 

Last summer, the Lordsburg, N.M., cowboy had made up his mind. After more than a decade of chasing professional rodeo glory, he was done with the sport. What started in 2013 was going to start winding down in 2025. At least, that was his plan. 

Last season, some friends convinced Kipp to keep at it through the heart of the schedule. Following unanticipated success at places like Reno (Nev.) and Prescott (Ariz.), he hit up Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days in late July, performing well enough to make the short round. With about a week between his run at slack and the finals, he opted to go home. 

Kipp’s dad, Justin, was waiting there. A former rodeo competitor himself, the elder Kipp had been with his son to several circuit finals but not much else. When Kipp threw his luggage in the truck to drive to the airport, his dad tossed a duffel bag in too, declaring he was coming along. 

The pair flew to Deadwood, S.D., for the Days of ’76 Rodeo where Kipp took second, then started back to Cheyenne for the finals. That’s when the unexplained feeling hit. 

“Whether you believe this or not, I was driving to Cheyenne that day and I’m not a person that does this normally, but I told my dad, ‘I think I’m going to do good today. I think I’m going to win Cheyenne today.’ I just nonchalantly, not like cocky or anything, said it,” Kipp said with a laugh. “I’ve never had that feeling my whole career where it’s like, ‘I’m going to win this today.’ I’m sure a lot of people have said that, but I just had this weird feeling that it was going to go my way that day.”

His premonition was not only right, it became a precursor of success to come. 

Tyke Kipp's win in Cheyenne last July has served as the catalyst for his success over the last year, giving the confidence and opportunities to compete with the best in ProRodeo. | Courtesy of Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo

Since that win at the Daddy of ’Em All last July, Kipp’s ascension in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association has escalated rapidly. Previously, he’d finished inside the top 50 of the PRCA Steer Wrestling World Standings just once (49th in 2020). After taking 36th last year, Kipp’s meteoric rise has him No. 6 in the latest rankings with more than $52,000 in earnings already in his ledger this season. 

That run through CFD nearly a year ago set the table for Kipp’s success in 2026. Because of his 2025 results, he qualified for many of the big winter rodeos. After capturing a third straight Turquoise Circuit title last November, he helped the CINCH World Team win the Colorado vs. The World Rodeo event in Denver last January before nabbing more than $18,000 in total prize money from the National Western Stock Show. 

“It’s just kind of snowballed in a good way,” Kipp said. “That’s rodeo for you. It’s only when you’re truly not quite to the point of throwing your sucker in the dirt but just like, ‘I’m done, you’ve chewed me up and spit me out, I’m done.’ It literally takes until that point and then all of a sudden it’s like, ‘OK this guy is serious about quitting, we better let him win a little.’ 

He followed that up by securing checks in Fort Worth and San Antonio. And while he hasn’t outright won many titles, he’s picked up significant round money or placed in the average at places like La Fiesta De Los Vaqueros (Tuscon, Ariz.), the Red Bluff (Calif.) Round-Up, the Clovis (Calif.) Rodeo, and the Redding (Calif.) Rodeo. 

It’s added up to put him in somewhat unfamiliar territory. 

A former saddle bronc rider, team and tie-down roper, Kipp admits he didn’t specialize in one event until around 2020. He joked that the reason he’s finally skyrocketed up the leaderboard is because he’s done 10,000 hours in his trade, an adage that means a person is an expert in their field. 

Whether it’s just hard work, good luck or a likely combination of both, it’s all put Kipp on track to do something special – make the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo this December. 

Between now and then, Kipp isn’t taking recent events for granted. Not that long ago, he was preparing to walk away from ProRodeo. Now, the sport’s grandest stage is within his grasp. 

An NFR appearance won’t define his season or career. Instead, Kipp is enjoying everything as it happens, noting he feels like he’s back in college, simply enjoying each chance to compete. 

That win in Cheyenne last July transformed from a dream into reality, and it changed his entire trajectory. It made Kipp believe he could be among rodeo’s best. Turns out, he was right. 

“You just need that one opportunity to pull through and then when you actually pull through it’s like, ‘I knew I always had this. I knew I could do this.’ I don’t know what changes or happens, but you’re like, ‘I belong here,’” Kipp said. “I don’t know what it is, but I don’t want to jinx nothing and I’m grateful. I know it can all be taken away in a second. I’m going to ride it out. I’m going to keep my foot on the gas until September and see how it all shakes out.”