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The World's Greatest Horseman, Phillip Ralls

The World's Greatest Horseman, Phillip Ralls

The National Reined Cow Horse Association's 2023 World's Greatest Horseman took place in Fort Worth, Texas recently. Phillip Ralls of Phillip Ralls Performance Horses entered the prestigious event on 2023 Riata Buckle Stallion, Call Me Mitch. Phillip and Mitch are no strangers to the event, they've competed and won second, twice before. But this year was the exception. Saturday evening Call Me Mitch gave Phillip all he had, and they prevailed. Not only did he win the most coveted title in the cow horse industry, the World's Greatest Horseman but he set the record for the highest composite score of 902, taking home the $150,000 check. Call Me Mitch also became the highest money earning horse in the National Reined Cow Horse Association history, with earnings exceeding $425,000.

Phillip has been training open horses since the early 2000's, learning from his dad, Ron Ralls who is an NRCHA Million Dollar Rider, a 2-time World's Greatest Horseman Champion and a Hall of Fame Inductee as well as trainer, Harold Farron.

"My Dad and I talked about it (World's Greatest Horseman) leading up to the finals. His advice to me was to stick to my game plan, let it roll and have fun." Phillip says. "All too often we let the outside influence get to you, that's where your mistakes and bobbles are going to come from. Stick to what got you there. You know what you need to do and go for it."

In addition to winning the World's Greatest Horseman, Phillip is an NRCHA Million-Dollar Rider, with an LTE $1,502,246.91. He's won the World's Richest Stock Horse Championship four times, once on Mitch and the Magnificent Seven All Around Stock Horse Championship at the Western States Horse Expo, also on Mitch.

Phillip grew up showing horses as a youth, and in high school he transitioned to rodeoing, team roping, roping calves, steer wrestling, riding broncs and showing in cutting. He qualified for Silver State and Nationals a few times. After high school, he PRCA rodeoed for a little bit, but training horses took over and left no time to be gone on weekends.

He, his wife Teresa and their 2 children (Josey and Jackson) call the Rocking One Ranch nestled in the hills of Paso Robles, CA home. The facility is set up for the full slate of reining, cutting and cow horse training with an additional 6,000-acre lease where cattle roam and colts are ridden.

In 2012, Phillip purchased Call Me Mitch, a Metallic Cat colt out of Miss Hickory Hill from the Western Bloodstock sale as yearling for a client, Estelle Roitblat. Prior to passing, Estelle Roitblat set up trust to ensure Call Me Mitch had all the opportunities that he possibly could.

"From the get-go Mitch has always shown us he was truly special," Ralls says. "Mentally, physically, in the show pen, and outside the show pen. He's a horse we really believed in and wanted to give an opportunity to see what his babies could do because we really respected him so much as an individual. He's such a good-minded horse. His limited foal crop has already won $263,843 with several finalists in reined cow horse."

Phillip plans to focus on promoting Mitch's babies. Including placing some colts with rope horse trainers to show in futurities.

"His diversity is why we chose to become part of the Riata Program. We wanted to give his babies an incentive program. The Riata will really have a great impact on industry. It gives another market and facet for colts to go to. Rope horse futurity is getting huge."

Call Me Mitch is currently standing at Santa Lucia Farm in Santa Ynez, Ca.