[2] In 1943, Shoulders won his first bull riding competition in Oilton, Oklahoma, at the age of fourteen.
[4] His success at competitions included: Shoulders was the first competitor to win all three events (bareback bronc, bull riding and all-round) at the National Finals Rodeo (NFR).
[5] Shoulders set the record of 16 world championships in 1959 when he won his 15th and 16th titles.
[7][8] From his rodeo career earnings, Shoulders bought a 400-acre (1.6 km2) ranch in Oklahoma where he raised livestock.
According to Frank Boggs, an Oklahoman sports writer and columnist, Shoulders bought Tornado in South Texas when he was three years old.
[32] According to his son, Marvin, Shoulders died on June 20, 2007, at 3:30 a.m. in Henryetta, Oklahoma.