Corey Holden was brought up in a farming family at Kyneton, and had an interest in horses from a very early age.
He left home at the tender age of 15, moved to Benalla, and worked for renowned horseman Max McTaggart.
He was mainly breaking horses for cutting, and once fully broken they would be sold to the public.
Cutting is a western style event which involves separating a cow from a herd on horseback. It originated in the US, in the late 19th century.
Corey was delighted when he won his first event at Benalla, aged 15 and also competed around the district.
He later moved to Texas to compete in internationally. This intensified his interest in the sport.
Realising he was equal to the world's best he entered, and won, events at the highest level.
On returning to Australia he started training enthusiastically, with a view to winning ‘The Futurity’, a competition which is conducted annually at Tamworth, NSW.
With a winning purse of $100,000 it is every horseman's dream to win the prestigious event.
Corey achieved his lifetime ambition by winning it on ‘Metaloo’ a three-year-old roan quarter horse.
In a field of 130 highly skilled horsemen, he was delighted when he took the major prize.
The Futurity is essentially for untried three-year-old horses and requires two years of continual training to achieve maximum fitness.
Metaloo is owned by Sydney couple Rob and Jackie Jones. It’s the second win for the cutting enthusiasts.
Over a 30-year period Corey has won $1.2 million in prize-money, and hopes to extend that even further. His wife Trudy is also involved, but is in the non-professional category.
They have a five-year-old son, Cash, who is counting the days to when he will be eligible to compete, at just eight years of age.
The passionate couple have now been deservedly inducted into the Australian Cutting Hall of Fame, a fitting reward for many years of involvement.
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