Rock Island BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
2023-10-13 – 2023-10-14 · Stover, MO · 📍 401 W. 2nd St
Reps: EUGENE WICKHAM, SARAH WICKHAM · Prize money: $4,400.00
Grand Champion: HessHogs4 (510.3312) · 16 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 Smoke This Drink That BBQ
Entries
16
3 judged meats
Top score
510.3312
Winning margin
9.2460
GC over RC
Field average
482.63
median 490.31
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork
4.5256 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
488.5144
10th place overall
Field spread
78.9376
winner to last place
Prize money
$4,400.00
on the line
Double threats
4
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 14%
beats 86% of 708 Backyard Series wins in the data
Traveled in
20%
of the 15 teams with a home region came from outside MO
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.57 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1541
avg power rating going in · stronger than 46% of contests
Storylines
💪 A statement win
The champion won by 9.2460 points — a wider margin than 88% of championships in the data.
🧳 Out-of-towners took the title
HESS HOGS 4 took the Grand Championship home to AL.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 8–9: Bad Influence BBQ edged Rucking Fidiculous BBQ by 0.0116.
Score curves (score by finishing position — steep cliffs mean a spread field, flat lines a knife fight)
Category showdown (top / average / median score per meat)
Score distribution
Biggest rating movers (power-rating points won and lost at this contest)
Did form hold? (pre-contest rating vs overall finish — ratings called it if the dots climb to the right)
Where the field came from (home regions on file)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-10-13 ← this one | Stover, MO | 401 W. 2nd St | 16 | 510.3312 | HessHogs4 | — |
| 2024-10-11 | Stover, MO | 207 N. Main St | 10 | 354.2628 | BBQ Pit Bros | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 173.1772 | 162.2628 | 157.1428 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.3200 | 168.0000 | 162.3312 |
| Pork | 171.9884 | 167.4628 | 161.1772 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
16 entries · top 510.3312 · median 490.3084
Chicken
16 entries · top 173.1772 · median 157.6742
Pork Ribs
16 entries · top 178.3200 · median 165.7144
Pork
16 entries · top 171.9884 · median 163.1198