Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY)
2024-09-13 – 2024-09-14 · Guntersville, AL · 📍 24 State Campground Rd
Reps: CAROL BIGLER, RANDY G BIGLER · Prize money: $5,000.00
Grand Champion: Big James Kitchen (354.2628) · 33 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 Smokey Bees BBQ - MS
Entries
Top score
Winning margin
Field average
Tightest race
Top-10 cutoff
Field spread
Prize money
Double threats
How hot was the win?
Traveled in
Form held
Field strength
Storylines
👑 A dynasty in the making
Big James Kitchen has won this contest 2 times across its 3 tracked editions.
🧳 Out-of-towners took the title
Big James Kitchen took the Grand Championship home to TN.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 1–2: Bentley Que and NORALA BBQ TEAM tied on 180.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 4–5: Deviant Smoke and Modest Meats tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 2–3: PUDDLEDUCK BBQ and Smokey Bees BBQ - MS tied on 176.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
🃏 An upset on the books
Big James Kitchen came in rated below the field's top team, PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 24-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-09-30 | 24 State Campground RD | — | — | — | — | |
| 2024-09-13 ← this one | Guntersville, AL | 24 State Campground Rd | 33 | 354.2628 | Big James Kitchen | — |
| 2025-09-12 | Guntersville, AL | 24 State Campground Rd | 28 | 357.7144 | Big James Kitchen | — |
| 2026-09-11 | Guntersville, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180.0000 | 175.4172 | 171.9772 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 173.7028 | 172.5600 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
33 entries · top 354.2628 · median 335.3832
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 2 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 3 | Bentley Que | |
| 4 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 5 | Modest Meats | |
| 6 | Small Batch BBQ - TN | |
| 7 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 8 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 9 | Slingin Pig Meat | |
| 10 | Rollin Smoke BBQ | |
| 11 | HOLY SMOKIN!!! | |
| 12 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 13 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 14 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 15 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 16 | 2 Swine Crew | |
| 17 | Red, White & Que | |
| 18 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 19 | Curly Bird BBQ | |
| 20 | Idle Times | |
| 21 | 931 BBQ | |
| 22 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 23 | LEE LA Q | |
| 24 | Warden's Jailhouse BBQ | |
| 25 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 26 | BUTSY-Q | |
| 27 | Chief Grilldaddy & the Hosedraggers | |
| 28 | On Scene BBQ | |
| 29 | FOCAS SMOKAS | |
| 30 | Dad Bod and Boujee | |
| 31 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 32 | Tus-Que-Loosa | |
| 33 | Marsh Family BBQ |
Chicken
33 entries · top 180.0000 · median 168.5256 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bentley Que | |
| 2 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 3 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 4 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 5 | Modest Meats | |
| 6 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 7 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 8 | Small Batch BBQ - TN | |
| 9 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 10 | 2 Swine Crew | |
| 11 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 12 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 13 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 14 | HOLY SMOKIN!!! | |
| 15 | Rollin Smoke BBQ | |
| 16 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 17 | Slingin Pig Meat | |
| 18 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 19 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 20 | 931 BBQ | |
| 21 | LEE LA Q | |
| 22 | Curly Bird BBQ | |
| 23 | Red, White & Que | |
| 24 | Idle Times | |
| 25 | Warden's Jailhouse BBQ | |
| 26 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 27 | BUTSY-Q | |
| 28 | FOCAS SMOKAS | |
| 29 | On Scene BBQ | |
| 30 | Dad Bod and Boujee | |
| 31 | Tus-Que-Loosa | |
| 32 | Chief Grilldaddy & the Hosedraggers | |
| 33 | Marsh Family BBQ |
Pork Ribs
33 entries · top 178.8572 · median 167.3944
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 2 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 3 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 4 | Slingin Pig Meat | |
| 5 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 6 | Rollin Smoke BBQ | |
| 7 | Small Batch BBQ - TN | |
| 8 | Bentley Que | |
| 9 | HOLY SMOKIN!!! | |
| 10 | Modest Meats | |
| 11 | Chief Grilldaddy & the Hosedraggers | |
| 12 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 13 | Red, White & Que | |
| 14 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 15 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 16 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 17 | Idle Times | |
| 18 | Curly Bird BBQ | |
| 19 | 2 Swine Crew | |
| 20 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 21 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 22 | Warden's Jailhouse BBQ | |
| 23 | BUTSY-Q | |
| 24 | 931 BBQ | |
| 25 | Dad Bod and Boujee | |
| 26 | LEE LA Q | |
| 27 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 28 | On Scene BBQ | |
| 29 | FOCAS SMOKAS | |
| 30 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 31 | Marsh Family BBQ | |
| 32 | Tus-Que-Loosa | |
| 33 | Smoke Right BBQ |
Ancillary categories
Run by the organizers alongside the sanctioned contest. These are judged on their own terms and do not count toward the overall score, so they're kept out of the meat stats above.
Ancillary — Sausage
22 entries · top 180.0000 · median 170.8228 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 2 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 3 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 4 | LEE LA Q | |
| 5 | Tus-Que-Loosa | |
| 6 | FOCAS SMOKAS | |
| 7 | Modest Meats | |
| 8 | On Scene BBQ | |
| 9 | Warden's Jailhouse BBQ | |
| 10 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 11 | Red, White & Que | |
| 12 | Dad Bod and Boujee | |
| 13 | Curly Bird BBQ | |
| 14 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 15 | Marsh Family BBQ | |
| 16 | Chief Grilldaddy & the Hosedraggers | |
| 17 | BUTSY-Q | |
| 18 | Idle Times | |
| 19 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 20 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 21 | Bentley Que | |
| 22 | Electro-Que-ted |