A KCBS record was set here
180
one meat, out of 180
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ holds the KCBS record for highest brisket score — 180 one meat, out of 180, won the category with it, set right here. Nobody has beaten it since.
- Highest brisket score
Slidell BBQ Challenge
Mar 29–30, 2013 · Slidell, LA
IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE won Grand Champion at the Slidell BBQ Challenge on March 29, 2013 in Slidell, LA, scoring 687.9994 in a field of 44 teams. THE BLUE BLOODS took Reserve Grand Champion with 685.7140. Category winners: Chicken — HICKORY PRIME (177.7142); Pork Ribs — CHIX, SWINE & BOVINE BBQ (176.5714); Pork — Smokin Lipps (173.1428); Brisket — IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (180.0000).
The contest at a glance (read off the scored boards)
How the field scored
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
483.43
median 656.00
688.00 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.71
- Pork Ribs 176.57
- Pork 173.14
- Brisket 180 🔥
20
180
Entries
44
4 judged meats
Top score
687.9994
Winning margin
2.2854
GC over RC
Field average
645.13
483.43688.00
median 656.00 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork
1.1430 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
670.8566
483.43688.00
10th place overall
Field spread
204.5714
winner to last place
Double threats
4
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 76%
beats 24% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.52 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,509
avg power rating going in · stronger than 7% of contests
Storylines (5 found in this contest's numbers)
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
Won without a category win
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 4 calls from 4 boards, best of them 3rd. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 5th
- Pork Ribs 3rd
- Pork 6th
- Brisket 10th
A first Grand Championship
1
title in the data
This was IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE's first Grand Championship in the data.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 11 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 4–5: THE BLUE BLOODS and IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE tied on 174.2856 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 6–7: SWIGGIN PIG and JOBEAZ BLAZIN' BUTTS AND WINGS tied on 169.7142 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 8–9: THE BLUE BLOODS and Smokin N the Dark tied on 168.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 4–5 · tie
- Pork Ribs 6–7 · tie
- Pork Ribs 8–9 · tie
- Pork 1–2 · tie
A perfect score on the table
1
perfect 180s
1 perfect 180 was scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ · Brisket
Records set here — 1 still standing (2 in the KCBS record book)
What happened at this contest that stands in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record nobody has beaten.
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)
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7142 | 174.2856 | 169.7140 |
| Pork Ribs | 176.5714 | 170.2856 | 167.4284 |
| Pork | 173.1428 | 171.9998 | 168.5712 |
| Brisket | 180 | 172 | 169.7140 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
44 entries · top 687.9994 · median 655.9997
Chicken
44 entries · top 177.7142 · median 165.1427
Pork Ribs
44 entries · top 176.5714 · median 160.8570
Pork
44 entries · top 173.1428 · median 164.2856
Brisket
44 entries · top 180 · median 162 · 🔥 perfect 180