A first Grand Championship
2
tracked contests to get there
This was PLAYING WITH FIRE's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 2nd tracked contest.
Cattlemen's BBQ Competition
Jul 13–14, 2013 · San Juan, PR
PLAYING WITH FIRE won Grand Champion at the Cattlemen's BBQ Competition on July 13, 2013 in San Juan, PR, scoring 675.4056 in a field of 41 teams. Spartans Team took Reserve Grand Champion with 672.5944. Category winners: Chicken — BBQ FREAKS (169.6800); Pork Ribs — PLAYING WITH FIRE (176.5944); Pork — PLAYING WITH FIRE (177.7028); Brisket — Spartans Team (178.8572).
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.
132.56
median 606.83
675.41 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 169.68
- Pork Ribs 176.59
- Pork 177.70
- Brisket 178.86
20
178.86
Entries
41
4 judged meats
Top score
675.4056
Winning margin
2.8112
GC over RC
Field average
556.76
132.56675.41
median 606.83 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
2.8344 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
629.7828
132.56675.41
10th place overall
Field spread
542.8456
winner to last place
Double threats
4
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 93%
beats 7% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Weak
ρ = 0.27 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,500
avg power rating going in · stronger than 1% of contests
Storylines (4 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.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 5 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 5–6: Backyard BBQ Team and Sabor A Lena tied on 167.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 9–10: Sabor A Lena edged Los Cariduros de IBC Fajardo by 0.0344. Pork Ribs places 7–8: La Reine BBQ Team edged Bahama Bar- B-King by 0.0344.
- Pork Ribs 5–6 · tie
- Chicken 9–10 · 0.0344
- Pork Ribs 7–8 · 0.0344
- Pork 7–8 · 0.0572
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
PLAYING WITH FIRE won Pork Ribs, Pork — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
PLAYING WITH FIRE took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was chicken at 19th.
- Chicken 19th
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 5th
In the record book (1 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 | 169.6800 | 166.8456 | 159.9772 |
| Pork Ribs | 176.5944 | 167.4172 | 164.5372 |
| Pork | 177.7028 | 167.4400 | 160.5600 |
| Brisket | 178.8572 | 166.2628 | 160.5716 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
41 entries · top 675.4056 · median 606.8340
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PLAYING WITH FIRE | |
| 2 | Spartans Team | |
| 3 | BBQ FREAKS | |
| 4 | Backyard BBQ Team | |
| 5 | S.M.R. BBQ Team | |
| 6 | Smoke Em All | |
| 7 | Qbitas BBQ Team | |
| 8 | Sabor A Lena | |
| 9 | Smoking Grillers | |
| 10 | Slowly Smoked | |
| 11 | A LA LENA | |
| 12 | Escuela Hotelera de San Juan | |
| 13 | La Estacion | |
| 14 | Mo Smoke | |
| 15 | Los Duros del Sabor | |
| 16 | Smokin Drums | |
| 17 | PR Underdogs | |
| 18 | Bomberos PR | |
| 19 | The Red Dragons | |
| 20 | Bahama Bar- B-King | |
| 21 | Los Barbicueros | |
| 22 | Los Rompe Q BBQ Team | |
| 23 | Popac | |
| 24 | El Combete BBQ Team | |
| 25 | Cocineros del Este | |
| 26 | Los Cariduros de IBC Fajardo | |
| 27 | IBC Grilling Team Caguas | |
| 28 | Burning Wood | |
| 29 | Lock It Security | |
| 30 | ALELOLAI GRILL TEAM | |
| 31 | Los Chupi | |
| 32 | Wanabe | |
| 33 | AZUME BURGER | |
| 34 | BARBIKU RIDERS | |
| 35 | La Reine BBQ Team | |
| 36 | Los Uvitas | |
| 37 | IRI BBQ Team | |
| 38 | Birdie BBQ | |
| 39 | First Bank BBQ Team | |
| 40 | Los Muchachos BBQ | |
| 41 | Borges |
Chicken
37 entries · top 169.6800 · median 154.8456
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BBQ FREAKS | |
| 2 | S.M.R. BBQ Team | |
| 3 | Los Duros del Sabor | |
| 4 | Smoking Grillers | |
| 5 | Smokin Drums | |
| 6 | Spartans Team | |
| 7 | PR Underdogs | |
| 8 | Mo Smoke | |
| 9 | Sabor A Lena | |
| 10 | Los Cariduros de IBC Fajardo | |
| 11 | Qbitas BBQ Team | |
| 12 | Backyard BBQ Team | |
| 13 | The Red Dragons | |
| 14 | La Estacion | |
| 15 | Bahama Bar- B-King | |
| 16 | AZUME BURGER | |
| 17 | Slowly Smoked | |
| 18 | Cocineros del Este | |
| 19 | PLAYING WITH FIRE | |
| 20 | A LA LENA | |
| 21 | Bomberos PR | |
| 22 | Lock It Security | |
| 23 | Popac | |
| 24 | Los Rompe Q BBQ Team | |
| 25 | IBC Grilling Team Caguas | |
| 26 | Smoke Em All | |
| 27 | Birdie BBQ | |
| 28 | Los Chupi | |
| 29 | Escuela Hotelera de San Juan | |
| 30 | El Combete BBQ Team | |
| 31 | Los Barbicueros | |
| 32 | Burning Wood | |
| 33 | Wanabe | |
| 34 | ALELOLAI GRILL TEAM | |
| 35 | Los Uvitas | |
| 36 | IRI BBQ Team | |
| 37 | BARBIKU RIDERS |
Pork Ribs
41 entries · top 176.5944 · median 158.8344
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PLAYING WITH FIRE | |
| 2 | BBQ FREAKS | |
| 3 | Qbitas BBQ Team | |
| 4 | Los Chupi | |
| 5 | Backyard BBQ Team | |
| 6 | Sabor A Lena | |
| 7 | La Reine BBQ Team | |
| 8 | Bahama Bar- B-King | |
| 9 | S.M.R. BBQ Team | |
| 10 | AZUME BURGER | |
| 11 | Slowly Smoked | |
| 12 | El Combete BBQ Team | |
| 13 | Popac | |
| 14 | Smoking Grillers | |
| 15 | Escuela Hotelera de San Juan | |
| 16 | Los Uvitas | |
| 17 | Smoke Em All | |
| 18 | Smokin Drums | |
| 19 | Spartans Team | |
| 20 | IBC Grilling Team Caguas | |
| 21 | Los Duros del Sabor | |
| 22 | Wanabe | |
| 23 | The Red Dragons | |
| 24 | Bomberos PR | |
| 25 | La Estacion | |
| 26 | Los Cariduros de IBC Fajardo | |
| 27 | Burning Wood | |
| 28 | ALELOLAI GRILL TEAM | |
| 29 | PR Underdogs | |
| 30 | Los Rompe Q BBQ Team | |
| 31 | IRI BBQ Team | |
| 32 | BARBIKU RIDERS | |
| 33 | A LA LENA | |
| 34 | Mo Smoke | |
| 35 | Cocineros del Este | |
| 36 | Los Barbicueros | |
| 37 | First Bank BBQ Team | |
| 38 | Lock It Security | |
| 39 | Birdie BBQ | |
| 40 | Los Muchachos BBQ | |
| 41 | Borges |
Pork
37 entries · top 177.7028 · median 154.2628
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PLAYING WITH FIRE | |
| 2 | Smoke Em All | |
| 3 | Escuela Hotelera de San Juan | |
| 4 | Spartans Team | |
| 5 | A LA LENA | |
| 6 | Burning Wood | |
| 7 | Qbitas BBQ Team | |
| 8 | Bahama Bar- B-King | |
| 9 | Mo Smoke | |
| 10 | BBQ FREAKS | |
| 11 | BARBIKU RIDERS | |
| 12 | Lock It Security | |
| 13 | Los Cariduros de IBC Fajardo | |
| 14 | Los Barbicueros | |
| 15 | ALELOLAI GRILL TEAM | |
| 16 | La Estacion | |
| 17 | Wanabe | |
| 18 | Smoking Grillers | |
| 19 | S.M.R. BBQ Team | |
| 20 | Smokin Drums | |
| 21 | Backyard BBQ Team | |
| 22 | Los Rompe Q BBQ Team | |
| 23 | La Reine BBQ Team | |
| 24 | The Red Dragons | |
| 25 | El Combete BBQ Team | |
| 26 | PR Underdogs | |
| 27 | Los Duros del Sabor | |
| 28 | Cocineros del Este | |
| 29 | Sabor A Lena | |
| 30 | IBC Grilling Team Caguas | |
| 31 | Popac | |
| 32 | Bomberos PR | |
| 33 | Slowly Smoked | |
| 34 | Los Chupi | |
| 35 | IRI BBQ Team | |
| 36 | AZUME BURGER | |
| 37 | Los Uvitas |
Brisket
38 entries · top 178.8572 · median 147.1486
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spartans Team | |
| 2 | Sabor A Lena | |
| 3 | Backyard BBQ Team | |
| 4 | Slowly Smoked | |
| 5 | PLAYING WITH FIRE | |
| 6 | Smoke Em All | |
| 7 | BBQ FREAKS | |
| 8 | Bomberos PR | |
| 9 | Los Barbicueros | |
| 10 | S.M.R. BBQ Team | |
| 11 | A LA LENA | |
| 12 | Smoking Grillers | |
| 13 | Cocineros del Este | |
| 14 | La Estacion | |
| 15 | Los Rompe Q BBQ Team | |
| 16 | Qbitas BBQ Team | |
| 17 | PR Underdogs | |
| 18 | Popac | |
| 19 | Escuela Hotelera de San Juan | |
| 20 | The Red Dragons | |
| 21 | Mo Smoke | |
| 22 | El Combete BBQ Team | |
| 23 | BARBIKU RIDERS | |
| 24 | IBC Grilling Team Caguas | |
| 25 | AZUME BURGER | |
| 26 | Los Duros del Sabor | |
| 27 | IRI BBQ Team | |
| 28 | Burning Wood | |
| 29 | ALELOLAI GRILL TEAM | |
| 30 | First Bank BBQ Team | |
| 31 | Lock It Security | |
| 32 | Los Chupi | |
| 33 | Smokin Drums | |
| 34 | Los Cariduros de IBC Fajardo | |
| 35 | Los Uvitas | |
| 36 | Wanabe | |
| 37 | La Reine BBQ Team | |
| 38 | Bahama Bar- B-King |