A new contest record
694.3316
highest overall ever cooked here
694.3316 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 650.2858 LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS set in 2013.
- old record 650.2858
- set 2013 by LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS
Montana BBQ Cook-Off 2014
Jul 5–6, 2014 · Absarokee, MT
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS won Grand Champion at the Montana BBQ Cook-Off on July 5, 2014 in Absarokee, MT, scoring 694.3316 in a field of 25 teams. SUNRISE BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 682.8688. Category winners: Chicken — SUNRISE BBQ (175.4400); Pork Ribs — PARROTHEAD SMOKERS (174.8916); Pork — PRAIRIE SMOKE & SPICE BBQ (180.0000); Brisket — JO-BAWB'S BBQ (178.8572). This is the 2nd of 9 editions of this contest on record; the 2013 edition was won by LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS; the next was held in 2015.
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.
562.27
median 628.05
694.33 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 175.44
- Pork Ribs 174.89
- Pork 180 🔥
- Brisket 178.86
128.56
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2022 — this edition picked out.
Entries
25
4 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
694.3316
Winning margin
11.4628
GC over RC
Field average
631.47
562.27694.33
median 628.05 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
5.7260 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
640.4796
562.27694.33
10th place overall
Field spread
132.0572
winner to last place
Double threats
5
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 56%
beats 44% of 4723 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
59%
13 of 22 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.6 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,519
avg power rating going in · stronger than 13% of contests
Storylines (7 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.
A statement win
11.4628
points clear of the field
Wider than 91% of the 4,722 championships in the data
The champion won by 11.4628 points — a wider margin than 91% of championships in the data.
A dynasty in the making
3×
wins at this contest
3 of 9 tracked editions
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS has won this contest 3 times across its 9 tracked editions.
- 2014
- 2017
- 2019
Photo finishes
0.0116
closest of 5 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 8–9: UFF-DA-Q edged MONTANA OUTLAW BBQ by 0.0116. Chicken places 2–3: Montana Big Sky Bar-BQ edged The Burger Dive by 0.0228. Pork Ribs places 2–3: JO-BAWB'S BBQ edged Yogi's Picnic Basket by 0.0228.
- Chicken 8–9 · 0.0116
- Chicken 2–3 · 0.0228
- Pork Ribs 2–3 · 0.0228
- Chicken 5–6 · 0.0344
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was chicken at 7th.
- Chicken 7th
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 2nd
A contest record in pork
180.0000
best pork ever cooked here
PRAIRIE SMOKE & SPICE BBQ turned in 180.0000 in pork — past the 169.1428 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 169.1428
- across 1 past editions
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.
- PRAIRIE SMOKE & SPICE BBQ · Pork
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)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 6, 2013 | Absarokee, MT | Absarokee, MT | 22 | 650.2858 | LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS |
| Jul 5, 2014 ← this one | Absarokee, MT | Absarokee, MT 59001 | 25 | 694.3316 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | SUNRISE BBQ |
| Jul 3, 2015 | Absarokee, MT | Absarokee, MT 59001 | 29 | 696.5828 | LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS | JO-BAWB'S BBQ |
| Jun 25, 2016 | Absarokee, MT | Downtown Absarokee | 29 | 701.7144 | MONTANA OUTLAW BBQ | JO-BAWB'S BBQ |
| Jun 24, 2017 | Absarokee, MT | Hwy 78 | 35 | 701.1200 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | YOU QUE'D ME ALL NIGHT LONG |
| Jun 23, 2018 | Absarokee, MT | Hwy 78 | 26 | 695.9660 | HICKORY AND SPICE BBQ | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS |
| Jun 22, 2019 | Absarokee, MT | Hwy 78 | 29 | 699.9196 | Parrothead Smokers | SMOKIN HOT BUTTS BBQ |
| Jun 11, 2021 | Absarokee, MT | Woodard Ave | 27 | 708.5600 | Texas Smoke Whisperer | Bushmaster BBQ |
| Jun 10, 2022 | Absarokee, MT | Woodard Ave | 27 | 693.6112 | Stoake-D-Fire.com | OWENS BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 175.4400 | 166.3200 | 160.5944 |
| Pork Ribs | 174.8916 | 169.1656 | 161.6916 |
| Pork | 180 | 170.8800 | 160.5600 |
| Brisket | 178.8572 | 170.8456 | 158.8228 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
25 entries · top 694.3316 · median 628.0456
Chicken
25 entries · top 175.4400 · median 156.5944
Pork Ribs
25 entries · top 174.8916 · median 160.5256
Pork
25 entries · top 180 · median 159.4400 · 🔥 perfect 180
Brisket
25 entries · top 178.8572 · median 155.3944
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.
Master Series — Open
23 entries · top 178.2972 · median 166.8916