A new contest record
670.3088
highest overall ever cooked here
670.3088 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 655.3940 LOCAL SMOKE BBQ set in 2013.
- old record 655.3940
- set 2013 by LOCAL SMOKE BBQ
New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 2014
Jul 11–13, 2014 · North Wildwood, NJ
GONEHOGGIN.COM won Grand Champion at the New Jersey State Barbecue Championship on July 11, 2014 in North Wildwood, NJ, scoring 670.3088 in a field of 65 teams. SHADY CREW took Reserve Grand Champion with 667.3828. Category winners: Chicken — GONEHOGGIN.COM (178.8800); Pork Ribs — SHADY CREW (172.6172); Pork — B' FOR CHICKEN (178.2972); Brisket — UNCLE PIG'S BARBEQUE PIT (176.0000). This is the 2nd of 12 editions of this contest on record; the 2013 edition was won by LOCAL SMOKE BBQ; 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.
537.66
median 609.74
670.31 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 178.88
- Pork Ribs 172.62
- Pork 178.30
- Brisket 176
111.33
178.88
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
65
4 judged meats · 4 ancillary
Top score
670.3088
Winning margin
2.9260
GC over RC
Field average
611.09
537.66670.31
median 609.74 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
8.0228 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
637.6684
537.66670.31
10th place overall
Field spread
132.6516
winner to last place
Double threats
2
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 96%
beats 4% of 4723 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
74%
48 of 65 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.47 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,511
avg power rating going in · stronger than 8% of contests
Storylines (9 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 first Grand Championship
6
tracked contests to get there
This was GONEHOGGIN.COM's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 6th tracked contest.
A dynasty in the making
3×
wins at this contest
3 of 12 tracked editions
Chunky BBQ has won this contest 3 times across its 12 tracked editions.
- 2022
- 2023
- 2024
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 3–4: B' FOR CHICKEN and Open Bar BQ tied on 171.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 9–10: Whole Hog Cafe edged MIKEY O'S REAL BBQ by 0.0116. Brisket places 5–6: Smoke or Be Smoked (S.O.B.S) edged GONEHOGGIN.COM by 0.0116.
- Pork Ribs 3–4 · tie
- Brisket 9–10 · 0.0116
- Brisket 5–6 · 0.0116
- Chicken 9–10 · 0.0228
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
GONEHOGGIN.COM took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork ribs at 23rd.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 23rd
- Pork 6th
- Brisket 6th
A contest record in pork
178.2972
best pork ever cooked here
B' FOR CHICKEN turned in 178.2972 in pork — past the 170.8800 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 170.8800
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: LOCAL SMOKE BBQ (won 2013).
- LOCAL SMOKE BBQ · 2013
One of the big ones
65
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 94% of the 5,482 contests in the data
65 teams — bigger than 94% of the 5,482 contests in the data.
They keep coming back
74%
of last edition’s field returned
48 of 65 teams from 2013-07-12 came back
48 of the 65 teams that cooked the previous edition came back for this one — a contest people put on the calendar.
This contest's own records (6 in the KCBS record book)
Records held by every edition of this contest put together, not just this one afternoon.
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 12, 2013 | North Wildwood, NJ | North Wildwood, NJ | 65 | 655.3940 | LOCAL SMOKE BBQ | RIBS WITHIN |
| Jul 11, 2014 ← this one | North Wildwood, NJ | North Wildwood, NJ 08260 | 65 | 670.3088 | GONEHOGGIN.COM | SHADY CREW |
| Jul 10, 2015 | North Wildwood, NJ | North Wildwood, NJ 08260 | 65 | 667.9200 | UNCLE PIG'S BARBEQUE PIT | SLOWER LOWER BBQ |
| Jul 8, 2016 | North Wildwood, NJ | North Wildwood , NJ | 65 | 683.3372 | FINN'S FINEST BBQ | WILBUR'S REVENGE |
| Jul 7, 2017 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 67 | 674.1480 | LOCAL SMOKE BBQ | FINN'S FINEST BBQ |
| Jul 14, 2018 | North Wildwood, NJ | North Wildwood, NJ 08260 | 64 | 690.2516 | UNCLE PIG'S BARBEQUE PIT | PIGGIN' WHISKEY |
| Jul 12, 2019 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 64 | 689.6340 | Uncle Pigs Barbecue Pit | TOP GUN BARBECUE |
| Jul 9, 2022 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 61 | 703.3828 | Chunky BBQ | UNCLE PIG'S BARBEQUE PIT |
| Jul 14, 2023 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 64 | 703.9772 | Chunky BBQ | GLAZED AND INFUSED NEW JERSEY BBQ |
| Jul 13, 2024 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 62 | 695.3944 | Chunky BBQ | UNCLE PIG'S BARBEQUE PIT |
| Jul 12, 2025 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 63 | 694.2400 | Pig Candy Barbeque Co. | Big Butts BBQ |
| Jul 11, 2026 | North Wildwood, NJ | 201 New Jersey Ave | 62 | 704.5256 | B's Que | Bogg's Hog BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8800 | 168.0228 | 165.0856 |
| Pork Ribs | 172.6172 | 164.5944 | 161.7600 |
| Pork | 178.2972 | 168.5716 | 161.0972 |
| Brisket | 176 | 165.7144 | 163.4172 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
65 entries · top 670.3088 · median 609.7372
Chicken
65 entries · top 178.8800 · median 155.3484
Pork Ribs
65 entries · top 172.6172 · median 152
Pork
65 entries · top 178.2972 · median 153.6800
Brisket
65 entries · top 176 · median 150.8000
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 — Dessert
42 entries · top 180 · median 162.0114 · 🔥 perfect 180
Master Series — Iron Chef
45 entries · top 173.7028 · median 153.1656
Master Series — Lupinetti Best Nj Rib Award
39 entries · top 172.6172 · median 151.9660
Master Series — Sauce
56 entries · top 173.1428 · median 154.8570