Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY)
2025-09-12 – 2025-09-13 · Guntersville, AL · 📍 24 State Campground Rd
Reps: CAROL BIGLER, RANDY G BIGLER · Prize money: $4,000.00
Grand Champion: Big James Kitchen (357.7144) · 28 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 931 BBQ
Entries
Top score
Winning margin
Field average
Perfect 180s
Tightest race
Top-10 cutoff
Field spread
Prize money
How hot was the win?
Traveled in
Came back for more
Form held
Field strength
Storylines
👑 A dynasty in the making
Big James Kitchen has won this contest 2 times across its 3 tracked editions.
🪒 A razor-thin finish
The Grand Championship was decided by 0.0116 points — closer than 96% of every championship in the data.
🧳 Out-of-towners took the title
Big James Kitchen took the Grand Championship home to TN.
🔥 A day of perfect scores
6 perfect 180s were scored at this contest.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 1–2: Armstrong Smoke & Co. and Smokey Bees BBQ - MS tied on 180.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 2–3: Smokey Bees BBQ - MS and 931 BBQ tied on 180.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 5–6: WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ and Big James Kitchen tied on 177.7144 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
🛡️ Back to defend
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: Big James Kitchen (won 2024).
🏟️ A stacked field
The field averaged a 1598 power rating going in — stronger than 90% of every contest tracked.
🃏 An upset on the books
Big James Kitchen came in rated below the field's top team, WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 25-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 | Guntersville, AL | 24 State Campground Rd | 33 | 354.2628 | Big James Kitchen | — |
| 2025-09-12 ← this one | 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 | 177.7144 | 175.4056 |
| Pork Ribs | 180.0000 | 177.7144 | 174.2628 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
28 entries · top 357.7144 · median 340.5028
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 2 | 931 BBQ | |
| 3 | 205 Smoke | |
| 4 | Rollin Smoke BBQ | |
| 5 | Armstrong Smoke & Co. | |
| 6 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 7 | WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ | |
| 8 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 9 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 10 | Bentley Que | |
| 11 | LEE LA Q | |
| 12 | Wee Daddy's BBQ | |
| 13 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 14 | Smoke 'Em All | |
| 15 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 16 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 17 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 18 | LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | |
| 19 | Going Hoggin | |
| 20 | Modest Meats | |
| 21 | Pork Life | |
| 22 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 23 | Red, White & Que | |
| 24 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 25 | Last Place Chicken | |
| 26 | Smith Brothers BBQ | |
| 27 | HOLY SMOKIN!!! | |
| 28 | Backyard Grilling and Smoking |
Chicken
28 entries · top 180.0000 · median 172.8514 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Armstrong Smoke & Co. | |
| 2 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 3 | 931 BBQ | |
| 4 | Pork Life | |
| 5 | WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ | |
| 6 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 7 | Rollin Smoke BBQ | |
| 8 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 9 | Wee Daddy's BBQ | |
| 10 | Bentley Que | |
| 11 | 205 Smoke | |
| 12 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 13 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 14 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 15 | Going Hoggin | |
| 16 | LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | |
| 17 | LEE LA Q | |
| 18 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 19 | Modest Meats | |
| 20 | Smoke 'Em All | |
| 21 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 22 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 23 | Last Place Chicken | |
| 24 | Smith Brothers BBQ | |
| 25 | HOLY SMOKIN!!! | |
| 26 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 27 | Red, White & Que | |
| 28 | Backyard Grilling and Smoking |
Pork Ribs
28 entries · top 180.0000 · median 170.2572 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 205 Smoke | |
| 2 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 3 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 4 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 5 | Rollin Smoke BBQ | |
| 6 | 931 BBQ | |
| 7 | LEE LA Q | |
| 8 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 9 | Red, White & Que | |
| 10 | WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ | |
| 11 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 12 | Armstrong Smoke & Co. | |
| 13 | Bentley Que | |
| 14 | Smoke 'Em All | |
| 15 | HOLY SMOKIN!!! | |
| 16 | Wee Daddy's BBQ | |
| 17 | Smith Brothers BBQ | |
| 18 | Last Place Chicken | |
| 19 | Modest Meats | |
| 20 | LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | |
| 21 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 22 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 23 | Going Hoggin | |
| 24 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 25 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 26 | Backyard Grilling and Smoking | |
| 27 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 28 | Pork Life |
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 — Conecuh Sausage
18 entries · top 180.0000 · median 168.8514 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 2 | Wee Daddy's BBQ | |
| 3 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | |
| 4 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 5 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 6 | Red, White & Que | |
| 7 | Bentley Que | |
| 8 | Smoke Right BBQ | |
| 9 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 10 | Backyard Grilling and Smoking | |
| 11 | LEE LA Q | |
| 12 | Pork Life | |
| 13 | Armstrong Smoke & Co. | |
| 14 | Going Hoggin | |
| 15 | Last Place Chicken | |
| 16 | Modest Meats | |
| 17 | Smith Brothers BBQ | |
| 18 | WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ |
Kids-Q — Kids Q- 5-10
8 entries · top 180.0000 · median 172.5370 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Collins 205 | |
| 2 | Cash 205 | |
| 3 | HIll's BBQ | |
| 4 | Smoke House Cracker | |
| 5 | Pork Life Jr. | |
| 6 | Lil Weez's Blazin' Fire Q | |
| 7 | Skeleton Crew Jr. Jr. | |
| 8 | Wy Guy's BBQ |
Kids-Q — Kids-Q 2-4
4 entries · top 180.0000 · median 180.0000 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pretty in Pink | |
| 2 | Rollin Smoke III | |
| 3 | Skeleton Crew Jr. | |
| 4 | Mae Big James Kitchen |