A dynasty in the making
2×
wins at this contest
2 of 25 tracked editions
RHYTHM 'N QUE has won this contest 2 times across its 25 tracked editions.
- 2014
- 2015
Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) 2014
Sep 19–20, 2014 · Midwest City, OK
CLARK CREW BBQ won Grand Champion at the Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) on September 19, 2014 in Midwest City, OK, scoring 694.2288 in a field of 29 teams. CAVEMAN CUISINE took Reserve Grand Champion with 691.9200. Category winners: Chicken — GETTIN' BASTED (180.0000); Pork Ribs — CLARK CREW BBQ (176.5600); Pork — THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ (178.8572); Brisket — CAVEMAN CUISINE (180.0000). This is the 10th of 25 editions of this contest on record; the 2014 edition was won by PIG WHISPERERS; 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.
527.33
median 672.46
694.23 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 180 🔥
- Pork Ribs 176.56
- Pork 178.86
- Brisket 180 🔥
20
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2017 — this edition picked out.
Entries
29
4 judged meats
Top score
694.2288
Winning margin
2.3088
GC over RC
Field average
667.07
527.33694.23
median 672.46 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
4.5828 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
681.0856
527.33694.23
10th place overall
Field spread
166.9032
winner to last place
Double threats
2
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 57%
beats 43% of 4723 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
0%
0 of 30 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.56 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,642
avg power rating going in · stronger than 94% of contests
Storylines (6 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 stacked field
1642
average power rating going in
Stronger than 94% of every rated contest
The field averaged a 1642 power rating going in — stronger than 94% of every contest tracked.
- top seed THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ (1795)
- 29 rated teams
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 10 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 6–7: PORK PULLIN PLOWBOYS and DIRT ROAD BBQ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 9–10: DIRT ROAD BBQ and NCOGNITO COOKERS tied on 170.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 8–9: OUTLAW HAWGS BBQ and NATURAL BORN GRILLERS tied on 170.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 6–7 · tie
- Pork 9–10 · tie
- Brisket 8–9 · tie
- Pork 7–8 · 0.0116
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
CLARK CREW BBQ took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was brisket at 7th.
- Chicken 4th
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 5th
- Brisket 7th
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: CAVEMAN CUISINE (won 2013).
- CAVEMAN CUISINE · 2013
A perfect score on the table
2
perfect 180s
2 perfect 180s were scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- CAVEMAN CUISINE · Brisket
- GETTIN' BASTED · Chicken
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 19, 2013 | Las Vegas, NV | Las Vegas, NV | 30 | 667.4280 | TOMBSTONE BBQ | GQUE |
| Aug 2, 2013 | Rockford, IL | Rockford, IL | 30 | 683.9544 | TheBBQSuperStore.com | GRILLS GONE WILD IOWA |
| Sep 6, 2013 | Chesapeake, VA | Chesapeake, VA | 30 | 673.6796 | Rhode Hog BBQ | SMOKE THIS |
| Sep 13, 2013 | Hendersonville, TN | Hendersonville, TN | 30 | 697.0972 | MOONSWINERS | Swamp Boys |
| Oct 11, 2013 | Midwest City, OK | Midwest City, OK | 30 | 697.6684 | CAVEMAN CUISINE | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
| Apr 25, 2014 | Las Vegas, NV | Las Vegas, NV | 30 | 685.7140 | RHYTHM 'N QUE | SLAP YO' DADDY BBQ |
| Aug 1, 2014 | Madison, WI | Madison, WI | 30 | 689.1316 | BIG BROTHERS BBQ | iBQ'n |
| Aug 29, 2014 | Richmond, VA | Richmond, VA | 30 | 673.0740 | CHECKERED FLAG 500 BBQ | THE BBQ GURU |
| Sep 5, 2014 | Southaven, MS | Southaven, MS | 30 | 701.7144 | PIG WHISPERERS | LANG BBQ SMOKERS |
| Sep 19, 2014 ← this one | Midwest City, OK | Midwest City, OK | 29 | 694.2288 | CLARK CREW BBQ | CAVEMAN CUISINE |
| Apr 24, 2015 | Las Vegas, NV | Las Vegas, NV | 30 | 702.8576 | RHYTHM 'N QUE | BIG POPPA SMOKERS |
| Aug 7, 2015 | Madison, WI | Madison, WI | 30 | 694.8344 | THE SMOKIN' C'S BBQ | BIG T'Z Q CRU |
| Sep 4, 2015 | Richmond, VA | Richmond, VA | 30 | 688.5488 | ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE | INSANE SWINE BBQ |
| Sep 18, 2015 | Southaven, MS | Southaven, MS | 30 | 701.1200 | CAJUN BLAZE | EAT MOR BUTT BBQ |
| Sep 25, 2015 | Midwest City, OK | Midwest City, OK | 30 | 694.2632 | CLARK CREW BBQ | SMOKEAHOLICS |
| Apr 22, 2016 | Las Vegas, NV | Las Vegas, NV | 30 | 695.4172 | BIG POPPA SMOKERS | SMOKIN MO'S BBQ |
| Jul 1, 2016 | Marietta, GA | Marietta, GA | 30 | 697.6572 | CONTAGIOUS Q | Organizer Portal |
| Aug 26, 2016 | N. Charleston, SC | N. Charleston, SC | 30 | 695.3484 | WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ | SAUCED! BBQ TEAM |
| Sep 16, 2016 | Madison, WI | Madison, WI | 30 | 705.7144 | LUCKY'S Q | TOTALLY SAUCED |
| Sep 23, 2016 | Midwest City, OK | Midwest City, OK | 30 | 698.8572 | JAESTAR BBQ | SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ |
| Apr 21, 2017 | Las Vegas, NV | Las Vegas, NV | 30 | 706.8572 | BURNIN AND LOOTIN | LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ |
| Jun 30, 2017 | Bartlett, TN | Bartlett, TN | 30 | 704.5488 | SMOKIN BUTT CREW | RAZORRACKS |
| Aug 25, 2017 | Richmond, VA | Richmond, VA | 29 | 698.8228 | SMOKING BUTT HEADS | WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ |
| Sep 15, 2017 | Madison, WI | Madison, WI | 30 | 685.1432 | LUCKY 19 SAUCE COMPANY | iBQ'n |
| Sep 22, 2017 | Edmond, OK | Edmond, OK | 30 | 709.7260 | SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ | JAESTAR BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180 | 174.8916 | 173.1200 |
| Pork Ribs | 176.5600 | 171.9772 | 168.5600 |
| Pork | 178.8572 | 171.9772 | 170.2628 |
| Brisket | 180 | 171.4400 | 169.6916 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
29 entries · top 694.2288 · median 672.4572
Chicken
29 entries · top 180 · median 169.7372 · 🔥 perfect 180
Pork Ribs
29 entries · top 176.5600 · median 167.9656
Pork
29 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.1200
Brisket
29 entries · top 180 · median 167.4056 · 🔥 perfect 180