A new contest record
689.6916
highest overall ever cooked here
689.6916 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 685.7142 GRILLIN' BEAVERS set in 2013.
- old record 685.7142
- set 2013 by GRILLIN' BEAVERS
Smoke In The Spring 2014
Apr 11–12, 2014 · Osage City, KS
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ won Grand Champion at the Smoke In The Spring on April 11, 2014 in Osage City, KS, scoring 689.6916 in a field of 73 teams. CHICKHOOVENSWINE BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 687.9312. Category winners: Chicken — CHICKHOOVENSWINE BBQ (176.5828); Pork Ribs — OLD STYLE BBQ (178.3200); Pork — IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (176.5600); Brisket — IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (174.2628). This is the 2nd of 14 editions of this contest on record; the 2013 edition was won by GRILLIN' BEAVERS; 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.
482.19
median 643.99
689.69 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 176.58
- Pork Ribs 178.32
- Pork 176.56
- Brisket 174.26
130.22
178.32
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
73
4 judged meats · 5 ancillary
Top score
689.6916
Winning margin
1.7604
GC over RC
Field average
635.41
482.19689.69
median 643.99 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
2.8228 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
671.3372
482.19689.69
10th place overall
Field spread
207.4972
winner to last place
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 72%
beats 28% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
45%
32 of 71 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.77 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,529
avg power rating going in · stronger than 21% of contests
Storylines (8 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 dynasty in the making
2×
wins at this contest
2 of 14 tracked editions
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ has won this contest 2 times across its 14 tracked editions.
- 2014
- 2015
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Pork places 6–7: BLACK EYE BBQ and BEAUX HAWG BBQ tied on 171.9772 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 3–4: PIGSKIN BBQ and LIL' FIDDLER'S tied on 171.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 8–9: R BUTTS R SMOKIN and BLUE BUCKET BBQ tied on 169.1200 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Pork 6–7 · tie
- Brisket 3–4 · tie
- Brisket 8–9 · tie
- Chicken 7–8 · 0.0112
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ won Pork, Brisket — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 1st
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was chicken at 37th.
- Chicken 37th
- Pork Ribs 3rd
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 1st
A contest record in pork ribs
178.3200
best pork ribs ever cooked here
OLD STYLE BBQ turned in 178.3200 in pork ribs — past the 175.4286 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 175.4286
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: GRILLIN' BEAVERS (won 2013).
- GRILLIN' BEAVERS · 2013
One of the big ones
73
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 96% of the 5,462 contests in the data
73 teams — bigger than 96% of the 5,462 contests in the data.
This contest's own records (3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 12, 2013 | Osage City, KS | Osage City, KS | 71 | 685.7142 | GRILLIN' BEAVERS | PELLET ENVY |
| Apr 11, 2014 ← this one | Osage City, KS | Osage City, KS 66523 | 73 | 689.6916 | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ | CHICKHOOVENSWINE BBQ |
| Apr 10, 2015 | Osage City, KS | Osage City, KS 66523 | 97 | 698.2516 | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ | SMOKE N BABES BBQ |
| Apr 8, 2016 | Osage City, KS | Osage City, KS | 109 | 700.5144 | CLARK CREW BBQ | LUCKY'S Q |
| Apr 7, 2017 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st St (Jones Park) | 100 | 700.0116 | CLARK CREW BBQ | THE SMOKING HILLS |
| Apr 6, 2018 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st St (Jones Park) | 103 | 699.3712 | HOGLINE | 4 LEGS UP BBQ |
| Oct 30, 2020 | Osage City, KS | Jones Park (in Osage City) | 93 | 706.2744 | Tebo Creek BBQ | TRIPLE H BBQ |
| Apr 9, 2021 | Osage City, KS | Jones Park (in Osage City) | 105 | 703.4400 | Piggin Whiskey O.G. | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD |
| Apr 8, 2022 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st Street | 94 | 700.0228 | Last Call Heroes BBQ | HIGH i QUE |
| Apr 8, 2022 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st Street | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 7, 2023 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st Street | 103 | 707.9772 | Janky Leg BBQ | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ |
| Apr 5, 2024 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st Street | 97 | 706.2628 | Burnt Trees | Damn Fine Beef & Swine |
| Apr 11, 2025 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st Street | 92 | 708.6060 | Parts 'R' Smokin | Cow Creek BBQ |
| Apr 10, 2026 | Osage City, KS | 517 South 1st Street | 101 | 709.7028 | Blind Fox BBQ | SLAPS BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 176.5828 | 173.7600 | 170.8456 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.3200 | 173.7144 | 170.2856 |
| Pork | 176.5600 | 172.5944 | 171.4056 |
| Brisket | 174.2628 | 170.8228 | 168.5828 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
73 entries · top 689.6916 · median 643.9884
Chicken
72 entries · top 176.5828 · median 163.1372
Pork Ribs
73 entries · top 178.3200 · median 161.1432
Pork
73 entries · top 176.5600 · median 160.5600
Brisket
73 entries · top 174.2628 · median 159.9428
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 — Cook'S Choice
33 entries · top 178.2972 · median 167.9656
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Old 50 BBQ | |
| 2 | BLUE BUCKET BBQ | |
| 3 | FNA BARBEQUE | |
| 4 | MEATRUBBERS | |
| 5 | Fat and Greasy BBQ | |
| 6 | FRONT DOOR GANG | |
| 7 | INDIGO PIG | |
| 8 | Showtime | |
| 9 | Tipsy Pigs BBQ | |
| 10 | T-Town Drunkeen Monkees | |
| 11 | Boondocks | |
| 12 | Partycrowd BBQ | |
| 13 | BLUE RIVER BBQ & BREWHAUS | |
| 14 | LAZY BUTT BBQ | |
| 15 | LIL' FIDDLER'S | |
| 16 | RIBS N BIBS | |
| 17 | R & M's Smokin Meat Wagon | |
| 18 | Smoke-N-Flames | |
| 19 | R U Rdy 4 BBQ | |
| 20 | BEAUX HAWG BBQ | |
| 21 | ON THE SAUCE | |
| 22 | Smoking Pallet | |
| 23 | GRILLIN' BEAVERS | |
| 24 | 3 B'S BBQ | |
| 25 | BLUE COLLAR BBQ | |
| 26 | SILVER FOX BBQ | |
| 27 | Boxer Q | |
| 28 | Bitter Sweet BBQ | |
| 29 | LAZY 2 BBQ | |
| 30 | Lil Smokey | |
| 31 | Hillbilly Smoke Club | |
| 32 | Babe's BBQ | |
| 33 | UNCLE BO'S BBQ |
Master Series — Dessert
29 entries · top 180 · median 174.2628 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FNA BARBEQUE | |
| 2 | RIBS N BIBS | |
| 3 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 4 | Boondocks | |
| 5 | Bitter Sweet BBQ | |
| 6 | INDIGO PIG | |
| 7 | 3.2 FLU QUE | |
| 8 | BLUE RIVER BBQ & BREWHAUS | |
| 9 | Tipsy Pigs BBQ | |
| 10 | R & M's Smokin Meat Wagon | |
| 11 | Smoke-N-Flames | |
| 12 | Fat and Greasy BBQ | |
| 13 | BLUE BUCKET BBQ | |
| 14 | Showtime | |
| 15 | THE SMOKING HILLS | |
| 16 | SMOKING CO | |
| 17 | FRONT DOOR GANG | |
| 18 | SMOKE ON WHEELS | |
| 19 | RICH AND STU'S VOODOO BBQ | |
| 20 | MEATRUBBERS | |
| 21 | BLUE COLLAR BBQ | |
| 22 | T-Town Drunkeen Monkees | |
| 23 | UNCLE BO'S BBQ | |
| 24 | R U Rdy 4 BBQ | |
| 25 | Reckin-Crue Bar B Que | |
| 26 | BEAUX HAWG BBQ | |
| 27 | BARKIN DAWGS BBQ | |
| 28 | Smoking Pallet | |
| 29 | 3 B'S BBQ |
Master Series — Kids-Q 10 & Under
10 entries · top 175.4972 · median 158.6058
Master Series — Kids-Q 11 & Up
8 entries · top 170.2856 · median 159.4630
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austin Hynek 316? | |
| 2 | Lauren Groneman 102 | |
| 3 | KaylinGroneman 102 | |
| 4 | Michael McCartney 207 | |
| 5 | Justin Habersat 311 | |
| 6 | James Cadwell 311 | |
| 7 | Brayden McDowell 114 | |
| 8 | Karter Carlson 316? |
Master Series — Osage County Cup
9 entries · top 652.5140 · median 604.4572
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Get Rubbed Raw | |
| 2 | Tipsy Pigs BBQ | |
| 3 | RIBS N BIBS | |
| 4 | Hillbilly Smoke Club | |
| 5 | Reckin-Crue Bar B Que | |
| 6 | Bitter Sweet BBQ | |
| 7 | BARKIN DAWGS BBQ | |
| 8 | R & M's Smokin Meat Wagon | |
| 9 | Partycrowd BBQ |