A first Grand Championship
1
title in the data
This was EUREKA SMOKE's first Grand Championship in the data.
Melbourne Barbecue Festival 2015
Jan 31 – Feb 1, 2015 · Melbourne, Victoria, Australia · AUSTRALIA
EUREKA SMOKE won Grand Champion at the Melbourne Barbecue Festival on January 31, 2015 in Melbourne, Victoria,, scoring 663.9540 in a field of 15 teams. BIG BOY BBQ Australia took Reserve Grand Champion with 648.5600. Category winners: Chicken — EUREKA SMOKE (169.7028); Pork Ribs — Southern Boys Barbecue (173.1772); Pork — BIG BOY BBQ Australia (169.7256); Brisket — MEAT SWEATS AUSTRALIA (170.2972). This is the 1st of 2 editions of this contest on record; the next was held in 2018.
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.
545.97
median 628.01
663.95 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 169.70
- Pork Ribs 173.18
- Pork 169.73
- Brisket 170.30
130.25
173.18
Entries
15
4 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
663.9540
Winning margin
15.3940
GC over RC
Field average
620.65
545.97663.95
median 628.01 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork
5.1200 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
624.4344
545.97663.95
10th place overall
Field spread
117.9884
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 98%
beats 2% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Weak
ρ = -0.19 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,500
avg power rating going in · stronger than 1% of contests
Storylines (5 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
15.3940
points clear of the field
Wider than 96% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The champion won by 15.3940 points — a wider margin than 96% of championships in the data.
A rookie on the podium
1st
at their first tracked contest
EUREKA SMOKE finished 1st overall in the first contest the data has them cooking at all.
Photo finishes
0.0116
closest of 4 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 8–9: AUSSIE PITMASTERS edged HECTOR'S SMOKE HOUSE by 0.0116. Pork Ribs places 6–7: MASTER BASTERS edged BIG BOY BBQ Australia by 0.0344. Pork Ribs places 7–8: BIG BOY BBQ Australia edged AUSSIE PITMASTERS by 0.0572.
- Pork Ribs 8–9 · 0.0116
- Pork Ribs 6–7 · 0.0344
- Pork Ribs 7–8 · 0.0572
- Pork Ribs 9–10 · 0.4568
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
EUREKA SMOKE took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork ribs at 5th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 5th
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 2nd
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 31, 2015 ← this one | Melbourne, Victoria | Melbourne, Victoria, | 15 | 663.9540 | EUREKA SMOKE | BIG BOY BBQ Australia |
| Feb 3, 2018 | Melbourn | Flemington Ralecourse | 26 | 667.5088 | THE SMOKING JOINT | Smokeface Grillahs |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 169.7028 | 163.4628 | 153.7372 |
| Pork Ribs | 173.1772 | 158.2628 | 156.6172 |
| Pork | 169.7256 | 164.6056 | 154.8228 |
| Brisket | 170.2972 | 161.0856 | 150.2740 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
15 entries · top 663.9540 · median 628.0116
Chicken
15 entries · top 169.7028 · median 154.8456
Pork Ribs
15 entries · top 173.1772 · median 157.0856
Pork
15 entries · top 169.7256 · median 156
Brisket
15 entries · top 170.2972 · median 154.2512
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
9 entries · top 176.5600 · median 161.6456