A new contest record
688.0460
highest overall ever cooked here
688.0460 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 685.1084 The Smokey Bandits set in 2014.
- old record 685.1084
- set 2014 by The Smokey Bandits
Tony Stone Low & Slow BBQ Competition 2015
May 23–24, 2015 · Hoofddorp, Netherlands · NETHERLANDS
BUNCH OF SWINES won Grand Champion at the Tony Stone Low & Slow BBQ Competition on May 23, 2015 in Hoofddorp Netherlands,, scoring 688.0460 in a field of 68 teams. iQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 676.0232. Category winners: Chicken — BR.BQ (178.3200); Pork Ribs — SEA SIDE SMOKERS (171.9772); Pork — BUNCH OF SWINES (176.6172); Brisket — Red Hogs Bar-B-Q team (174.2744). This is the 3rd of 6 editions of this contest on record; the 2014 edition was won by The Smokey Bandits; the next was held in 2016.
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.
430.63
median 639.30
688.05 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 178.32
- Pork Ribs 171.98
- Pork 176.62
- Brisket 174.27
20
178.32
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2018 — this edition picked out.
Entries
68
4 judged meats · 2 ancillary
Top score
688.0460
Winning margin
12.0228
GC over RC
Field average
633.40
430.63688.05
median 639.30 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
3.4056 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
657.6224
430.63688.05
10th place overall
Field spread
257.4172
winner to last place
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 75%
beats 25% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
19%
8 of 43 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.48 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,506
avg power rating going in · stronger than 5% 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 statement win
12.0228
points clear of the field
Wider than 92% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The champion won by 12.0228 points — a wider margin than 92% of championships in the data.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 12 calls decided inside half a point
Pork places 7–8: The Smokey Bandits and Sticky D's BBQ tied on 170.2972 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 9–10: PUREBBQ and LOWLAND SMOKERS tied on 169.7028 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 6–7: BUNCH OF SWINES edged iQ by 0.0112.
- Pork 7–8 · tie
- Pork 9–10 · tie
- Pork Ribs 6–7 · 0.0112
- Pork Ribs 5–6 · 0.0116
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
BUNCH OF SWINES took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork ribs at 6th.
- Chicken 2nd
- Pork Ribs 6th
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 5th
A contest record in chicken
178.3200
best chicken ever cooked here
BR.BQ turned in 178.3200 in chicken — past the 177.7144 that had stood across 2 earlier editions.
- old best 177.7144
- across 2 past editions
Back to defend
2
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: LOWLAND SMOKERS (won 2013), The Smokey Bandits (won 2014).
- LOWLAND SMOKERS · 2013
- The Smokey Bandits · 2014
One of the big ones
68
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 95% of the 5,469 contests in the data
68 teams — bigger than 95% of the 5,469 contests in the data.
The biggest field yet
68
teams — a contest high
This contest usually draws about 38 teams
68 teams is the deepest field this contest has drawn in the data, against a typical 38.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18, 2013 | Hoofddorp, Netherlands | Hoofddorp, Netherlands, | 32 | 647.4284 | LOWLAND SMOKERS | BUNCH OF SWINES |
| Jun 7, 2014 | Hoofddorp, NE | Hoofddorp, Ne | 43 | 685.1084 | The Smokey Bandits | Smokey Goodness (NL) |
| May 23, 2015 ← this one | Hoofddorp Netherlands | Hoofddorp Netherlands, | 68 | 688.0460 | BUNCH OF SWINES | iQ |
| May 14, 2016 | Hoofddorp Netherlands, NL | Hoofddorp Netherlands, NL | 65 | 686.2056 | FLAMING PIG BBQ (SE) | Rubmaster BBQ team |
| Jun 3, 2017 | Hoofddorp Netherlands | Hoofddorp Netherlands, 2314CG | 56 | 683.3940 | UNCLE TONY'S COCKNEY Q | LETZQ |
| May 19, 2018 | Hoofddorp | Hoofddorp , 2314CG | 60 | 681.1084 | BBQ+ | Westwoodfield BBQ (DK) |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.3200 | 171.4284 | 169.1656 |
| Pork Ribs | 171.9772 | 168.5716 | 165.7716 |
| Pork | 176.6172 | 171.4284 | 169.7028 |
| Brisket | 174.2744 | 169.1544 | 167.4056 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
68 entries · top 688.0460 · median 639.2970
Chicken
68 entries · top 178.3200 · median 162.2514
Pork Ribs
68 entries · top 171.9772 · median 160.2456
Pork
67 entries · top 176.6172 · median 160.5372
Brisket
68 entries · top 174.2744 · median 158.5428
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
48 entries · top 180 · median 169.4114 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BBQ WIESEL | |
| 2 | The Danish National BBQ team | |
| 3 | Dragon BBQ | |
| 4 | European All Star BBQ team | |
| 5 | ACHTERHOEK BROILERS | |
| 6 | LOWLAND SMOKERS | |
| 7 | THE DUTCH BBQ CREW | |
| 8 | iQ | |
| 9 | Ghost BBQ | |
| 10 | ROYAAL BBQ | |
| 11 | PUREBBQ | |
| 12 | TEAM ANONIEM | |
| 13 | BBQ4ALL DEFENDERS | |
| 14 | Fire, Food & Flavor | |
| 15 | Backyard Superstar Grill Heros | |
| 16 | BBQ4ALL International | |
| 17 | Tjoppie Doppie BBQ Team | |
| 18 | WETTELS ON FIRE | |
| 19 | MISS PIGGY'S U.K. | |
| 20 | Sticky D's BBQ | |
| 21 | GOURMONDS | |
| 22 | Baerl B Q | |
| 23 | SEA SIDE SMOKERS | |
| 24 | Rock & Roast | |
| 25 | Vikings BBQ | |
| 26 | BBQ Team Smoke it All | |
| 27 | De Zwarte Hand | |
| 28 | Smoking Monnicks | |
| 29 | BBQ LONGHORN RANCH HANDS | |
| 30 | RIDDLEQ'S | |
| 31 | LOW AND SLOW MEISTER | |
| 32 | BBQ+ | |
| 33 | BBQGURU.NL | |
| 34 | Turnpike Smokers | |
| 35 | Kennemer Caveman | |
| 36 | BM Grils & Smokers | |
| 37 | ALLSEASONED DUTCH BBQ TEAM | |
| 38 | Serial Grillaz | |
| 39 | BACKYARD BBQ TEAM HOLLAND | |
| 40 | IRON BBQ | |
| 41 | BBQ TEAM XTREME | |
| 42 | The Smokey Bandits | |
| 43 | WESTHOEK SMOKERS | |
| 44 | Red Hogs Bar-B-Q team | |
| 45 | De Vliegende Hollander | |
| 46 | SMOKEY GOODNESS | |
| 47 | Dutch BBQ team | |
| 48 | DE FILOUS |
Master Series — United World Grill Sauce
55 entries · top 176 · median 156.5600