A new contest record
698.2516
highest overall ever cooked here
698.2516 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 694.7884 IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ set in 2014.
- old record 694.7884
- set 2014 by IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ
Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitation Barbecue (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) 2015
Oct 23–24, 2015 · Lynchburg, TN
COOL SMOKE won Grand Champion at the Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitation Barbecue (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) on October 23, 2015 in Lynchburg, TN, scoring 698.2516 in a field of 93 teams. PARROTHEAD SMOKERS took Reserve Grand Champion with 691.9772. Category winners: Chicken — SWINE LIFE (178.2972); Pork Ribs — Drunken Brisket (177.7372); Pork — COOL SMOKE (177.7028); Brisket — PARROTHEAD SMOKERS (178.2972). This is the 2nd of 5 editions of this contest on record; the 2014 edition was won by IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ; 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.
586.11
median 670.25
698.25 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 178.30
- Pork Ribs 177.74
- Pork 177.70
- Brisket 178.30
135.93
178.30
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2014 to 2018 — this edition picked out.
Entries
93
4 judged meats · 3 ancillary
Top score
698.2516
Winning margin
6.2744
GC over RC
Field average
665.82
586.11698.25
median 670.25 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
1.1200 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
685.6340
586.11698.25
10th place overall
Field spread
112.1372
winner to last place
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 40%
beats 60% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
25%
23 of 92 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.51 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,644
avg power rating going in · stronger than 94% of contests
Storylines (9 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.
An upset on the books
13-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 87 times in 100
Cool Smoke came in rated below the field's top team, IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 13-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1635
- top seed 1961
A dynasty in the making
2×
wins at this contest
2 of 5 tracked editions
COOL SMOKE has won this contest 2 times across its 5 tracked editions.
- 2015
- 2016
A stacked field
1644
average power rating going in
Stronger than 94% of every rated contest
The field averaged a 1644 power rating going in — stronger than 94% of every contest tracked.
- top seed IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (1961)
- 93 rated teams
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 17 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 1–2: SWINE LIFE and * BBQ Wiesel tied on 178.2972 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 3–4: * MISS PIGGY'S U.K. and COOL SMOKE tied on 177.7144 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 5–6: UNCULTURED SWINE and CLARK CREW BBQ tied on 177.1772 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 1–2 · tie
- Chicken 3–4 · tie
- Chicken 5–6 · tie
- Chicken 7–8 · tie
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
COOL SMOKE took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was brisket at 46th.
- Chicken 4th
- Pork Ribs 6th
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 46th
A contest record in pork ribs
177.7372
best pork ribs ever cooked here
Drunken Brisket turned in 177.7372 in pork ribs — past the 177.7028 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 177.7028
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (won 2014).
- IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ · 2014
One of the big ones
93
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 98% of the 5,462 contests in the data
93 teams — bigger than 98% of the 5,462 contests in the data.
This contest's own records (1 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 24, 2014 | Lynchburg, TN | Lynchburg, TN 37352 | 92 | 694.7884 | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ | CHIX, SWINE & BOVINE BBQ |
| Oct 23, 2015 ← this one | Lynchburg, TN | Lynchburg, TN 37352 | 93 | 698.2516 | COOL SMOKE | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS |
| Oct 21, 2016 | Lynchburg, TN | Wiseman Park | 96 | 701.1084 | COOL SMOKE | PIGSKIN BBQ |
| Oct 27, 2017 | Lynchburg, TN | Wiseman Park | 95 | 708.0684 | ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE | TheAmericanDreamBBQTeam |
| Oct 26, 2018 | Lynchburg, TN | Wiseman Park | 102 | 700.5372 | BUTCHER BBQ | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.2972 | 177.1772 | 176.5828 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7372 | 175.4400 | 174.2744 |
| Pork | 177.7028 | 176.5600 | 173.1772 |
| Brisket | 178.2972 | 176.5600 | 173.1084 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
93 entries · top 698.2516 · median 670.2512
Chicken
93 entries · top 178.2972 · median 168.5484
Pork Ribs
93 entries · top 177.7372 · median 168
Pork
93 entries · top 177.7028 · median 166.8228
Brisket
93 entries · top 178.2972 · median 167.3828
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/Hlome Cookin' For The Homeland
39 entries · top 178.8800 · median 167.3944
Master Series — Dessert
43 entries · top 180 · median 172 · 🔥 perfect 180
Master Series — Sauce
69 entries · top 180 · median 166.8572 · 🔥 perfect 180