A new contest record
702.2628
highest overall ever cooked here
702.2628 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 697.0744 CLARK CREW BBQ set in 2015.
- old record 697.0744
- set 2015 by CLARK CREW BBQ
Bar-B-Cure 2016
Nov 18–19, 2016 · Knoxville, TN · 📍 9133 Hunter Valley Lane
PALMETTO PITMASTERS won Grand Champion at the Bar-B-Cure on November 18, 2016 in Knoxville, TN at 9133 Hunter Valley Lane, scoring 702.2628 in a field of 29 teams. CONTAGIOUS Q took Reserve Grand Champion with 698.8228. Category winners: Chicken — THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW (179.4400); Pork Ribs — UNDER THE RADAR (177.7144); Pork — ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE (178.8572); Brisket — PALMETTO PITMASTERS (176.5600). This is the 2nd of 2 editions of this contest on record; the 2015 edition was won by CLARK CREW BBQ.
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.
611.22
median 671.27
702.26 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 179.44
- Pork Ribs 177.71
- Pork 178.86
- Brisket 176.56
136.49
179.44
Entries
29
4 judged meats · 3 ancillary
Top score
702.2628
Winning margin
3.4400
GC over RC
Field average
672.62
611.22702.26
median 671.27 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork
2.2972 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
681.0628
611.22702.26
10th place overall
Field spread
91.0396
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 24%
beats 76% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
49%
17 of 35 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.78 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,587
avg power rating going in · stronger than 69% 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.
An upset on the books
17-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 83 times in 100
PALMETTO PITMASTERS came in rated below the field's top team, Organizer Portal, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 17-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1649
- top seed 1920
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 14 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 3–4: PALMETTO PITMASTERS and Doc and the Bear tied on 177.7028 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 5–6: PARROTHEAD SMOKERS and CONTAGIOUS Q tied on 176.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 8–9: ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE and UNCLE BUTCH BARBEQUE tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 3–4 · tie
- Chicken 5–6 · tie
- Chicken 8–9 · tie
- Pork Ribs 8–9 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
PALMETTO PITMASTERS took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork at 9th.
- Chicken 3rd
- Pork Ribs 2nd
- Pork 9th
- Brisket 1st
A contest record in chicken
179.4400
best chicken ever cooked here
THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW turned in 179.4400 in chicken — past the 177.7028 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 177.7028
- across 1 past editions
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 20, 2015 | Knoxville, TN | Knoxville, TN 37922 | 35 | 697.0744 | CLARK CREW BBQ | FIREHOUSE SMOKERS TN |
| Nov 18, 2016 ← this one | Knoxville, TN | 9133 Hunter Valley Lane | 29 | 702.2628 | PALMETTO PITMASTERS | CONTAGIOUS Q |
| Nov 10, 2017 | Knoxville, TN | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 179.4400 | 176.5600 | 174.2628 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7144 | 173.7488 | 172.0116 |
| Pork | 178.8572 | 176.5600 | 171.9656 |
| Brisket | 176.5600 | 173.1200 | 171.9656 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
29 entries · top 702.2628 · median 671.2684
Chicken
29 entries · top 179.4400 · median 171.9656
Pork Ribs
29 entries · top 177.7144 · median 169.6800
Pork
29 entries · top 178.8572 · median 167.9888
Brisket
29 entries · top 176.5600 · median 167.3712
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
8 entries · top 165.6684 · median 146.8686
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doc and the Bear | |
| 2 | PALMETTO PITMASTERS | |
| 3 | THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW | |
| 4 | SOGGY BOTTOM SMOKERS | |
| 5 | UNCLE BUTCH BARBEQUE | |
| 6 | Louisville Branded BBQ | |
| 7 | DIRTY OL' BUTT SLAPPERS | |
| 8 | Smokin S's |
Master Series — Sauce
6 entries · top 165.1428 · median 157.6914
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SOGGY BOTTOM SMOKERS | |
| 2 | Louisville Branded BBQ | |
| 3 | THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW | |
| 4 | TWIN CHEEKS BBQ | |
| 5 | PARADISE QUE | |
| 6 | UNCLE BUTCH BARBEQUE |
Master Series — Seafood
3 entries · top 169.7716 · median 160.4912
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | DIRTY OL' BUTT SLAPPERS | |
| 2 | THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW | |
| 3 | Doc and the Bear |