May 4–5, 2018 · Appleton, WI · 📍 W3010 Edgewood Trail
LUCKY'S Q won Grand Champion at The Masters In May ( DAY 1) on May 4, 2018 in Appleton, WI at W3010 Edgewood Trail, scoring 686.2624 in a field of 54 teams. BIG "E" BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 680.5716. Category winners: Chicken — Fergolicious BBQ (175.4172); Pork Ribs — 270 SMOKERS (177.7372); Pork — 43RD PARALLEL BBQ (174.8800); Brisket — IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (176.0000). This is the 2nd of 3 editions of this contest on record; the 2017 edition was won by SHIGGIN & GRINNIN; the next was held in 2018.
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
What it has taken to win here, 2017 to 2018 — this edition picked out.
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 68 times in 100
LUCKY'S Q came in rated below the field's top team, IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 32-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
LUCKY'S Q won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 2 calls from 4 boards, best of them 3rd. Consistency beat fireworks.
Stronger than 99% of every rated contest
The field averaged a 1677 power rating going in — stronger than 99% of every contest tracked.
Chicken places 1–2: Fergolicious BBQ and SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 2–3: CRASH TEST SMOKERS and PELLET ENVY tied on 174.2744 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 7–8: CLARK CREW BBQ edged THE REAL SMOKIN ACES by 0.0116.
270 SMOKERS turned in 177.7372 in pork ribs — past the 176.0116 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: SHIGGIN & GRINNIN (won 2017).
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 2017 | Appleton, WI | W3010 Edgewood Trail | 56 | 690.2744 | SHIGGIN & GRINNIN | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
| May 4, 2018 ← this one | Appleton, WI | W3010 Edgewood Trail | 54 | 686.2624 | LUCKY'S Q | BIG "E" BBQ |
| May 5, 2018 | Appleton, WI | W3010 Edgewood Trail | 54 | 687.3140 | SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ | 270 SMOKERS |
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 175.4172 | 173.1428 | 169.7028 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7372 | 173.7372 | 168.5256 |
| Pork | 174.8800 | 171.9656 | 169.1428 |
| Brisket | 176 | 172.5484 | 170.2744 |
54 entries · top 686.2624 · median 654.7770
54 entries · top 175.4172 · median 165.7260
54 entries · top 177.7372 · median 162.2630
54 entries · top 174.8800 · median 163.6570
53 entries · top 176 · median 166.2284
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.
23 entries · top 170.2972 · median 156.5832