A new contest record
702.8572
highest overall ever cooked here
702.8572 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 693.6684 OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE set in 2017.
- old record 693.6684
- set 2017 by OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE
RED, WHITE and BAR-B-Q ( DAY 2) 2018
May 26–27, 2018 · Westmont, IL · 📍 Blackhawk Dr (TY Warner Park)
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN won Grand Champion at the RED, WHITE and BAR-B-Q ( DAY 2) on May 26, 2018 in Westmont, IL at Blackhawk Dr (TY Warner Park), scoring 702.8572 in a field of 60 teams. BOOMERANG BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 693.6572. Category winners: Chicken — ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN (177.1428); Pork Ribs — D.F.G.'S BBQ (177.1544); Pork — ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN (178.8572); Brisket — CONTAGIOUS Q (178.8572). This is the 4th of 4 editions of this contest on record; the 2018 edition was won by BOOMERANG 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.
582.18
median 660.24
702.86 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.14
- Pork Ribs 177.15
- Pork 178.86
- Brisket 178.86
128.46
178.86
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2017 to 2018 — this edition picked out.
Entries
60
4 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
702.8572
Winning margin
9.2000
GC over RC
Field average
655.03
582.18702.86
median 660.24 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
2.8800 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
681.6112
582.18702.86
10th place overall
Field spread
120.6744
winner to last place
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 21%
beats 79% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
100%
49 of 49 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.79 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,599
avg power rating going in · stronger than 77% of contests
Storylines (11 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
21-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 79 times in 100
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN came in rated below the field's top team, IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 21-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1808
- top seed 2039
A statement win
9.2000
points clear of the field
Wider than 85% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The champion won by 9.2000 points — a wider margin than 85% of championships in the data.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 13 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 4–5: KALAMAZOO PIT POSSE and UNCLE SPANKY'S tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 4–5: ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN and LEGENDS OF SMOKE - TEAM RED ARROW tied on 173.1428 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 4–5: IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ and BIG "E" BBQ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 4–5 · tie
- Pork Ribs 4–5 · tie
- Brisket 4–5 · tie
- Brisket 5–6 · tie
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN won Chicken, Pork — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork 1st
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was brisket at 7th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 4th
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 7th
A contest record in pork
178.8572
best pork ever cooked here
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN turned in 178.8572 in pork — past the 174.2856 that had stood across 3 earlier editions.
- old best 174.2856
- across 3 past editions
Back to defend
3
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: BILLY RAY BBQ (won 2017), OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE (won 2017), BOOMERANG BBQ (won 2018).
- BILLY RAY BBQ · 2017
- OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE · 2017
- BOOMERANG BBQ · 2018
One of the big ones
60
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 92% of the 5,469 contests in the data
60 teams — bigger than 92% of the 5,469 contests in the data.
The biggest field yet
60
teams — a contest high
This contest usually draws about 49 teams
60 teams is the deepest field this contest has drawn in the data, against a typical 49.
They keep coming back
100%
of last edition’s field returned
49 of 49 teams from 2018-05-25 came back
49 of the 49 teams that cooked the previous edition came back for this one — a contest people put on the calendar.
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 26, 2017 | Westmont, IL | Blackhawk Dr (TY Warner Park) | 40 | 676.5028 | BILLY RAY BBQ | OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE |
| May 27, 2017 | Westmont, IL | Blackhawk Dr (TY Warner Park) | 59 | 693.6684 | OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE | DIRT ROAD BBQ |
| May 25, 2018 | Westmont, IL | Blackhawk Dr (TY Warner Park) | 49 | 686.8344 | BOOMERANG BBQ | GRILLS GONE WILD IOWA |
| May 26, 2018 ← this one | Westmont, IL | Blackhawk Dr (TY Warner Park) | 60 | 702.8572 | ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN | BOOMERANG BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.1428 | 174.2628 | 172 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.1544 | 173.1428 | 170.8800 |
| Pork | 178.8572 | 175.4056 | 171.4172 |
| Brisket | 178.8572 | 174.2628 | 171.4056 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
60 entries · top 702.8572 · median 660.2402
Chicken
60 entries · top 177.1428 · median 166.8344
Pork Ribs
60 entries · top 177.1544 · median 163.9886
Pork
60 entries · top 178.8572 · median 166.2686
Brisket
60 entries · top 178.8572 · median 162.2458
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 — Pork Loin
37 entries · top 177.7144 · median 159.3944