A first Grand Championship
3
tracked contests to get there
This was Sweet Cheeks BBQ's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 3rd tracked contest.
Corums Building Center BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) 2019
Mar 8–9, 2019 · Harselle, AL · 📍 408 Highway 31
SWEET CHEEKS BBQ won Grand Champion at the Corums Building Center BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) on March 8, 2019 in Harselle, AL at 408 Highway 31, scoring 350.2628 in a field of 34 teams. HICKORY HANGOVER took Reserve Grand Champion with 345.6684. Category winners: Chicken — SWEET CHEEKS BBQ (177.7028); Pork Ribs — HICKORY HANGOVER (176.0000). This is the 3rd of 4 editions of this contest on record; the 2018 edition came before it; the next was held in 2020.
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.
306.21
median 331.38
350.26 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.70
- Pork Ribs 176
145.68
177.70
Entries
34
2 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
350.2628
Winning margin
4.5944
GC over RC
Field average
329.85
306.21350.26
median 331.38 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
2.8800 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
335.3600
306.21350.26
10th place overall
Field spread
44.0572
winner to last place
How hot was the win?
Top 44%
beats 56% of 610 Backyard Series wins in the data
Form held
Weak
ρ = -0.14 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,500
avg power rating going in · stronger than 1% of contests
Storylines (2 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.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 6 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 8–9: PARTTY ALL KNIGHT and Ribs For Your Pleasure tied on 170.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 5–6: Slingin Pig Meat edged Dixie Pigs and Chicks BBQ Team by 0.0116. Chicken places 6–7: Dixie Pigs and Chicks BBQ Team edged HICKORY HANGOVER by 0.0116.
- Pork Ribs 8–9 · tie
- Chicken 5–6 · 0.0116
- Chicken 6–7 · 0.0116
- Chicken 8–9 · 0.0232
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 17, 2017 | Hartselle, AL | 408 Highway 31 | — | — | — |
| Mar 9, 2018 | Hartselle, AL | 408 Highway 31 | — | — | — |
| Mar 8, 2019 ← this one | Harselle, AL | 408 Highway 31 | 34 | 350.2628 | Sweet Cheeks BBQ |
| Mar 6, 2020 | Hartselle, AL | 408 Highway 31 | 32 | 353.1200 | Hickory Hangover |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 169.6916 | 167.9772 |
| Pork Ribs | 176 | 173.1200 | 169.6800 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
34 entries · top 350.2628 · median 331.3772
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SWEET CHEEKS BBQ | |
| 2 | HICKORY HANGOVER | |
| 3 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 4 | Wynns BBQ | |
| 5 | MURPHY'S BACKYARD BBQ | |
| 6 | Thin Blue Swine | |
| 7 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 8 | LEE LA Q | |
| 9 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 10 | SOUTH RYLAND | |
| 11 | PARTTY ALL KNIGHT | |
| 12 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 13 | LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | |
| 14 | Ribs For Your Pleasure | |
| 15 | Dixie Pigs and Chicks BBQ Team | |
| 16 | RIBLIFE | |
| 17 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 18 | All Smoked Up | |
| 19 | Slingin Pig Meat | |
| 20 | Beer Pressure | |
| 21 | SMOKIN' HOT ASHES | |
| 22 | Hogs and Kisses | |
| 23 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 24 | Pit Row BBQ | |
| 25 | The Meat Whisperers | |
| 26 | Natty Que | |
| 27 | Twin States BBQ | |
| 28 | Blowin Smoke BBQ | |
| 29 | Smokin A Fatty BBQ | |
| 30 | Simply Smoked | |
| 31 | BAMA BOYS BBQ | |
| 32 | Mid Life Smokers | |
| 33 | ROCKET CITY MOONSWINERS | |
| 34 | SWINEBERG'S BBQ |
Chicken
34 entries · top 177.7028 · median 165.3770
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SWEET CHEEKS BBQ | |
| 2 | Thin Blue Swine | |
| 3 | SOUTH RYLAND | |
| 4 | Wynns BBQ | |
| 5 | Slingin Pig Meat | |
| 6 | Dixie Pigs and Chicks BBQ Team | |
| 7 | HICKORY HANGOVER | |
| 8 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 9 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 10 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 11 | Beer Pressure | |
| 12 | RIBLIFE | |
| 13 | LEE LA Q | |
| 14 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 15 | LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | |
| 16 | SMOKIN' HOT ASHES | |
| 17 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 18 | PARTTY ALL KNIGHT | |
| 19 | All Smoked Up | |
| 20 | Ribs For Your Pleasure | |
| 21 | MURPHY'S BACKYARD BBQ | |
| 22 | Blowin Smoke BBQ | |
| 23 | ROCKET CITY MOONSWINERS | |
| 24 | Twin States BBQ | |
| 25 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 26 | Pit Row BBQ | |
| 27 | SWINEBERG'S BBQ | |
| 28 | Natty Que | |
| 29 | Hogs and Kisses | |
| 30 | Smokin A Fatty BBQ | |
| 31 | Simply Smoked | |
| 32 | BAMA BOYS BBQ | |
| 33 | Mid Life Smokers | |
| 34 | The Meat Whisperers |
Pork Ribs
34 entries · top 176 · median 165.7030
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HICKORY HANGOVER | |
| 2 | MURPHY'S BACKYARD BBQ | |
| 3 | The Meat Whisperers | |
| 4 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 5 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 6 | SWEET CHEEKS BBQ | |
| 7 | LEE LA Q | |
| 8 | PARTTY ALL KNIGHT | |
| 9 | Ribs For Your Pleasure | |
| 10 | Hogs and Kisses | |
| 11 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 12 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 13 | Mid Life Smokers | |
| 14 | LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | |
| 15 | All Smoked Up | |
| 16 | BAMA BOYS BBQ | |
| 17 | Wynns BBQ | |
| 18 | RIBLIFE | |
| 19 | Simply Smoked | |
| 20 | Dixie Pigs and Chicks BBQ Team | |
| 21 | Smokin A Fatty BBQ | |
| 22 | Pit Row BBQ | |
| 23 | Beer Pressure | |
| 24 | Bonnie Blue BBQ | |
| 25 | SMOKIN' HOT ASHES | |
| 26 | Natty Que | |
| 27 | SOUTH RYLAND | |
| 28 | Thin Blue Swine | |
| 29 | Slingin Pig Meat | |
| 30 | Twin States BBQ | |
| 31 | Gustoso BBQ | |
| 32 | Blowin Smoke BBQ | |
| 33 | ROCKET CITY MOONSWINERS | |
| 34 | SWINEBERG'S BBQ |
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.
Ancillary — Steak
20 entries · top 174.8688 · median 166.0172
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ROCKET CITY MOONSWINERS | |
| 2 | Smokin A Fatty BBQ | |
| 3 | LEE LA Q | |
| 4 | Simply Smoked | |
| 5 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 6 | Beer Pressure | |
| 7 | SOUTH RYLAND | |
| 8 | Mid Life Smokers | |
| 9 | BAMA BOYS BBQ | |
| 10 | RIBLIFE | |
| 11 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 12 | Blowin Smoke BBQ | |
| 13 | Dixie Pigs and Chicks BBQ Team | |
| 14 | SMOKIN' HOT ASHES | |
| 15 | Fat, Drunk, & Stupid | |
| 16 | SWEET CHEEKS BBQ | |
| 17 | Wynns BBQ | |
| 18 | PNJ BarBQ | |
| 19 | Joe Tankersley | |
| 20 | Slingin Pig Meat |