A new contest record
701.7372
highest overall ever cooked here
701.7372 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 693.6800 ROOFTOP BBQ set in 2018.
- old record 693.6800
- set 2018 by ROOFTOP BBQ
Cedar Fest BBQ Cook-Off 2019
Apr 5–6, 2019 · Cedar Park, TX · 📍 1901 Sunchase Blvd · State championship
Reps: Bob McKinnon, Terri McKinnon
TEXAS-CAR-B-QUE won Grand Champion at the Cedar Fest BBQ Cook-Off on April 5, 2019 in Cedar Park, TX at 1901 Sunchase Blvd, scoring 701.7372 in a field of 61 teams. KISS MY RACK took Reserve Grand Champion with 694.8116. Category winners: Chicken — TEXAS-CAR-B-QUE (178.8572); Pork Ribs — Finger Lickin' Que (177.7372); Pork — BarrelHead Cookers (178.2972); Brisket — Lonestar-que-crew (177.1428). This is the 4th of 8 editions of this contest on record; the 2018 edition was won by ROOFTOP BBQ; the next was held in 2021.
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.
493.01
median 644.50
701.74 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 178.86
- Pork Ribs 177.74
- Pork 178.30
- Brisket 177.14
131.30
178.86
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2014 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
61
4 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
701.7372
Winning margin
6.9256
GC over RC
Field average
641.56
493.01701.74
median 644.50 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
3.4516 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
674.7772
493.01701.74
10th place overall
Field spread
208.7316
winner to last place
Double threats
4
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 25%
beats 75% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
36%
25 of 69 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.46 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,532
avg power rating going in · stronger than 23% of contests
Storylines (7 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.
A first Grand Championship
44
tracked contests to get there
This was Texas-car-b-que's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 44th tracked contest.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 15 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 5–6: POPS' SMOKIN' BBQ and RIO VALLEY MEAT BBQ tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 5–6: ONE MAN PITS and HELL BENT 100% TEXAS COOKERS tied on 174.2972 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 8–9: TEXAS-CAR-B-QUE and RIO VALLEY MEAT BBQ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 5–6 · tie
- Pork 5–6 · tie
- Pork 8–9 · tie
- Brisket 6–7 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
TEXAS-CAR-B-QUE took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork at 8th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 3rd
- Pork 8th
- Brisket 3rd
A contest record in chicken
178.8572
best chicken ever cooked here
TEXAS-CAR-B-QUE turned in 178.8572 in chicken — past the 177.7028 that had stood across 3 earlier editions.
- old best 177.7028
- across 3 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: FAT BOYS BBQ - TEMPLE, TX (won 2017).
- FAT BOYS BBQ - TEMPLE, TX · 2017
One of the big ones
61
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 92% of the 5,469 contests in the data
61 teams — bigger than 92% of the 5,469 contests in the data.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 2014 | Cedar Park, TX | Cedar Park, TX 78630 | 50 | 663.9768 | TRASH CAN COOKERS | ONE MAN PITS |
| Mar 31, 2017 | Cedar Park, TX | 1901 Sunchase Blvd | 70 | 687.4284 | FAT BOYS BBQ - TEMPLE, TX | ROLLIN' SMOKE BBQ TEXAS |
| Apr 6, 2018 | Cedar Park, TX | 1901 Sunchase Blvd | 69 | 693.6800 | ROOFTOP BBQ | FAT BOYS BBQ - TEMPLE, TX |
| Apr 5, 2019 ← this one | Cedar Park, TX | 1901 Sunchase Blvd | 61 | 701.7372 | Texas-car-b-que | KISS MY RACK |
| Jun 4, 2021 | Cedar Park, TX | 1901 Sun Chase Blvd | 48 | 702.8800 | Chicken Fried BBQ | LA PASADITA |
| Apr 1, 2022 | Cedar Park, TX | 1901 Sun Chase Blvd | 56 | 698.2284 | Chingon BBQ | Texas Chrome Hero's Foundation |
| Apr 10, 2026 | Cedar Park, TX | Elizabeth Milburn Park Cedar Park | 41 | 702.8228 | PS I LOVE YOU BBQ | Si Quema BBQ |
| Apr 2, 2027 | Cedar Park, TX | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8572 | 175.4056 | 173.1084 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7372 | 173.1544 | 171.4172 |
| Pork | 178.2972 | 174.2972 | 173.7600 |
| Brisket | 177.1428 | 171.9772 | 169.7144 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
61 entries · top 701.7372 · median 644.5028
Chicken
61 entries · top 178.8572 · median 162.2856
Pork Ribs
61 entries · top 177.7372 · median 162.8228
Pork
61 entries · top 178.2972 · median 161.1088
Brisket
60 entries · top 177.1428 · median 161.9600
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 — Cooks Choice
26 entries · top 178.3200 · median 168