A new contest record
716.0000
highest overall ever cooked here
716.0000 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 702.2400 Local Yokels set in 2021.
- old record 702.2400
- set 2021 by Local Yokels
Smoke on the Ohio 2022
Sep 9–10, 2022 · Mt. Vernon, IN · 📍 Riverbend Park · State championship
Reps: Debra Gage, William Gage · Prize money: $5,150
LOCAL YOKELS BBQ won Grand Champion at the Smoke on the Ohio on September 9, 2022 in Mt. Vernon, IN at Riverbend Park, scoring 716.0000 in a field of 12 teams. DB BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 699.9656. Category winners: Chicken — LOCAL YOKELS BBQ (177.7028); Pork Ribs — LOCAL YOKELS BBQ (178.8572); Pork — LOCAL YOKELS BBQ (179.4400); Brisket — DB BBQ (180.0000). This is the 5th of 9 editions of this contest on record; the 2021 edition was won by Local Yokels; the next was held in 2023.
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.
632.91
median 657.83
716 🏆
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 178.86
- Pork 179.44
- Brisket 180 🔥
149.63
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2017 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
12
4 judged meats
Top score
716
Winning margin
16.0344
GC over RC
Field average
664.27
632.91716
median 657.83 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Chicken
7.4172 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
644.4116
632.91716
10th place overall
Field spread
83.0864
winner to last place
Prize money
$5,150
on the line
Double threats
5
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 0%
beats 100% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
38%
6 of 16 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.36 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,522
avg power rating going in · stronger than 15% of contests
Storylines (9 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.
Back-to-back
2 in a row
editions of this contest
Local Yokels won here last time out too — 2 straight editions of this contest.
- 2021
- 2022
A statement win
16.0344
points clear of the field
Wider than 97% of the 4,710 championships in the data
The champion won by 16.0344 points — a wider margin than 97% of championships in the data.
A hat-trick of category wins
3
category wins in a day
LOCAL YOKELS BBQ won Chicken, Pork Ribs, Pork — a hat-trick, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
A dynasty in the making
3×
wins at this contest
3 of 9 tracked editions
Scuffletown Smokers has won this contest 3 times across its 9 tracked editions.
- 2019
- 2023
- 2026
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 7 calls decided inside half a point
Brisket places 1–2: DB BBQ and LOCAL YOKELS BBQ tied on 180.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 6–7: Global Smokers edged AbiCue by 0.0116. Chicken places 4–5: Global Smokers edged MAMA'S BOY BBQ by 0.0116.
- Brisket 1–2 · tie
- Brisket 6–7 · 0.0116
- Chicken 4–5 · 0.0116
- Pork Ribs 6–7 · 0.0228
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
LOCAL YOKELS BBQ took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 3 outright wins — their weakest board was brisket at 2nd.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 2nd
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: LOCAL YOKELS BBQ (won 2018).
- LOCAL YOKELS BBQ · 2018
A perfect score on the table
2
perfect 180s
2 perfect 180s were scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- DB BBQ · Brisket
- LOCAL YOKELS BBQ · Brisket
In the record book (1 in the KCBS record book)
What happened at this contest that stands in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record nobody has beaten.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 8, 2017 | Mt.Vernon, IN | Water St | 29 | 693.0856 | FARMER'S RETREAT SMOKIN BARBEQUE | GRUMPY GOOSE BBQ |
| Sep 7, 2018 | Mt.Vernon, IN | Water St | 28 | 701.0856 | LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ |
| Sep 13, 2019 | Mt.Vernon, IN | 1 Locust | 28 | 701.1088 | Scuffletown Smokers | ONE2BBQ |
| Sep 10, 2021 | Mt. Vernon, IN | 110 East Water St. | 16 | 702.2400 | Local Yokels | SCUFFLETOWN SMOKERS |
| Sep 9, 2022 ← this one | Mt. Vernon, IN | Riverbend Park | 12 | 716 | Local Yokels | DB BBQ |
| Sep 8, 2023 | Mt. Vernon, IN | Riverbend Park | 25 | 709.6684 | Scuffletown Smokers | DB BBQ |
| Sep 13, 2024 | Mt. Vernon, IN | Riverbend Park | 28 | 703.9428 | Mulkey's BBQ | JaBs BBQ |
| Sep 12, 2025 | Mt. Vernon, IN | Riverbend Park | 27 | 709.1428 | JaBs | SCUFFLETOWN SMOKERS |
| Sep 11, 2026 | Mt. Vernon, IN | 1817 Glen Eagles Dr. | 26 | 708 | Scuffletown Smokers | Mulkey's BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 170.2856 | 163.3944 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 166.2744 | 162.7884 |
| Pork | 179.4400 | 166.2400 | 161.6800 |
| Brisket | 180 | 167.9656 | 157.0740 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
12 entries · top 716 · median 657.8340
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | |
| 2 | DB BBQ | |
| 3 | MAMA'S BOY BBQ | |
| 4 | LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ | |
| 5 | Global Smokers | |
| 6 | RURAL ROUTE BBQ | |
| 7 | Smoke N Hope | |
| 8 | AbiCue | |
| 9 | Po Co Porkers | |
| 10 | Zillas BBQ | |
| 11 | WOinKCo. | |
| 12 | BIG RACK SMOKERS |
Chicken
12 entries · top 177.7028 · median 166.2686
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | |
| 2 | DB BBQ | |
| 3 | Po Co Porkers | |
| 4 | Global Smokers | |
| 5 | MAMA'S BOY BBQ | |
| 6 | LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ | |
| 7 | Zillas BBQ | |
| 8 | AbiCue | |
| 9 | RURAL ROUTE BBQ | |
| 10 | Smoke N Hope | |
| 11 | WOinKCo. | |
| 12 | BIG RACK SMOKERS |
Pork Ribs
12 entries · top 178.8572 · median 165.1314
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | |
| 2 | MAMA'S BOY BBQ | |
| 3 | DB BBQ | |
| 4 | Global Smokers | |
| 5 | Zillas BBQ | |
| 6 | Smoke N Hope | |
| 7 | LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ | |
| 8 | WOinKCo. | |
| 9 | AbiCue | |
| 10 | RURAL ROUTE BBQ | |
| 11 | BIG RACK SMOKERS | |
| 12 | Po Co Porkers |
Pork
12 entries · top 179.4400 · median 164.2342
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | |
| 2 | DB BBQ | |
| 3 | LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ | |
| 4 | Global Smokers | |
| 5 | MAMA'S BOY BBQ | |
| 6 | RURAL ROUTE BBQ | |
| 7 | Zillas BBQ | |
| 8 | BIG RACK SMOKERS | |
| 9 | Smoke N Hope | |
| 10 | AbiCue | |
| 11 | WOinKCo. | |
| 12 | Po Co Porkers |
Brisket
12 entries · top 180 · median 165.0914 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | DB BBQ | |
| 2 | LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | |
| 3 | LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ | |
| 4 | RURAL ROUTE BBQ | |
| 5 | MAMA'S BOY BBQ | |
| 6 | Global Smokers | |
| 7 | AbiCue | |
| 8 | Po Co Porkers | |
| 9 | Smoke N Hope | |
| 10 | BIG RACK SMOKERS | |
| 11 | WOinKCo. | |
| 12 | Zillas BBQ |