A new contest record
707.4172
highest overall ever cooked here
707.4172 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 706.2744 Slaps BBQ set in 2021.
- old record 706.2744
- set 2021 by Slaps BBQ
Knights of Columbus BBQ Smoke Off "4 Life" 2023
Jun 16–17, 2023 · Kansas City, KS · 📍 Our Lady of Unity · State championship
Reps: Dave Rogers, Larry Hadley · Prize money: $5,000
BrewsCue won Grand Champion at the Knights of Columbus BBQ Smoke Off "4 Life" on June 16, 2023 in Kansas City, KS at Our Lady of Unity, scoring 707.4172 in a field of 29 teams. Cow Creek BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 702.2284. Category winners: Chicken — SLAPS BBQ (180.0000); Pork Ribs — BrewsCue (179.4400); Pork — Cow Creek BBQ (180.0000); Brisket — BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE (178.8572). This is the 6th of 6 editions of this contest on record; the 2022 edition was won by Go Pig or Go Home.
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.
602.74
median 681.09
707.42 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 180 🔥
- Pork Ribs 179.44
- Pork 180 🔥
- Brisket 178.86
140.48
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2017 to 2023 — this edition picked out.
Entries
29
4 judged meats · 2 ancillary
Top score
707.4172
Winning margin
5.1888
GC over RC
Field average
672.06
602.74707.42
median 681.09 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Chicken
2.2972 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
689.0628
602.74707.42
10th place overall
Field spread
104.6740
winner to last place
Prize money
$5,000
on the line
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 7%
beats 93% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
45%
13 of 29 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.59 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,613
avg power rating going in · stronger than 84% 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.
An upset on the books
A first Grand Championship
13
tracked contests to get there
This was BrewsCue's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 13th tracked contest.
A day of perfect scores
4
perfect 180s
4 perfect 180s were scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- SLAPS BBQ · Chicken
- Cow Creek BBQ · Chicken
- Cow Creek BBQ · Pork
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 11 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 1–2: SLAPS BBQ and Cow Creek BBQ tied on 180.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 4–5: Simple Q Barbeque and 3 PIGS SMOKIN tied on 177.7028 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 6–7: Happy Grillmore and LOVE 2 Q tied on 176.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 1–2 · tie
- Chicken 4–5 · tie
- Chicken 6–7 · tie
- Chicken 8–9 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
BrewsCue took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was brisket at 10th.
- Chicken 8th
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 10th
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: Slaps BBQ (won 2021).
- Slaps BBQ · 2021
In the record book (2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 16, 2017 | Kansas City, KS | 2646 S 34th St | 34 | 694.7772 | HIGH i QUE II | Fergolicious BBQ |
| Jun 15, 2018 | Kansas City, KS | 2646 S 34th St | 32 | 693.1084 | SKUNK RIVER BBQ | GETTIN' SAUCED |
| Jun 14, 2019 | Kansas City, KS | 2646 S 34th St | 38 | 688.5028 | Fergolicious BBQ | SLAPS BBQ |
| Jun 18, 2021 | Kansas City, KS | Our Lady of Unity | 37 | 706.2744 | Slaps BBQ | Barking Dog BBQ |
| Jun 17, 2022 | Kansas City, KS | Our Lady of Unity | 29 | 705.0856 | Go Pig or Go Home | LOVE 2 Q |
| Jun 16, 2023 ← this one | Kansas City, KS | Our Lady of Unity | 29 | 707.4172 | BrewsCue | Cow Creek BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180 | 177.7028 | 174.8456 |
| Pork Ribs | 179.4400 | 174.2972 | 173.1200 |
| Pork | 180 | 175.4172 | 172 |
| Brisket | 178.8572 | 176 | 172.5600 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
29 entries · top 707.4172 · median 681.0860
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BrewsCue | |
| 2 | Cow Creek BBQ | |
| 3 | SLAPS BBQ | |
| 4 | Happy Grillmore | |
| 5 | HIGH i QUE | |
| 6 | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | |
| 7 | 3 PIGS SMOKIN | |
| 8 | LOVE 2 Q | |
| 9 | JANKY LEG BBQ | |
| 10 | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | |
| 11 | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD | |
| 12 | Barking Dog BBQ | |
| 13 | HEFTY LEFTY BBQ | |
| 14 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 15 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 16 | Notch 9 | |
| 17 | Ambition Que | |
| 18 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS | |
| 19 | B & D BBQ | |
| 20 | Flying W North BBQ | |
| 21 | Crooked Que | |
| 22 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 23 | Who's Cookin' | |
| 24 | Simple Q Barbeque | |
| 25 | Trailer Pork Boys | |
| 26 | Smoke-A-Holics | |
| 27 | RUB THAT MEAT BBQ | |
| 28 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 29 | 4 Meat Sakes |
Chicken
29 entries · top 180 · median 170.8228 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SLAPS BBQ | |
| 2 | Cow Creek BBQ | |
| 3 | HIGH i QUE | |
| 4 | Simple Q Barbeque | |
| 5 | 3 PIGS SMOKIN | |
| 6 | Happy Grillmore | |
| 7 | LOVE 2 Q | |
| 8 | BrewsCue | |
| 9 | HEFTY LEFTY BBQ | |
| 10 | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | |
| 11 | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD | |
| 12 | Barking Dog BBQ | |
| 13 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 14 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS | |
| 15 | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | |
| 16 | Ambition Que | |
| 17 | Who's Cookin' | |
| 18 | JANKY LEG BBQ | |
| 19 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 20 | Flying W North BBQ | |
| 21 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 22 | B & D BBQ | |
| 23 | Notch 9 | |
| 24 | Crooked Que | |
| 25 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 26 | Trailer Pork Boys | |
| 27 | Smoke-A-Holics | |
| 28 | RUB THAT MEAT BBQ | |
| 29 | 4 Meat Sakes |
Pork Ribs
29 entries · top 179.4400 · median 169.7488
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BrewsCue | |
| 2 | SLAPS BBQ | |
| 3 | HEFTY LEFTY BBQ | |
| 4 | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | |
| 5 | JANKY LEG BBQ | |
| 6 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 7 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS | |
| 8 | Happy Grillmore | |
| 9 | Barking Dog BBQ | |
| 10 | Flying W North BBQ | |
| 11 | Crooked Que | |
| 12 | Cow Creek BBQ | |
| 13 | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | |
| 14 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 15 | LOVE 2 Q | |
| 16 | HIGH i QUE | |
| 17 | Who's Cookin' | |
| 18 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 19 | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD | |
| 20 | 3 PIGS SMOKIN | |
| 21 | Notch 9 | |
| 22 | Smoke-A-Holics | |
| 23 | B & D BBQ | |
| 24 | Ambition Que | |
| 25 | RUB THAT MEAT BBQ | |
| 26 | Simple Q Barbeque | |
| 27 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 28 | Trailer Pork Boys | |
| 29 | 4 Meat Sakes |
Pork
29 entries · top 180 · median 169.6800 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cow Creek BBQ | |
| 2 | BrewsCue | |
| 3 | HIGH i QUE | |
| 4 | JANKY LEG BBQ | |
| 5 | Ambition Que | |
| 6 | Happy Grillmore | |
| 7 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 8 | LOVE 2 Q | |
| 9 | 3 PIGS SMOKIN | |
| 10 | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | |
| 11 | Barking Dog BBQ | |
| 12 | B & D BBQ | |
| 13 | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD | |
| 14 | Notch 9 | |
| 15 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS | |
| 16 | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | |
| 17 | SLAPS BBQ | |
| 18 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 19 | Simple Q Barbeque | |
| 20 | Crooked Que | |
| 21 | Who's Cookin' | |
| 22 | Trailer Pork Boys | |
| 23 | HEFTY LEFTY BBQ | |
| 24 | Flying W North BBQ | |
| 25 | Smoke-A-Holics | |
| 26 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 27 | RUB THAT MEAT BBQ | |
| 28 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 29 | 4 Meat Sakes |
Brisket
29 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.1428
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | |
| 2 | 3 PIGS SMOKIN | |
| 3 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 4 | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD | |
| 5 | SLAPS BBQ | |
| 6 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 7 | Happy Grillmore | |
| 8 | LOVE 2 Q | |
| 9 | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | |
| 10 | BrewsCue | |
| 11 | Notch 9 | |
| 12 | HIGH i QUE | |
| 13 | JANKY LEG BBQ | |
| 14 | Cow Creek BBQ | |
| 15 | B & D BBQ | |
| 16 | HEFTY LEFTY BBQ | |
| 17 | Flying W North BBQ | |
| 18 | Barking Dog BBQ | |
| 19 | Ambition Que | |
| 20 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 21 | RUB THAT MEAT BBQ | |
| 22 | Crooked Que | |
| 23 | Trailer Pork Boys | |
| 24 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS | |
| 25 | Who's Cookin' | |
| 26 | 4 Meat Sakes | |
| 27 | Smoke-A-Holics | |
| 28 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 29 | Simple Q Barbeque |
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 — Dessert
4 entries · top 180 · median 174.8400 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Who's Cookin' | |
| 2 | PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS | |
| 3 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 4 | Crooked Que |
Ancillary — Sausage
10 entries · top 175.4288 · median 168.5370
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Notch 9 | |
| 2 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 3 | Smoke-A-Holics | |
| 4 | MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | |
| 5 | Crooked Que | |
| 6 | 1st and 10 BBQ | |
| 7 | RUB THAT MEAT BBQ | |
| 8 | 4 Meat Sakes | |
| 9 | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | |
| 10 | LOVE 2 Q |