Smokin Suckers

Smokin Suckers is a competition barbecue team with 36 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2015 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 77 at the Minnesota in May (2026), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion 5 times. They are ranked #1392 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “Smokin' Suckers”.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,392

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1572

peak 1572 · rated over 36 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Sep 12, 2015

latest Sep 25, 2026 · 11 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#161

Master 2026 · every season

Grand champs

5 reserve

Category wins

10 podiums

Overall top-10s

28% of 36 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 53%

overall standings

Best overall

697.1088 / 720

Master · Minnesota in May

Perfect 180s

Current form

692.85 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 667.38 (+25.46)

Walk rate

56%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

178.8572

Chicken · BBQ & Fly-In on the River

Consistency

±25.34

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 168.87 · weakest Pork (165.61)

Road miles

9,429

across 36 mapped stops · furthest 4,385 mi

Schedule strength

73%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1593)

Purse competed for

$349K

listed at 29 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 30 state-championship entries

Master avg

667.38 / 720

31 Master contests · 0 GCs

Backyard avg

340.32 / 360

5 Backyard contests · 0 GCs

These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.

This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.

Storylines (14 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

The heartbreaker

0.5828 points from the title

Came within 0.5828 points of the Grand Championship at Tri City BBQ Fest (Sep 15, 2023).

On the rise

+64 rating points in a year

Their power rating has climbed 64 points across 11 contests since Oct 3, 2025 — from 1508 up to 1572.

11 contests since Oct 3, 2025
now 1572

High-water mark

697.1088 career-best overall

96.8% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 697.1088 at Minnesota in May — 96.8% of a perfect 720.

Master
May 8, 2026

The one to beat

3× one call ahead of them

HOME FARM BBQ has finished one call ahead of Smokin Suckers 3 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2023 their best year

2023 was the year it came together: 5 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 22%.

5 contests
3 overall top-10s
1 category win
average top 22%

A tough matchup

15–5 behind in the head-to-head

HOT DADDY'S BBQ ahead in 75% of their meetings

HOT DADDY'S BBQ has come out ahead in 15 of their 20 shared contests.

A strong matchup

6–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 86% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of BUCKSHOT BBQ - TX in 6 of their 7 shared contests.

Show 7 more storylines

The comeback

2 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 2 years, then back at Ottumwa 4th Annual Smoketoberfest (Sep 24, 2021).

last seen Sep 7, 2019
back Sep 24, 2021

Chicken nemesis

13 of 20 shared chicken entries lost

HOT DADDY'S BBQ ahead 65% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, HOT DADDY'S BBQ has out-cooked them in 13 of 20 shared chicken entries.

Always the bridesmaid

5 reserve championships

Runner-up for the whole thing 5 times against 0 Grand Championships — close enough to touch it, over and over.

0 Grand Championships
36 contests

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

HOT DADDY'S BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A July team

Top 42% average finish in July

Something about July: average finish in the top 42% across 5 contests, versus top 53% the rest of the year.

5 July contests
top 53% the rest of the year

The long haul

9,429 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 9,429 miles across 36 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 4,385 miles to Farm Meat.

36 mapped stops
furthest 4,385 mi

A standing appointment

5 years running at one contest

They've cooked Iowa State BBQ Championship every year from 2022 to 2026 — the contest they never miss.

5 visits in all
best finish 2nd

In the record book (on 1 all-time board)

Where this team sits in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on.

#4 😤 Most runner-up finishes without a title 5 reserve championships, no GC · across 36 contests, still waiting · May 8, 2026

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026 ↗	Master	#161 (1,073 pts)	#169 (1,063 pts)	#217 (943 pts)	#325 (628 pts)	#181 (953 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#374 (573 pts)	#325 (703 pts)	#307 (843 pts)	#386 (583 pts)	#240 (958 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#469 (409 pts)	#542 (364 pts)	#459 (519 pts)	#444 (469 pts)	#416 (524 pts)
2023 ↗	Backyard	—	#88 (704 pts)	#120 (564 pts)	—	—
2023 ↗	Master	#758 (185 pts)	#998 (125 pts)	#806 (230 pts)	#989 (120 pts)	#491 (400 pts)
2022 ↗	Backyard	—	#134 (314 pts)	#127 (324 pts)	—	—

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Smokin Suckers, each with one reason worth a look.

33 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

WELL SAUCED BBQ

#1,390 of the rated field

1572 power rating

Contests: 57
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 16%
Peak: 1587

2–1 in 3 shared contests (67% to Smokin Suckers)

These two have cooked 3 of the same contests — Smokin Suckers ahead 2–1 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.

rated over 56 contests
last seen Apr 10, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

S&S BBQ

#1,391 of the rated field

1572 power rating

Contests: 85
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 11%
Peak: 1587

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to Smokin Suckers)

A longer road to the same neighbourhood — 85 contests to 36.

rated over 84 contests
last seen Nov 5, 2025

⚔ Head-to-head

BIG ON THE PIG

#1,397 of the rated field

1572 power rating

Contests: 32
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 28%
Peak: 1579

Their last contest in the data was back in 2021, 5 years before Smokin Suckers's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 32 contests

⚔ Compare careers

JACK9 BBQ

#1,396 of the rated field

1572 power rating

Contests: 41
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 24%
Peak: 1572

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 41 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 41 contests
last seen Aug 2, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

RIDGE OUTLAWS BBQ

#1,393 of the rated field

1572 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 29%
Peak: 1572

21 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 29% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 21 contests
last seen May 1, 2021

⚔ Compare careers

HOLLA-N-SWALLA

#1,389 of the rated field

1572 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 16%
Peak: 1572

Level with Smokin Suckers on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 19 contests
last seen Jun 15, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
TEAM CRAWFORD	21	9	12	43%	⚔ compare
Bucknutz BBQ	20	13	7	65%	⚔ compare
HOT DADDY'S BBQ	20	5	15	25%	⚔ compare
T-Rex BBQ	18	7	11	39%	⚔ compare
WAG'S BACKWOODS BBQ	17	5	11	29%	⚔ compare
BBQ Pit Bros	16	8	8	50%	⚔ compare
NEVER EASY BBQ	16	8	8	50%	⚔ compare
HOME FARM BBQ	16	5	11	31%	⚔ compare
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE SMOKE	14	4	10	29%	⚔ compare
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
SHIGGIN & GRINNIN	14	3	10	21%	⚔ compare
SMOKEHOUSE 72	13	9	4	69%	⚔ compare
MACHETE BOYS BBQ	13	6	7	46%	⚔ compare
GOTHIC TOWN GRILLERS	13	6	7	46%	⚔ compare
MAN MEAT BBQ	13	3	10	23%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	36	10	1	4	178.8572	154.2172	168.87	top 52%
Pork Ribs	36	11	1	4	178.8572	138.8344	167.54	top 49%
Pork	31	1	0	0	175.4056	152.5600	165.61	top 66%
Brisket	31	8	1	2	177.7028	141.6572	166.00	top 51%

“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.

By field size and state

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 75%
Medium (20–39)	21	top 55%
Large (40+)	14	top 49%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
IA	16	top 53%
MO	9	top 59%
IL	2	top 37%
MN	2	top 37%
SD	1	top 19%
KS	1	top 73%
NL	1	top 100%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Iowa State BBQ Championship	5	2	top 63%	Apr 3, 2026
Tri City BBQ Fest	3	2	top 26%	Sep 20, 2024
Murphysboro BBQ Cook-off/Praise the Lard	2	23	top 37%	Sep 25, 2026
BBQ & Fly-In on the River	2	24	top 39%	Aug 14, 2026
Shenandoah ShenDig	2	8	top 48%	Jul 17, 2026
Minnesota in May	2	2	top 37%	May 8, 2026
King of the Corn	2	20	top 51%	May 17, 2024
Kickin' It Route 66 BBQ (Day 2)	2	34	top 99%	Mar 23, 2024
Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest	2	2	top 45%	Sep 7, 2019
Farm Meat	2	9	top 88%	Sep 10, 2016

More numbers

Busiest season 2025 9 contests

Contests a season 3.3 across 11 seasons in the data

Most contests held in IA 16 of 36 contests · 7 states and provinces in all

Contests visited 22 10 of them more than once

Opponents faced 910 finished ahead 922 times, behind 1,137

Longest layoff 2 yrs Sep 7, 2019 → Sep 24, 2021

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

20264 milestones

May 8 Career-best overall score697.1088 Minnesota in May
Aug 14 Career-best single call (Chicken)178.8572 BBQ & Fly-In on the River
Sep 25 Peak power rating (1572) Murphysboro BBQ Cook-off/Praise the Lard
Sep 25 Most recent contest Murphysboro BBQ Cook-off/Praise the Lard

20251 milestone

Sep 19 25th tracked contest Murphysboro BBQ Cook-off/Praise the Lard

20231 milestone

Apr 28 10th tracked contest WashMo BBQ & Bluesfest (JUDGING FULL)

20221 milestone

Sep 16 First category win (Pork Ribs) Tri City BBQ Fest

20193 milestones

Sep 7 First overall podium Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest
Sep 7 First Reserve Championship Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest
Sep 7 First overall past 90% of a perfect score336.0112 Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest

20153 milestones

Sep 12 First tracked contest Farm Meat
Sep 12 First call Farm Meat
Sep 12 First overall top-10 Farm Meat

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+19.5	Minnesota in May	May 8, 2026
+18.2	Knox Co. 4-H/FFA Ring of Smoke	Apr 17, 2026
+18	Tri City BBQ Fest	Sep 16, 2022
+18	Iowa State BBQ Championship	Mar 31, 2023
+16.2	Art of the Que	Jul 7, 2023

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-14	Farm Meat	Sep 10, 2016
-10.9	Kickin' It Route 66 BBQ (Day 1)	Mar 22, 2024
-10.4	Kickin' It Route 66 BBQ (Day 2)	Mar 23, 2024
-10.2	Ottumwa 4th Annual Smoketoberfest	Sep 24, 2021
-10	Iowa State BBQ Championship	Apr 3, 2026

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — tap a meat to add it)

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Season by season

Season	Contests	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	8	4	0	75%	top 31%	96.8%	95.8%
2025	9	0	1	44%	top 70%	96.4%	93.7%
2024	6	0	0	33%	top 75%	93.6%	92.5%
2023	5	3	1	100%	top 22%	96.7%	95%
2022	2	1	1	50%	top 39%	96.3%	93%
2021	1	0	0	0%	top 94%	89.3%	89.3%
2019	1	1	0	100%	top 5%	93.3%	93.3%
2018	1	0	0	0%	top 85%	86.3%	86.3%
2017	1	0	0	0%	top 50%	89.4%	89.4%
2016	1	0	0	0%	top 100%	83.2%	83.2%
2015	1	1	0	100%	top 75%	84.3%	84.3%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 25, 2026	Murphysboro BBQ Cook-off/Praise the Lard 🏅 Murphysboro, IL	23 / 71 (694.2056)	41 (171.9656)	24 (174.2628)	30 (171.4172)	13 (176.5600)
Aug 14, 2026	BBQ & Fly-In on the River 🏅 Excelsior Springs, MO	24 / 83 (693.6224)	4 (178.8572)	42 (172.5484)	20 (175.4056)	53 (166.8112)
Jul 17, 2026	Shenandoah ShenDig 🏅 Shenandoah, IA	8 / 28 (694.2516)	8 (176)	4 (176.5944)	14 (173.1200)	18 (168.5372)
Jul 10, 2026	Cameron Elks BBQ Cook-Off (MASTERS and BACKYARD 1) 🏅 Cameron, MO	12 / 37 (693.0860)	15 (174.2744)	6 (177.7144)	26 (169.6800)	12 (171.4172)
Jun 5, 2026	Original SD BBQ Championships 🏅 Huron, SD	9 / 48 (689.0744)	12 (173.1200)	41 (165.6800)	15 (173.7028)	6 (176.5716)
May 8, 2026	Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN	2 / 77 (697.1088)	5 (177.7144)	23 (171.4172)	22 (173.1200)	12 (174.8572)
Apr 17, 2026	Knox Co. 4-H/FFA Ring of Smoke 🏅 Edina, MO	4 / 25 (690.8116)	6 (173.7144)	2 (178.8572)	21 (163.3828)	4 (174.8572)
Apr 3, 2026	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	38 / 42 (664.4224)	26 (170.8456)	25 (167.3828)	31 (166.8228)	37 (159.3712)
Nov 5, 2025	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	291 / 401 (661.5656)	217 (169.6800)	316 (163.4056)	381 (153.0628)	49 (175.4172)
Oct 24, 2025	1st Annual Boost & BBQ 🏅 Odessa, MO	22 / 25 (673.6004)	11 (174.2744)	20 (168.5488)	19 (168.5256)	20 (162.2516)
Oct 3, 2025	La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown 🏅 La Belle, MO	28 / 39 (681.6232)	35 (166.2400)	5 (178.2972)	31 (167.4060)	20 (169.6800)
Sep 19, 2025	Murphysboro BBQ Cook-off/Praise the Lard 🏅 Murphysboro, IL	23 / 56 (694.2056)	14 (176.5600)	15 (175.4056)	26 (173.1200)	39 (169.1200)
Aug 15, 2025	BBQ & Fly-In on the River 🏅 Excelsior Springs, MO	31 / 62 (684.4568)	17 (176)	33 (169.6684)	50 (163.9428)	16 (174.8456)
Jul 18, 2025	Shenandoah ShenDig 🏅 Shenandoah, IA	20 / 30 (675.8628)	25 (166.2400)	8 (175.4056)	19 (170.2744)	22 (163.9428)
May 16, 2025	King of the Corn 🏅 Ottumwa, IA	27 / 33 (671.3032)	22 (167.3944)	20 (170.2744)	33 (157.0744)	1 (176.5600)
May 9, 2025	Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN	41 / 58 (673.0516)	45 (165.1316)	57 (161.0972)	28 (171.4172)	9 (175.4056)
Apr 4, 2025	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	41 / 49 (655.3148)	35 (165.1088)	31 (165.1544)	44 (157.6572)	22 (167.3944)
Sep 20, 2024	Tri City BBQ Fest 🏅 Denison, IA	19 / 30 (668.9712)	23 (163.9428)	5 (173.1200)	27 (163.3828)	18 (168.5256)
Jul 19, 2024	Shenandoah ShenDig BBQ 🏅 Shenandoah, IA	25 / 36 (673.0404)	25 (166.8344)	23 (169.1316)	26 (165.0972)	9 (171.9772)
May 17, 2024	King of the Corn 🏅 Ottumwa, IA	20 / 36 (673.7032)	29 (167.9772)	21 (167.4172)	13 (171.4744)	21 (166.8344)
Mar 29, 2024	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	27 / 42 (667.8968)	32 (167.9656)	23 (166.2512)	35 (165.1200)	19 (168.5600)
Mar 23, 2024	Kickin' It Route 66 BBQ (Day 2) 🏅 St. Robert, MO	34 / 34 (670.1604)	32 (163.9544)	30 (167.3944)	16 (173.1316)	29 (165.6800)
Mar 22, 2024	Kickin' It Route 66 BBQ (Day 1) 🏅 St. Robert, MO	34 / 35 (644.3656)	35 (154.2172)	33 (159.9428)	23 (167.3828)	27 (162.8228)
Sep 15, 2023	Tri City BBQ Fest 🏅 Denison, IA	2 / 32 (343.4172)	3 (174.2972)	3 (169.1200)	—	—
Jul 7, 2023	Art of the Que 🏅 Spencer, IA	3 / 28 (340.5488)	1 (176.0116)	9 (164.5372)	—	—
May 19, 2023	King of the Corn 🏅 Ottumwa, IA	21 / 45 (681.5768)	34 (167.3712)	15 (170.8228)	31 (165.6800)	3 (177.7028)
Apr 28, 2023	WashMo BBQ & Bluesfest (JUDGING FULL) 🏅 Washington, MO	16 / 37 (674.7888)	24 (167.4172)	13 (170.8228)	30 (162.8344)	7 (173.7144)
Mar 31, 2023	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	2 / 47 (348.0116)	3 (176)	3 (172.0116)	—	—
Sep 16, 2022	Tri City BBQ Fest 🏅 Denison, IA	2 / 25 (346.8456)	3 (169.7028)	1 (177.1428)	—	—
Apr 1, 2022	Iowa State BBQ Championship (Backyard) Altoona, IA	19 / 27 (322.7772)	14 (168.5600)	22 (154.2172)	—	—
Sep 24, 2021	Ottumwa 4th Annual Smoketoberfest 🏅 Ottumwa, IA	33 / 35 (642.6740)	27 (166.2628)	29 (161.6800)	25 (164.5140)	34 (150.2172)
Sep 7, 2019	Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest Dongen	2 / 38 (336.0112)	9 (166.2856)	15 (162.8344)	29 (154.2628)	33 (150.2400)
Sep 8, 2018	Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest Dongen	34 / 40 (621.0284)	25 (162.2744)	25 (157.6912)	24 (159.4056)	34 (141.6572)
Sep 9, 2017	Farm Meat Dongen	19 / 38 (643.3600)	20 (162.2512)	15 (163.4516)	16 (161.7028)	29 (155.9544)
Sep 10, 2016	Farm Meat Dongen, NL	27 / 27 (599.2912)	26 (157.1084)	27 (138.8344)	23 (158.2512)	27 (145.0972)
Sep 12, 2015	Farm Meat Dongen, the Netherlands	9 / 12 (606.8344)	8 (157.7256)	9 (153.1772)	9 (152.5600)	10 (143.3716)

Smokin Suckers

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Backyard avg

Storylines (14 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

On the rise

High-water mark

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

A strong matchup

The comeback

Chicken nemesis

Always the bridesmaid

Looking over their shoulder

A July team

The long haul

A standing appointment

In the record book (on 1 all-time board)

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — tap a meat to add it)

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Season by season

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)