They almost always walk
67%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 6 of 9 contests
A top-10 category call in 67% of their 9 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
TEAM BALLINGER
TEAM BALLINGER is a competition barbecue team with 9 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2015 and 2020. Their best overall finish is 3rd of 20 at the Butlerfest 2019 (BACKYARD ONLY) (2019). They are ranked #1861 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1545
peak 1545 · rated over 7 contests
Contests
9
in the data
First seen
Mar 13, 2015
latest Mar 13, 2020 · 5 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
1
1 podium
Overall top-10s
4
44% of 9 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight overall top-10s, still running
Avg finish
top 37%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
67%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±70.30
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 168.30 · weakest Pork (163.78)
Road miles
584
across 9 mapped stops · furthest 91 mi
Schedule strength
43%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1556)
Purse competed for
$7,600
listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings
Master avg
635.19 / 720
5 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
339.97 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs
Backyard (3-meat) avg
486.75 / 540
1 Backyard (3-meat) contest · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360, Backyard (3-meat) out of 540), 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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #896 (382 pts) | #842 (452 pts) | #968 (377 pts) | #1145 (302 pts) | #1044 (327 pts) |
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to TEAM BALLINGER, each with one reason worth a look.
72 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,857 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 29%
- Peak
- 1545
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to TEAM BALLINGER)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team TEAM BALLINGER has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,848 of the rated field
- Contests
- 29
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 14%
- Peak
- 1566
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to TEAM BALLINGER)
29 contests to 9: their number has had years to settle where TEAM BALLINGER's is still finding its level.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,867 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 71%
- Peak
- 1545
3 straight overall top-10s says this rating is a moving target.
⚔ Compare careers#1,862 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 25%
- Peak
- 1545
They turned up 6 years after TEAM BALLINGER did, first appearing in 2021.
⚔ Compare careers#1,852 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 70%
- Peak
- 1545
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#1,868 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1548
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 3 years before TEAM BALLINGER's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careersBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 173.1428 | 159.9428 | 168.30 | top 37% |
| Pork Ribs | 7 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 174.2628 | 161.6456 | 167.31 | top 39% |
| Pork | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 172 | 155.9772 | 163.78 | top 58% |
| Brisket | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 170.8344 | 165.6684 | 167.68 | top 46% |
“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 | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 29% |
| Medium (20–39) | 4 | 0 | top 31% |
| Large (40+) | 2 | 0 | top 52% |
More numbers
Busiest season
2016
3 contests
Contests a season
1.5
across 6 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
AL
6 of 9 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
7
a different one every time
Opponents faced
195
finished ahead 131 times, behind 115
Longest layoff
1.9 yrs
Nov 8, 2017 → Oct 11, 2019
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20202 milestones
- Peak power rating (1545) Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Most recent contest Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY)
20191 milestone
- First overall podium Butlerfest 2019 (BACKYARD ONLY)
20163 milestones
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score675.3028 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- Career-best overall score675.3028 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)174.2628 'Que at the View
20153 milestones
- First call 2015 BBQ & Brew (BACKYARD CONTEST ONLY)
- First category win (Pork Ribs) 2015 BBQ & Brew (BACKYARD CONTEST ONLY)
- First overall top-10 2015 BBQ & Brew (BACKYARD CONTEST ONLY)
20141 milestone
- First tracked contest BBQ Throw Down 2014 @ Windcreek
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +12 | Butlerfest 2019 (BACKYARD ONLY) | Oct 11, 2019 |
| +11.5 | 'Que at the View | Apr 8, 2016 |
| +8.3 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | Feb 26, 2016 |
| +8 | 2015 BBQ & Brew (BACKYARD CONTEST ONLY) | Mar 13, 2015 |
| +5.8 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY) | Mar 13, 2020 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -5.4 | World Barbecue Championship | Nov 8, 2017 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — 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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 30% | 90.1% | 90.1% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 15% | 94.4% | 94.4% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 81% | 91.2% | 91.2% |
| 2016 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 34% | 93.8% | 93.7% |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 50% | top 29% | 68.8% | 68.8% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 13, 2020 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 7 / 23 (486.7544) | 6 (167.9656) | 8 (162.8116) | 15 (155.9772) | — |
| Oct 11, 2019 | Butlerfest 2019 (BACKYARD ONLY) Butler, AL | 3 / 20 (339.9656) | 5 (169.7028) | 6 (170.2628) | — | — |
| Nov 8, 2017 | World Barbecue Championship Orange Beach, AL | 75 / 93 (656.4000) | 86 (159.9428) | 55 (165.6800) | 66 (163.9428) | 49 (166.8344) |
| May 6, 2016 | George County Firefighters Association BBQ Challenge Lucedale, MS | 11 / 27 (674.1828) | 4 (173.1428) | 21 (161.6456) | 7 (172) | 15 (167.3944) |
| Apr 8, 2016 | 'Que at the View Gulfport, MS | 10 / 43 (674.7312) | 15 (168.5256) | 4 (174.2628) | 21 (166.2744) | 20 (165.6684) |
| Feb 26, 2016 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Daphne, AL | 11 / 30 (675.3028) | 9 (173.1084) | 17 (167.4172) | 23 (163.9428) | 9 (170.8344) |
| May 1, 2015 | George County Firefighters Association BBQ Challenge Lucedale, MS | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mar 13, 2015 | 2015 BBQ & Brew (BACKYARD CONTEST ONLY) Fairhope, AL | 5 / 17 (495.3144) | 6 (165.6800) | 1 (169.1200) | 10 (160.5144) | — |
| Mar 27, 2014 | BBQ Throw Down 2014 @ Windcreek Atmore, AL | — | — | — | — | — |