Whistle Pig BBQ

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#3479

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1493

peak 1529 · rated over 33 contests ⓘ

Best runs

straight top-10s

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-04-05

latest 2026-08-28

Best ToY finish

#532

Master 2024

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

9 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 33 contests

Avg finish

top 58%

overall standings

Best overall

689.7372 / 720

Master · Wild West BBQ Shoot Out

Perfect 180s

Current form

648.22 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 652.48 (-4.26)

Walk rate

70%

contests with a top-10 call

Top-10 streak

best run (overall)

Best single call

178.8572

Chicken · Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival

Consistency

±32.88

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 167.07 · weakest Brisket (160.35)

Road miles

12,291

mi across 33 mapped stops · furthest 1430 mi

Schedule strength

48%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1563)

Purse competed for

$219K

listed at 18 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 21 state-championship entries

Master avg

652.48 / 720

33 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (12 found in this team's record)

Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.

They almost always walk

70% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 23 of 33 contests

A top-10 category call in 70% of their 33 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

689.7372 career-best overall

95.8% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 689.7372 at Wild West BBQ Shoot Out — 95.8% of a perfect 720.

Master
2018-08-24

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

Kreiser Barbecue has finished one call ahead of Whistle Pig BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2018 their best year

2018 was the year it came together: 4 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 45%.

4 contests
3 overall top-10s
0 category wins
average top 45%

A tough matchup

11–1 behind in the head-to-head

CROOKED PIGS ahead in 92% of their meetings

CROOKED PIGS has come out ahead in 11 of their 12 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.72 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 15% of the time against 36%.

Brisket avg 160.35
Pork Ribs avg 167.07
5 calls in 33 entries

A strong matchup

6–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 86% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Poor Richard's BBQ in 6 of their 7 shared contests.

Pork Ribs nemesis

9 of 12 shared pork ribs entries lost

CROOKED PIGS ahead 75% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, CROOKED PIGS has out-cooked them in 9 of 12 shared pork ribs entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

G AND L BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A September team

Top 39% average finish in September

Something about September: average finish in the top 39% across 3 contests, versus top 58% the rest of the year.

3 September contests
top 58% the rest of the year

The long haul

12,291 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 12,291 miles across 33 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 1,430 miles to Buckeye BBQ Classic.

33 mapped stops
furthest 1,430 mi

A standing appointment

5 years running at one contest

They've cooked Sam's Club National BBQ Tour every year from 2013 to 2017 — the contest they never miss.

5 visits in all
best finish 6th

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.

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

RBQ

#3456 of the rated field

1494 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 67
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 24%
Peak: 1593

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Whistle Pig BBQ)

One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Whistle Pig BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 66 contests
last seen 2026-08-07

⚔ Head-to-head

Jessie Raes BBQ

#3497 of the rated field

1493 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 10%
Peak: 1528

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to Whistle Pig BBQ)

They've been 1528 at their best, 35 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2025-11-21

⚔ Head-to-head

Barking Pig BBQ

#3489 of the rated field

1493 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 34
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 9%
Peak: 1552

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 34 contests to 33, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 30 contests
last seen 2026-07-17

⚔ Head-to-head

CHOCOLATE CITY BBQ

#3486 of the rated field

1493 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 28
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 11%
Peak: 1526

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Whistle Pig BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 28 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

FLAME THROWER BBQ CO.

#3484 of the rated field

1493 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 25
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 8%
Peak: 1518

No shared contest yet.

25 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 8% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 25 contests
last seen 2019-05-31

⚔ Head-to-head

Pit Bull Smokers

#3488 of the rated field

1493 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 76%
Peak: 1527

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 5 years after Whistle Pig BBQ did, first appearing in 2018.

rated over 19 contests
last seen 2026-08-01
on a 3-contest top-10 run

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
G AND L BBQ	13	8	5	62%	⚔ compare
UTAH BBQ COMPANY	12	2	10	17%	⚔ compare
CROOKED PIGS	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
GOT SMOKE BAR-B-QUE	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
Rooftop BBQ	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
BIG POPPA SMOKERS	10	1	9	10%	⚔ compare
Backdraft BBQ	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN HOT BUTTS BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' BOXERS BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
Rhythm n QUE	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
DJS SMOKIN' BBQ	8	6	2	75%	⚔ compare
FARVA-Q	8	5	3	63%	⚔ compare
HALF BAKED HIPPIES BBQ	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare
AMERICAN HEROES BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	33	9	1	3	178.8572	138.7772	165.41	top 56%
Pork Ribs	33	12	1	3	177.1428	154.8456	167.07	top 43%
Pork	32	8	0	2	176.5716	146.8460	164.64	top 57%
Brisket	33	5	0	1	173.1200	139.9432	160.35	top 63%

“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 state / province

Where	Contests	Avg finish
MT	8	top 63%
UT	7	top 62%
WY	5	top 47%
NV	5	top 50%
AZ	4	top 72%
ID	3	top 39%
OH	1	top 100%

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	2	top 44%
Medium (20–39)	26	top 59%
Large (40+)	5	top 61%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	5	6	top 66%	2017-04-07
Montana BBQ Cookoff	4	16	top 64%	2026-06-12
Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge	4	34	top 72%	2022-01-14
Montana Pitmaster Classic	3	24	top 71%	2026-08-28
Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival	2	9	top 35%	2023-08-18
Wild West BBQ Shoot Out	2	8	top 42%	2019-08-23
Pepsi WY State Championship BBQ & Bluegrass Festival	2	8	top 38%	2016-08-19

The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 13.4 yrs 2013-04-05 → 2026-08-28

Busiest season 2018 4 contests

Contests a season 2.4 across 14 seasons in the data

Cooks most in MT 8 of 33 contests · 7 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 18 7 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 33 entries · 1 win · 9 calls

Strongest meat Pork Ribs averages 167.07 · weakest Brisket (160.35)

Walk rate 70% a top-10 call in 23 of 33 contests

Overall top-10 rate 24% 8 of 33 contests

Best top-10 run 3 straight contests

Master average 652.48 out of 720 · 33 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 511 444–650 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 12,291 33 mapped stops · furthest 1,430 mi

Schedule strength 1563 average field rating faced — tougher than 48% of rated contests

Purse competed for $218,700 listed at 18 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 21 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 1.2 yrs 2020-06-19 → 2021-08-20

Power rating 1493 peak 1529 · #3479 of 6,413 rated

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

2013
Apr 5 First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 5 First call Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 5 First overall top-10 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 5 First overall past 90% of a perfect score654.8572 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
2015
Apr 10 First category win (Chicken) Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
2017
Aug 25 10th tracked contest Wild West BBQ Shoot Out
2018
Aug 24 Career-best overall score689.7372 Wild West BBQ Shoot Out
2023
Aug 18 25th tracked contest Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival
Aug 18 Career-best single call (Chicken)178.8572 Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival
2024
Jul 27 Peak power rating (1529) Blowin' Smoke Barbecue Cook Off
2026
Aug 28 Most recent contest Montana Pitmaster Classic

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+15.4	Wild West BBQ Shoot Out	2018-08-24
+10.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2013-04-05
+9.4	Pepsi WY State Championship BBQ & Bluegrass Festival	2015-08-14
+7.9	Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival	2023-08-18
+7.9	*Rockn & BBQ Brew Festival	2018-09-07

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.5	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2017-04-07
-12.7	Buckeye BBQ Classic	2026-07-17
-9.9	Smoke & Soul Fest	2022-10-07
-7	Montana Pitmaster Classic	2024-08-23
-6.5	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2015-04-10

Category scores over time

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

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Team of the Year rank by season

Season by season

Season	Contests	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	3	0	0	67%	top 83%	92.7%	89.2%
2025	2	0	0	0%	top 68%	93.4%	91.2%
2024	3	1	0	33%	top 56%	92.1%	91.2%
2023	2	1	1	100%	top 42%	95.1%	94.3%
2022	2	0	0	50%	top 82%	89.1%	88.6%
2021	1	0	0	100%	top 37%	94%	94%
2020	2	0	0	50%	top 55%	93.4%	92.2%
2019	3	1	0	67%	top 59%	94%	91.9%
2018	4	3	0	50%	top 45%	95.8%	92.8%
2017	3	0	0	100%	top 68%	93.7%	84.8%
2016	3	0	0	100%	top 55%	92.9%	91.1%
2015	2	1	1	100%	top 54%	93.2%	90.5%
2014	1	0	0	100%	top 66%	87%	87%
2013	2	1	0	100%	top 40%	91%	90.1%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026-08-28	Montana Pitmaster Classic 🏅 Bozeman, MT	29 / 39 (667.3488)	28 (164.5600)	31 (166.8344)	9 (174.8456)	34 (161.1088)
2026-07-17	Buckeye BBQ Classic 🏅 Hillsboro, OH	30 / 30 (594.1032)	30 (138.7772)	30 (155.3944)	30 (152.5144)	30 (147.4172)
2026-06-12	Montana BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Absarokee, MT	22 / 29 (666.1828)	23 (162.8000)	6 (173.7256)	23 (161.6916)	13 (167.9656)
2025-08-22	Montana Pitmaster Classic 🏅 Bozeman, MT	24 / 38 (672.5140)	29 (165.7028)	16 (173.1428)	14 (172.5484)	28 (161.1200)
2025-06-13	Montana BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Absarokee, MT	24 / 33 (640.9368)	17 (168.5600)	24 (155.9428)	29 (152.4912)	20 (163.9428)
2024-08-23	Montana Pitmaster Classic 🏅 Bozeman, MT	29 / 39 (659.3028)	34 (157.6916)	24 (168.5600)	25 (168.5256)	27 (164.5256)
2024-07-27	Blowin' Smoke Barbecue Cook Off 🏅 Dillon, MT	4 / 11 (647.8168)	10 (154.8000)	2 (170.2512)	6 (160.5256)	5 (162.2400)
2024-06-07	Montana BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Absarokee, MT	16 / 28 (663.2684)	19 (161.0856)	11 (170.8228)	14 (166.8228)	13 (164.5372)
2023-08-18	Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival 🏅 Worland, WY	9 / 27 (684.4456)	2 (178.8572)	15 (166.2400)	12 (173.1200)	13 (166.2284)
2023-06-09	Montana BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Absarokee, MT	18 / 36 (673.6112)	20 (166.2628)	1 (177.1428)	16 (169.7028)	26 (160.5028)
2022-10-07	Smoke & Soul Fest 🏅 Casper, WY	25 / 29 (634.0688)	27 (157.0744)	10 (169.1316)	14 (167.3828)	28 (140.4800)
2022-01-14	Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge 🏅 Bullhead City, AZ	46 / 59 (641.5772)	41 (163.9772)	54 (155.9656)	44 (161.6916)	38 (159.9428)
2021-08-20	Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival 🏅 Worland, WY	11 / 30 (676.4460)	11 (170.8344)	9 (169.6800)	8 (169.6916)	13 (166.2400)
2020-06-19	Traeger NorUt State BBQ Championship 🏅 Riverdale, UT	17 / 32 (672.4572)	8 (175.4172)	10 (170.8228)	23 (165.7144)	20 (160.5028)
2020-01-17	Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge 🏅 Bullhead City, AZ	34 / 59 (655.8288)	30 (167.9772)	15 (168.5372)	40 (161.6572)	40 (157.6572)
2019-09-13	Bands brews & BBQ 🏅 Boise, ID	10 / 25 (676.4800)	3 (177.7144)	5 (175.4400)	22 (162.8000)	15 (160.5256)
2019-08-23	Wild West BBQ Shoot Out 🏅 Wendover, NV	25 / 37 (661.0860)	21 (166.8572)	17 (166.8572)	8 (172.5716)	34 (154.8000)
2019-01-18	Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge 🏅 Bullhead City, AZ	44 / 63 (646.7316)	44 (165.1200)	15 (169.1316)	52 (158.8228)	49 (153.6572)
2018-09-07	*Rockn & BBQ Brew Festival Boise, ID	7 / 25 (675.4288)	4 (170.2972)	4 (173.7144)	10 (169.1544)	15 (162.2628)
2018-08-24	Wild West BBQ Shoot Out Wendover, NV	8 / 46 (689.7372)	11 (173.7028)	15 (171.4516)	14 (172.6056)	14 (171.9772)
2018-06-29	*Traeger NorUt State Championship 🏅 Ogden, UT	10 / 19 (663.8284)	12 (165.6800)	15 (162.8000)	14 (162.8000)	7 (172.5484)
2018-01-19	Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Bullhead City, AZ	57 / 70 (643.8516)	50 (162.8116)	25 (168.5372)	62 (158.8228)	63 (153.6800)
2017-09-15	*Rock'n Brews & BBQ Festival Boise, ID	14 / 28 (654.7888)	4 (173.1200)	12 (162.8460)	19 (162.8228)	21 (156.0000)
2017-08-25	Wild West BBQ Shoot Out West Wendover, NV	20 / 37 (674.8804)	28 (170.2744)	20 (167.4632)	3 (176.5716)	30 (160.5712)
2017-04-07	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	29 / 29 (501.0740)	11 (168.5484)	19 (161.0972)	—	5 (171.4284)
2016-08-19	Pepsi WY State Championship BBQ & Bluegrass Festival 🏅 Worland, WY	12 / 26 (668.5488)	9 (171.4172)	9 (171.4744)	13 (167.3712)	17 (158.2860)
2016-04-08	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	20 / 30 (641.1428)	24 (156.0116)	10 (166.8572)	22 (159.4400)	23 (158.8340)
2016-03-25	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Reno, NV	15 / 29 (657.7372)	26 (155.3828)	12 (165.7372)	3 (174.8572)	20 (161.7600)
2015-08-14	Pepsi WY State Championship BBQ & Bluegrass Festival 🏅 Worland, WY	8 / 26 (671.3488)	11 (170.2744)	14 (161.6572)	11 (166.2972)	4 (173.1200)
2015-04-10	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	23 / 30 (631.3372)	1 (172.5600)	23 (154.8456)	30 (146.8460)	20 (157.0856)
2014-04-11	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	19 / 29 (626.1720)	21 (159.3944)	4 (170.8572)	19 (155.9772)	26 (139.9432)
2013-04-19	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) Las Vegas, NV	18 / 30 (642.8576)	25 (157.1430)	3 (169.1430)	5 (166.2856)	28 (150.2860)
2013-04-05	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	6 / 29 (654.8572)	7 (168.0000)	11 (161.1432)	23 (155.4284)	3 (170.2856)

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

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

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026 ↗	Master	#736 (129 pts)	#809 (124 pts)	#657 (229 pts)	#621 (209 pts)	#674 (174 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#847 (128 pts)	#862 (158 pts)	#881 (168 pts)	#798 (173 pts)	#866 (143 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#532 (344 pts)	#686 (254 pts)	#540 (424 pts)	#587 (319 pts)	#569 (334 pts)
2023 ↗	Master	#674 (232 pts)	#571 (337 pts)	#568 (387 pts)	#721 (222 pts)	#856 (172 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1042 (245 pts)	#853 (365 pts)	#828 (385 pts)	#1012 (280 pts)	#1165 (220 pts)