They almost always walk
67%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 10 of 15 contests
A top-10 category call in 67% of their 15 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
Wink's BBQ
Wink's BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 15 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 26 at the Smokin' for Garrett (2023), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #1623 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “Winks BBQ”.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1557
peak 1557 · rated over 14 contests
Contests
15
in the data
First seen
Jul 19, 2013
latest Sep 11, 2026 · 13.1 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
1 reserve
Category wins
0
3 podiums
Overall top-10s
4
27% of 15 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 44%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
683.82 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 669.96 (+13.85)
Walk rate
67%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±27.44
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 169.22 · weakest Brisket (165.26)
Road miles
3,647
across 15 mapped stops · furthest 444 mi
Schedule strength
62%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1579)
Purse competed for
$86K
listed at 11 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 10 state-championship entries
Master avg
669.96 / 720
12 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
337.11 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs
Backyard (3-meat) avg
507.33 / 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Master | #502 (326 pts) | #619 (261 pts) | #575 (336 pts) | #536 (321 pts) | #567 (286 pts) |
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Wink's BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
46 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,620 of the rated field
- Contests
- 13
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 31%
- Peak
- 1557
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 13 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#1,615 of the rated field
- Contests
- 16
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 19%
- Peak
- 1557
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 9 years before Wink's BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#1,614 of the rated field
- Contests
- 13
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 54%
- Peak
- 1559
Careers of much the same size, 13 contests to 15, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#1,626 of the rated field
- Contests
- 13
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 62%
- Peak
- 1557
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 13 contests, alongside a 62% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Compare careers#1,618 of the rated field
- Contests
- 17
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 47%
- Peak
- 1563
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Compare careers#1,631 of the rated field
- Contests
- 17
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 24%
- Peak
- 1557
Level with Wink's BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN | 8 | 1 | 7 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ | 7 | 7 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| UNCLE TOAD'S COMPETITION BBQ | 6 | 5 | 1 | 83% | ⚔ compare |
| WE WILL ROCK QUE | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| SmokinGhost BBQ | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BooyaQ | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Butts-N-Racks BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| FRED VEGAS SMOKERS | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Shiggin aint easy | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| WeQ4U | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| JANKY LEG BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| iBQ'n | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| LOCAL YOKELS BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 14 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 174.2744 | 149.6572 | 166.99 | top 55% |
| Pork Ribs | 14 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 174.2744 | 158.2516 | 168.80 | top 42% |
| Pork | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 177.7144 | 143.9656 | 169.22 | top 39% |
| Brisket | 12 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 178.2972 | 133.0400 | 165.26 | top 50% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 11 | 0 | top 45% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 41% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke on the Ohio | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 40% | Sep 11, 2026 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2023
4 contests
Contests a season
2.1
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
IN
8 of 15 contests · 5 states in all
Contests visited
13
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
397
finished ahead 308 times, behind 272
Longest layoff
7.7 yrs
Jul 9, 2015 → Mar 24, 2023
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20262 milestones
- Peak power rating (1557) Smoke on the Ohio
- Most recent contest Smoke on the Ohio
20253 milestones
- 10th tracked contest Madison Ribberfest
- Career-best overall score694.7888 Madison Ribberfest
- Career-best single call (Brisket)178.2972 Trekking for CDH
20232 milestones
- First overall podium Smokin' for Garrett
- First Reserve Championship Smokin' for Garrett
20141 milestone
- First overall top-10 Taste of Grand Rapids 2014
20133 milestones
- First tracked contest SC Festival of Discovery
- First call Taste of Grand Rapids
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.1428 Taste of Grand Rapids
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +16.6 | Smokin' for Garrett | Oct 6, 2023 |
| +14.1 | Madison Ribberfest | Aug 15, 2025 |
| +12.5 | Taste of Grand Rapids 2014 | Jul 25, 2014 |
| +9.5 | Smoke on the Ohio | Sep 12, 2025 |
| +6.7 | City of Madison BBQ Party (formerly Madison Ribberfest) | Aug 21, 2026 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -12.4 | SC Festival of Discovery (TEAMS AND JUDGES FULL) | Jul 9, 2015 |
| -4.8 | Hoosier BBQ Classic #2 | Jun 10, 2023 |
| -1.4 | Rockin' BBQ Warsaw, Indiana | May 15, 2026 |
| -0.8 | Hoosier BBQ Classic #1 | Jun 9, 2023 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 45% | 94.7% | 94.6% |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 100% | top 31% | 96.5% | 95.9% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 50% | 94.5% | 94.5% |
| 2023 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 48% | 93.9% | 93.2% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 92% | 81.4% | 81.4% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 15% | 92.9% | 92.9% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 38% | 91.3% | 91.3% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 11, 2026 | Smoke on the Ohio 🏅 Mt. Vernon, IN | 14 / 26 (679.8856) | 16 (170.2628) | 18 (168.5372) | 12 (170.2628) | 12 (170.8228) |
| Aug 21, 2026 | City of Madison BBQ Party (formerly Madison Ribberfest) 🏅 Madison, IN | 13 / 39 (681.6000) | 16 (170.2628) | 16 (171.9772) | 14 (174.2628) | 27 (165.0972) |
| May 15, 2026 | Rockin' BBQ Warsaw, Indiana 🏅 Warsaw, IN | 17 / 35 (681.1428) | 25 (167.4056) | 9 (173.1428) | 19 (168.6172) | 15 (171.9772) |
| Sep 13, 2025 | Trekking for CDH 🏅 Pierron, IL | 14 / 27 (690.2056) | 24 (169.1084) | 22 (169.6800) | 11 (173.1200) | 2 (178.2972) |
| Sep 12, 2025 | Smoke on the Ohio 🏅 Mt. Vernon, IN | 7 / 27 (686.2628) | 14 (167.4172) | 8 (171.4400) | 4 (176.5828) | 6 (170.8228) |
| Aug 15, 2025 | Madison Ribberfest 🏅 Madison, IN | 7 / 45 (694.7888) | 18 (173.1084) | 21 (169.6916) | 7 (177.7144) | 7 (174.2744) |
| Jun 7, 2024 | Hoosier BBQ Classic 🏅 Franklin, IN | 19 / 38 (680.4796) | 17 (170.8456) | 20 (167.9656) | 22 (171.4056) | 17 (170.2628) |
| Oct 6, 2023 | Smokin' for Garrett 🏅 Mt. Carmel, IL | 2 / 26 (507.3256) | 3 (170.8228) | 4 (169.6800) | 4 (166.8228) | — |
| Jun 10, 2023 | Hoosier BBQ Classic #2 🏅 Franklin, IN | 23 / 28 (671.2912) | 23 (165.0856) | 7 (172.5600) | 10 (172.5600) | 28 (161.0856) |
| Jun 9, 2023 | Hoosier BBQ Classic #1 🏅 Franklin, IN | 26 / 38 (661.5888) | 10 (174.2628) | 34 (158.2516) | 9 (172.5600) | 34 (156.5144) |
| Mar 24, 2023 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue Backyard Contest Kansas City, MO | 13 / 37 (337.1088) | 25 (162.8344) | 4 (174.2744) | — | — |
| Jul 9, 2015 | SC Festival of Discovery (TEAMS AND JUDGES FULL) Greenwood, SC | 83 / 90 (586.0572) | 80 (149.6572) | 53 (159.3944) | 88 (143.9656) | 86 (133.0400) |
| Jul 25, 2014 | Taste of Grand Rapids 2014 Grand Rapids, MI | 8 / 55 (669.1316) | 3 (174.2744) | 14 (164.5716) | 17 (165.7256) | 22 (164.5600) |
| Jul 19, 2013 | Taste of Grand Rapids Comstock Park, MI | 15 / 39 (657.1428) | 36 (152.5372) | 5 (172) | 13 (166.2972) | 11 (166.3084) |
| Jul 11, 2013 | SC Festival of Discovery Greenwood, SC | — | — | — | — | — |