Rum Runners BBQ

Rum Runners BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 26 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2020 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 4th of 26 at the Torry Island BBQ Showdown (2025). They are ranked #2724 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#2,724

of 6,477 rated · rankings

Rating

1513

peak 1515 · rated over 18 contests5 invitational or side-series contests not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Jul 31, 2020

latest Jul 9, 2026 · 5.9 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#479

Master 2024 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

6 podiums

Overall top-10s

12% of 26 contests

Avg finish

top 57%

overall standings

Best overall

697.0512 / 720

Master · Torry Island BBQ Showdown

Perfect 180s

1 🔥

Current form

683.54 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 676.59 (+6.96)

Walk rate

46%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Brisket · Royal Oak Invitational (COMPETITOR SERIES) (PRIVATE EVENT BY INVITATION)

Consistency

±13.95

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 170.43 · weakest Brisket (167.30)

Road miles

6,023

across 26 mapped stops · furthest 618 mi

Schedule strength

52%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1567)

Purse competed for

$411K

listed at 22 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 20 state-championship entries

Master avg

676.59 / 720

22 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (11 found in their record)

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

Perfect scores on the board

1 perfect 180

1 perfect 180 in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in brisket.

Brisket ×1

High-water mark

697.0512 career-best overall

96.8% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 697.0512 at Torry Island BBQ Showdown — 96.8% of a perfect 720.

Master
Mar 1, 2024

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

Yeti Mafia BBQ has finished one call ahead of Rum Runners BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2026 their best year

2026 was the year it came together: 6 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 45%.

6 contests
1 overall top-10
0 category wins
average top 45%

A tough matchup

13–0 behind in the head-to-head

ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN ahead in 100% of their meetings

ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN has come out ahead in 13 of their 13 shared contests.

A strong matchup

10–4 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 71% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of K & E's Little Smokers in 10 of their 14 shared contests.

Pork Ribs nemesis

11 of 15 shared pork ribs entries lost

Smoke Central BBQ ahead 73% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Smoke Central BBQ has out-cooked them in 11 of 15 shared pork ribs entries.

Show 4 more storylines

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

Smoke Showing Backyard BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A March team

Top 47% average finish in March

Something about March: average finish in the top 47% across 6 contests, versus top 57% the rest of the year.

6 March contests
top 57% the rest of the year

The long haul

6,023 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 6,023 miles across 26 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 618 miles to 6th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN.

26 mapped stops
furthest 618 mi

The metronome

±1.96% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.96% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 94.1% of a perfect score
26 contests

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	#814 (120 pts)	#882 (120 pts)	#810 (175 pts)	#837 (120 pts)	#838 (120 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#604 (261 pts)	#598 (311 pts)	#773 (226 pts)	#746 (196 pts)	#574 (301 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#479 (396 pts)	#461 (461 pts)	#420 (576 pts)	#512 (391 pts)	#510 (406 pts)
2023 ↗	Master	#1255 (60 pts)	#1319 (60 pts)	#1432 (60 pts)	#825 (175 pts)	#1296 (60 pts)
2022 ↗	Master	#789 (190 pts)	#734 (245 pts)	#609 (365 pts)	#716 (250 pts)	#837 (180 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#1236 (60 pts)	#1286 (60 pts)	#1309 (60 pts)	#1262 (60 pts)	#1245 (60 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Rum Runners BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

3 RIVERS BBQ

#2,737 of the rated field

1513 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 6%
Peak: 1520

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Rum Runners BBQ)

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

rated over 17 contests
last seen Jul 10, 2025

⚔ Head-to-head

2 Live Que

#2,710 of the rated field

1513 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1513

0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to Rum Runners BBQ)

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 11 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Jan 24, 2025

⚔ Head-to-head

MILL HILL BARBEQUE COMPANY

#2,747 of the rated field

1512 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 11%
Peak: 1512

1–2 in 3 shared contests (33% to Rum Runners BBQ)

Fewer contests behind them than Rum Runners BBQ has cooked, 9 to 26, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Mar 1, 2024

⚔ Head-to-head

RED BARN BBQ

#2,730 of the rated field

1513 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 6%
Peak: 1530

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

rated over 18 contests

⚔ Compare careers

RED WAX BBQ

#2,728 of the rated field

1513 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 6%
Peak: 1517

18 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 6% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 18 contests
last seen Aug 31, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

MAGUIRE UNIVERSITY CULINARY INSTITUTE

#2,743 of the rated field

1512 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1533

They were already cooking in 2013, 7 years before Rum Runners BBQ's first contest.

rated over 19 contests
last seen Aug 16, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
K & E's Little Smokers	14	10	4	71%	⚔ compare
Smoke Central BBQ	14	1	13	7%	⚔ compare
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN	13	0	13	0%	⚔ compare
Going Yard BBQ	12	3	9	25%	⚔ compare
GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ	12	2	10	17%	⚔ compare
HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
MAYA JANE BBQ CO.	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
Poppa Pig	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
Kings BBQ Team	12	0	12	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' SWEETMEATS	11	2	9	18%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
ELITE BBQ SMOKERS	10	3	7	30%	⚔ compare
Dogpatch Q	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
Mad Dog BBQ	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	10	1	9	10%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	23	4	0	3	179.4400	157.6572	169.96	top 54%
Pork Ribs	24	9	0	1	177.7144	154.2056	170.43	top 45%
Pork	23	5	0	0	176.5600	160.5144	169.71	top 52%
Brisket	23	4	1	2	180 🔥	150.1828	167.30	top 56%

“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)	8	0	top 43%
Large (40+)	15	0	top 64%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
FL	10	top 44%
GA	8	top 63%
SC	3	top 64%
TN	2	top 86%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
South Carolina Festival of Discovery	3	38	top 64%	Jul 9, 2026
Torry Island BBQ Showdown	3	4	top 24%	Mar 20, 2026
Lakeland Pig Festival	3	24	top 57%	Jan 22, 2026
Sip & Swine BBQ Festival	3	40	top 71%	Mar 3, 2023

More numbers

Busiest season 2026 6 contests

Contests a season 3.7 across 7 seasons in the data

Most contests held in FL 12 of 26 contests · 4 states in all

Contests visited 15 4 of them more than once

Most-entered meat Pork Ribs 24 entries · 0 wins · 9 calls

Opponents faced 768 finished ahead 585 times, behind 1,068

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

20263 milestones

Apr 17 25th tracked contest The Downtown BBQ Showdown
Apr 17 Peak power rating (1515) The Downtown BBQ Showdown
Jul 9 Most recent contest South Carolina Festival of Discovery

20242 milestones

Mar 1 First overall top-10 Torry Island BBQ Showdown
Mar 1 Career-best overall score697.0512 Torry Island BBQ Showdown

20233 milestones

Mar 3 10th tracked contest Sip & Swine BBQ Festival
Oct 20 First category win (Brisket) Royal Oak Invitational (COMPETITOR SERIES) (PRIVATE EVENT BY INVITATION)
Oct 20 First perfect 180 (Brisket) Royal Oak Invitational (COMPETITOR SERIES) (PRIVATE EVENT BY INVITATION)

20203 milestones

Jul 31 First tracked contest Hawgin On Lanier
Jul 31 First call Hawgin On Lanier
Jul 31 First overall past 90% of a perfect score685.1204 Hawgin On Lanier

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+12.5	Torry Island BBQ Showdown	Mar 21, 2025
+9.9	The Downtown BBQ Showdown	Apr 17, 2026
+8.9	Torry Island BBQ Showdown	Mar 20, 2026
+7.4	Hawgin On Lanier	Jul 31, 2020
+7	Lakeland Pig Festival	Jan 26, 2024

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-10.1	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival	Mar 5, 2021
-8.7	Swine At the Shrine	Aug 5, 2022
-7.7	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival	Mar 3, 2023
-6.8	Plant City Pig Jam	Nov 19, 2021
-4.5	Lakeland Pig Festival	Jan 22, 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	6	1	0	50%	top 45%	96.3%	94.9%
2025	3	1	0	33%	top 47%	96.2%	94.7%
2024	6	1	0	33%	top 62%	96.8%	94.8%
2023	3	0	1	67%	top 57%	96.5%	93.4%
2022	4	0	0	25%	top 65%	95.5%	93.7%
2021	3	0	0	67%	top 77%	93.6%	91.4%
2020	1	0	0	100%	top 29%	95.2%	95.2%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jul 9, 2026	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	51 / 75 (675.8744)	56 (167.9772)	14 (174.2628)	65 (160.5144)	28 (173.1200)
Apr 17, 2026	The Downtown BBQ Showdown 🏅 Lake City, FL	12 / 41 (693.5996)	30 (170.8112)	4 (176.5600)	8 (176.5600)	23 (169.6684)
Mar 20, 2026	Torry Island BBQ Showdown 🏅 Belle Glade, FL	8 / 34 (687.9312)	7 (175.4056)	8 (177.1428)	13 (174.8456)	24 (160.5372)
Feb 20, 2026	Ribs on the Ridge 🏅 Haines City, FL	12 / 32 (684.4456)	11 (173.1200)	15 (171.9772)	9 (173.1200)	22 (166.2284)
Jan 22, 2026	Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL	41 / 63 (675.8512)	54 (165.0856)	41 (168.5372)	30 (171.4056)	29 (170.8228)
Jan 9, 2026	10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam 🏅 St. Augustine, FL	—	—	—	—	—
Jul 10, 2025	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	38 / 66 (677.0168)	50 (162.8000)	36 (169.7028)	31 (170.2512)	17 (174.2628)
Mar 21, 2025	Torry Island BBQ Showdown 🏅 Belle Glade, FL	4 / 26 (692.5144)	2 (177.7144)	6 (173.1200)	9 (168.5484)	4 (173.1316)
Jan 24, 2025	Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL	27 / 40 (676.4572)	22 (170.8228)	37 (161.6688)	17 (172.5600)	19 (171.4056)
Jul 11, 2024	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	51 / 76 (675.8628)	25 (173.7028)	22 (173.1200)	63 (165.0856)	59 (163.9544)
May 25, 2024	6th Annual KCBS World Invitational - MASTER SERIES INVITATIONAL unrated Lebanon, TN	74 / 81 (678.1484)	50 (173.1200)	78 (163.3828)	37 (173.1200)	66 (168.5256)
May 24, 2024	6th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN unrated Lebanon, TN	94 / 118 (672.4224)	36 (175.4056)	116 (158.7884)	68 (170.2628)	79 (167.9656)
Mar 1, 2024	Torry Island BBQ Showdown 🏅 Belle Glade, FL	7 / 21 (697.0512)	3 (177.7028)	10 (174.2628)	7 (174.2628)	7 (170.8228)
Jan 26, 2024	Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL	24 / 61 (690.7656)	35 (171.9772)	2 (177.7144)	48 (167.3712)	22 (173.7028)
Jan 4, 2024	8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show 🏅 Elkton, FL	—	—	—	—	—
Oct 20, 2023	Royal Oak Invitational (COMPETITOR SERIES) (PRIVATE EVENT BY INVITATION) unrated Roswell, GA	11 / 35 (694.7772)	28 (167.3944)	4 (177.7028)	28 (169.6800)	1 (180)
Mar 3, 2023	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival 🏅 Lawrenceville, GA	49 / 65 (652.9712)	39 (167.9656)	37 (167.3828)	37 (167.4400)	58 (150.1828)
Feb 3, 2023	Budweiser Smoke on the Water 🏅 Winter Haven, FL	30 / 47 (669.5656)	43 (158.2056)	26 (168.5600)	6 (176.5600)	32 (166.2400)
Oct 21, 2022	Royal Oak Invitational Only (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Roswell, GA	18 / 35 (687.9196)	2 (179.4400)	7 (175.4056)	18 (170.8228)	33 (162.2512)
Aug 5, 2022	Swine At the Shrine 🏅 Savannah, GA	44 / 49 (658.1144)	47 (157.6572)	13 (175.4056)	45 (160.5144)	38 (164.5372)
Aug 5, 2022	Swine At the Shrine (One Meat Ribs) Savannah, GA	—	—	12 (170.8228)	—	—
Mar 4, 2022	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival 🏅 Lawrenceville, GA	40 / 73 (678.7772)	12 (175.4172)	50 (166.2400)	39 (168.5372)	34 (168.5828)
Nov 19, 2021	Plant City Pig Jam 🏅 Plant City, FL	23 / 37 (663.3144)	27 (165.0972)	5 (172)	11 (171.4056)	32 (154.8116)
Oct 15, 2021	Royal Oak Invitational Only (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Roswell, GA	30 / 34 (674.2060)	29 (167.4172)	4 (176.5716)	31 (163.9544)	26 (166.2628)
Mar 5, 2021	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival 🏅 Lawrenceville, GA	66 / 81 (636.9484)	59 (162.2628)	72 (154.2056)	49 (165.6800)	72 (154.8000)
Jul 31, 2020	Hawgin On Lanier 🏅 Cumming, GA	16 / 55 (685.1204)	16 (172.5716)	34 (165.6800)	20 (170.8572)	3 (176.0116)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

Rum Runners BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

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

Storylines (11 found in their record)

Perfect scores on the board

High-water mark

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

A strong matchup

Pork Ribs nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A March team

The long haul

The metronome

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)