Ishy Links BBQ IL
Rating
1535
peak 1535 · rated over 13 contests
Contests
13
in the data
First seen
2022-05-28
latest 2026-06-19
Best ToY finish
#167
Backyard 2025
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
1
1 podiums
Overall top-10s
5
of 13 contests
Avg finish
top 46%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
335.83 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 328.39 (+7.44)
Walk rate
62%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
2
best run (overall)
Consistency
±8.78
std dev of Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 164.51 · weakest Chicken (163.89)
Road miles
1496
mi across 13 mapped stops · furthest 512 mi
Schedule strength
54%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1549)
Purse competed for
$47K
listed at 12 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 3 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
328.39 / 360
13 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
Stone Cold Grillers has finished one call ahead of Ishy Links BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
⚔️ A tough matchup
WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ has come out ahead in 10 of their 10 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of Diabolical Pig in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
😤 Pork Ribs nemesis
Even in their strongest meat, WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ has out-cooked them in 8 of 10 shared pork ribs entries.
Teams like this (closest power rating, IL first)
Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shmack Q | 11 | 4 | 7 | 36% | ⚔ compare |
| 309 BBQ | 10 | 4 | 6 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Stone Cold Grillers | 10 | 1 | 9 | 10% | ⚔ compare |
| WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Rudes BBQ | 9 | 3 | 6 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| Sermerstout BBQ | 8 | 5 | 3 | 63% | ⚔ compare |
| Too Sauced Guys Bar-B-Que | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| T.J.D. Smokehouse | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| Skinny Pig BBQ | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| Diabolical Pig | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| All Smoked Up BBQ | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| BBQ MIKE | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| RUBY CREEK BBQ | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| Big Foot BBQ | 5 | 4 | 1 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| HESSHOGS | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 175.4056 | 155.3712 | 163.89 | top 51% |
| Pork Ribs | 13 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 172.5600 | 155.4284 | 164.51 | top 45% |
| Pork | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| Brisket | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
“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 | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| IL | 12 | 0 | top 43% |
| AL | 1 | 0 | top 76% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 10 | 0 | top 42% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 57% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) | 4 | 6 | 0 | top 39% | 2025-08-16 |
| Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 9 | 0 | top 37% | 2026-06-19 |
| Central Illinois BBQ Throwdown | 2 | 6 | 0 | top 39% | 2025-06-27 |
| Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 59% | 2024-06-14 |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2022 (6 contests)
- Cooks mostly in IL (12 of 13 contests)
- Most-entered category: Chicken (13 entries)
- Average Backyard overall score: 328.39 / 360
Milestones
- 🚩 2022-05-28 — First tracked contest · Westmont Red White & BBQ Backyard BBQ Cook-Off 2022 (BACKYARD ONLY)
- 📣 2022-06-17 — First call · Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (Backyard)
- ⭐ 2026-06-19 — Career-best overall score (345.7028) · Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY)
- 📈 2026-06-19 — Peak power rating (1535) · Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +10.9 | Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2026-06-19 |
| +8.8 | Central Illinois BBQ Throwdown | 2022-07-15 |
| +7.9 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2023-08-19 |
| +7.8 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2022-08-20 |
| +4.3 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2024-08-17 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -7.9 | Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2024-06-14 |
| -4.7 | 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - BACKYARD SERIES INVITATIONAL | 2022-11-12 |
| -1.4 | Westmont Red White & BBQ Backyard BBQ Cook-Off 2022 (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2022-05-28 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 22% | 96% | 96% |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 67% | top 54% | 93.2% | 92.2% |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 59% | 93.8% | 91.6% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 28% | 92.2% | 92.2% |
| 2022 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 50% | top 44% | 91.6% | 89.6% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-19 | Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Morris, IL | 9 / 41 (345.7028) | 9 (174.2856) | 16 (171.4172) | — | — |
| 2025-08-16 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) Fairbury, IL | 11 / 20 (330.1824) | 16 (159.3712) | 6 (170.8112) | — | — |
| 2025-06-27 | Central Illinois BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Eureka, IL | 14 / 26 (330.2288) | 16 (162.2516) | 11 (167.9772) | — | — |
| 2025-06-20 | Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Morris, IL | 19 / 36 (335.3828) | 8 (175.4056) | 27 (159.9772) | — | — |
| 2024-08-17 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) Fairbury, IL | 11 / 26 (337.6456) | 20 (165.0856) | 6 (172.5600) | — | — |
| 2024-06-14 | Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Morris, IL | 30 / 40 (322.2172) | 23 (163.4172) | 30 (158.8000) | — | — |
| 2023-08-19 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) Fairbury, IL | 9 / 32 (331.9544) | 15 (164.5256) | 5 (167.4288) | — | — |
| 2022-11-12 | 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - BACKYARD SERIES INVITATIONAL Gadsden, AL | 37 / 49 (327.9084) | 31 (168.5256) | 43 (159.3828) | — | — |
| 2022-08-20 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) Fairbury, IL | 6 / 20 (323.3712) | 13 (155.3712) | 4 (168.0000) | — | — |
| 2022-07-15 | Central Illinois BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Eureka, IL | 6 / 25 (329.1428) | 8 (159.4400) | 1 (169.7028) | — | — |
| 2022-06-24 | Heritage Days BBQ Showdown (Day One) 🏅 Belvidere, IL | 13 / 36 (313.0856) | 12 (156.5484) | 13 (156.5372) | — | — |
| 2022-06-17 | Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (Backyard) Morris, IL | 10 / 23 (329.6800) | 9 (169.1200) | 15 (160.5600) | — | — |
| 2022-05-28 | Westmont Red White & BBQ Backyard BBQ Cook-Off 2022 (BACKYARD ONLY) Westmont, IL | 16 / 28 (312.6056) | 17 (157.1772) | 20 (155.4284) | — | — |
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 ↗ | Backyard | #205 (145 pts) | #210 (145 pts) | #265 (105 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #167 (307 pts) | #157 (337 pts) | #166 (337 pts) | — | — |
| 2024 ↗ | Backyard | #239 (181 pts) | #282 (146 pts) | #217 (226 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #231 (167 pts) | #187 (242 pts) | — | — |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #124 (344 pts) | #87 (559 pts) | — | — |