Hickory Stick BBQ

Hickory Stick BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 20 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2016 and 2023. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the BBQ, Bikes and Blues (2019). They are ranked #1939 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,939

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1541

peak 1541 · rated over 13 contests3 invitational or side-series contests not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Sep 23, 2016

latest Oct 28, 2023 · 7.1 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#446

Master 2023 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve · wins it all 5% of the time

Category wins

2 podiums

Overall top-10s

10% of 20 contests

Avg finish

top 53%

overall standings

Best overall

698.2516 / 720

Master · Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)

Perfect 180s

1 🔥

Current form

684.94 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 669.21 (+15.73)

Walk rate

30%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Chicken · Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)

Consistency

±16.97

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 168.24 · weakest Brisket (165.61)

Road miles

3,329

across 20 mapped stops · furthest 434 mi

Schedule strength

82%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1607)

Purse competed for

$205K

listed at 13 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

1 🏅

won from 11 state-championship entries

Master avg

669.21 / 720

16 Master contests · 1 GC

Storylines (14 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 chicken.

Chicken ×1

Against the odds

5-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 95 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at BBQ, Bikes and Blues (Apr 26, 2019) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 5-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ.

Giant slayer

39 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 39-team field at BBQ, Bikes and Blues.

Apr 26, 2019

High-water mark

698.2516 career-best overall

97.0% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 698.2516 at Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) — 97.0% of a perfect 720.

Master
Oct 27, 2023

State champions

1 state championship won

They've taken 1 state championship from 11 entries at contests carrying the title.

11 state-championship entries

A tough matchup

11–1 behind in the head-to-head

JANKY LEG BBQ ahead in 92% of their meetings

JANKY LEG BBQ has come out ahead in 11 of their 12 shared contests.

The drought

17 contests since the last title

Their last Grand Championship came at BBQ, Bikes and Blues on Apr 26, 2019 — 17 contests and 7.4 years ago.

last GC Apr 26, 2019
7.4 years ago

Show 7 more storylines

A strong matchup

5–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 83% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ in 5 of their 6 shared contests.

The comeback

2 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 2 years, then back at Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff (Sep 21, 2018).

last seen Sep 23, 2016
back Sep 21, 2018

Pork nemesis

8 of 11 shared pork entries lost

JANKY LEG BBQ ahead 73% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, JANKY LEG BBQ has out-cooked them in 8 of 11 shared pork entries.

They cook the hard rooms

1607 average field rating faced

A tougher draw than 82% of rated fields

The fields they enter average a 1607 power rating — a tougher draw than 82% of every rated contest in the data.

13 rated contests

An October team

Top 41% average finish in October

Something about October: average finish in the top 41% across 5 contests, versus top 53% the rest of the year.

5 October contests
top 53% the rest of the year

The long haul

3,329 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 3,329 miles across 20 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 434 miles to Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY).

20 mapped stops
furthest 434 mi

The metronome

±2.36% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.36% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 92.9% of a perfect score
20 contests

In the record book (on 1 all-time board)

Where this team sits in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on.

#4 🃏 Biggest upset 5-in-100 pre-contest odds on the champion · over a 39-team rated field · Apr 26, 2019

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
2023 ↗	Backyard	—	#213 (203 pts)	—	—	—
2023 ↗	Master	#446 (440 pts)	#312 (733 pts)	#439 (552 pts)	#613 (290 pts)	#502 (390 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#748 (182 pts)	#793 (187 pts)	#896 (157 pts)	#798 (177 pts)	#729 (217 pts)
2020 ↗	Master	#655 (120 pts)	#696 (120 pts)	#701 (120 pts)	#553 (180 pts)	#530 (205 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#838 (345 pts)	#1019 (270 pts)	#942 (320 pts)	#1042 (265 pts)	#1423 (145 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1954 (60 pts)	#1949 (70 pts)	#1931 (75 pts)	#1826 (100 pts)	#1990 (60 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2274 (60 pts)	#2353 (60 pts)	#2349 (60 pts)	#2326 (60 pts)	#2345 (60 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Hickory Stick BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

ONTARGET BBQ

#1,935 of the rated field

1541 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 17%
Peak: 1548

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to Hickory Stick BBQ)

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

rated over 18 contests
last seen Aug 9, 2019

⚔ Head-to-head

SD Smoke BBQ

#1,938 of the rated field

1541 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 46%
Peak: 1541

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 13 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 13 contests
last seen Jan 13, 2023

⚔ Compare careers

BIG DADDY Q - FL

#1,942 of the rated field

1541 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1553

Careers of much the same size, 16 contests to 20, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 16 contests
last seen Feb 16, 2024

⚔ Compare careers

Ahh Townley BBQ

#1,944 of the rated field

1541 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 30%
Peak: 1542

They turned up 7 years after Hickory Stick BBQ did, first appearing in 2023.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Mar 13, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Rolling Bones Traveling BBQ Circus

#1,941 of the rated field

1541 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 50%
Peak: 1541

Their last contest in the data was back in 2014, 9 years before Hickory Stick BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 8 contests

⚔ Compare careers

MAJOR Q BBQ

#1,937 of the rated field

1541 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 26%
Peak: 1541

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 23 contests, alongside a 26% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 23 contests
last seen Aug 25, 2017

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
JANKY LEG BBQ	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
THE BBQ BUS	11	2	9	18%	⚔ compare
Heavy Smoke BBQ	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
Rusty Pig BBQ	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare
One2BBQ	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare
Can Country Outlaw BBQ	8	3	5	38%	⚔ compare
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
QUE U	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
SmokinGhost BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
ST. LOUIS BLACK IRON BBQ	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
Carrol Lou's Smokehouse	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
LOADED-N-ROLLIN BBQ	6	5	1	83%	⚔ compare
SMOKE THIS BBQ MO	6	4	2	67%	⚔ compare
MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ	6	3	3	50%	⚔ compare
ALL FORKED UP FOR Q	6	3	3	50%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	17	4	1	1	180 🔥	155.9772	168.08	top 52%
Pork Ribs	18	2	0	1	177.7144	159.3600	168.00	top 51%
Pork	15	1	0	0	175.4172	159.9656	168.24	top 48%
Brisket	16	3	0	0	175.4056	144.5144	165.61	top 54%

“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)	3	1	top 33%
Large (40+)	13	0	top 58%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
IL	6	0	top 61%
MO	4	1	top 35%
KS	3	0	top 63%
IN	2	0	top 52%
TN	1	0	top 56%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)	2	4	top 23%	Oct 28, 2023
Smokin' For Garrett	2	11	top 52%	Oct 22, 2021
Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff	2	26	top 64%	Sep 21, 2018

More numbers

Busiest season 2023 9 contests

Contests a season 3.3 across 6 seasons in the data

Most contests held in MO 7 of 20 contests · 5 states in all

Contests visited 13 3 of them more than once

Most-entered meat Pork Ribs 18 entries · 0 wins · 2 calls

First title Apr 26, 2019 BBQ, Bikes and Blues

Opponents faced 864 finished ahead 709 times, behind 812

Longest layoff 2 yrs Sep 23, 2016 → Sep 21, 2018

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

20235 milestones

Oct 27 First category win (Chicken) Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)
Oct 27 First perfect 180 (Chicken) Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)
Oct 27 Career-best overall score698.2516 Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)
Oct 28 Peak power rating (1541) Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)
Oct 28 Most recent contest Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)

20211 milestone

Sep 24 10th tracked contest Praise the Lard Murphysboro BBQ Cook-Off

20196 milestones

Apr 26 First call BBQ, Bikes and Blues
Apr 26 First overall top-10 BBQ, Bikes and Blues
Apr 26 First overall podium BBQ, Bikes and Blues
Apr 26 First Grand Championship BBQ, Bikes and Blues
Apr 26 First state championship BBQ, Bikes and Blues
Apr 26 Biggest field won (39 teams) BBQ, Bikes and Blues

20181 milestone

Sep 21 First overall past 90% of a perfect score677.0744 Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff

20161 milestone

Sep 23 First tracked contest Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+19.9	BBQ, Bikes and Blues	Apr 26, 2019
+17.5	Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)	Oct 27, 2023
+6.7	Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff	Sep 21, 2018
+5.4	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest	Sep 27, 2023
+4.9	Harvest On the Fire At the Winery	Jul 10, 2020

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-8.6	WashMo BBQ & Bluesfest	Apr 23, 2021
-7.9	Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff	Sep 23, 2016
-5.5	Smokin For Garrett	Oct 23, 2020
-1.7	Red, White, and BBQ- Day 2	May 25, 2019
-1.3	Murphysboro BBQ Cook Off	Sep 20, 2019

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)
2023	9	0	1	1	44%	top 40%	97%	95.1%
2021	3	0	0	0	33%	top 63%	93.5%	92.1%
2020	3	0	0	0	0%	top 68%	93.3%	92.1%
2019	3	1	1	0	33%	top 44%	96.1%	92%
2018	1	0	0	0	0%	top 44%	94%	94%
2016	1	0	0	0	0%	top 84%	88.9%	88.9%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Oct 28, 2023	Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) 🏅 Oak Grove, MO	15 / 40 (689.0400)	25 (171.9772)	25 (169.6800)	15 (173.1200)	10 (174.2628)
Oct 28, 2023	Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Oak Grove, MO	—	4 (176.5600)	—	—	—
Oct 28, 2023	Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (ONE MEAT RIBS) Oak Grove, MO	—	—	9 (170.8228)	—	—
Oct 27, 2023	Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) 🏅 Oak Grove, MO	4 / 47 (698.2516)	1 (180)	21 (172.5716)	27 (170.2744)	10 (175.4056)
Oct 13, 2023	Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) unrated Lynchburg, TN	45 / 81 (678.1596)	57 (166.2400)	33 (173.1084)	49 (168.5600)	37 (170.2512)
Sep 27, 2023	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS	—	—	—	—	—
Sep 27, 2023	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Invitational Contest unrated Kansas City, KS	117 / 211 (682.2172)	12 (177.7144)	13 (177.7144)	204 (159.9656)	143 (166.8228)
Sep 27, 2023	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	208 / 487 (677.0288)	240 (168.5488)	272 (167.3944)	60 (175.4172)	273 (165.6684)
Mar 24, 2023	Kickin' It Route 66 BBQ (One Meat Ribs) St. Robert, MO	—	—	15 (171.9656)	—	—
Oct 22, 2021	Smokin' For Garrett 🏅 Boonville, IN	11 / 27 (673.0284)	10 (169.1200)	16 (165.1200)	14 (167.3828)	8 (171.4056)
Sep 24, 2021	Praise the Lard Murphysboro BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Murphysboro, IL	22 / 39 (666.7084)	35 (157.6684)	18 (167.3828)	14 (169.6916)	13 (171.9656)
Apr 23, 2021	WashMo BBQ & Bluesfest 🏅 Washington, MO	41 / 45 (649.6000)	38 (159.3944)	37 (162.8344)	23 (163.9884)	23 (163.3828)
Nov 13, 2020	Second Annual KCBS World Invitational Barbeque Competition 🏅 unrated Mayetta, KS	86 / 94 (661.5888)	72 (167.3828)	90 (159.3944)	—	88 (162.8344)
Oct 23, 2020	Smokin For Garrett Boonville, IN	26 / 41 (656.4228)	26 (162.7884)	31 (159.3716)	13 (169.7256)	22 (164.5372)
Jul 10, 2020	Harvest On the Fire At the Winery 🏅 Marshall, IL	26 / 53 (671.9432)	31 (166.8572)	27 (166.2976)	33 (166.2400)	11 (172.5484)
Sep 20, 2019	Murphysboro BBQ Cook Off 🏅 Murphysboro, IL	34 / 54 (650.6512)	27 (166.8228)	21 (168.5372)	41 (162.7884)	50 (152.5028)
May 25, 2019	Red, White, and BBQ- Day 2 🏅 Westmont, IL	32 / 48 (643.8744)	43 (155.9772)	31 (159.3600)	21 (163.9772)	21 (164.5600)
Apr 26, 2019	BBQ, Bikes and Blues 🏅 Washington, MO	1 / 39 (691.9544)	4 (176.5716)	2 (175.4172)	5 (174.2628)	24 (165.7028)
Sep 21, 2018	Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff Murphysboro, IL	26 / 59 (677.0744)	23 (170.2744)	22 (171.4172)	17 (171.9772)	43 (163.4056)
Sep 23, 2016	Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff Murphysboro, IL	54 / 64 (639.8400)	47 (163.4056)	31 (165.6800)	41 (166.2400)	58 (144.5144)

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

Hickory Stick 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 (14 found in their record)

Perfect scores on the board

Against the odds

Giant slayer

High-water mark

State champions

A tough matchup

The drought

A strong matchup

The comeback

Pork nemesis

They cook the hard rooms

An October team

The long haul

The metronome

In the record book (on 1 all-time board)

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 — 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)