BENTONVILLE, Ark., Sept. 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sam's Club® National BBQ Tour is quickly filling its team roster for the 2014 National Championship, which will take place at the end of September. Congratulations are in order to Pig Whisperers of Milledgeville, Ga. on taking home the Grand Champion win at the Southaven, Miss. regional finals event on Saturday, Sept. 6. Pig Whisperers, along with 9 other teams who competed in last Saturday's competition, will be headed to the Sam's Club Headquarters in Bentonville, Ark. on Sept. 27 for the National Championship competition and a chance at $50,000.
Since 2011, the Sam's Club National BBQ Tour has traveled the United States, region by region, searching for the year's best in competitive barbecue and awarding winning teams a total of $500,000 in prize money annually. In that time, thousands of Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) competition teams worked to carefully perfect and present their barbecue, which was assessed by KCBS Certified Barbecue Judges, hoping to earn the title of "National Champion." More than 700 teams are expected to compete for their shot at fame in the 2014 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour.
"We are still flying high from our win this weekend," said Chris Goodwin, pitmaster of Pig Whisperers. "Our biggest hurdle this weekend was the number of great teams in the field. We are very excited about the trip to Bentonville and the opportunity to compete against the top teams in the nation."
Additional congratulations are owed to the following teams, who will be representing Region 1 of the tour in Bentonville:
- Pig Whisperers (Milledgeville, Ga.)
- Lang BBQ Smokers (Nahunta, Ga.)
- Barry & Erica (Nash, Okla.)
- Swiggin' Pig (Antioch, Tenn.)
- There's No Place Like Smoke (Hannibal, Mo.)
- Bootyque (Fairhope, Ala.)
- Smoke Me Silly (Madison, Ala.)
- Cajun Blaze (Gonzales, La.)
- Que'n Stew'n & Brew'n (Acworth, Ga.)
- All Racked Up BBQ (Lakeland, Fla.)
The Sam's Club National BBQ Tour is a tournament-style series in which teams must advance from a local qualifying event to the top tier of their regional event in order to qualify for the National Championship and a shot at the $50,000 Grand Champion prize. Sponsored by Bush's®, Cargill®, Coca-Cola®, Heinz®, Hillshire®, KC Masterpiece®, Kingsford®, the National Pork Board, New Zealand Lamb, Pillsbury®, Tone's® and Wright®Brand Bacon, this continuously building competition that brings out the best, most committed barbecue teams and keeps judges and spectators returning to Sam's Club competitions for the smell and flavor of the country's best barbecue.
About Sam's Club
Sam's Club®, a division of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT), is the nation's eighth largest retailer and a leading membership warehouse club offering savings and surprises to millions of members in 630 U.S. club locations and at SamsClub.com. Sam's Club members averaged savings of 33 percent versus traditional retailers.1 To learn more about Savings Made Simple®, visit the Sam's Club Newsroom, shop at SamsClub.com, and interact with Sam's Club on Twitter and Facebook.
*Based on estimated annualized savings on items Members purchased in select categories derived from a survey conducted in 30 US markets between 2/25/2013 and 3/15/2013 comparing our regular unit prices to regular and shelf-visible sale and loyalty discount unit prices of selected non-Club competitors, including but not limited to grocery stores and mass retailers, but excluding Walmart®. Local savings for individual customers vary. For more information, please send requests to the attention of Sam's Club Member Services, 2101 SE Simple Savings Drive., Bentonville, AR 72716-0745.
About Kansas City Barbeque Society
The Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting and enjoying barbeque, is the world's largest organization of barbeque and grilling enthusiasts with over 17,000 members worldwide.
KCBS sanctions over 400 barbeque contests throughout the United States and spanning the globe. From volunteering to actual event production, our members also offer assistance to civic and charitable organizations who organize events. For more information, visit: kcbs.us.
SOURCE Kansas City Barbeque Society