Joey Chestnut Gobbles Up Lion’s Share Of Record Prize Purse At Krystal Square Off V
Hailed as the Super Bowl of competitive eating, the Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship annually fields the finest eaters in the world who all have one thing on their minds: winning the title. And while it is the championship belt and trophy they’re after, the prize money always makes a victory taste sweeter, and at Krystal Square Off V yesterday, even a defeat tasted pretty darn good.
A total of $50,000 in prize money was awarded to the 12 gurgitators, making it the largest cash purse in competitive eating history. Joey Chestnut was of course the biggest winner of the bunch, pocketing his largest cash payday ever, $20,000. Pat Bertoletti also earned the biggest prize of his career, taking away $10,000 for his runner-up finish. And even the last place finisher, Kyle Brogdon, who joined the finalist on stage at the very last minute thanks to winning The 12th Eater contest, earned a cool $500.
Below are the official payouts for the 12 finalists:
Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, San Jose, Calif. (93 Krystals) - $20,000
Pat “Deep Dish” Bertoletti, Chicago, Ill., (85 Krystals) - $10,000
Takeru Kobayashi, Tokyo, Japan, (84 Krystals) - $5,000
“Humble” Bob Shoudt, Philadelphia, Pa. (76 Krystals) - $3,000
Tim “Eater X” Janus, New York, N.Y. (64 Krystals) - $2,500
Hall “Hoover” Hunt, Jacksonville, Fla. (63 Krystals) - $2,000
Juliet “The Lovely” Lee, Germantown, Md. (55 Krystals) - $1,850
Crazy Legs Conti, New York, N.Y. (49 Krystals) - $1,500
Rich “The Locust” LeFevre, Henderson, Nev. (47 Krystals) - $1,400
Juris “Dr. Bigtime” Shibayama, Murfreesboro, Tenn. (43 Krystals) - $1,250
Eric “Badlands” Booker, Long Island, N.Y. (41 Krystals) - $1,000
Kyle “12th Eater” Brogdon, Hixson, Tenn. (10 Krystals) - $500
