Just checked the archives, you're right, the standard was very high this year. This is the 4th year the comp has been running in its current format (before that it was when Yorkie was running it, and he used to include the stake in the returns, i.e. a 1.5 winner would give you 1.5pts, not 0.5 like it is now).
Winning scores in the current format:
2014-15 - 122.55
2015-16 - 135.40
2016-17 - 134.41
2017-18 - 156.89
My score this year would've been enough to win any other year, this year it was only good enough for 3rd