I agree with what the others have said about it is the teaching that is more important than the awards.
I don't take classes because I can't afford them, but I do go to free seminars and my old guild had a lot of known people come to talk/give workshops. You don't always get what you pay for. I know that there is a particular LA instructor here in the Seattle area that I would love to work with, but there is a very well known quilt designer that people love but I would never take a class from, because every single thing is so obviously "her" and I want "me" quilts.
Yes, some people are teaching their techniques using their tools and that is what you are paying for. Other people are teaching different things.
I've never won any national awards, I've never entered any of my quilts in anything but non-judged guild shows. But I can teach you how to put on a binding correctly for the awards circuit and have many other things to share. I have taught classes and I was able to fill in as a last minute judge for a county fair when their recognized expert had an emergency.
For both cooking and quilting, I believe that you don't need books or classes or patterns, you need to know what you want at the end and how can you do with your materials. I can teach you how to take what you have and to put your own spin on it, to discuss colors and values and movement and technical skills. Many of my quilts are deceptively simple and are made scrappy style. There are jokes and messages and meanings and it isn't until I point out things that you realize they are in there.