Phil the Grill AZ
Rating
1488
peak 1541
Contests
19
in the data
First seen
2018-12-28
latest 2025-11-21
Best ToY finish
#268
Master 2014
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
2 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
of 19 contests
Avg finish
top 56%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
659.65 ▲
last 5 vs career avg 636.75 (+22.90)
Walk rate
32%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±60.90
std dev of overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 165.89 · weakest Pork (165.35)
Road miles
14261
mi across 19 mapped stops · furthest 2269 mi
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
Fox Smokehouse BBQ has finished one call ahead of Phil the Grill 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
⚔️ A tough matchup
LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ has come out ahead in 16 of their 20 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of DUSTY ROADS BBQ in 8 of their 10 shared contests.
📅 A September team
Something about September: average finish in the top 30% across 4 contests, versus top 56% the rest of the year.
Teams like this (closest power rating, AZ first)
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 17 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 177.7144 | 154.2284 | 165.49 | top 61% |
| Pork Ribs | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 178.8800 | 155.9656 | 165.89 | top 56% |
| Pork | 17 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 177.7028 | 147.3484 | 165.35 | top 57% |
| Brisket | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 173.7256 | 154.8456 | 165.73 | top 50% |
“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 state / province
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| AZ | 7 | 0 | top 50% |
| KS | 4 | 0 | top 30% |
| NV | 3 | 0 | top 80% |
| CT | 1 | 0 | top 80% |
| CA | 1 | 0 | top 74% |
| UT | 1 | 0 | top 60% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 4 | 0 | top 68% |
| Large (40+) | 13 | 0 | top 50% |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2023 (5 contests)
- Cooks mostly in AZ (7 of 19 contests)
- Most-entered category: Chicken (17 entries)
- All-time average overall score: 636.75
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
Category scores over time
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
Team of the Year rank by season
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Category wins | Best overall | Avg overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 675.8976 | 661.04 |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 664.9712 | 664.97 |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 667.8744 | 618.92 |
| 2022 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 687.3716 | 668.29 |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 494.1716 | 494.17 |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 671.4516 | 662.79 |
| 2019 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 679.9312 | 593.94 |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 683.4744 | 683.47 |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-11-21 | BBQ Jackpot Las Vegas, NV | 76 / 90 (662.2404) | 44 (171.4744) | 82 (162.8344) | 78 (162.8000) | 69 (165.1316) |
| 2025-07-12 | Connecticut Barbecue Challenge Somers, CT | 24 / 30 (644.9944) | 29 (155.9200) | 25 (159.9772) | 25 (161.6800) | 17 (167.4172) |
| 2025-01-17 | 10th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Bullhead City, AZ | 19 / 48 (675.8976) | 2 (177.7144) | 40 (160.5144) | 7 (173.7144) | 30 (163.9544) |
| 2024-01-12 | 9th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Bullhead City, AZ | 42 / 58 (664.9712) | 49 (165.1200) | 50 (160.5028) | 28 (169.6800) | 22 (169.6684) |
| 2023-09-27 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2023-09-27 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest Kansas City, KS | 363 / 487 (650.1596) | 447 (154.2284) | 310 (165.6684) | 361 (161.1428) | 179 (169.1200) |
| 2023-06-02 | Horse Town Brew n Que Festival Norco, CA | 32 / 43 (667.8744) | 29 (168.5256) | 12 (172.5600) | 40 (158.2172) | 18 (168.5716) |
| 2023-05-26 | Best Dam Barbeque Boulder City, NV | 22 / 27 (655.3944) | 26 (154.8344) | 19 (163.9772) | 14 (169.7372) | 14 (166.8456) |
| 2023-01-13 | Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Bullhead City, AZ | 45 / 45 (502.2400) | 32 (163.3828) | 12 (169.1200) | 19 (169.7372) | — |
| 2022-10-01 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - SIDES Kansas City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022-09-29 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - OPEN CONTEST Kansas City, KS | 115 / 505 (682.8116) | 121 (172.0116) | 5 (178.8800) | 327 (163.9428) | 188 (167.9772) |
| 2022-05-27 | Best Dam Barbeque Boulder City, NV | 19 / 26 (634.6736) | 20 (157.0856) | 9 (169.1084) | 21 (153.6340) | 20 (154.8456) |
| 2022-02-18 | BBQ & Brew 'Best in the Southwest' Festival Yuma, AZ | 13 / 34 (687.3716) | 14 (174.8572) | 14 (171.4172) | 7 (176.0116) | 21 (165.0856) |
| 2021-09-16 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue-OPEN CONTEST Kansas City, KS | 69 / 467 (494.1716) | 274 (163.9312) | 260 (165.1084) | 289 (162.8228) | 209 (165.6800) |
| 2020-08-14 | Western Legends Heritage and Music Festival Kanab, UT | 25 / 42 (671.4516) | 21 (170.3316) | 19 (168.5944) | 22 (169.6800) | 28 (162.8456) |
| 2020-01-17 | Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Bullhead City, AZ | 35 / 59 (654.1256) | 40 (162.2628) | 35 (163.3828) | 30 (165.6800) | 26 (162.8000) |
| 2019-09-12 | 40th American Royal World Series of Barbecue- OPEN CONTEST Kansas City, KS | 29 / 468 (507.9544) | 351 (159.9428) | 376 (155.9656) | 439 (147.3484) | 332 (157.6800) |
| 2019-05-03 | 7th Annual Show Low BBQ Throw down Show Low, AZ | 8 / 45 (679.9312) | 27 (168.5256) | 23 (163.4056) | 2 (177.7028) | 8 (170.2972) |
| 2018-12-28 | Arizona National BBQ Stampede Phoenix, AZ | 12 / 47 (683.4744) | 11 (173.1772) | 23 (169.1544) | 23 (167.4172) | 4 (173.7256) |
Team of the Year standings (rank per category by season — year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #754 (187 pts) | #866 (172 pts) | #635 (332 pts) | #660 (257 pts) | #780 (202 pts) |
| 2022 ↗ | Master | #929 (141 pts) | #989 (136 pts) | #669 (321 pts) | #1010 (131 pts) | #964 (136 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #655 (120 pts) | #644 (140 pts) | #636 (150 pts) | #652 (135 pts) | #681 (120 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #1042 (314 pts) | #1111 (309 pts) | #901 (434 pts) | #1182 (279 pts) | #1049 (329 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #430 (919 pts) | #433 (914 pts) | #441 (909 pts) | #361 (1049 pts) | #499 (824 pts) |
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1840 (115 pts) | #1669 (140 pts) | #1897 (115 pts) | #1923 (115 pts) | #1677 (135 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #268 (1264 pts) | #198 (1430 pts) | #130 (1713 pts) | #281 (1199 pts) | #329 (1089 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #465 (659 pts) | #388 (799 pts) | #442 (734 pts) | #229 (1179 pts) | #438 (724 pts) |