For Mike McElwaney of McDonough, grilling steaks isn’t just a backyard hobby during football season.

  In a few short days, he’ll have a chance to prove that his steaks are the best.

  McElwaney, 47, recently qualified to participate in the Steak Cookoff Association’s (SCA) World Championship October 5-6 in Fort Worth, Texas.

  “I’ve been all over the southeast, from Florida to Tennessee to Arkansas and everywhere in between,” said McElwaney. “Everybody that competes is the best in their family or the best in their neighborhood. Come October, it’s only the elite of those groups.”

  The SCA event will pit 300 competitors from around the world against each other to determine who makes the best ribeye steak. The winner will receive $10,000.

  This year marks McElwaney’s first full season in steak cookoffs, after taking part in a few events in 2018. The association, he said, uses a points-based system of judging to determine the winners.

  “All 300 will be split up into six groups of 50,” said McElwaney. “The top ten from each group will go to the final round.”

  A total of 63 individuals will compete in the final round. The North American, European and Australian champions, McElwaney said, will get a bye for the first round, automatically placing them in the finals.

  Each participant, McElwaney said, will cook two steaks – each measuring 1 1/8 to 1 1/4 inches thick – and submit one for the competition.

  “Everybody’s got their own method,” said McElwaney. “We get judged on taste, appearance, doneness, texture and overall impression.”

  Competitors, McElwaney said, will be able to eat or share the remaining steaks, as well as getting people’s opinions on them. He said each participant in the cookoff uses different seasonings and methods to make their steaks tender.

  “My basic method is, I put three different seasonings on it about 30 minutes apart, so I layer my seasonings,” he said. “What happens is, it draws the moisture out of the meat and mixes with the seasonings. When it goes back into the meat, it flavors the meat all the way through.”

  Cookoffs for the SCA follow a double-blind form of judging in which each entry is identified by number only, in order for judges to maintain their objectivity. McElwaney said the competition is typically fierce, and recalled a competition over the summer in Jacksonville, Fla., in which he placed sixth.

  The first-place winner, McElwaney said, was only one point ahead of him.

  “It just goes to show you how important every detail is,” he said. “One judge may like a little more heat, and another judge may like a little less salt.”

  For his part, McElwaney said he brings the temperature of his grills to 650º in order to make his steaks the way he wants them.

  “Most of us practice at home,” he said. “When I do it at home, I do it just like I do it in competitions. You can use any heat source you want to.”

  Most cookoff participants, he said, cook their steaks on charcoal because the meat “cooks hot and fast.”

  The SCA was established in 2014, with just 14 events that year. Since then, McElwaney said, its popularity has grown substantially.

  “The Steak Cookoff Association is the fast-growing food sport in the world,” said McElwaney. “They’ll have about 385 events this year worldwide. It’s a pretty big deal.”

  McElwaney is no stranger to food-related competitions. He was the Grand Champion at last year’s barbecue competition at the Hogs, Harleys and Hot Rods festival in McDonough. In addition to perfecting his cooking skills, McElwaney is the owner of Shabby Shed Designs in McDonough, in which he specializes in making wooden American Flags.

  He said what he enjoys most about cookoffs is the camaraderie that develops among his fellow participants.

  “We get to knowing each other, and you meet people from all over the country,” said McElwaney. “It really is like a family. We’re all there competing against each other, but it’s a friendly rivalry.”

  McElwaney said he hopes to begin holding more cookoff events in McDonough and Atlanta area in the near future. For more information, call 678-898-8151, visit www.steakcookoffs.com or american_ grillers_group on Instagram.