Challenges: MPF percentile
40%
Seasons: 1 | Days played: 26 | Wins: 0 | Final Three: 1
- Survivor 47 (2024) - 2nd place, 7-1-0.
- Received one jury vote to finish second in Episode 14, "The Last Stand" (Day 26).
| Challenge stats | Tribal council stats | Jury stats | Overall stats | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | ChW | ChA | ChW% | VFB | VAP | TCA | TC% | wTCR | JVF | TotJ | JV% | SurvSc | SurvAv |
| Survivor 47 | 2.41 | 11.33 | 0.21 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 0.98 | 2.15 | 1 | 8 | 0.13 | 1.32 | 5.31 |
| Career | 2.41 | 11.33 | 0.21 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 0.98 | 2.15 | 1 | 8 | 0.13 | 1.32 | 5.31 |
Sam Phalen - Performance ranks
Tribal: VFB% percentile
94%
Tribal: rVAP percentile
40%
Performance ranks are a quick visual measure of the contestant's season vs. historical data from all prior contestants, in three basic (scorable) categories:
1. Performance in individual challenges (MPF), as a measure of "physical game";
2. Ability to vote people out consistently (VFB%, or VFB/TCA), or "strategic game"; and
3. Ability to avoid being voted against (rVAP, or TCA-VAP) - which scales better than a percentage would - for "social/strategic game."
See also: Full glossary for all these abbreviations.
Sam Phalen - Challenge record
Survivor
47 challenges 
Tribal/team challenge record (7-for-10):
- Survivor 47 Ep. 1 RC: "Kang Sera Sera" - Carries puzzle pieces, and Gata wins!
- Survivor 47 Ep. 1 IC: "Under Pressure" - Helps push the boat, works puzzle, but Gata loses (3rd/3).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 2 RC/IC: "Rice Race" - Works the snake maze with Sierra and Anika, and Gata wins! (1st/3).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 3 RC/IC: "Seahorse With No Name" - Crosses obstacles, and Gata wins! (1st/3).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 4 RC/IC: "Stage Presence" - Rolls cube, tosses sandbags, and Gata wins! (1st/3).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 5 RC: "Climb Mate Change" - Crosses obstacles, lands final shot for the (yellow) winning team.
- Survivor 47 Ep. 5 IC: "Drag Race" - Saws, drags, helps on puzzle, but Gata loses (3rd/3).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 6 RC: "Feel the Earn" - Crosses obstacles, works final table maze with Kyle, for the winning team.
- Survivor 47 Ep. 9 RC: "Pairy Feral" - With Andy, one of two losing pairs eliminated in the first stage (3rd/3).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 10 RC: "Slither Me" - With Rachel and Kyle, part of the winning team.
Individual challenge record (1-for-10): (Mean % finish: 52.8%)
- Survivor 47, Ep. 6 IC: "Bow Diddley" - Second person out, on the first section (6th/7).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 7 RC/IC: "Audio Slave" - Fourth out for the winning yellow team (3rd/6).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 8 IC: "Wrist Assured" - First out for the men, in under a minute (5th/5).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 10 IC: "Rollerball" - Seventh to drop out, on the three-ball stage (3rd/9).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 11 IC: "A Bit Tipsy" - Briefly leads, but one of six not close to winning (tie-3rd/8).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 12 RC: "Matt Finish" - Eventually lands both balls, and Sam wins! (1st/7).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 12 IC: "Wizard's Staff" - One of five to reach the final stage but not place a ball (tie-2nd/7).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 13 F6 IC: "Chasing Waterfalls" - One of four not close on the final puzzle (tie-3rd/6).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 13 F5 IC: "Stacked Up" - One of four to not complete their stack (tie-2nd/5).
- Survivor 47 Ep. 14 F4 IC: "Suzi Quatro" - First to the puzzle, but one of three to not finish it (tie-2nd/4).
Hero challenge/ duel record (0-for-0):
- Survivor 47: None.
Career totals - challenges
| Wins: | 7 |
| Played: | 10 |
| Win%: | 0.70 |
| Sat out: | - |
| Wins: | 1 |
| Played: | 10 |
| Win%: | 0.10 |
| Mean % Finish: | 52.8% |
| Wins: | 0 |
| Played: | 0 |
| Win%: | - |
| Mean % Finish: | - |
Sam Phalen - Tribal Council record
Survivor
47 Tribal 
Idols held/played (1/0):
- Survivor 47, Ep. 2: Finds the Beware package, loops in every person on the tribe in the search (except Andy), decides to hold onto the 1-Tribal idol (Day 4).
- Survivor 47, Ep. 5: Declines to play his idol, so it expires unused (Day 10).
- Survivor 47, Ep. 12: As previously stated, offers his Gata dead idol as a model for a fake idol, as part of Operation: Italy (Day 21).
VFB - Votes for the person booted (8/9*):
| Tribal | Voted | Boot (totals) | VFB? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ep1 | Jon | Jon Lovett (voted out, 5-1) | Yes |
| Ep5 | Anika | Anika Dhar (voted out, 3-1) | Yes |
| Ep6 | Rome | Rome Cooney (voted out, 9-2-1) | Yes |
| Ep8 | -* | Sierra Wright (voted out, 4-4-1; 8-1) | - |
| Ep9 | Sol | Sol Yi (voted out, 8-1) | Yes |
| Ep10 | Gabe | Gabe Ortis (voted out, 7-2) | Yes |
| Ep11 | Kyle | Kyle Ostwald (voted out, 6-1-1) | Yes |
| Ep12 | Caroline | Caroline Vidmar (voted out, 3-2-2) | Yes |
| Ep13 (F6) | -* | Andy Rueda (idoled out, [0]-2) | - |
| Ep13 (F5) | Genevieve | Genevieve Mushaluk (voted out, 3-2) | Yes |
| 8* | TOTALS | 8 | |
*Sam was present (and voted against) at the Ep8 Tribal, but had lost his vote at the auction; no TCA charged
*Sam was present at the Ep13 F6 Tribal, but had his vote blocked by Rachel's advantage; no TCA charged
VAP - Votes against (9):
- Survivor 47, Ep. 6: One vote, from Rome.
- Survivor 47, Ep. 8: Four votes, from Andy, Genevieve, Sol, and Teeny.
- Survivor 47, Ep. 12: Two votes, from Sue and Teeny.
- Survivor 47, Ep. 13 (F5): Two votes, from Genevieve and Teeny.
Jury votes received (1/8):
- Survivor 47, Ep. 14: Received one jury vote, from Kyle Ostwald, to finish in second place, 7-1-0.
Career totals - Tribal Council
| Found: | 1 |
| Played: | 0 |
| Votes voided: | - |
| VFB: | 8 |
| Tribals: | 8* |
| VAP: | 9 |
| Made: | 0 |
| For winners: | - |
| Received: | 1 |
| Total jurors: | 8 |
Sam Phalen - Pictures
Survivor 47 image gallery -
Survivor 47 intro shot -
Survivor 47 intro shot -
CBS pre-game interview shot -
Opening sequence confessional: "I'm a wolf in wolf's clothing!" -
On the boat, Day 1 -
Arrival, greeting Probst -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep1 RC -
Starting line -
Watching Rachel and Anika work the puzzle -
Gata wins! -
Ready for their flint, pot, and machete -
Gata pandering to Lovett -
Gata women forming an actual alliance with Sam -
Sierra made fire! -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep1 IC -
Gata trailing -
Andy reveals all -
Andy apologizes -
Gata, Ep1 Tribal -
Listening to Andy -
Just found the Beware idol clue (with Anika), Ep2 -
Located the box, with Rachel -
Andy says - *gasp* - someone found the Beware clue -
(Pretends to be shocked) -
Opening the idol, with Sierra -
It's a 1-Tribal idol, small but mighty -
Working the snake maze, with Sierra and Anika -
Gata wins! -
Re-building the shelter, Ep3 -
It's bamboo, not the freaking Taj Mahal! -
Anika wants to go on the journey -
Listening to the journey report -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep3 RC/IC -
Watching the puzzle stage -
Gata wins again! -
Sam raps, for some reason, Ep4 -
Oh, Andy! -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep4 RC/IC -
Watching the puzzle stage -
Gata checks out their reward chickens -
Rock-drawn teams picked, Ep5 RC -
Yellow team leading -
Yellow team wins! -
Cheers to the Social hour -
Tiyana says Gabe is sketchy -
Sierra negotiates away the chickens for eggs, pre-Ep5 IC -
Gata trailing?! -
Sure woulda been nice if Andy had sawed a little faster -
Gata, Ep5 Tribal -
Listening to Andy -
It's merge (-ish) time, Ep6 - but first an advantage search -
That buoy? Ah, that's nothing... -
Talking musical theater with Teeny -
No longer advantage hunting -
Genevieve found it at the buoy! -
Yellow team trailing, Ep6 RC -
Yellow team wins! -
On to the individual IC -
Reward feasting -
Not-merge tribe, Ep6 Tribal -
Listening to Probst -
Another rick draw, pre-Ep7 RC/IC -
Starting line -
Reward feasting again -
Watching the losing team's Tribal -
Play-by-playing the scramble for auction cash, Ep8 -
Auction time -
About to devour larvae for the chance to blow a ton of money on breakfast -
Not thrilled to lose his vote -
Starting line, Ep8 IC -
Beka tribe, Ep8 Tribal -
Blindsided by the Sierra boot, Ep9 -
Willing to work with Lavo -
Pre-challenge pairs, Ep9 RC/IC -
Not getting out of the first round -
On the Ep9 journey, which at least looks epic -
Learning Sol is the target -
Telling Sol he's the target, against Rachel's wishes -
Beka, Ep9 Tribal -
Listening to Probst -
Waiting to slither, Ep10 RC -
Blue team wins reward! -
Reward feasting -
Mending fences with Rachel -
Starting line, Ep10 IC -
Still going... -
Beka, Ep10 Tribal -
Talking to Probst -
The three people left out of the five-person "underdogs" alliance, Ep11 -
Listening to Rachel's journey report -
Stacking tiles, Ep11 IC -
Beka, Ep11 Tribal -
Listening to Rachel -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep12 RC -
Sam wins Italian food reward! -
Oh yeah, you also get to deny letters from home to four people. Enjoy! -
Reward feasting -
Reading his letters -
Andy proposes Operation: Italy -
The operation is underway -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep12 IC -
Checking out Genevieve's fake idol -
Hoping the plan works -
Beka, Ep12 Tribal -
Play your (fake) idol, Genevieve! -
Celebrating Operation: Italy's success, Ep13 -
Accurate forecasting from Teeny -
Advanced snooping by Rachel -
Working the puzzle, F6 IC -
Genevieve wins -
Rachel says she knows she's the target -
Beka, F6 Tribal -
Talking to Probst -
Getting vote-blocked by Rachel -
Disgruntled about Rachel and Genevieve acting like one of them will win -
Pre-challenge lineup, F5 IC -
Hooray, more stacking -
Telling Teeny that Rachel's idol is fake -
Beka, F5 Tribal -
Listening to Genevieve -
Pre-challenge lineup, Ep14 F4 IC -
Solving the (letter-based) combo lock -
Trying to copy Rachel's puzzle -
Rachel says Sam and Teeny are making fire -
Practicing fire (first time) -
Very worried about this -
Beka, pre-F4 firemaking -
Well, here goes nothing -
Somehow, Sam wins! -
Final three! Morning 26 -
Breakfasting -
Leaving camp one last time -
Ready to face the jury -
Answering questions -
Rachel wins! -
Listening to Rachel, Aftershow
Sam Phalen - Interviews
Survivor 47 interviews Pre-game interviews
- Mike Bloom at Parade.com (9/7/24): "Sports Reporter Sam Phalen Is a 'Professional Ego Stroker'"
- Rob Cesternino & Mike Bloom at RHAP (9/10/24): "Survivor 47 Pre-Game Day 6: Sam & Sierra"
Post-game interviews
- Dalton Ross at EW.com (12/19/24): "Sam says it 'stung' not getting Sierra's Survivor 47 winner vote"
- Mike Bloom at Parade.com (12/19/24): "Survivor 47 Runner-Up Sam Phalen Thought He May Have Tied the Jury Vote Going Into the Winner Reveal"
- Rob Cesternino at RHAP (12/19/24): "Exit Interviews: Final 4 of Survivor 47"
Sam Phalen - Bio
Survivor 47 bio Official CBS Survivor 47 bio excerpts, (September 4, 2024), as preserved by Mike Bloom at Parade.com:
"Three words to describe you: Passionate, stubborn, ambitious
Why do you want to be part of Survivor: Playing Survivor is a childhood dream. I love both mental and physical competitions. Survivor is the greatest game ever created, and I need to prove I have what it takes. Also… $1 million.
What’s one life experience you feel has prepared you for the game?: My daily work life has built me for this game. Working in professional sports as a media member forces you to excel at ego stroking, asking the right questions, building relationships, and capitalizing on information.
Which previous player do you identify with the most? Who do you think you will play most like? Michele Fitzgerald. So much more to her than her appearance and played the game (twice) with grit. Tough exterior with an emotional core. My game may also look similar to Devon Pinto. He built relationships, gave up control early, didn’t have to be the alpha, and made a late run!
What will you value in an alliance partner? Predictability. I want to know how my allies think, what they value, and what they need from me. I won’t deal with [erratic] people. I’d also love someone that presents more strategic than me to hide my own wit.
Favorite hobbies: Playing trivia, critiquing movies, working out.
Pet peeves: When someone leaves the door open too long entering the sauna and wastes the heat. When someone uses an accent to say a foreign word correctly when they’re not from there. Overly confident sports fans.
What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? Landing a full-time job as an NFL beat reporter at 22 years old. My professors told me it would take years of “working my way up” to reach that level.
What is something we would never know from looking at you? I did a lot of drama, musical theater, and slam poetry growing up. I love the arts. I’m way smarter than I look.
...
Why will you be the Sole Survivor? I can gel with any group of people. I’m a physical, strategic, and social force that will never be perceived as the strongest, smartest, or loudest person in the room. I’m gritty."