The 2012 Pro Tour season will be the seventeenth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It will begin on 7 January 2011 with Grand Prix

Grand Prix (Magic: The Gathering)

Grands Prix are professional Magic: The Gathering tournaments, awarding cash prizes, Pro Points and invitations to Pro Tours. They are open to all players and are usually the biggest Magic tournaments. The first Grand Prix was held on 22–23 March 1997 in Amsterdam...

 Austin

Austin

Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas.Austin may also refer to:-In the United States:*Austin, Arkansas*Austin, Colorado*Austin, Chicago, Illinois*Austin, Indiana*Austin, Minnesota*Austin, Nevada*Austin, Oregon...

, and will end with the conclusion of the 2012 World Championship. The 2012 season introduces several major changes to the pro play of Magic: The Gathering. As of September 2011 it is yet unknown how a few things will be implemented in the 2012 season. The known changes include a major overhaul of the ratings system, a new invitation and bye policy based upon the new ratings system, and a vastly increased amount of Grand Prix tournaments.

Mode

Four Pro Tours will be held in the 2012 season. The amount of Grand Prix is still unknown as only Grand Prix tournaments through March have been announced yet. The prize purse of future Pro Tours is also unknown, however Wizards of the Coast announced, that future Grand Prix tournaments will have a total prize pool of $10,000 to $40,000 instead of a flat $30,000 pool that was awarded at each Grand Prix in 2011.

Grand Prix: Austin, Orlando

GP Austin (7–8 January)

• Format: Limited

GP Orlando (14–15 January)

• Format: Standard

Pro Tour Dark Ascension – Honolulu (10–12 February 2012)

The first Pro Tour in the 2012 season is the first to have a proper name. Previously Pro Tours were referred to by their location and/or date. The name Dark Ascension

Dark Ascension

Dark Ascension is a Magic: The Gathering expansion set scheduled to be released February 3, 2012. It is the second set of the Innistrad block. The tagline for the set will be "Command the Night". It was first revealed at the 2011 Comic-Con in San Diego, California. The first card of the set was...

refers to the Magic set with the same name that is to be released a week prior to the Pro Tour.

Grands Prix: Kobe, Lincoln, Madrid, Baltimore, Lille, Seattle, Indianapolis, Nashville, Kuala Lumpur, Mexico City, Melbourne, Salt Lake City, Turin

GP Kobe (18–19 February)

• Format: Limited

GP Baltimore (25–26 February)

• Format: Standard

GP Indianapolis (10–11 March)

• Format: Legacy

GP Mexico City (24–25 March)

• Format: Limited

GP Turin (31 March–1 April)

• Format: Modern

GP Lincoln (18–19 February)

• Format: Modern

GP Lille (3–4 March)

• Format: Standard

GP Nashville (17–18 March)

• Format: Limited

GP Melbourne (31 March–1 April)

• Format: Limited

GP Madrid (25–26 February)

• Format: Limited

GP Seattle (3–4 March)

• Format: Limited

GP Kuala Lumpur (24–25 March)

• Format: Standard

GP Salt Lake City (31 March–1 April)

• Format: Standard