Pro Tour (Magic: The Gathering)
Encyclopedia
The Pro Tour is the highest form of competitive play for the Magic: The Gathering
collectible card game. It consists of a series of payout tournaments held throughout the world, each requiring an invitation to participate. Every PT awards a total of $230,000 in cash prizes, with $40,000 going to the winner alone. Pro Tour competitors also receive Pro Points, the amount depending on their results. Pro Points award special benefits to players, including automatic qualification and travel awards for subsequent Pro Tours.
Ranking within the Top 8 of a Pro Tour is considered to be the greatest accomplishment a competitive Magic player can realistically achieve regularly. Professional players are thus often compared by the number of Pro Tour Top 8 finishes they have made throughout their career. The most successful players on the Pro Tour are Kai Budde
who won seven Pro Tours out of ten Top 8 finishes and Jon Finkel
who won three Pro Tours while making it to the Top 8 twelve times.
tournament was the 1994 World Championship
held at Gen Con
'94. It was a single-elimination 512-person Constructed event run over three days of competition. The winner, Zak Dolan, received a trophy but no money. However, Dolan was also given a large number of booster packs from various expansions, Arabian Nights
through Ice Age
, along with a deck of poker cards with Magic: The Gathering backs on them and a t-shirt. The secondary market value of those packs today would exceed many tournament payoffs, but is still not quite equal to the cash prizes of the current Pro Tour payouts. Another World Championship was organized in 1995.
In 1995 Brand Manager Skaff Elias suggested that organized play needed to take the step to the next level. The idea was to run several tournaments each year that would gather the best players in the world and reward them with cash for their dedication to the game. Players should have something to aspire to. Elias and Mark Rosewater
along with others started to work on the concept. On 16–18 February 1996 the first Pro Tour, very briefly called The Black Lotus Pro Tour, was held in New York. The first Pro Tour season included three more Pro Tour events, culminating in the final Pro Tour, the World Championship, held in Seattle. In the following years a Pro Tour season (one year) always consisted of five and later six Pro Tours. From 2003 to 2005 Wizards of the Coast made an effort to bring the Pro Tour seasons in accordance with the calendar year
instead of having the seasons last from August to August the next year. This resulted in two seasons of seven Pro Tours. Afterwards Pro Tour seasons were reduced to five and finally four Pro Tours a year.
Prize payouts have increased slowly over the years from ca. $150,000 per tournament in 1996–97 to ca. $230,000 in 2011. In the first Pro Tour season each Pro Tour awarded more prizes than the previous one, though. Afterwards prize payouts had only minor fluctuations throughout a season with the exception of the World Championships which always award some additional prizes.
Pro Tours started as single-format events in 1996, alternating between Constructed and Limited, with the exception of the World Championships which have been multi-format events since the inception of the Pro Tour. In 2010 Pro Tours were changed to always have several rounds of Constructed and Limited play.
There are several ways to qualify, the most common being:
There are no "wild card" invites. Very rarely, though, players can receive sponsor's exemptions, such as past pro tour participant David Williams
(of 2004 World Series of Poker
fame) received in his invitation to the 2005 season Pro Tour LA. Former world champion Kai Budde
also received such an invitation to play participate in 2006 Worlds in Paris. Players in the Hall of Fame
get permanent level 5 status in the Pro Player's Club, and therefore a permanent invite to all Pro Tours.
. Beginning in 1996–97 one Pro Tour was held in Europe
each season. The first Pro Tour to be held in Asia
was the 1999 World Championship
in Tokyo
. Subsequently the amount of PTs every continent gets has varied, with the United States clearly hosting most Pro Tours, and Asia the least. Of the Asian Pro Tours all but one were held in Japan
. The only other continent to ever have a Pro Tour was Australia
, hosting the World Championship in 2002.
have been held in a single format. However, beginning with the 2009 season, Pro Tours host one constructed and one limited format. Constructed Pro Tours utilized either Block Constructed, Standard, or Extended, while Limited Pro Tours were usually the Booster Draft format. Until PT Nagoya in 2005, Booster Draft and Rochester Draft had been used alternatingly, but Rochester Draft was dropped afterwards. Also, for several years beginning in 1999, every season included a team Pro Tour, but since 2007 no team event has been held.
Beginning with the 2009 season each Pro Tour features a constructed format as well as a booster draft format. Day one and two of each PT will each consist of constructed rounds as well as a Booster Draft rounds. The third day will use one of the previously utilized formats.
World Championships are special Pro Tours in that they always feature multiple formats. Typically the tournament will use Standard on the first day, Booster Draft on the second, and another constructed format on the third. The final eight have always been played using the Standard decks from the first day. Earlier Worlds occasionally used Rochester Drafts instead of Booster Drafts, also the fourth day of Worlds hosted a team format, for the national teams to compete in, but beginning with the 2007 Worlds, World Championships have been shortened to four days instead of five. The schedule has been altered accordingly, but no consistent pattern has emerged yet.
. Typical Pro Tours were held over three days with 7 rounds (for Limited PTs) or 8 rounds (for Constructed PTs) of Swiss the first day. Players with fewer than 4 victories (Limited) after round 6 or 5 victories after round 8 (Constructed) were eliminated. 8 more rounds of Swiss followed on the second day after which the eight best finishing players constitute what is called the Top 8. On the third and final day, the Top 8 players play single-elimination until the winner is determined. Starting with the 2009 season this system is modified to accompany the fact, that each PT utilizes constructed and limited formats.
Team Limited Pro Tours were run the first day using the Team Sealed format, the second day using the Team Rochester Draft format. The top 4 finishing teams advanced to the last day of competition, which was also run in the Team Rochester format.
World Championships used to be held over five days with six rounds of individual play on day one though three. The fourth day featured the national team competition. On the fifth day the Top 8 returned to determine the World Champion in three rounds of single elimination. Worlds were shortened to four days in 2007, though. In 2007 the Worlds featured five rounds of Standard and Legacy on day one and two, respectively. A Booster Draft of three round was also held on both days. The team competition was held on the third day and the Top 8 on the fourth and final day. Worlds 2008 will have the individual formats laid out over three days, while the team competition is added to day one and three. On the fourth and final day the team finals and the individual finals will be played.
In individual Pro Tours the payout extends down to 65th place, and to 75th place at the World Championships, while in team Pro Tours it goes to the 25th team.
In PT:Philadelphia 2005 a new payout system was tested. The tournament was run using triple-elimination (with a draw counting as a loss for both players) and each match was run with money at stake. The amount of money earned by the winner of the match increased from $100 in round 1 to $1,500 in round 12.
This system had the result of distributing the money more evenly among competitors (out of 311, only 40 failed to make money) but the top finishers earned significantly less money than they would have under the old system. This layout was largely criticized by players and internet writers and has not returned since.
*Pro points are only awarded at closed (invitation-only) Nationals.
Players are awarded Pro Players Club levels, depending on the amount of Pro Points they have collected in a given season. A player of level 4 is generally said to be "on the Gravy Train", meaning that he is qualified for all Pro Tours of the season. Club members are also awarded further benefits:
In November 2011, it was announced that the Pro Player of the Year award as it existed would end with the 2011 season. The Pro Player of the Year title will be functionally replaced by the World Championship
, starting with the 2012 World Championship.
As with the Player of the Year title, the Rookie of the Year title was retired at the end of the 2011 season
. Wizards claims to be looking to create a new version of the Rookie of the Year title that is not dependent on the outgoing Pro Points system.
However, some professional players do make a living entirely through Magic by supplementing Pro Tour winnings with Magic-related activities such as:
Other players are professional gamers who supplement their Magic income with income from other games. Some play poker
professionally, either live or on the internet; others are game store owners.
) finished in 18th place at the event, earning the team US$1800 in total. (Kataoka had won money at a PT before, winning $100 at the skins-game PT Philadelphia in 2005.)
The highest-profile first-place finish by a woman in the game's history belongs to Eda Bilsel of Turkey, who, in 2003, became Magic's first (and, as of July 2011, only) female national champion. Although she finished in 307th place in the individual standings at that year's Worlds, with her national team taking 35th in the team standings, she caught the attention of many players and coverage reporters who attended the event during the flag ceremony that year. (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=sideboard/worlds03/fm5)
The highest finish for a woman at an individual PT was that of England's Carrie Oliver, who finished 32nd at PT Nagoya 2011, winning US$1350. Since it was her debut PT after only 18 months of playing the game (having learned to play via Duels of the Planeswalkers), it also marked the highest finish of a woman in her first PT appearance, earning her several mentions during the coverage of the event, including a feature article. (http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/eventcoverage/ptnag11/featureCar)
Magic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering , also known as Magic, is the first collectible trading card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic continues to thrive, with approximately twelve million players as of 2011...
collectible card game. It consists of a series of payout tournaments held throughout the world, each requiring an invitation to participate. Every PT awards a total of $230,000 in cash prizes, with $40,000 going to the winner alone. Pro Tour competitors also receive Pro Points, the amount depending on their results. Pro Points award special benefits to players, including automatic qualification and travel awards for subsequent Pro Tours.
Ranking within the Top 8 of a Pro Tour is considered to be the greatest accomplishment a competitive Magic player can realistically achieve regularly. Professional players are thus often compared by the number of Pro Tour Top 8 finishes they have made throughout their career. The most successful players on the Pro Tour are Kai Budde
Kai Budde
Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"...
who won seven Pro Tours out of ten Top 8 finishes and Jon Finkel
Jon Finkel
Jon Finkel is an American Magic: The Gathering and poker player. In the year 2000, he became the world champion of Magic, as well as being on the team that became the team world champion.-Career:...
who won three Pro Tours while making it to the Top 8 twelve times.
History
The first major Magic: The GatheringMagic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering , also known as Magic, is the first collectible trading card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic continues to thrive, with approximately twelve million players as of 2011...
tournament was the 1994 World Championship
Magic: The Gathering World Championship
The Magic: The Gathering World Championships have been held annually since 1994. It is the most important tournament in the game of Magic: The Gathering, offering to the winner a cash prize of $45,000. Originally open to all competitors, Worlds is now an invitation-only event and the last Pro Tour...
held at Gen Con
Gen Con
Gen Con is one of the largest and most prominent annual gaming conventions in North America. It features traditional pen-and-paper, board, and card-style games, including role-playing games, miniatures wargames, board games, live action role-playing games, collectible card games, non-collectible...
'94. It was a single-elimination 512-person Constructed event run over three days of competition. The winner, Zak Dolan, received a trophy but no money. However, Dolan was also given a large number of booster packs from various expansions, Arabian Nights
Arabian Nights (Magic: The Gathering)
Arabian Nights was the fourth Magic: The Gathering set and the first expansion set. The set is composed entirely of new cards. The setting of Arabian Nights is inspired by the themes and characters of the Thousand and One Arabian Nights with some of the characters and places coming directly from...
through Ice Age
Ice Age (Magic: The Gathering)
Ice Age is the eleventh Magic: The Gathering set and the sixth expansion set, released in June 1995. Set in the years from 450 to 2934 AR, the set describes a world set in perpetual winter due to the events in Antiquities...
, along with a deck of poker cards with Magic: The Gathering backs on them and a t-shirt. The secondary market value of those packs today would exceed many tournament payoffs, but is still not quite equal to the cash prizes of the current Pro Tour payouts. Another World Championship was organized in 1995.
In 1995 Brand Manager Skaff Elias suggested that organized play needed to take the step to the next level. The idea was to run several tournaments each year that would gather the best players in the world and reward them with cash for their dedication to the game. Players should have something to aspire to. Elias and Mark Rosewater
Mark Rosewater
Mark Rosewater is a Magic: The Gathering card designer. He is currently Magics head designer.-Biography:Rosewater grew up in Pepper Pike, Ohio, where he attended the Orange High School. Rosewater has a Jewish background. Rosewater has described himself in his youth as a "social outcast", who did...
along with others started to work on the concept. On 16–18 February 1996 the first Pro Tour, very briefly called The Black Lotus Pro Tour, was held in New York. The first Pro Tour season included three more Pro Tour events, culminating in the final Pro Tour, the World Championship, held in Seattle. In the following years a Pro Tour season (one year) always consisted of five and later six Pro Tours. From 2003 to 2005 Wizards of the Coast made an effort to bring the Pro Tour seasons in accordance with the calendar year
Calendar year
Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day. By convention, a calendar year consists of a natural number of days. To reconcile the calendar year with an astronomical cycle , certain years...
instead of having the seasons last from August to August the next year. This resulted in two seasons of seven Pro Tours. Afterwards Pro Tour seasons were reduced to five and finally four Pro Tours a year.
Prize payouts have increased slowly over the years from ca. $150,000 per tournament in 1996–97 to ca. $230,000 in 2011. In the first Pro Tour season each Pro Tour awarded more prizes than the previous one, though. Afterwards prize payouts had only minor fluctuations throughout a season with the exception of the World Championships which always award some additional prizes.
Pro Tours started as single-format events in 1996, alternating between Constructed and Limited, with the exception of the World Championships which have been multi-format events since the inception of the Pro Tour. In 2010 Pro Tours were changed to always have several rounds of Constructed and Limited play.
Qualification
Up until the second season in 1997, qualifying was based on results in high profile tournaments, or by invitation from the sponsoring company. Since 1997 the Pro Tour is a qualification-only tournament with qualifying events held throughout the world.There are several ways to qualify, the most common being:
- By finishing in the Top 50 of the previous Pro Tour.
- Through a Pro Tour Qualifier (PTQ) tournament, a tournament open to those not already qualified.
- By having a top 100 DCI rating either in the Total category or in Category which corresponds to the format, the Pro Tour Qualifiers were held in.
There are no "wild card" invites. Very rarely, though, players can receive sponsor's exemptions, such as past pro tour participant David Williams
David Williams (card player)
David Anthony Williams is a professional poker player and popular Magic: The Gathering player.-Personal life:Williams was born in Arlington, Texas. He briefly attended Princeton University before switching to study economics at Southern Methodist University...
(of 2004 World Series of Poker
2004 World Series of Poker
The 2004 World Series of Poker was held at Binion's Horseshoe after Harrah's Entertainment purchased the casino and the rights to the tournament in January...
fame) received in his invitation to the 2005 season Pro Tour LA. Former world champion Kai Budde
Kai Budde
Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"...
also received such an invitation to play participate in 2006 Worlds in Paris. Players in the Hall of Fame
Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame
The Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame was started in 2005 to honor the most successful Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour players. The first inductions came on the tenth anniversary of the first Pro Tour event, and new Hall of Famers will be determined annually...
get permanent level 5 status in the Pro Player's Club, and therefore a permanent invite to all Pro Tours.
Location
The first season featured only Pro Tours in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Beginning in 1996–97 one Pro Tour was held in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
each season. The first Pro Tour to be held in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
was the 1999 World Championship
Magic: The Gathering World Championship
The Magic: The Gathering World Championships have been held annually since 1994. It is the most important tournament in the game of Magic: The Gathering, offering to the winner a cash prize of $45,000. Originally open to all competitors, Worlds is now an invitation-only event and the last Pro Tour...
in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. Subsequently the amount of PTs every continent gets has varied, with the United States clearly hosting most Pro Tours, and Asia the least. Of the Asian Pro Tours all but one were held in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. The only other continent to ever have a Pro Tour was Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, hosting the World Championship in 2002.
Format
Previously, all Pro Tours other than World ChampionshipsMagic: The Gathering World Championship
The Magic: The Gathering World Championships have been held annually since 1994. It is the most important tournament in the game of Magic: The Gathering, offering to the winner a cash prize of $45,000. Originally open to all competitors, Worlds is now an invitation-only event and the last Pro Tour...
have been held in a single format. However, beginning with the 2009 season, Pro Tours host one constructed and one limited format. Constructed Pro Tours utilized either Block Constructed, Standard, or Extended, while Limited Pro Tours were usually the Booster Draft format. Until PT Nagoya in 2005, Booster Draft and Rochester Draft had been used alternatingly, but Rochester Draft was dropped afterwards. Also, for several years beginning in 1999, every season included a team Pro Tour, but since 2007 no team event has been held.
Beginning with the 2009 season each Pro Tour features a constructed format as well as a booster draft format. Day one and two of each PT will each consist of constructed rounds as well as a Booster Draft rounds. The third day will use one of the previously utilized formats.
World Championships are special Pro Tours in that they always feature multiple formats. Typically the tournament will use Standard on the first day, Booster Draft on the second, and another constructed format on the third. The final eight have always been played using the Standard decks from the first day. Earlier Worlds occasionally used Rochester Drafts instead of Booster Drafts, also the fourth day of Worlds hosted a team format, for the national teams to compete in, but beginning with the 2007 Worlds, World Championships have been shortened to four days instead of five. The schedule has been altered accordingly, but no consistent pattern has emerged yet.
Tournament structure
All Pro Tours are run using a modified Swiss systemSwiss system tournament
A Swiss-system tournament is a commonly used type of tournament where players or teams need to be paired to face each other for several rounds of competition. This type of tournament was first used in a Zurich chess tournament in 1895, hence the name "Swiss system". The Swiss system is used when...
. Typical Pro Tours were held over three days with 7 rounds (for Limited PTs) or 8 rounds (for Constructed PTs) of Swiss the first day. Players with fewer than 4 victories (Limited) after round 6 or 5 victories after round 8 (Constructed) were eliminated. 8 more rounds of Swiss followed on the second day after which the eight best finishing players constitute what is called the Top 8. On the third and final day, the Top 8 players play single-elimination until the winner is determined. Starting with the 2009 season this system is modified to accompany the fact, that each PT utilizes constructed and limited formats.
Team Limited Pro Tours were run the first day using the Team Sealed format, the second day using the Team Rochester Draft format. The top 4 finishing teams advanced to the last day of competition, which was also run in the Team Rochester format.
World Championships used to be held over five days with six rounds of individual play on day one though three. The fourth day featured the national team competition. On the fifth day the Top 8 returned to determine the World Champion in three rounds of single elimination. Worlds were shortened to four days in 2007, though. In 2007 the Worlds featured five rounds of Standard and Legacy on day one and two, respectively. A Booster Draft of three round was also held on both days. The team competition was held on the third day and the Top 8 on the fourth and final day. Worlds 2008 will have the individual formats laid out over three days, while the team competition is added to day one and three. On the fourth and final day the team finals and the individual finals will be played.
Payout
Traditionally the payout at the Pro Tour has been based only on the finishing place with a total of US$230,795 (US$245,145 at Worlds) given out using the following pattern (for teams, indicated are the total winnings for teams of three):| Place | Individual | Team | Worlds | Team Worlds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $40,000 | $75,000 | $45,000 | $12,000 |
| 2 | $20,000 | $36,000 | $24,000 | $7,500 |
| 3 | $15,000 | $21,000 | $15,000 | $6,000 |
| 4 | $13,000 | $18,000 | $14,000 | $5,250 |
| 5–8 | $11,000-9,500 | $11,000-9,500 | $11,500-10,000 | $4,500-3,375 |
| 9–16 | $7,000-3,750 | $7,000-3,700 | $7,000-3,750 | $3,000 |
In individual Pro Tours the payout extends down to 65th place, and to 75th place at the World Championships, while in team Pro Tours it goes to the 25th team.
In PT:Philadelphia 2005 a new payout system was tested. The tournament was run using triple-elimination (with a draw counting as a loss for both players) and each match was run with money at stake. The amount of money earned by the winner of the match increased from $100 in round 1 to $1,500 in round 12.
This system had the result of distributing the money more evenly among competitors (out of 311, only 40 failed to make money) but the top finishers earned significantly less money than they would have under the old system. This layout was largely criticized by players and internet writers and has not returned since.
Pro Points
Pro Points are awarded as follows:| Place | Individual PT | Team PT | Worlds Team | Nationals* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | 20 | 6 | 10 |
| 2 | 20 | 16 | 5 | 8 |
| 3-4 | 16 | 12 | 4 | 6 |
| 5-8 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 4 |
| 9-12 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 2 |
| 13-16 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| 17-24 | 7 | 4 | - | - |
| 25-32 | 6 | 3 | - | - |
| 33-64 | 5 | 2 | - | - |
| 65-100 | 4 | 2 | - | - |
| 101-200 | 3 | 2 | - | - |
| 201+ | 2 | 2 | - | - |
*Pro points are only awarded at closed (invitation-only) Nationals.
Players are awarded Pro Players Club levels, depending on the amount of Pro Points they have collected in a given season. A player of level 4 is generally said to be "on the Gravy Train", meaning that he is qualified for all Pro Tours of the season. Club members are also awarded further benefits:
- Level 1 (requiring 1 point): One bye at Grand Prix tournaments.
- Level 2 (10): Two byes at Grand Prix tournaments; invitation to nationals.
- Level 3 (15): Level 2 benefits; invitation to one PT or Worlds of the player's choice.
- Level 4 (20): Three byes at Grand Prix tournaments; invitation to nationals; invitation to all Pro Tours.
- Level 5 (25): Level 4 benefits; player receives $250 for appearance at any Pro Tour.
- Level 6 (30): Level 4 benefits; player receives $1250 for appearance at any Pro Tour; free travel ticket to one Pro Tour of the player's choice.
- Level 7 (40): Level 4 benefits; player receives $1750 for appearance at any Pro Tour; player receives $250 appearance fee at any Grand Prix; free travel ticket to all Pro Tours.
- Level 8 (50): Level 4 benefits; player receives $2250 for appearance at any Pro Tour; player receives $500 appearance fee at any Grand Prix; free travel ticket to all Pro Tours; free accommodation at all Pro Tours.
Pro Player of the Year
The Pro Player of the Year title is awarded to the individual who has accumulated the most pro points over the course of a season. This person receives invitations to several high-level tournaments throughout the following year, as well as travel and other accommodations to each of the following season's Pro Tours, including the World Championship.In November 2011, it was announced that the Pro Player of the Year award as it existed would end with the 2011 season. The Pro Player of the Year title will be functionally replaced by the World Championship
Magic: The Gathering World Championship
The Magic: The Gathering World Championships have been held annually since 1994. It is the most important tournament in the game of Magic: The Gathering, offering to the winner a cash prize of $45,000. Originally open to all competitors, Worlds is now an invitation-only event and the last Pro Tour...
, starting with the 2012 World Championship.
| Season | Player of the Year |
|---|---|
| 1996 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 1996 The 1996 Pro Tour season was the first season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. At the end of 1995 Wizards of the Coast had announced the introduction of a tournament series featuring big cash prizes. Originally coined the "Black Lotus Pro Tour" the tournaments were simply called "Pro Tours"... |
 Olle RådeOlle Råde Olle Råde is a professional Magic: The Gathering player from Sweden. He was inducted to the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 2005. Olle was also the first player awarded with the coveted Player of the Year award and was the first non-American player to... |
| 1996–97 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 1996–97 The 1996–97 Pro Tour season was the second season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 13 September 1996 with Pro Tour Atlanta, and ended on 17 August 1997 with the conclusion of 1997 World Championship in Seattle. The season consisted of five Grand Prixs, and six Pro Tours, located in... |
 Paul McCabePaul McCabe (Magic: The Gathering player) Paul McCabe is a Canadian Magic: The Gathering player. He is known for his success in the 1996-97 Pro Tour season. During this season, McCabe reached the top eight of two Pro Tours, and won the Player of the Year title... |
| 1997–98 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 1997–98 The 1997–98 Pro Tour season was the third season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 30 August 1997 with Grand Prix Toronto, and ended on 16 August 1998 with the conclusion of 1998 World Championship in Seattle. The season consisted of thirteen Grand Prix, and five Pro Tours, located... |
 Jon FinkelJon Finkel Jon Finkel is an American Magic: The Gathering and poker player. In the year 2000, he became the world champion of Magic, as well as being on the team that became the team world champion.-Career:... |
| 1998–99 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 1998–99 The 1998–99 Pro Tour season was the fourth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 5 September 1998 with Grand Prix Boston and ended on 8 August 1999 with the conclusion of 1999 World Championship in Tokyo. The season consisted of fourteen Grand Prix, and five Pro Tours, located in... |
 Kai BuddeKai Budde Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"... |
| 1999–00 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 1999–2000 The 1999–2000 Pro Tour season was the fifth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 3 September 1999 with Pro Tour Boston and ended on 6 August 2000 with the conclusion of 2000 World Championship in Brussels. The season consisted of twenty Grand Prixs, and six Pro Tours, located in... |
Bob Maher, Jr. |
| 2000–01 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2000–01 The 2000–01 Pro Tour season was the sixth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. On 23 September 2000 the season began with parallel Grand Prixs in Sapporo and Porto. It ended on 12 August 2001 with the conclusion of the 2001 World Championship in Toronto. The season consisted of 27 Grand... |
Kai Budde Kai Budde Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"... |
| 2001–02 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2001–02 The 2001–02 Pro Tour season was the seventh season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. On 18 August 2001 the season began with parallel Grand Prixs in Kobe and Denver. It ended on 18 August 2002 with the conclusion of the 2002 World Championship in Sydney. The season consisted of 33 Grand Prixs... |
Kai Budde Kai Budde Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"... |
| 2002–03 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2002–03 -Final standings:-Pro Player of the year standings:-Grand Prixs – Hamburg, Utsonomiya, Copenhagen, Philadelphia:GP Hamburg # Simon Hockwin# Arndt Meier# Jens Krause# Patrick Plößer# Nico Wendt# Piotr Sienko# Dennis Schmitz... |
Kai Budde Kai Budde Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"... |
| 2003–04 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2003–04 The 2003–04 Pro Tour season was the ninth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. On 23 August 2003 the season began with parallel Grand Prixs in Yokohama and London. It ended on 5 September 2004 with the conclusion of the 2004 World Championship in San Francisco... |
 Gabriel NassifGabriel Nassif Gabriel Nassif is a French professional card player. He is known for his continuous success on the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour and was the 2004 Pro Tour Player of the Year. He also enjoys playing poker, having moderate success at the World Series of Poker in recent years... |
| 2005 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2005 - Final standings :- Pro Player of the year standings :- Grand Prixs – Helsinki, Brisbane, Yokohama, Porto Alegre, Paris, Chicago, Osaka :GP Helsinki # Olivier Ruel# Mikko Leiviskä# Jean Charles Salvin# Ulrik Tarp# Anton Jonsson... |
 Kenji TsumuraKenji Tsumura is a professional Magic: The Gathering player from Japan. He is one of only seven players to have reached the top eight of a Pro Tour more than five times.-Career:... |
| 2006 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2006 The 2006 Pro Tour season was the eleventh season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. On 18 December 2005 the season began with parallel Grand Prixs in Lille and Charlotte. It ended on 3 December 2006 with the conclusion of the 2006 World Championship in Paris. The season consisted of 22 Grand... |
Shouta Yasooka Shouta Yasooka is a Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. He is best known for his success in the 2006 Pro Tour season, when he won Pro Tour Charleston with Tomohiro Kaji and Tomoharu Saitou, as well as the Player of the Year title.... |
| 2007 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2007 The 2007 Pro Tour season was the twelfth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. On 9 February 2007 the season began with Pro Tour Geneva. It ended on 9 December 2007 with the conclusion of the 2007 World Championship in New York. The season consisted of 16 Grand Prixs and 5 Pro Tours, held in... |
Tomoharu Saitou Tomoharu Saitou is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players.-Career:Saitou debuted at Pro Tour Chicago 2000. An 83rd place finish meant he fell just short of making money. Later the same season, he made his first standout finish by reaching the top eight of the Asia Pacific... |
| 2008 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2008 The 2008 Pro Tour season was the thirteenth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 15 December 2007, with Grand Prix Stuttgart, and ended on 14 December 2008, with the 2008 World Championship in Memphis. The season consisted of twenty-one Grand Prixs, and four Pro Tours, located... |
Shuhei Nakamura |
| 2009 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2009 The 2009 Pro Tour season was the fourteenth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 17 January 2009 with Grand Prix Los Angeles, and ended on 22 November 2009 with the conclusion of the 2009 World Championship in Rome. The season consisted of nineteen Grand Prixs, and four Pro... |
Yuuya Watanabe Yuuya Watanabe Yuuya Watanabe is a Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. With one Pro Tour top eight, and 13 Grand Prix top eights , Watanabe is best known for his Rookie of the Year title in 2007, and his Player of the Year title two years later.... |
| 2010 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2010 The 2010 Pro Tour season was the fifteenth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 13 February 2010 with Grand Prix Oakland, and ended on 12 December 2010 with the conclusion of the 2010 World Championship in Chiba, Japan. The season consisted of eighteen Grand Prixs, and four Pro... |
Brad Nelson Brad Nelson (Magic: The Gathering player) Brad Nelson is an American Magic: The Gathering player. Also known by his Magic: The Gathering Online name, FFfreaK, he has two Pro Tour top eights, and four Grand Prix top eights, including a win. In the quarter finals of Pro Tour Amsterdam 2010, he became one of only three players to have beaten... |
| 2011 Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2011 The 2011 Pro Tour season was the sixteenth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 22 January 2011 with Grand Prix Atlanta, and ended on 20 November 2011 with the conclusion of the 2011 World Championship in San Francisco... |
Owen Turtenwald Owen Turtenwald Owen Turtenwald is a professional Magic: The Gathering player. He has achieved a number of accolades during his career including the 2010 Vintage World Championship and the 2011 Player of the Year.-Magic: The Gathering:... |
Rookie of the Year
The Rookie of the Year title is awarded to the player who has accumulated the most pro points over the course of a season and has not participated in a Pro Tour or World Championship before that season. This person receives travel and accommodations to one Pro Tour event (including the World Championship) during the next season, though that player must obtain an invitation to that event on his or her own.As with the Player of the Year title, the Rookie of the Year title was retired at the end of the 2011 season
Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour season 2011
The 2011 Pro Tour season was the sixteenth season of the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour. It began on 22 January 2011 with Grand Prix Atlanta, and ended on 20 November 2011 with the conclusion of the 2011 World Championship in San Francisco...
. Wizards claims to be looking to create a new version of the Rookie of the Year title that is not dependent on the outgoing Pro Points system.
| Season | Rookie of the Year |
|---|---|
| 1995–96 | None awarded |
| 1996–97 | None awarded |
| 1997–98 | Randy Buehler Randy Buehler Randolph E. Buehler, Jr. was the Vice President of Digital Gaming at Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., as well as the commentator for the Magic Pro Tour... |
| 1998–99 | Dirk Baberowski Dirk Baberowski Dirk Baberowski is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players. He has won three Pro Tours, tying him in second place with Jon Finkel. Two of those victories were won at team Pro Tours with his teammates of Phoenix Foundation, Kai Budde and Marco Blume.In 2008, Barberowski... |
| 1999–00 | Brian Davis |
| 2000–01 | Katsuhiro Mori Katsuhiro Mori is Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. He is the most successful player in the individual portion of World Championships, winning one tournament and making the top eight of two others.-Career:... |
| 2001–02 | Farid Meraghni |
| 2002–03 | Masashi Oiso Masashi Oiso is a Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. He is one of the most successful players to have played on the Pro Tour, being one of only six players to have reached the top eight six times... |
| 2003–04 |  Julien Nuijten |
| 2005 | Pierre Canali |
| 2006 | Sebastian Thaler |
| 2007 | Yuuya Watanabe Yuuya Watanabe Yuuya Watanabe is a Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. With one Pro Tour top eight, and 13 Grand Prix top eights , Watanabe is best known for his Rookie of the Year title in 2007, and his Player of the Year title two years later.... |
| 2008 |  Aaron Nicastri |
| 2009 | Lino Burgold |
| 2010 |  Andrea Giarola |
| 2011 | Matthias Hunt |
Best performers
Players who have reached the final day of the Pro Tour several times are recognized for their skill and dedication to the game. The following table shows all players who either achieved five Pro Tour Top 8s or two wins. Only 21 players have achieved the feat of making 5 or more Top 8s while just 7 have won more than once. The following table is accurate as of Worlds 2011.| Player | Wins | Top 8 |
|---|---|---|
| Kai Budde Kai Budde Kai Budde , is a professional Magic: The Gathering player, who holds the records for earnings, Pro Tour victories and lifetime Pro Points. His performances earned him the nicknames "The Juggernaut" and "King of the Grand Prix"... |
7 | 10 |
| Jon Finkel Jon Finkel Jon Finkel is an American Magic: The Gathering and poker player. In the year 2000, he became the world champion of Magic, as well as being on the team that became the team world champion.-Career:... |
3 | 12 |
| Dirk Baberowski Dirk Baberowski Dirk Baberowski is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players. He has won three Pro Tours, tying him in second place with Jon Finkel. Two of those victories were won at team Pro Tours with his teammates of Phoenix Foundation, Kai Budde and Marco Blume.In 2008, Barberowski... |
3 | 5 |
| Gabriel Nassif Gabriel Nassif Gabriel Nassif is a French professional card player. He is known for his continuous success on the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour and was the 2004 Pro Tour Player of the Year. He also enjoys playing poker, having moderate success at the World Series of Poker in recent years... |
2 | 9 |
 Nicolai HerzogNicolai Herzog Nicolai Herzog is a professional Magic: The Gathering player from Oslo, Norway. His greatest achievement was winning two consecutive Limited Pro Tours in 2004. Both featured draft formats in the Mirrodin-block... |
2 | 5 |
 Tommi HoviTommi Hovi Tommi Hovi is a former professional Magic: The Gathering player from Finland. He was inducted into the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame in the inaugural class in 2005... |
2 | 4 |
| Marco Blume Marco Blume Marco Blume is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players. He has won two Pro Tours and one Masters as a member of team Phoenix Foundation, his teammates being Kai Budde and Dirk Baberowski. He also won a German national championship individually in 1999.- Top 8... |
2 | 3 |
 Paulo Vitor Damo da RosaPaulo Vitor Damo da Rosa Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa is a Brazilian Magic: The Gathering player. He is the first South American player to have seven Pro Tour top 8s. In 2011, Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa became the youngest player to ever reach 300 lifetime Pro Points.- Career :Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa began his professional... |
1 | 8 |
| Darwin Kastle Darwin Kastle - Other accomplishments :* 2005 Hall of Fame inductee* Last player to have played all Pro Tours after 48 appearances from 1996 PT New York to 2004 PT Kobe- References :... |
1 | 8 |
| Kamiel Cornelissen Kamiel Cornelissen Kamiel Cornelissen is a Dutch Magic: The Gathering player. Once a Pro Tour mainstay, he is now considered retired, despite playing the odd event. He is one of eighteen players with five or more Pro Tour top eights, including back to back second place finishes, and a win with teammates Jelger... |
1 | 5 |
| Rob Dougherty Rob Dougherty Robert R. Dougherty is a professional Magic: The Gathering player from Framingham, Massachusetts. He was inducted to the Magic Hall of Fame in November 2006. He is also a tournament organizer and the founder of Your Move Games... |
1 | 5 |
| Dave Humpherys Dave Humpherys David Humpherys is a former professional Magic: The Gathering player from the United States. Humpherys now works for the company that produced Magic, Wizards of the Coast. He was inducted to the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame in November 2006.- Top 8 appearances :- References :... |
1 | 5 |
| Scott Johns Scott Johns Scott Johns is the former editor of , and a former Magic: The Gathering Pro player. During his playing career he reached the top eight of a Pro Tour five times including his very first Pro Tour, and won Pro Tour New York 2000 with Gary Wise and Mike Turian as a part of Potato... |
1 | 5 |
| Olle Råde Olle Råde Olle Råde is a professional Magic: The Gathering player from Sweden. He was inducted to the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 2005. Olle was also the first player awarded with the coveted Player of the Year award and was the first non-American player to... |
1 | 5 |
| Tomoharu Saitou Tomoharu Saitou is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players.-Career:Saitou debuted at Pro Tour Chicago 2000. An 83rd place finish meant he fell just short of making money. Later the same season, he made his first standout finish by reaching the top eight of the Asia Pacific... |
1 | 5 |
| Luis Scott-Vargas Luis Scott-Vargas Luis Scott-Vargas is a professional Magic: the Gathering player from Oakland, CA, USA. His accomplishments include 7 Grand Prix top 8's , and 5 Pro Tour top 8's . As well as being a prominent player of the game, Luis is also known for writing about the game... |
1 | 5 |
| Mike Turian Mike Turian Michael Turian is a successful professional player of Magic: The Gathering. He won Pro Tour New York with Team Potato Nation. Turian also won two Grand Prixs. In 2008 Mike Turian was voted in the Hall of Fame. He was inducted during the World championship in Memphis.- Career :Mike Turian qualified... |
1 | 5 |
| Masashi Oiso Masashi Oiso is a Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. He is one of the most successful players to have played on the Pro Tour, being one of only six players to have reached the top eight six times... |
0 | 6 |
| Kenji Tsumura Kenji Tsumura is a professional Magic: The Gathering player from Japan. He is one of only seven players to have reached the top eight of a Pro Tour more than five times.-Career:... |
0 | 6 |
| Alan Comer Alan Comer Alan Comer is a former professional Magic: The Gathering player. He was elected to the Magic Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 2005. He was the only member of the class never to have won a Pro Tour... |
0 | 5 |
| Anton Jonsson Anton Jonsson Anton Jonsson is a Swedish Magic: The Gathering player. He has retired from professional Magic. At the height of his career, Jonsson was considered one of the best players in the game, and was especially known for his proficiency at Limited, having reached the Top 8 of a Pro Tour five times... |
0 | 5 |
| Shuhei Nakamura |
0 | 5 |
| Olivier Ruel Olivier Ruel Olivier Ruel is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players. He holds the record for most Grand Prix Top 8’s, and is one of twenty players with five or more Pro Tour top 8’s. After 2010 Pro Tour San Juan Olivier surpassed Kai Budde as the leader in lifetime Pro Points... |
0 | 5 |
Most successful countries
As of Worlds 2011, players from the following countries have won Pro Tours (for a more detailed country breakdown, see the list of Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour events article):| Rank | Country | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States |
33 |
| 2 | Germany |
12 |
| 3 | France |
8 |
| Japan |
||
| 5 | Canada |
4 |
| Norway |
||
| 7 | Finland |
3 |
| Netherlands |
||
| Sweden |
||
| 10 | Brazil |
2 |
| 11 |  Belgium |
1 |
 Czech Republic |
||
 Israel |
||
| Italy |
||
 Portugal |
Making a living
Very few players can claim to earn enough money for a living by playing on the Pro Tour alone. Several players have won more than $100,000 playing Magic, the most successful even more than $250,000, but spread over several years, and the figures do not take into account the cost of travel.However, some professional players do make a living entirely through Magic by supplementing Pro Tour winnings with Magic-related activities such as:
- writing (strategy articles for websites or books)
- selling cards and/or Magic Online tickets (by winning online tournaments, pros receive packs which they trade online for tickets which they then sell via e-commerce websites such as eBayEBayeBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
and PayPalPayPalPayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
)
Other players are professional gamers who supplement their Magic income with income from other games. Some play poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
professionally, either live or on the internet; others are game store owners.
Gender gap
Magic is seen as a game overwhelmingly dominated by males, both on the Pro Tour and off. A woman has never made the Top 8 of a PT; however, two women have made the Top 8 of a Grand Prix - Michelle Bush (second place, New Orleans, 2001) and Melissa DeTora (fourth place, Santiago, 2011). Until PT Charleston in 2006, however, a woman had never even finished in the money at a traditional-payout PT. That changed when Asami Kataoka, as part of the team "Tottori 1 6 1" (led by five-time Top 8er Masashi OisoMasashi Oiso
is a Japanese Magic: The Gathering player. He is one of the most successful players to have played on the Pro Tour, being one of only six players to have reached the top eight six times...
) finished in 18th place at the event, earning the team US$1800 in total. (Kataoka had won money at a PT before, winning $100 at the skins-game PT Philadelphia in 2005.)
The highest-profile first-place finish by a woman in the game's history belongs to Eda Bilsel of Turkey, who, in 2003, became Magic's first (and, as of July 2011, only) female national champion. Although she finished in 307th place in the individual standings at that year's Worlds, with her national team taking 35th in the team standings, she caught the attention of many players and coverage reporters who attended the event during the flag ceremony that year. (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=sideboard/worlds03/fm5)
The highest finish for a woman at an individual PT was that of England's Carrie Oliver, who finished 32nd at PT Nagoya 2011, winning US$1350. Since it was her debut PT after only 18 months of playing the game (having learned to play via Duels of the Planeswalkers), it also marked the highest finish of a woman in her first PT appearance, earning her several mentions during the coverage of the event, including a feature article. (http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/eventcoverage/ptnag11/featureCar)
See also
- List of Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour events
- Magic: The Gathering World ChampionshipMagic: The Gathering World ChampionshipThe Magic: The Gathering World Championships have been held annually since 1994. It is the most important tournament in the game of Magic: The Gathering, offering to the winner a cash prize of $45,000. Originally open to all competitors, Worlds is now an invitation-only event and the last Pro Tour...
- Magic: The Gathering Hall of FameMagic: The Gathering Hall of FameThe Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame was started in 2005 to honor the most successful Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour players. The first inductions came on the tenth anniversary of the first Pro Tour event, and new Hall of Famers will be determined annually...
- Duelists' Convocation InternationalDuelists' Convocation InternationalThe DCI is the official sanctioning body for competitive play in Magic: The Gathering and various other games produced by Wizards of the Coast and its subsidiaries, such as Avalon Hill. The DCI provides game rules, tournament operating procedures, and other materials to private tournament...