The dust has settled and the players have gone home. Seventy-five people won a nice sum of money today, but only eight moved on to take a shot at winning even more tomorrow. Fan favorite Antonino De Rosa took eighth, to the happiness of many and the chagrin of some. Michael Barnes took the amazing Xavier’s Dream deck he and Tim Batow created all the way to the top, claiming seventh place. Vidianto Wijaya proved yet again that he is one of the world’s best players, and teammate Ryan Jones has secured his right to fight for his second Pro Circuit Championship. Jason Hager, who dropped off the map somewhat after his second place finish at $10K Columbus, debuted a deck even more incredible than his Evil Medical School, and drove New School all the way to a fourth place finish. Poker player Adam Bernstein took third and is likely happy for making the longshot decision to compete. Hans Joachim Hoeh has taken second, finally putting to rest all the snickering about his status as a European Champion and proving that he is deserving of his international regard. And finally, professional TCG player and owner of New York’s own King’s Games, Alex Shvartsman, heads into tomorrow in the first-place seed!
Six of the decks qualified for tomorrow are Curve Sentinels, but within those decks is a huge amount of variation and personal style. Among the fields of purple rise Michael Barnes and Jason Hager, wielding what will no doubt be the next big decks in the Golden Age Format. New School and Xavier’s Dream are officially the next big thing, and their legacy will be cemented if either man can pull off a win tomorrow.
Alex will square off against Antonino De Rosa in the quarterfinals tomorrow. One of two Curve Sentinels mirror matches, it will be joined by Vidianto Wijaya against Adam Bernstein. The interactions of tech will be fascinating in these matches, and will definitely do a lot to push forward the ongoing development of Curve Sentinels.
Arguably the world’s greatest CS player, Hans Joachim Hoeh, will go head to head against Michael Barnes. With his incredibly creative strategy, Barnes may sweep Day 3—but if one CS player can end his dream, it’s definitely Hoeh!
Finally, the champion of PC So Cal returns! Ryan Jones looks to be the first double-header PC champion, but standing in his way is Jason Hager, the innovator! Possibly the most brilliant deck builder in the game, Hager is an incredible player as well and will look to unhorse a man who’s proven himself time and time again.
Metagame.com returns tomorrow for complete coverage of the grand finale to this week’s massive event! Check back at 9 AM EST when all the action begins and the last eight men left standing will start the final showdown!