Due to different levels of time commitments, the superstar tandem of Team Face to Face Games and Team ChannelFireball has come to an end. The Face to Face team for this weekend’s Pro Tour is still filled with familiar faces and star power.
Hayne, McClain, Sigrist, Stern, and Pardee have been a nucleus that has worked together for years now to much recent success and since the team-up with Team CFB, they’ve collaborated a number of times with Neal Oliver, Nathan Holiday as well as Pro Tour Hall of Famers Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa and Shuhei Nakamura. All four are on Team Face to Face Games.
The lone new addition is GP Chicago 2014 champion Tyler Blum who comes from Calgary, Canada. Tyler has been one of the top players in Western Canada for quite some time now and we hope he gets to make his mark at this upcoming Pro Tour. He just might be the next Canadian mainstay on the PT circuit.
Introducing Team Face to Face Games – Pro Tour Battle for Zendikar edition!
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Player Name: Alexander Hayne
Hometown: Montreal, QC, Canada
Current Residence: Westmount, QC, Canada
Age: 27
Occupation: Wizard
Twitter Handle: @insaynehayne
Invitation Source: Platinum
Pro Level: Platinum
Lifetime Pro Points: 216
Notable Finishes:
– PT AVR Champion
– GP Krakow 2015 Champion
– GP Atlantic City 2015 (2nd)
– GP Vancouver 2015 (4th)
– GP Calgary 2013 Champion
– GP Vancouver 2014 Champion
– GP Kyoto 2013 Champion
– GP Strasbourg 2013 (3rd)
– GP Montreal 2011 (2nd)
– 2012 Rookie of the Year
– 2015 Canadian National Team
– 2014 Canadian National Team
– 2012 Canadian National Team (Captain)
Favourite Magic Card (and why): [card]Gifts Ungiven[/card], (pre-[card]Unburial Rites[/card]), the whole card is a puzzle for you to outwit your adversary into getting what you want
Favourite Format (and why): Cube – It never gets boring
Most memorable Magic moment: YouTube Link
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Player Name: Jon Stern
Hometown: Montreal
Current Residence: Montreal
Age: 37
Occupation: Magic
Twitter Handle: @JonSternMTL
Invitation Source: Silver
Pro Level: Silver
Lifetime Pro Points: 149
Notable Finishes:
GP Atlanta 2014 – 1st
GP Atlantic City 2013 – 1st
GP Louisville 2013 – 2nd
GP Vancouver 2014 – Top 4
GP Toronto 2012 – Top 8
Favourite Magic Card (and why): [card]Aquamoeba[/card]. Some tides need no moon.
Favourite Format (and why): Rochester Draft (more strategic feedback since you can see where you went wrong)
Most memorable Magic moment: Winning GP Atlantic City
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Player Name: Josh McClain
Hometown: Johnston, IA
Current Residence: Iowa city, IA
Age: 26
Occupation: Student
Magic Online Account: Good_Game
Twitter Handle: @Good_Game_
Invitation Source: Gold
Pro Level: Gold
Lifetime Pro Points: 109
Notable Finishes:
– GP Providence 2015 (T8)
– GP Detroit 2013 (1st)
– GP Miami 2013 (2nd)
– Pro Tour Born of the Gods (11th)
Favourite Magic Card (and why): [card]Kitchen Finks[/card]
Favourite Format (and why): Modern
Most memorable Magic moment: Chording for[card]Orzhov Pontiff[/card] to save my team from a [card]Grapeshot[/card] on camera vs. Gaudenis at PT Born of the Gods
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Player Name: Mike Sigrist
Hometown: Weymouth MA
Current Residence: Mansfield MA
Age: 32
Occupation: Student
Magic Online Account: CHRISTIAN LAETTNER
Twitter Handle: @MSigrist83
Invitation Source: Platinum
Pro Level: Platinum
Lifetime Pro Points: 146
Notable Finishes:
– PT Magic Origins (2nd)
– Player of the Year 2015
– Team USA 2015 (Captain)
– GP Montreal 2015 Champion
– PT Khans of Tarkir (T4)
– PT Portland 2014 (26th)
– GP Washington DC 2014 (1st)
– GP Richmond 2014 (3rd)
– PT Boston 2008 (7th)
Favourite Magic Card (and why): [card]Living Death[/card], played my first constructed tournament
Favourite Format (and why): Limited (draft), the games and decks are always fresh.
Most memorable Magic moment: Winning Grand Prix Washington D.C.
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Player Name: Nathan Holiday
Hometown: Santa Cruz, CA
Current Residence: Santa Cruz, CA
Age: 24
Occupation: Student
Magic Online Account: pseudo_nathan
Twitter Handle: @pseudo_nathan
Invitation Source: Platinum
Pro Level: Platinum
Lifetime Pro Points: 87
Notable Finishes:
– PT Magic Origins (11th)
– GP San Diego (1st)
– GP Phoenix (2nd)
– GP Minneapolis (8th)
– PT San Diego (27th)
Favorite Magic Card (and why): All the ones with storm.
Favorite Format (and why): Modern. Fetch, shock manabase provides powerful fixing while paying life is a real cost.
Most memorable Magic moment: Chording for my deck against Tron on day two of GP Minneapolis (a moral victory).
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Player Name: Neal Oliver
Age: 26
Hometown: Rancho Santa Margarita, California
Residence: Berkeley, California
Invitation Source: Silver
Pro Level: Silver
Lifetime Pro Points: 63
Notable Finishes:
– GP Ottawa 2014 (2nd)
– GP Oakland 2013 (2nd)
– GP Las Vegas Champion
– 2nd GP San Jose
– One GP Top 16
– 2015 USA National Team
– 2014 USA National Team
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Player name: Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa
Hometown: Porto Alegre, Brazil
Age: 28
Twitter Handle: @PVDDR
Invitation Source: Pro Tour Hall of Fame
Pro Level: Platinum
Lifetime Pro Points: 483
Notable Finishes:
– PT San Juan 2010 (1st)
– 9 PT top 8s
– 2 GP wins (most recent: GP São Paulo 2015)
– 17 GP top 8s
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Player Name: Sam Pardee
Hometown: Berkeley, CA
Current Residence: Berkeley, CA
Age: 26
Occupation: Web Designer
Magic Online Account: Smdster
Twitter Handle: @Smdster
Invitation Source: Silver
Pro Level: Silver
Lifetime Pro Points: 108
Notable Finishes:
– GP Detroit 2015 (1st)
– GP Krakow 2015 (T8)
– GP Charlotte 2015 (T8)
– GP Denver 2015 (3rd)
– GP Portland 2013 (1st)
– GP Albuquerque 2013 (2nd)
– GP Toronto 2012 (2nd)
Favourite Magic Card (and why): [card]Gavony Township[/card], makes your bad creatures great
Favourite Format (and why): Modern, the games are very interactive and it feels easiest to get an edge
Most memorable Magic moment: Going 12-0 in Toronto after punting my win-and-in in Chicago the week before.
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Player name: Shuhei Nakamura
Hometown: Osaka, Japan
Age: 33
Twitter Handle: @Nakashu_
Invitation Source: Pro Tour Hall of Fame
Pro Level: Silver
Lifetime Pro Points: 601
Notable Finishes:
– 5 PT top 8s
– 7 GP wins (most recent: GP Dallas 2015)
– 26 GP top 8s
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Player name: Tyler Blum
Hometown: Okotoks, Alberta
Current Residence: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Age: 25
Occupation: Recruiter for Westjet, Student at University of Calgary (economics)
Magic Online Account: LotusBlum
Twitter Handle: @BlumTyler
Invitation Source: Silver
Pro Level: Silver
Lifetime Pro Points: 51
Notable Finishes:
– GP Chicago Champion 2014
– Top 4 GP San Jose 2015
– 2005 Canadian National Team
– 38th PT Dragon of Tarkir
Favourite Magic Card (and why): Memnarch, the combination of this card and tron lands got me my first big tournament result at Nationals in 2005. Something about slowly taking control of your opponents board one permanent at a time is particularly enjoyable.
Favourite Format (and why): Modern. I get to play with all my favorite cards (except Memnarch, although i have tried). As a format it really rewards practice and experience. Knowing what is going on in every matchup is a gigantic edge.
Most Memorable Magic Moment: Grand Prix San Jose. Being a Team tournament made it a unique experience. Winning with my friends Robert Smith and Sean Gifford is way more fun then winning alone. In game three of the last round of the final match when we found the line as a team that would lock us for top 4 it was a moment that will stay with me forever.
Mana Deprived is the #1 Magic: the Gathering Site in Canada.