In Kuala Lumpur, the format was Theros Limited, and 2006 Player of the Year Shota Yasooka added to his vast collection of Top 8 appearances. He was easily the most accomplished at the final table, and it was a surprise to see him fall in the quarterfinals. Nonetheless, that's now back-to-back Top 8s for Yasooka, who is coming into form nicely, ahead of Pro Tour Born of the Gods, coming next month in Valencia, Spain. With a fearsome reputation as a master deck builder, Yasooka's PT rivals will no doubt note his Limited performance in Kuala Lumpur. On the back of his performance, Yasooka moves up four spots to No. 19 in the rankings.
Meanwhile, Vancouver played host to a Standard format that is gearing up for Born of the Gods. In a much-explored format, it was no surprise that both familiar decks and familiar faces were present in the Top 8. Fittingly, on home turf, it was the Canadian pair of Jon Stern and Alexander Hayne who hogged the headlines, ultimately facing off in the semifinals, before Hayne would go on to claim his third victory in his last seven Grand Prix starts! That's an incredible feat, following his solo win in Calgary, and Team triumph with Mike Hron and Rich Hoaen in Kyoto. Hayne moves up four to No. 14, a few points behind Makihito Mihara, who added a cash finish to his season in Kuala Lumpur. Stern, who has zigzagged in and out of the Top 25, now puts some distance between him and the danger zone, moving to No. 20 ahead of Raph Lévy, Brian Kibler, Craig Wescoe, Ari Lax, and Christian Calcano, who nudges Luis Scott-Vargas off the table.
Join us next week as we continue to follow the Magic Top 25 Pro Rankings.
| Rank | Name | Points | Change | Previous | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
 Ben Stark |
65.42 |
 |
1 | |
| 2 |
Josh Utter-Leyton |
62.14 |
|
2 | |
| 3 |
Reid Duke |
61.08 |
|
3 | |
| 4 |
 Shahar Shenhar |
60.56 |
|
4 | |
| 5 |
 Jeremy Dezani |
59.02 |
|
5 | |
| 6 |
Samuel Black |
57.88 |
|
6 | |
| 7 |
Tom Martell |
56.32 |
|
7 | |
| 8 |
 Shuhei Nakamura |
56.05 |
|
8 | |
| 9 |
Yuuya Watanabe |
54.35 |
|
9 | |
| 10 |
 Willy Edel |
54.08 |
|
10 | |
| 11 |
 Stanislav Cifka |
52.56 |
|
11 | |
| 12 |
Owen Turtenwald |
52.15 |
|
12 | |
| 13 |
Makihito Mihara |
51.15 |
|
13 | |
| 14 |
 Alexander Hayne |
47.92 |
 |
+4 | 18 |
| 15 |
Martin Juza |
46.08 |
 |
-1 | 14 |
| 16 |
Eric Froehlich |
45.35 |
|
-1 | 15 |
| 17 |
Paul Rietzl |
44.40 |
|
-1 | 16 |
| 18 |
David Ochoa |
41.08 |
|
-1 | 17 |
| 19 |
Shota Yasooka |
40.40 |
|
+4 | 23 |
| 20 |
Jon Stern |
39.85 |
|
+5 | 25 |
| 21 |
Raphael Levy |
39.36 |
|
-1 | 20 |
| 22 |
Brian Kibler |
39.05 |
|
-3 | 19 |
| 23 |
Craig Wescoe |
37.71 |
|
-2 | 21 |
| 24 |
Ari Lax |
37.36 |
|
-2 | 22 |
| 25 |
Christian Calcano |
36.40 |
|
— | NR |
Dropped from rankings: Luis Scott-Vargas