Pro Tour Kyoto 2009

Gabriel Nassif cemented his place alongside Jon Finkel and Kai Budde as one of the top three Magic players of all time by winning Pro Tour-Kyoto. Nassif, playing in his ninth Top 8, defeated the scorchingly hot Luis Scott-Vargas on the back of a double Cruel Ultimatum in the final game to capture his second career Pro Tour win.
Ever the vanguard in Constructed formats, Nassif brought an updated Five-Color Control to the Standard portion of Kyoto. Thanks to the power of Cruel Ultimatum, Broodmate Dragon, and Cryptic Command, Nassif had enough ammunition to beat LSV’s Black-White Tokens in five games.
Sunday’s matches were overloaded with drama and historic moments. Nassif’s “called shot” Cruel Ultimatum to win his quarterfinal matchup against Matteo Orsini Jones now joins Craig Jones’s Lightning Helix as one of the greatest top decks in Pro Tour history, and LSV’s run of amazing success on the Tour came up a game short of his second PT win in the last six months.
The split Standard/Booster Draft format was a big hit, testing players all weekend and providing enthralling storylines. If Kyoto’s any indication, it’s going to be an amazing season on the Pro Tour. We hope you’re along for the entire ride on to Honolulu in June, Austin in October, and then the World Championships in Rome in November.
TOP 8 DOWNLOADS
- Finals (104 MB zip)
- Semifinals (128 MB zip)
- Quarterfinals (118 MB zip)
- Prelude to a Championship (15.5 MB zip)
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top 8 bracket
Last Updated: Saturday, 5:30 p.m. | Last Updated: Saturday, 7:15 p.m. |
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Click on the images to navigate to the Coverage Blog and the Kyoto Podcasts.
DECK LISTS
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Top 8 Standard Lists
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Top Standard Lists
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Other Standard Lists A-G
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Other Standard Lists H-M
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Other Standard Lists N-Z
sunday
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by Nate PriceFinals: Controlling the GiantGabriel Nassif (Five-Color Control) vs. Luis Scott-Vargas (Black-White Tokens)
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by Dave GuskinSemifinals: Slow BurnGabriel Nassif (Five-Color Control) vs. Akimasa Yamamoto (Red-White Reveillark)
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by Bill StarkSemifinals: I See What You Did ThereBrian Robinson (Dark Bant) vs. Luis Scott-Vargas (Black-White Tokens)
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by Bill StarkQuarterfinals: Boat BoatJan Reuss (Boat Brew) vs. Akimasa Yamamoto (Boat Brew)
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by Nate PriceQuarterfinals: RidiculousGabriel Nassif (Five-Color Control) vs. Matteo Orsini Jones (Black-White Tokens)
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by Dave GuskinQuarterfinals: “That Was Ugly”Cedric Phillips (Red-White Kithkin) vs. Brian Robinson (Dark Bant)
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by Sam BlackQuarterfinals: All BusinessLuis Scott-Vargas (Black-Whtie Tokens) vs. Masayasu Tanahashi (Faeries)
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Top 8 Standard Lists
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by Event Coverage StaffFeature: Top 8 Profiles
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by Event Coverage StaffDeck Lists: Top Standard Lists
saturday
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by Craig Gibson and Bill StarkPhoto Essay: On the Scene
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by Bill StarkRound 14: Five For FightingBrian Kowal (Red-White Reveillark) vs. Gabriel Nassif (Five-Color Control)
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by Nate PriceRound 14: He’s Got ItAri Lax (Faeries) vs. Brian Robinson (Dark Bant)
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by Dave GuskinRound 13: Draw TwoGabriel Nassif (Five-Color Control) vs. Shouta Yasooka (Faeries)
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by Nate PriceRound 12: That Bitter TasteMartin Juza (Blightning Beatdown) vs. Tommi Lindgren (Black-White Tokens)
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by Bill StarkRound 11: Falling OutYann Massicard (Five-Color Control) vs. Luis Scott-Vargas (Black-White Tokens)
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Five-Color Planeswalkers with A.J. Sacher
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Black-White Tokens with Luis Scott-Vargas
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Boat Brew with Brian Kowal
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Five-Color Control with Gabriel Nassif
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Draft Tech: Esper with Charles Gindy
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by Dave GuskinFeature: Four Masters, Four Techniques
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by Dave GuskinRound 10: Silence in the ArenaShuhei Nakamura vs. Matteo Orsini-Jones
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by Nate PriceRound 9: Big StoryCharles Gindy vs. Cedric Phillips
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by Bill StarkRound 8: Good Enough!Thomas Driessen vs. Luis Scott-Vargas
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by Event Coverage StaffDraft Viewer: Draft 2, Table 6
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by Event Coverage StaffInside the Magic Studio: Luis Scott-Vargas
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by Event Coverage StaffInfo: Day 2 Player List
friday
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Draft Tech: Esper with Luis Scott-Vargas
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by Nate PriceRound 7: Clone WarsKamui Kaye vs. Akimasa Yamamoto
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by Dave GuskinRound 6: Time and TidehollowLuis Scott-Vargas vs. Shouta Yasooka
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by Bill StarkRound 5: The Brothers’ War, Part DeuxAntoine Ruel vs. Olivier Ruel
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by Event Coverage StaffDraft Viewer: Draft 1, Table 3
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by Craig Gibson and Josh BennettPhoto Essay: The View from Kyoto
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Kithkin with Charles Gindy
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Esper Lark with David Irvine
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Blightning Beatdown with Mark Herberholz
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by Event Coverage StaffVideo Deck Tech: Faeries with Sam Black
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by Bill StarkFeature: Standard Archetype Breakdown
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by Nate PriceRound 4: Funeral ProcessionBrandon Scheel (Esper Lark) vs. Luis Scott-Vargas (Black-White Tokens)
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by Dave GuskinRound 3: Hat TrickGadiel Szleifer (Faeries) vs. Jacob Van Lunen (Red-White Kithkin)
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by Nate PriceRound 2: Destiny UnraveledOsamu Fujita (Red-White Kithkin) vs. David Irvine (Esper Lark)
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by Bill StarkRound 1: Jace to the FaceKoutaru Ootsuka (Blue-Red Swans) vs. Kenji Tsumura (Blue-Red Swans)
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by Event Coverage StaffInfo: Day 1 Player List
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by Event Coverage StaffInfo: Day 1 Country Breakdown
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by Brian David MarshallColumn:A Boy and his Lark
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by Mike FloresColumn: Countdown to Kyoto
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by Steve SadinColumn: Finding Your Way
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by Event Coverage StaffInfo: Fact Sheet
INFORMATION
1. Nassif, Gabriel | $40,000 | |
2. Scott-Vargas, Luis | $20,000 | |
3. Yamamoto, Akimasa | $15,000 | |
4. Robinson, Brian | $13,000 | |
5. Orsini Jones, Matteo | $11,000 | |
6. Phillips, Cedric | $10,500 | |
7. Ruess, Jan | $10,000 | |
8. Tanahashi, Masayasu | $9,500 |
pairings, results, standings
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