Gabriel Nassif
Encyclopedia
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. In 2010, Nassif was inducted into the Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame
.
London, 2001 where he reached the finals with his aggressive White/Blue/Red deck, and lost to German
"Juggernaut" Kai Budde
. This was only the first of many successes Nassif would have in Constructed. At that time he was already wearing his trademark yellow hat that eventually led to his nickname "Yellow Hat".
Only one week later Nassif made Top 4 at Pro Tour: New York 2001 with teammates Nicolas Olivieri and Amiel Tenenbaum, in what was only his second Pro Tour. He again lost in the finals to Kai Budde's team Phoenix Foundation.
After a relatively quiet year and a half, Nassif returned to success with an impressive string of high finishes, including fifth place at Pro Tour: Venice 2003, second place at the 2003 Yokohama Masters, ninth place at the 2003 World Championships, second place at Pro Tour: New Orleans 2003, second place at Pro Tour: Kobe 2004, seventh place at the 2004 World Championships, and Pro Tour: Atlanta 2005 champion with teammates Gabriel Tsang and David Rood as Team Nova.
With three Pro Tour Top Eights in the 2003–04 season
including two runner-up finishes, Nassif earned the 2004 Player of the Year award. He has been dubbed by many as the best Constructed player in Magic. Indeed, he has often met success with home-made designs. Tooth and Nail, a deck directly derived from Nassif's TwelvePost deck he piloted to the finals at the 2004 Pro Tour Kobe, was one of the best performing deck in Standard until Mirrodin
rotated out of the format in 2005. He showed his gaming prowess again when he made the Top 8 of the 2006 World Championships piloting a blue/white MartyrTron deck that, according to Randy Buehler, "broke the format". Nassif lost in the semifinals to Makahito Mihara and his Dragonstorm combo deck.
Ironically, Nassif made Top 8 of the 2007 World Championships with a mono-red Dragonstorm deck designed by him and American teammate Patrick Chapin, where he again made a semifinal exit while playing against Patrick Chapin in the mono-red Dragonstorm mirror. 2008
was a weaker season for Nassif. His only significant finish was a second place at Grand Prix Brussels. It was also the first season since 2000–01
that Nassif did not reach the Top 8 of a Pro Tour. The following season
Nassif won the first Pro Tour of the season with a 61-card five colour control deck. He then followed up his PT win with a first place finish at the next event: Grand Prix Chicago.
, including back-to-back cashes at the 2010 and 2011 main events, finishing 73rd and 189th respectively. As of September 2011, Nassif's live tournament earnings exceed $400,000.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
professional card player. He is known for his continuous success on the Magic: The Gathering
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...
Pro Tour
Pro Tour (Magic: The Gathering)
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...
and was the 2004 Pro Tour Player of the Year. He also enjoys playing 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...
, having moderate success at the World Series of Poker
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker is a world-renowned series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Harrah's Entertainment...
in recent years. In 2010, Nassif was inducted into the Magic: The Gathering 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...
.
Magic: The Gathering
Gabriel Nassif first caught public attention at Magic Block Constructed Grand PrixGrand Prix (Magic: The Gathering)
Grands Prix are professional Magic: The Gathering tournaments, awarding cash prizes, Pro Points and invitations to Pro Tours. They are open to all players and are usually the biggest Magic tournaments. The first Grand Prix was held on 22–23 March 1997 in Amsterdam...
London, 2001 where he reached the finals with his aggressive White/Blue/Red deck, and lost to German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
"Juggernaut" 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"...
. This was only the first of many successes Nassif would have in Constructed. At that time he was already wearing his trademark yellow hat that eventually led to his nickname "Yellow Hat".
Only one week later Nassif made Top 4 at Pro Tour: New York 2001 with teammates Nicolas Olivieri and Amiel Tenenbaum, in what was only his second Pro Tour. He again lost in the finals to Kai Budde's team Phoenix Foundation.
After a relatively quiet year and a half, Nassif returned to success with an impressive string of high finishes, including fifth place at Pro Tour: Venice 2003, second place at the 2003 Yokohama Masters, ninth place at the 2003 World Championships, second place at Pro Tour: New Orleans 2003, second place at Pro Tour: Kobe 2004, seventh place at the 2004 World Championships, and Pro Tour: Atlanta 2005 champion with teammates Gabriel Tsang and David Rood as Team Nova.
With three Pro Tour Top Eights in the 2003–04 season
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...
including two runner-up finishes, Nassif earned the 2004 Player of the Year award. He has been dubbed by many as the best Constructed player in Magic. Indeed, he has often met success with home-made designs. Tooth and Nail, a deck directly derived from Nassif's TwelvePost deck he piloted to the finals at the 2004 Pro Tour Kobe, was one of the best performing deck in Standard until Mirrodin
Mirrodin
Mirrodin was the 50th Magic: The Gathering set, the 30th expert level set, and the first set in the Mirrodin Block, released in October 2003. It is a 306-card expansion set. It is also the name of the block containing the Mirrodin, Darksteel and Fifth Dawn expansion sets...
rotated out of the format in 2005. He showed his gaming prowess again when he made the Top 8 of the 2006 World Championships piloting a blue/white MartyrTron deck that, according to Randy Buehler, "broke the format". Nassif lost in the semifinals to Makahito Mihara and his Dragonstorm combo deck.
Ironically, Nassif made Top 8 of the 2007 World Championships with a mono-red Dragonstorm deck designed by him and American teammate Patrick Chapin, where he again made a semifinal exit while playing against Patrick Chapin in the mono-red Dragonstorm mirror. 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...
was a weaker season for Nassif. His only significant finish was a second place at Grand Prix Brussels. It was also the first season since 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...
that Nassif did not reach the Top 8 of a Pro Tour. The following season
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...
Nassif won the first Pro Tour of the season with a 61-card five colour control deck. He then followed up his PT win with a first place finish at the next event: Grand Prix Chicago.
Distinctions
- Nassif was the first player to win the Player of the Year race without a Pro Tour victory that season. (Kenji TsumuraKenji Tsumurais 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:...
, Tomoharu SaitouTomoharu Saitouis 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...
, Shuhei Nakamura, Yuuya WatanabeYuuya WatanabeYuuya 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....
and Brad NelsonBrad 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...
repeated that feat in the 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 seasons, respectively.) - Nassif has lost more Pro Tour Finals than any other player.
- Nassif defeated Nicolai HerzogNicolai HerzogNicolai 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...
to become Player of the Year, despite the fact that Herzog had won two Pro Tours that year. - According to Ask Wizards, Nassif also boasts the highest-ever constructed rating at 2318 in round 18 of Pro Tour–Kobe in February 2004.
Accomplishments
Other accomplishments- Pro Tour Player of the Year 2003–04
- Three-time player at the Magic Invitational
Poker
Nassif has had 14 cashes at the World Series of PokerWorld Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker is a world-renowned series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Harrah's Entertainment...
, including back-to-back cashes at the 2010 and 2011 main events, finishing 73rd and 189th respectively. As of September 2011, Nassif's live tournament earnings exceed $400,000.