WIZFEST 2009 PREDICTION
Wizfest, the greatest Wizard Card event, well in Canada anyway, is less then a month away. I can already feel the buzz, the anticipation and the
general excitement of this tournament already starting to build. The Toronto East Club is having a special ‘practice day” scheduled for a week before
the event. In Downtown Toronto a special group of players lead by the two time Wizfest Champion Trapizoid are gathering for a
showdown disguised as a friendly practice day for anyone in the area. With all the buzz and excitement I thought that today would be a good day to
write up an article outline who I think will be among the semi-finalist at Wizfest. I must confess that I don’t know all 60 players signed up for
Wizfest and therefore can’t make a fair and just evaluation of all the players, but I will give it my best guess. Please feel free to debate or
straighten me out if you think I am mistaken.
A list of players I expect to see in the semi-finals at Wizfest 2009:
1 – Trapizoid – This is a no brainer. Trap is the two time back to back winner of Wizfest. He is arguable the most dominate
wizard player out there. His online success has not been stellar this year, but that’s more out of lack of appearance then by over-all level of his
play. In May of this year he won 36 MP without playing a single tournament. In June, he won 27 MP without playing in a single tournament. In fact
in the last two months he’s won 63 MP playing 80 games. When he does play he wins it’s that simple. Forget Semi-finals expect to see him on the
final table.
2 – Ap Sirius – There are many respected Wizard Players out there, but none hold my respect as much as AP Sirius. This man knows
how to win. Currently he is 2nd on the Tourney Ranking having amounted 168 points in 16 online tourney games. He has made the final table four times
this year, came 2nd in the Wizard Status tournament and won the recent Hidden Bid Tourney. Ap Sirius hasn’t had much success at Wizfest the last
couple of years, but believe me he will be battling for one of 6 spots for the final table. AP Sirius is simply on fire.
3 – Mr. Wizard – The American golden boy is golden indeed. He started the year off with three straight final table appearances
including coming in 2nd in the 2 day Wizard Fest and winning an online tourney in early February. In the 2007 Wizfest tourney he made it to the
semi-finals and lost out to a lucky player who needed a 15 bid hand on the final round to beat him (yeah that was me). Last year although I mock him
on a regular basis for bowing out in the first round, he did win the Consolation round which is no small feat. Expect to see Mr. Wizard determined to
make it to the finals this year.
4 - Abacus - This man is tearing up the online tourneys. He has 5 final table appearances with 2 wins and a 3rd place finish in
the Wizard Status tourney. In 2007 he was in the semi-finals and lost on the very last card of the game losing out to Trapizoid. In 2008 he didn’t
play in the tourney and instead focused on helping Ken Fisher run the tourney, of which he deserves much praise.( I still can’t get the images of
those damn wizard earrings out of my head Ken). Abacus seems focused and determined this year and will be in the semi-finals for sure and you may
just see him win this time around.
5 - Merlin – I must admit, picking Merlin in the semi-finals was not easy. Yes, he was the first player to ever become an Arch
Wizard and yes he made it to the finals of the 2002 Wizfest and yes, if you ask anyone if they think he will be in the semi-finals, they would all say
yes, but this year has been tough on him. He has lost his first place ranking, he is about to lose 2nd place (yeah that would be me again). He has
exactly 1 final table appearances in 15 online tourneys and he has no top 10 finishes. In the last 2 Wizfest tourneys in Niagara he bowed out in the
first round of 2007 and had to play a play-off game to make it out of the first round in 2008 and then bowed out in the quarter-finals. However, if
you think he’s done, or that time has passed him by, you’d be foolish. I expect Merlin to silence his critics (yeah probably just me again) and have a
good showing at Wizfest this year.
6 – Mactonight – I know I know, what an ego manic. How does one pick himself in a list of top players? Well let’s try to justify
it shall we. In the last two Wizfest tourneys I made it to the finals in 2007 and lost in the Semi-finals of the 2008 tourney to
Hazardous who didn’t just win that game, but pretty much whipped the other three players so bad that I think our combined score was
still 100 points behind his (well done Josh). I’ve played in every online tournament this year and currently sit 4th on the Tourney Ranking. I won
the Pictor tournament and I have made 3 online tourney final table appearances with one victory. I’m about to pass Merlin for 2nd place in the
over-all wizard ranking (where is my dang green * already). If I can get out of the first round you should see me in the semi-finals.
7 - Jeffzel – This man to me is “Mr. Semi –finals”. Two years at Wizfest in Niagara, two semi-final appearances. Check the 2009
tournament final table results and you will not find Jeffzel there. Why? Cause in every online tournament he’s played, he’s been out in the, you
guessed it, The Semi-finals. Every time I go to the Toronto West Club, there is Jeffzel in the semi-finals. Jeffzel is one day going to make it to
the finals of Wizfest and I hope to be there when he does, but absolutely, 100%, no doubt you will find this man in the Semi-Finals.
8 – KarmaKarma – She is having a pretty good year this year considering she hasn’t played much online. She has 5 final table
appearances including 1 victory and sits 3rd on the Online Tournament ranking. At the Toronto East Club she has made the final table 5 out of 6
times. Last year at Wizfest in Niagara she won the most Matrix points after round one. Although she hasn’t made the semi-finals of Wizfest before,
this is the year she will step up and prove me right. Go Karma Go.
9 – Tishy – Always in the shadow of Abacus, this is the year Tishy, like Karmakarma is going
to step up and make the semi-finals. My concern with Tishy is that she just hasn’t been around the wizard world much. She’s played in 2 online
tourneys this year and bowed out in the first round of both of them. Historically at Wizfest she has bowed out early as well. But she’s due. And I
think the break away from the game and the site will do her well. I think at the end of the tourney I will be able to say – I told you so, she made
the semi-finals.
WOW! I’m at 10 already, but there’s so many good players left. Brevannah, who I think will have her best tourney ever,
Nightrunner and Sungoddess will shine, The Sappy Clan of Heidiho, Charilethetuna and
Mumm01 will be a force to deal with for sure. The US Nation Dr. Wizard, Ms Wizard and
whiza are all great players as well. Don’t forget about Sladist and Megametal who both have
learned skills from the great Trapizoid. Most of them will be in the semi-finals for sure as there are 18 seats in the semi-finals
this year. Wow, how about DougJ or Thesteve, but no my 10th spot is going to….
10 – Billfromthebar – Billfromthebar stormed into the wizard world in Feb of this year. He has played in 3 online tourneys and has
made the semi-finals in all three. He has attended three Toronto East Tournaments and made the final table in 2 of them including winning the first
one he ever attended. Every once in awhile you see a player and you think, this guy is going to be good. Well I think Billfromthebar is already good
and I think he will prove it this year at Wizfest.
I asked Wizard to do me the honors of checking out my list (and despite what you think I didn’t do it in order to get his approval
to submit this or for his permission or because I don’t do anything without first asking. Nope not for those reasons at all) and he offered up a Dark
Horse for this years tourney. He offered up – Geremie Lacroix.
And since I didn’t know who this was I asked him why and he simply replied – Dark Horse----- GEREMIE! So this years Dark Horse is -----
GEREMIE!
Deal with it.
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