| Brad Nelson | |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | FFfreaK |
| Born | Fargo, North Dakota[1] |
| Residence | Moorhead, Minnesota, USA[2] |
| Nationality | American |
| Pro Tour debut | 2009 Pro Tour Honolulu |
| Pro Tour wins (Top 8) | 0 (2)[3] |
| Grand Prix wins (Top 8) | 1 (4)[4] |
| Lifetime Pro Points | 93[2] |
| Matches played | 2472[2] |
| Planeswalker Level | 45 (Battlemage) |
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 2010, Nelson became the first non-Japanese player since Gabriel Nassif in 2004 and the first American player since Bob Maher in 2000 to earn the Player of the Year title. However, Nelson did not receive his title for Player of the Year 2010 until February, 2011 after winning a first-ever Player of the Year Tie playoff match with Guillaume Matignon of France.[5]
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Brad Nelson starting playing Magic: The Gathering in high school, when his best friend William Lies introduced the game to him.[6] Nelson first came to prominence on Magic: The Gathering Online under the screen name FFfreak,[7] a name inspired by his love for the Final Fantasy series of videogames. Whilst Brad was attempting to make it on to the Pro Tour he developed a friendship with 2005 Player of the Year Kenji Tsumura, who would send him his decks to help Brad win a Pro Tour Qualifier.[8] Brad considers Kenji to be his favorite player of all time.[8]
Brad made his Pro Tour debut at Pro Tour Honolulu in 2009, managing to come in 9th place.[6] Brad would also make his first Grand Prix Top 8 at Grand Prix Minneapolis that year. Brad would go on to further success on the Pro Tour in the 2010 season. Brad made his first Pro Tour Top 8 at Pro Tour San Juan, though was defeated in the quarterfinals by Guillaume Matignon. At Pro Tour Amsterdam, Brad made his second Pro Tour Top 8 of the year. In the quarterfinals, he became one of only three players to have beaten Kai Budde in the elimination rounds of a Pro Tour.[9] Brad would go on to make the finals of the tournament, losing to Paul Rietzl to take second place. After his performance in Amsterdam, Brad would become the front-runner in the Player of the Year standings. Brad had a 15-point lead going into the final event of the year, the 2010 World Championship. However, Nelson would come in 135th place at Worlds only adding 3 additional points to his overall total.[10] This allowed the 2010 World Champion Guillaume Matignon to earn enough points with his victory to equal Brad's total for an unprecedented Player of the Year tie.[11] The Pro Player of the Year title was decided in a special Player of the Match between Nelson and Matignon at Pro Tour Paris 2011.[5] Nelson won the match 4-2 to claim the 2010 Player of the Year title, becoming the first American to win the title in ten years.
In the 2011 season, Brad had a disappointing year failing to Top 8 any major events. Discussing his year in an interview with Tristan Shaun Gregson, Brad blamed a loss of confidence for his disappointing performance.[12]
| Season | Event type | Location | Format | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Nationals | Kansas City, Missouri | Standard and Booster Draft | 22–24 July 2009 | 4 |
| 2009 | Grand Prix | Minneapolis | Sealed and Booster Draft | 14–14 November 2009 | 4 |
| 2010 | Grand Prix | Washington D.C. | Standard | 22–23 May 2010 | 1 |
| 2010 | Pro Tour | San Juan, Puerto Rico | Block Constructed and Booster Draft | 28–30 May 2010 | 6 |
| 2010 | Grand Prix | Colombus, Ohio | Limited | 31 July–1 August 2010 | 8 |
| 2010 | Nationals | Minneapolis | Standard and Booster Draft | 19–22 August 2010 | 8 |
| 2010 | Pro Tour | Amsterdam | Extended and Booster Draft | 3–5 September 2010 | 2 |
| 2010 | Grand Prix | Toronto | Standard and Booster Draft | 23–24 October 2010 | 2 |
Last updated: 15 September 2011
Source: wizards.com
Other accomplishments
After winning the Pro Player of the Year title, Wizards of the Coast employee Richard Hagon wrote a biographical book entitled Grinder: The Brad Nelson Story about Nelson's road to becoming the Pro Player of the Year.[14]
Brad Nelson's father is Jeff Nelson and Brad is also the half-brother of Corey Baumeister,[15] a fellow Magic: The Gathering player and three-time North Dakota State Champion.[16]
| Preceded by Yuuya Watanabe |
Pro Player of the Year 2010 |
Succeeded by Owen Turtenwald |