Hong Jin-Ho
| Hong Jin-Ho | |
 Hong Jin-Ho in the Shinhan Bank Starleague | |
| Korean name | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 홍진호 |
| Hanja | 洪榛浩 |
| Revised Romanization | Hong Jin-ho |
| McCune–Reischauer | Hong Chin-ho |
Hong Jin-Ho (born 31 October 1982) is a professional StarCraft player from South Korea who plays under the alias [NC]...YellOw or simply Yellow. He is enlisted in the South Korean Air Force as of April 2010. In 2012, he became the coach for the 'Xenics Storm' League of Legends pro gaming team.
StarCraft career
Hong, nicknamed the "Storm Zerg",[1] is known for his aggressive and harass-style play, and for his rivalry with BoxeR.
Hong is famous for never having won first place in major StarCraft tournaments despite his strong performance. Hong managed to finish second place six times in the events, never once attaining a major championship, which earned him the title "King of Silver." While there are some tournaments in which he finished first, these records was invalidated when the KeSPA announced to accept only OSL and MSL records. His notable victories include first place in the 2003 ITV 5th Starleague, the Snickers All-Star league in 2005[1] and the first BlizzCon invitational tournament.
Hong suffered his last major defeat against Casy(Han Dong-Wook, champion of that league) in the semi-finals of the Shinhan Bank Season 1 OSL in 2006, and claimed 3rd place. Due to poor performance in the following OSL, Hong has fallen into a slump from which he has not recovered. Hong reached the round of 32 in the GOMTV Averatech Classic, but was eliminated by oDin(Joo Young-Dal). He is now in the Korean Air Force since November 2008, and has enlisted in the StarCraft team Air Force ACE.[1]
After being a member of KAF ACE, Hong is recovering his form slowly but steadily. The trigger was an old-fashioned 'storm-like' victory against Bisu[Shield] on 20 June 2009 in Shinhan Bank ProLeague 08-09, after 735 days of silence. He could not qualify for either OSL nor MSL since Shinhan Bank OSL season 2 in 2006, but in the end of Shinhan Bank ProLeague 09-10 season, Hong ended the season securing a 3-game winning streak, including a dramatic victory against Jaedong.
Hong officially announced his retirement from professional gaming on his website on 16 June 2011. At his retirement ceremony, BoxeR jokingly handed him an empty StarCraft 2 box. BoxeR said that the box was empty, but the account was at the Slayers clan house and if Hong ever considered transitioning into StarCraft 2, he knew where to go.
As of August 2011 he is appearing in a reality series entitled "Project A" on GOMtv. The series follows Hong as he attempts to qualify for the Global StarCraft League and relaunch his progaming career in StarCraft 2. The series premiered on 12 August 2011.[2]
Post Retirement
On 16 June 2011, Hong announced his retirement from his StarCraft career. He is now currently a coach for League of Legends.
In 2013, he was cast among eleven contestants for the first season of Korean television game show, The Genius - Rules of the Game. this series aired onTvN starting April 26, 2013. This series featured weekly game challenges involving team politics and individual tactical play. Hong quickly because a fan favorite as he demonstrated his mental fortitude in strategic game play. He finished the series as the final champion, beating out other participants including celebrities, Harvard graduate and politician Lee Jun Seok, Mensa member Choi Jung Moon and legendary pro-gambler Jimmy Cha.
The prize money was KRW 79,000,000 (approx.USD 70,000). Through this achievement, he received positive reviews that he enhanced the image of pro-gamer, and not to speak of his own recognition as a genius.
In November 2013, the second season of The Genius: Rule Breaker began broadcasting. Hong was recast as a returning contestant, alongside Lim Yo-Hwan(SlayerS_`BoxeR`), his long time StarCraft rival.
Major achievements
- Winner of the Season 1, The Genius Game variety show
- Coca-Cola OnGameNet Starleague - runner-up
- KPGA 1st Tour (MSL) - runner-up
- KPGA 2nd Tour (MSL) - runner-up
- Olympus OnGameNet Starleague - runner-up
- TG Sambo MSL - runner-up
- WCG 2002 Grand Final - silver
- 2005 Snickers All-Star League - winner
- KTEC KPGA Winner's Championship - winner
- BlizzCon 2005 - winner
See also
- StarCraft professional competition
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "TLPD - Player Information - YellOw". Teamliquid.net. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
- ↑ "Project A: Witness the resurrection of the Storm Zerg". GOMtv.net.
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