Pro Tour Dragon's Maze (San Diego, 2013): results, Top 8 and testing teams
Pro Tour Dragon's Maze was played in San Diego, California, from May 17 to 19, 2013. It was the last Pro Tour of the 2012–13 season and the first premier Constructed event with the Dragon's Maze expansion. Constructed rounds used Return to Ravnica Block Constructed, and Limited rounds used Return to Ravnica block Booster Draft.
Event facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Dates | May 17–19, 2013 |
| Location | San Diego, California, USA |
| Formats | Return to Ravnica Block Constructed; block Booster Draft |
| Players | 388 |
| Prize pool | $250,000 |
| Winner | Craig Wescoe (USA), Green-White Aggro |
Top 8
| Place | Player | Deck | Prize | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Craig Wescoe (USA) | Green-White Aggro | $40,000 | First PT title, third Top 8 |
| 2 | Dusty Ochoa (USA) | Esper Control | $20,000 | |
| 3–4 | Makihito Mihara (JPN) | Esper Control | $12,500 | Fourth Top 8 |
| 3–4 | Josh Utter-Leyton (USA) | Boros Aggro | $12,500 | Fourth Top 8 |
| 5–8 | Rob Castellon (USA) | 4-Color Midrange | $10,000 | Pro Tour debut |
| 5–8 | Andrew Shrout (USA) | WUR Control | $10,000 | Pro Tour debut |
| 5–8 | Matej Zatlkaj (SVK) | Esper Control | $10,000 | Second Top 8 |
| 5–8 | Andrejs Prost (LVA) | White-Blue Control | $10,000 | Second Top 8 |
Bracket: in the quarterfinals, Wescoe beat Prost 3–2, Utter-Leyton beat Shrout 3–1, Mihara beat Zatlkaj 3–2 and Ochoa beat Castellon 3–2. In the semifinals, Wescoe beat Utter-Leyton 3–1 and Ochoa beat Mihara 3–2. Wescoe swept the final 3–0.
The metagame
Esper Control was the most popular Constructed deck. More than 27% of the field played a version built around Sphinx's Revelation. Bant Control, Selesnya Aggro and Junk Midrange were also common, and some Swedish players brought decks built around Maze's End. Three of the eight playoff decks were Esper Control. The winning deck, however, was the aggressive Green-White list of Craig Wescoe, a known white-aggro specialist.
Storylines
- Rob Castellon, a level 2 judge, was the last undefeated player. He reached 11–0 before losing in the quarterfinals.
- Josh Utter-Leyton clinched the 2012–13 Player of the Year title by winning his round 15 match and making the Top 8.
- Makihito Mihara beat Gabriel Nassif and then Brian Kibler on the way to his fourth Sunday appearance.
- Matej Zatlkaj, runner-up at PT Berlin 2008, returned after years away and reached the Top 8.
- Tomoharu Saito started 3–0 in his return from a 2010 suspension. Hall of Famer Bob Maher, Jr. started 3–0, then went 0–3 in the second draft and missed the money.
Testing teams at Dragon's Maze
As at other Pro Tours of the period, players prepared in unofficial groups. Reid Duke's report, published on StarCityGames.com on May 23, 2013 (he finished ninth), describes his team as #TeamSCG. He names Brad Nelson, Owen Turtenwald, Tom Martell, Patrick Chapin, Gabriel Nassif and William Jensen as teammates. Nelson had done much of the early work on Bant Control. Duke first favored W/G Tokens, then moved to Bant. Most of the team played Bant Control with four Loxodon Smiter and Advent of the Wurm in the sideboard. Duke and Turtenwald played a version with two Smiters and no Advent of the Wurm.
Josh Utter-Leyton was an original member of Team ChannelFireball, according to his Wikipedia biography. His fourth-place finish here decided the Player of the Year race.
For the next Pro Tour and its team results, see Pro Tour Theros. For how these groups worked, see team rosters in 2013.