Jon Finkel
| Jon Finkel | |
|---|---|
| Demographics | |
| Nickname | Jonny Magic |
| Born | May 18th, 1978 |
| Residence | New York City, USA |
| Nationality | |
| Professional Career | |
| Pro Tour debut | 1996 World Championships |
| Winnings | $357,484[1] |
| Top Finishes | 14 (3 wins)[2] |
| GP top 8s | 9 (3 wins)[3] |
| Median Pro Tour Finish | 63 |
| PTs Played | 71 |
| Lifetime Pro Points | 581[4] |
Jon Finkel is a famous American Magic: The Gathering player. He has won numerous Pro Tour tournaments, and was the 2000 World Champion. He is affectionately known as "Jonny Magic" by many, and has been the poster boy for the Magic: the Gathering game for a long time. Many consider him to be the best player the game has ever seen. That title has been challenged by Kai Budde of Germany who surpassed him for lifetime earnings and Pro Tour titles, although this is partially due to Finkel taking a break from high level play from 2004-2008.
Finkel has won over $290,000 playing the game. Later in his career, he faced some criticisms, allegedly just showing up at Pro Tours to meet up with old friends. Many recognize that one of Finkel's greatest strengths in the game is his ability to play with little preparation. Some have touted that Finkel's only preparation for an event was during the car ride there, as opposed to other professionals spending weeks preparing.
Finkel, after winning the 2000 Magic Invitational, had the privilege of designing a card for the game. The card he designed was Shadowmage Infiltrator (originally named "Spellcreep Wizard" and nicknamed Finkel), which appeared in the Odyssey set and was reprinted as a timeshifted card of Time Spiral and also in Modern Masters 2015. Finkel originally submitted a card, "Wrath of Leknif" (Leknif being his name spelt backwards as an homage to Nevinyrral's Disk) , that was deemed too powerful by the Wizards R&D Staff. [5]
In later years, Finkel, like fellow Magic player David Williams, has been playing in high-level poker tournaments.
In 2005, Finkel was inducted into the inaugural class of the Magic Pro Tour Hall of Fame after receiving 67 out of 69 possible votes. In regards to his nomination for this position, Mark Rosewater, head of the design department of Magic R&D stated, "He is the most naturally gifted player the game has ever seen. His accomplishments are rivaled by only one other man". This has prompted a small comeback to the game, including the beginning of regular statistically-tracked drafting at Finkel's New York apartment with other past and present big name players and several Pro Tour appearances.
On February 17th, 2008 Finkel returned to his former dominance, only dropping one match as he won Pro Tour Kuala Lumpur.
Accomplishments
| Season | Event type | Location | Format | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | Pro Tour | Chicago | Extended | 10–12 October 1997 | 3 |
| 1997–98 | Grand Prix | Rio de Janeiro | Extended | 31 January–February 1, 1998 | 1 |
| 1997–98 | Pro Tour | New York | Limited | 17–19 April 1998 | 1 |
| 1997–98 | Grand Prix | Zurich | Limited | 30–31 May 1998 | 6 |
| 1997–98 | Nationals | Colombus | Special | 3–5 July 1998 | 3 |
| 1997–98 | Worlds | Seattle | Special | 12–16 August 1998 | 3 |
| 1997–98 | Worlds | Seattle | National team | 12–16 August 1998 | 1 |
| 1998–99 | Grand Prix | Boston | Standard | 5–6 September 1998 | 1 |
| 1998–99 | Pro Tour | Chicago | Limited | 25–27 September 1998 | 5 |
| 1998–99 | Invitational | Barcelona | Special | 4–7 February 1999 | 4 |
| 1998–99 | Pro Tour | Los Angeles | Limited | 26–28 February 1999 | 2 |
| 1998–99 | Grand Prix | Vienna | Extended | 13–14 March 1999 | 3 |
| 1998–99 | Grand Prix | Kansas City | Extended | 27–28 March 1999 | 5 |
| 1999–00 | Pro Tour | Washington D.C. | Team Limited | 3–5 September 1999 | 3 |
| 1999–00 | Invitational | Kuala Lumpur | Special | 2–5 March 2000 | 2 |
| 1999–00 | Grand Prix | St. Louis | Team Limited | 13–14 May 2000 | 1 |
| 1999–00 | Nationals | Orlando | Special | 8–11 June 2000 | 1 |
| 1999–00 | Grand Prix | Pittsburgh | Team Limited | 24–25 June 2000 | 3 |
| 1999–00 | Worlds | Brussels | Special | 2–6 August 2000 | 1 |
| 1999–00 | Worlds | Brussels | National team | 2–6 August 2000 | 1 |
| 2000–01 | Invitational | Sydney | Special | 16–19 November 2000 | 1 |
| 2000–01 | Masters | Chicago | Limited | 30 November–1 December, 2000 | 2 |
| 2000–01 | Pro Tour | Chicago | Standard | 1–3 December 2000 | 5 |
| 2000–01 | Pro Tour | Los Angeles | Limited | 2–4 February 2001 | 4 |
| 2000–01 | Masters | Barcelona | Block Constructed | 4–6 May 2001 | 3 |
| 2002–03 | Invitational | Seattle | Special | 18–20 October 2002 | 3 |
| 2002–03 | Pro Tour | Chicago | Limited | 17–19 January 2003 | 3 |
| 2002–03 | Pro Tour | Yokohama | Limited | 9–11 May 2003 | 4 |
| 2002–03 | Grand Prix | Amsterdam | Team Limited | 7–8 June 2003 | 2 |
| 2002–03 | Nationals | San Diego | Special | 27–29 June 2003 | 7 |
| 2003–04 | Grand Prix | Washington D.C. | Team Limited | 17–18 April 2004 | 4 |
| 2008 | Pro Tour | Kuala Lumpur | Limited | 15–17 February 2008 | 1 |
| 2012 | Pro Tour | Honolulu | Standard and Booster Draft | 10–12 February 2012 | 3 |
| 2012 | Pro Tour | Barcelona | Block Constructed and Booster Draft | 11–13 May 2012 | 5 |
| 2012–13 | Players Championship | Indianapolis | Special | 29–31 August 2012 | 4 |
→ Source: Wizards.com
Pro Tour Results
| Season | Pro Tour | Format | Finish | Winnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Worlds (Seattle) | Special | 9 | $3,200 |
| 1996–97 | Atlanta | Sealed Deck | 143 | |
| 1996–97 | Dallas | Standard | 116 | |
| 1996–97 | Los Angeles | Rochester Draft | 13 | $3,200 |
| 1996–97 | Paris | Block Constructed | 194 | |
| 1996–97 | New York | Booster Draft | 15 | $3,200 |
| 1996–97 | Worlds (Seattle) | Special | 13 | $4,200 |
| 1997–98 | Chicago | Extended | 3 | $10,000 |
| 1997–98 | Mainz | Rochester Draft | 20 | $2,050 |
| 1997–98 | Los Angeles | Block Constructed | 23 | $1,750 |
| 1997–98 | New York | Booster Draft | 1 | $25,000 |
| 1997–98 | Worlds (Seattle) | Special | 3 | $16,000 |
→ Source: Wizards.com
Trivia
- Jon is the subject of the book Jonny Magic and the Cardshark Kids by David Kushner, published by Random House in August, 2005.