Tomoharu Saitou

Tomoharu Saitou (齋藤 友晴, Saitō Tomoharu) is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players and the owner of Hareruya Store in Tokyo.

Tomoharu Saitou
齋藤 友晴
Born14 December 1983[1]
Tokyo, Japan[1]
ResidenceToshima-ku (Japan)
Nationality Japanese
Pro Tour debut2000 Pro Tour Chicago[1]
Winnings$262,092[2]
Pro Tour wins (Top 8)1 (5)[3]
Grand Prix wins (Top 8)4 (24)[4]
Lifetime Pro Points506[5]
Planeswalker Level50 (Archmage)

Career

Saitou debuted at Pro Tour Chicago 2000.[1] An 83rd-place finish meant he fell just short of making money. Later the same season, he made his first standout finish by reaching the top eight of the Asia Pacific Championship. His quarter-final opponent was to have been Peter Chao of Taiwan. However, Chao was not able to attend the final day of competition, and asked Saitou for a prize split. The judges ruled this to be bribery and disqualified Saitou, Chao, and Satoshi Nakamura who had acted as their interpreter.[6]

After two seasons off tour, Saitou returned the Pro Tour in 2003–04, and to the elimination rounds at the premier level by finishing eighth at Grand Prix Nagoya. In 2005, he made his first Sunday appearance on the Pro Tour. Alongside Tomohiro Kaji, and Kenji Tsumura, he reached the top four of Pro Tour Atlanta. Saitou's team, One Spin, lost in the semifinals to the eventual champions Nova, with Saitou losing to Gabriel Nassif.[7]

In 2006, Saitou won Pro Tour Charleston as a member of Team Kajiharu80, along with Tomohiro Kaji and Shouta Yasooka.[8] At the next Pro Tour, held in Kobe, Saitou made his first individual top eight appearance. He lost in the quarterfinals to Pro Tour first-timer and eventual champion Jan-Moritz Merkel.[9] At the end of the 2006 season, Saitou was dubbed the PoY maker, because in the past two seasons his teammates, Tsumura and Yasooka, had won the Player of the year title. The following year, it would be his turn.

In 2007, Saitou made his fourth Pro Tour top eight that year, in Yokohama, losing to Kazuya Mitamura in the semifinals.[10] He also top eighted Grand Prix Singapore, and won Grand Prix Strasbourg. At the end of the season, he won the Player of the year title, making him the first player to do so without either winning a Pro Tour or reaching the top eight of multiple Pro Tours.[11]

The 2008 season saw Saitou finishing third at Pro Tour Berlin[12] and making the Top 8 of three Grand Prix, but falling 20 points short of defending his title.[13]

In 2009 Saitou won back to back Extended Grand Prix in Singapore and Kobe. The following season, he made the top eight of three more Grand Prix, winning in Columbus. At Pro Tour Amsterdam it was announced that Saitou would be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Two weeks before his induction Saitou was disqualified for stalling at Grand Prix Florence. He subsequently received an 18-month suspension from the DCI.[14] One day before the Hall of Fame induction ceremony Wizards of the Coast announced that Saitou would not be inducted due to his suspension.[15]

Accomplishments
 Season   Event type   Location   Format   Date   Rank 
2000–01 APAC Region Championship Kuala Lumpur Special 22–24 June 2001 DQ1
2003–04 Grand Prix Nagoya Standard 28–29 August 2004 8
2005 Grand Prix Osaka Team Limited 8–9 January 2005 4
2005 Pro Tour Atlanta Team Limited 11–13 March 2005 4
2005 Grand Prix Matsuyama Limited 14–15 May 2005 7
2005 Grand Prix Beijing Extended 26–27 November 2005 6
2006 Pro Tour Charleston, South Carolina Team Constructed 16–18 June 2006 1
2006 Nationals Ōta, Tokyo Standard and Booster Draft 25–27 August 2006 8
2006 Grand Prix Sydney Limited 7–8 October 2006 3
2006 Pro Tour Kobe Limited 20–22 October 2006 7
2007 Grand Prix Singapore Extended 3–4 March 2007 8
2007 Pro Tour Yokohama Block Constructed 20–22 April 2007 4
2007 Grand Prix Strasbourg Block Constructed 19–20 May 2007 1
2008 Grand Prix Vienna Extended 15–16 March 2008 4
2008 Grand Prix Copenhagen Standard 23–24 August 2008 2
2008 Pro Tour Berlin Extended 31 October–2 November 2008 3
2008 Grand Prix Atlanta Limited 15–16 November 2008 6
2009 Grand Prix Singapore Extended 21–22 March 2009 1
2009 Grand Prix Kobe Extended 18–19 April 2009 1
2009 Grand Prix Melbourne Limited 10–11 October 2009 2
2010 Grand Prix Oakland Extended 13–14 February 2010 8
2010 Grand Prix Madrid Legacy 27–28 February 2010 4
2010 Grand Prix Columbus, Ohio Legacy 31 July–1 August 2010 1
2012–13 Grand Prix Sydney Limited 19–20 January 2013 3
2013–14 Grand Prix Kyoto Team Limited 23–24 November 2013 4
2013–14 Grand Prix Atlanta Limited 24–25 May 2014 2
2014–15 Grand Prix Sydney Limited 23–24 August 2014 6
2015–16 Grand Prix Santiago Limited 29–30 August 2015 2
2015–16 Grand Prix Lyon Limited 30 October–1 November 2015 3
2015–16 Grand Prix Mexico City Limited 30–31 January 2016 2
2016-17 Grand Prix Rotterdam Team Limited 12–13 November 2016 3

Last updated: 1 February 2016
Source: Wizards.com

Notes
  • ^Note 1 : Tomoharu Saitou reached the top eight of the 2001 APAC Championships as the number 1 seed after two days of competition. He was disqualified for bribery, along with Satoshi Nakamura and Peter Chao.[6]

Other accomplishments:

  • Pro Player of the Year 2007

Suspensions

In 2001 after Grand Prix Kobe, Saitou was suspended for 18 months due to consecutive disqualifications. A prize split was interpreted as being bribery resulting in a disqualification at the Asian Pacific Championships.[6] Following that Saitou was disqualified for inappropriately attempting to get his opponent disqualified. As a result of these disqualifications, the DCI suspended Saitou for 18 months.[16]

In 2010, Saitou was voted into the Hall of Fame.[17] However, two weeks prior to the induction Saitou was disqualified during Grand Prix Florence leading to an 18-month suspension from the game. Wizards announced without further explanation that Saitou would not be part of the Hall of Fame based on the 2010 ballot.[15]

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References
  1. Tomoharu Saito 2007 Pro Player card (from the Magic: The Gathering Time Spiral expansion)
  2. "Top 200 All-Time Money Leaders". Wizards of the Coast. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  3. "Lifetime Pro Tour Top 8s". Wizards of the Coast. 2008-05-27. Retrieved 2008-12-03.
  4. "Lifetime Grand Prix Top 8s". Wizards of the Coast. 2014-07-28. Retrieved 2010-09-03.
  5. "Planeswalker Points". Wizards of the Coast. 2014-09-03. Retrieved 2014-09-03.
  6. "Three Players Disqualified". Wizards of the Coast. 2001-06-24. Retrieved 2009-08-14.
  7. "Nova Burns Brightest in Atlanta!". Wizards of the Coast. 2005-03-13. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  8. "Kajiharu80 puts the Char in Charleston!". Wizards of the Coast. 2006-06-18. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  9. "Merkel's Time is Now". Wizards of the Coast. 2006-10-22. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  10. "Wafo-Tapa Tops Them All!". Wizards of the Coast. 2007-04-22. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  11. "2007 Player of the Year Race". Wizards of the Coast. 2008-01-18. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  12. "LSV + ELVES Equals Champion!". Wizards of the Coast. 2008-10-31. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  13. "2008 Pro Tour Player of the Year". Wizards of the Coast. 2008-12-22. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
  14. "Suspended DCI Memberships". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 1 December 2010.
  15. "Saito removed from Hall of Fame selection". Wizards of the Coast. 8 December 2010. Retrieved 8 December 2010.
  16. http://www.starcitygames.com/php/news/print.php%3FArticle%3D20059+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
  17. "Magic Pro Tour Hall of Fame 2010 Ballot". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 2010-09-05.
Preceded by
Shouta Yasooka		 Pro Player of the Year
2007		 Succeeded by
Shuhei Nakamura
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