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ESL Open Cup Week #1: Solar, HeroMarine, Scarlett win

Forum Index > SC2 General
19 CommentsPost a Reply
TL.net ESPORTS
Profile Joined July 2011
4 Posts
Last Edited: 2020-01-16 02:54:50
January 16 2020 02:32 GMT
#1
2020-21 ESL Pro Tour: Open Cups


The broad strokes of the ESL Pro Tour are largely similar to the previous WCS Circuit, but the newly implemented ESL Open Cups have introduced a new element in the race to qualify for the Masters Finals (the new 'BlizzCon' or Global Finals). Each week, three cups will be held across the Europe, NA, and Korean servers (no regional restriction on competitors), awarding 10 EPT points to the winner and 5 points to the runner-up.

While this is a small number of points, the race to qualify for the year-end finals has sometimes been decided by paper thin margins in the past.

Several notable players participated in the first week of cups, including some of the 2019 Global Finalists. (Wiki)Solar won the Korean server tournament, (Wiki)HeroMarine won on the EU server, while (Wiki)Scarlett triumphed on North America. Week #2 of the ESL Open Cup is set to take place on January 19th.

European Server Cup #1 (Click for full 256 player bracket)



Korean Server Cup #1 (Click for full 256 player bracket)



Americas Server Cup #1 (Click for full 256 player bracket)

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ZigguratOfUr
Profile Blog Joined April 2012
Iraq16955 Posts
January 16 2020 02:52 GMT
#2
The question of whether the points from these cups are likely to end up mattering or not is an interesting one. My gut feeling is that with the smaller overall number of points in the system, and the fact that 36 players are going to Katowice 2021 it's pretty likely that we end up with very tight margins that could be broken by these cups. Not sure if anyone who isn't already a lock for Katowice can win these consistently enough though--really depends on how fierce the competition is.

It would certainly be fun if towards the end of the season, with all the big tournaments done, a few players ended up with all their hopes riding on these cups.
Jeremy Reimer
Profile Blog Joined August 2010
Canada1220 Posts
January 16 2020 02:53 GMT
#3
That's really cool that these smaller cups award ESL Pro Tour points. It makes the whole Starcraft scene seem part of one overall conglomeration.
"Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere." -- Carl Sagan
Snijjer
Profile Joined September 2011
United States989 Posts
January 16 2020 03:00 GMT
#4
On January 16 2020 11:53 Jeremy Reimer wrote:
That's really cool that these smaller cups award ESL Pro Tour points. It makes the whole Starcraft scene seem part of one overall conglomeration.


I also like the fact that it gives more people the opportunity to play against the best pros in tournament settings.
spenzer
Profile Joined June 2016
27 Posts
January 16 2020 06:42 GMT
#5
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed
DinosaurJones
Profile Joined February 2012
United States1000 Posts
January 16 2020 07:31 GMT
#6
Happy to see Polt in there. Hope he makes a big comeback this year.
xelnaga_empire
Profile Joined March 2012
627 Posts
January 16 2020 08:55 GMT
#7
On January 16 2020 11:53 Jeremy Reimer wrote:
That's really cool that these smaller cups award ESL Pro Tour points. It makes the whole Starcraft scene seem part of one overall conglomeration.


Agreed. These small cups are now more interesting for the viewers because we know that they may actually matter. And the players will treat these small cups more seriously because for them, the points may end up making a difference between making IEM Katowice or not at the end of the season.

This is a great idea from ESL.
Harris1st
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Germany7402 Posts
January 16 2020 09:32 GMT
#8
On January 16 2020 11:52 ZigguratOfUr wrote:
The question of whether the points from these cups are likely to end up mattering or not is an interesting one. My gut feeling is that with the smaller overall number of points in the system, and the fact that 36 players are going to Katowice 2021 it's pretty likely that we end up with very tight margins that could be broken by these cups. Not sure if anyone who isn't already a lock for Katowice can win these consistently enough though--really depends on how fierce the competition is.

It would certainly be fun if towards the end of the season, with all the big tournaments done, a few players ended up with all their hopes riding on these cups.


Players who are already qualified might not participate (to hide strats or whatever) giving underdogs more chances.
Overall, very good addition
Now all we need is some much needed final plans for Korea!
Go Serral! GG EZ for Ence. Flashbang dance FTW
CynicalDeath
Profile Joined January 2012
Italy3720 Posts
January 16 2020 09:54 GMT
#9
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...
ModeratorSC2 LP Admin - My Life for Aiur - Let the Metal flow - @Cynical_Death
MockHamill
Profile Joined March 2010
Sweden1798 Posts
January 16 2020 11:36 GMT
#10
Where can you see these games? Do they have a commentator or not?
geokilla
Profile Joined May 2011
Canada8255 Posts
January 16 2020 12:52 GMT
#11
On January 16 2020 18:54 CynicalDeath wrote:
Show nested quote +
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...

I presume this means anyone can play? Even your casual diamond or masters player?
WombaT
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Northern Ireland27360 Posts
January 16 2020 13:00 GMT
#12
On January 16 2020 11:52 ZigguratOfUr wrote:
The question of whether the points from these cups are likely to end up mattering or not is an interesting one. My gut feeling is that with the smaller overall number of points in the system, and the fact that 36 players are going to Katowice 2021 it's pretty likely that we end up with very tight margins that could be broken by these cups. Not sure if anyone who isn't already a lock for Katowice can win these consistently enough though--really depends on how fierce the competition is.

It would certainly be fun if towards the end of the season, with all the big tournaments done, a few players ended up with all their hopes riding on these cups.

It’s going to be great if that happens.

There was a lot of hype for the Super Tournament qualifiers as they were the last chance saloon for a bunch of players getting to Blizzcon

We could have weeks of players duking it out when the stakes get high. Plus even at the beginning when they aren’t, that’s still guaranteed weekly Starcraft action.

Hopefully when things settle and we get properly going we’ll get a bunch of streamers and broadcasts too.
'You'll always be the cuddly marsupial of my heart, despite the inherent flaws of your ancestry' - Squat
spenzer
Profile Joined June 2016
27 Posts
January 16 2020 14:47 GMT
#13
On January 16 2020 18:54 CynicalDeath wrote:
Show nested quote +
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...

And this invalidates my point how?
Harris1st
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Germany7402 Posts
January 16 2020 14:58 GMT
#14
On January 16 2020 23:47 spenzer wrote:
Show nested quote +
On January 16 2020 18:54 CynicalDeath wrote:
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...

And this invalidates my point how?


What was your point anyhow?
Go Serral! GG EZ for Ence. Flashbang dance FTW
Brained
Profile Joined December 2012
Germany58 Posts
January 16 2020 15:22 GMT
#15
these cups give us more content to watch. i like it!
Hell, it´s about time
Jeremy Reimer
Profile Blog Joined August 2010
Canada1220 Posts
Last Edited: 2020-01-16 16:37:31
January 16 2020 16:35 GMT
#16
On January 16 2020 20:36 MockHamill wrote:
Where can you see these games? Do they have a commentator or not?


Between Wardi (WardiiTV) and Rifkin (BasetradeTV), most of these matches are covered. I hope the new system rewards them as well, because they've put a lot of effort into supporting the Starcraft scene.
"Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere." -- Carl Sagan
FFW_Rude
Profile Blog Joined November 2010
France10201 Posts
January 16 2020 19:35 GMT
#17
On January 16 2020 23:58 Harris1st wrote:
Show nested quote +
On January 16 2020 23:47 spenzer wrote:
On January 16 2020 18:54 CynicalDeath wrote:
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...

And this invalidates my point how?


What was your point anyhow?


That's the best bait i have ever seen lol.

Question. I see Scarlett in two of the cups. If she won both. Would she have double points ?
#1 KT Rolster fanboy. KT BEST KT ! Hail to KT playoffs Zergs ! Unofficial french translator for SlayerS_`Boxer` biography "Crazy as me".
ZigguratOfUr
Profile Blog Joined April 2012
Iraq16955 Posts
January 16 2020 19:56 GMT
#18
On January 17 2020 04:35 FFW_Rude wrote:
Show nested quote +
On January 16 2020 23:58 Harris1st wrote:
On January 16 2020 23:47 spenzer wrote:
On January 16 2020 18:54 CynicalDeath wrote:
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...

And this invalidates my point how?


What was your point anyhow?


That's the best bait i have ever seen lol.

Question. I see Scarlett in two of the cups. If she won both. Would she have double points ?


Yes. All these cups are standalone.
Harris1st
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Germany7402 Posts
January 17 2020 08:53 GMT
#19
On January 17 2020 04:35 FFW_Rude wrote:
Show nested quote +
On January 16 2020 23:58 Harris1st wrote:
On January 16 2020 23:47 spenzer wrote:
On January 16 2020 18:54 CynicalDeath wrote:
On January 16 2020 15:42 spenzer wrote:
48 players : 22 Zergs, 16 Protoss and 10 Terrans....a dying breed

...those are just the top 16 for each bracket, there were 244 players total...

And this invalidates my point how?


What was your point anyhow?


That's the best bait i have ever seen lol.

Question. I see Scarlett in two of the cups. If she won both. Would she have double points ?


Thank you! Feels nice to be appreciated

The only region restriction is the server these cups are played on. In theory you could win 3 x 10 points every week afaik
Go Serral! GG EZ for Ence. Flashbang dance FTW
BasetradeTV
Profile Blog Joined October 2012
Canada1307 Posts
Last Edited: 2020-01-17 11:05:22
January 17 2020 11:04 GMT
#20
Full playlist from the first NA cup
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