EPTArguably one of the best foreigners in Brood War, Tyler has not been able to replicate his success in Starcraft II, however, the question is not “Will Tyler ever win a tournament” but rather “WHEN will Tyler win a tournament”.
![[image loading]](http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/5328/nonyestro.jpg)
In the Brood War scene, Tyler was thought of as one of the contenders of USA’s top players. Professionals like Sean “Day[9]” Plott even remarked in his Day[9]Daily #100 and at the end of a SOTG show that Tyler’s 2-Gate was fearsome and that his Reaver play was top-notch, Artosis has stated that Tyler would be one of the best players in the world if he practiced long enough during SOTG#44, and IdrA has told in interviews that Tyler is one of the few foreigners he respects due to his strong macro play.
2008 was Tyler’s breakout year, taking number one in WCG USA 2008, beating foreigners like IdrA , who had come to the US after a short time in Korea to participate, and G5.
During this time, Tyler placed 4th in the Razer TSL, behind Brat_ok . Draco, and Iefnaij. Also, Tyler had defeated Cloud in the Spirit Tournament. Where Daniel Lee , the head coach of eSTRO, extended an invitation for Tyler to join the eSTRO team in Korea after a conversation where Tyler expressed interest to become a Progamer.
Tyler stayed in Korea with eSTRO for four months and practiced with Koreans that included players like EG.Puma , TSL. Killer, and ST. Bomber, who at the time were all BW progamers on the same team,. Tyler was one game away winning the Courage Tournament, a tournament in which Korean amateurs and practice partners would play in a bracket system for a chance to win a Progamer License.
TSL.Killer / eSTRO’s Sangho - "a foreigner player joined our team. he's protoss, and he had a bit of influence on my today's game. and every protoss in my team has helped me as well. i want to say thanks to hong myung chul, sin jae woo, kim e sahk, TYLER."
Tyler left 2 months later, due to personal reasons, and decided to play less Starcraft at the time. He got married, and for a time, he was inactive.
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The Pokerstrategy.com TSL was announced, with a $22,500 prize pool. With the huge prize pool, the ever growing list of players, and a star-studded list of commentators The community reaction was huge.
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“FUCKING AWESOME” – CaucasianAsian
“MY DICK IS HARD” – TheAntZ
“YESYESYEYSYESYESYESYEYSEYSYESYESYE
CREAMED MY PANTS
BRB “ – Grobyc
“/korean commentator voice
TIIIMLIIQUIDUU STAARLIIGUUUU” - Jonvvv
"This is just to fucking awsome. MAAAN that's a big price" - Patriot,dlk
“MY DICK IS HARD” – TheAntZ
“YESYESYEYSYESYESYESYEYSEYSYESYESYE
CREAMED MY PANTS
BRB “ – Grobyc
“/korean commentator voice
TIIIMLIIQUIDUU STAARLIIGUUUU” - Jonvvv
"This is just to fucking awsome. MAAAN that's a big price" - Patriot,dlk
It was announced that due to Tyler’s 4th place finish in the Razer TSL, he would go on to face the number #1 ladder player for a spot in the top 16, entirely skipping the top 48 qualifier phase. During the ladder phase, many would watch on Livestream as Tyler practiced on iCCup in preparation for his opoponent. It rapidly became evident that IdrA, the last white hope in korea, would be his rival. On Janurary 9th, 2010 fans around the world watched as the TSL started off with a bang.
Tyler lost to IdrA 1:3 , but we saw one of the most iconic scenes in any PvT to date. Coming out of inactivity , Tyler showed some of the most brilliant storms and as Chill put it.
![[image loading]](http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/2500/nonystorm.jpg)
“I don’t know if this is a good spot for Nony, ...
He needs to get that storm worki- HUGE STORMS ON THOSE TANKS OHMYGOD. Storms everywhere cutting up SO MANY TANKS OHMYGOD!..”
While Tyler lost to IdrA that day, as the tournament progressed, he swiftly crushed European Terrans like HoRRoR and Tarson, with the series vs Tarson one of the fastest BO5s in TSL history. Tyler was riding a wave of momentum , and the brackets eventually revealed that another rematch between IdrA and Tyler was on the horizon.
All around the world, fans watched as the one of the most hyped up series began. In this series, we saw how impressive both IdrA and Tyler's mechanics were, we saw the infamous Command Center cancel, and how Tyler eventually squeeked a win with a pressure build that broke IdrA's barracks expand.
In an interview with Artosis after the broadcast of that series, Tyler showed his champion mentality.
Artosis: Excellent. Well are you going to win the TSL? That is my last question for you. Are you the Champion already?
Liquid`NonY: I am already the Champion. I am so eager to show my pvz in the finals, and I feel confident about playing JF next week, and unless he is a wizard that will double up his skill in a week, yeah, I’m the TSL2 Champion haha.
The tournament progressed and Tyler defeated the former TSL champion Iefnaij 3-1 and faced the German Zerg Mondragon in the finals. In this Bo7 series, Tyler edges out Mondragon 4-2 with a reverse sweep after being down 0-2. Winning the largest foreign tournament , Tyler established himself as one of the top players in the foreign scene.
Unexpectedly, Blizzard released the Starcraft II beta in a short time after Tyler's TSL run that even INcontroL has said that Tyler didn't get to bask in the glory of his victory in the TSL.
Still, Tyler remained a notable player throughout the beta and early months of Starcraft II. Taking 3rd place in the HDH invitational by beating fellow teammate Liquid'TLO with a close 4:3 victory. Protoss players looked up to Tyler as he popularized Phoenixes to the point where posters on the forum were discussing "Nony's Double Stargate Build"
Joining JP McDaniel and other hosts, he became a "Pillar" on State of the Game, the most popular Starcraft podcast, and has been featured in the first episode of the revival of TL: Attack. Being a fan-favorite , he is now even sponsored by Stride Gum in relation to his MLG Appearances.
Tyler has placed respectably in MLGs so far.
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MLG Raleigh 2010: Unspecified. (K.O'd by INcontroL in LB 3(?))
MLG DC 2010 : 6th
MLG Dallas 2010: 4th
MLG Dallas 2011 16th
MLG Columbus: 19th
Overall as of 7/26/11 : Rank 22~
![[image loading]](http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/5953/458pxliquidtylerzoom.jpg)
Tyler has had lackluster performances at DreamHack and other Euroipean Events, his current results as of MLG Colombus 2011 and his stagnating play after Dallas 2010 have led many people to believe that Tyler is overrated and someone that cannot stand up to some of the new stars of SC2, that all he is doing is riding his old broodwar fame.
Many pros have remarked that Tyler is one of the most efficient progamers in regards to his practice. Day[9] has said that Tyler doesn't just grind out games, he focuses on an aspect of his play and sharpens it, that is why his play is so refined. Coming from a BW background, Tyler has the mechanics to play SC2 at a high level, his thought process is one of the most complex and interesting when you listen to him talk about his play. The only negative aspect of his play that many pros agree on and even Tyler himself has stated, was his practicing time-wise. His play suffers from fatigue more so than others, and grinding out games for him isn't as effective compared to a Korean Progamer.
Tyler Wasieleski has become one of the forefront community members with his activity inside and outside the game. His sponsorship with Stride Gum that include replay reviews, weekly appearances on SOTG, livestreaming his play, and being a poster on TL, make him one of the more influential people in Starcraft II. He has fallen from the running of "Top Foreigner" right now, but Tyler will rise like a Phoenix and show that his play is still something to be reckoned with.
![[image loading]](http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/3641/format480p290657150flvs.jpg)
Tyler Wasieleski hwaiting~!
Videos
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A/N:
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I'd like to thank
*The people who run Liquidpedia.
*GTR for his translation of Sangho's win
*Hot_Bid for fitting me into my first FPL during like 09-10 PL
*All the TL staff that makes this forum so delightful
*SOTG/ITG for keeping my week entertained.
*My friend Eric/Nghia for proofreading most of this!
This is my first write up haha, Im only 17 and my grammar is horrible. haha. I originally had a friend proofread as I typed it up, but I didnt want to bother him anymore.
I picked the subtitle "Aiur's Phoenix" because Tyler's play has "fallen" but like a phoenix, it will rise and he'll be a top player again! It didnt come to my mind that the title could also be interpreted as the SC2 unit aswell until like 5 minutes ago. There was also supposed to be a MLG Logo in the middle part of it, but it didnt resize properly and I gave up Lol.
The first time I've gotten "nerd chills" was watching Tyler put down those 2-3 gateways on Fighting Spirit I think in Game 5 of NonY vs IdrA in their 2nd series. I instantly became a fan after watching his play more and reading his interviews.
Tyler is my favorite player to watch, and I know he'll show better results. Its just a gut feeling , and I think it'll be right.
Anyways. If Tyler reads this, Goodluck at MLG Anaheim! Forever a fan.
