Shuhei Nakamura

Shuhei Nakamura (中村 修平, Nakamura Shūhei, born 3 November 1981) is one of the most successful professional Magic: The Gathering players. He has reached the Top 8 of six Pro Tours and won seven Grands Prix, as well as being the 2008 Pro Player of the Year. In 2011, he was inducted into the Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame.

Shuhei Nakamura
中村 修平
Born (1981-11-03) 3 November 1981
Osaka (Japan)
ResidenceHirakata-Shi (Japan)
Nationality Japanese
Pro Tour debut2002 Pro Tour San Diego[1]
Winnings$397,400[2]
Pro Tour wins (Top 8)0 (6)[3]
Grand Prix wins (Top 8)7 (27)[4]
Lifetime Pro Points595
Planeswalker Level50 (Archmage)

Career

Nakamura's first success came in a second place at Grand Prix Kobe in 2001. This qualified him for Pro Tour New Orleans. However, he chose not to attend. In January 2002 he played his first Pro Tour in San Diego.

Managing several Top 8 at Japanese Grand Prix, a Top 8 appearance at Pro Tour Columbus in 2005 was his first major showing on the Pro Tour.[5] He followed this finish with another Top 8 at the World Championship the same season.[6] Ultimately, Nakamura would finish fourth in the Player of the Year standings with 66 Pro Points.

In 2006 Nakamura achieved several high finishes at Limited events, including third places at PT Prague[7] and GP Toulouse. Eventually he also won his first major tournament, Grand Prix St. Louis 2006, immediately backing up the victory by winning the next Grand Prix event in Hiroshima four weeks later. As both of his Grand Prix wins were in the Coldsnap limited format, Shuhei earned the nickname 'Snowmaster'.[8] Nakamura gained 56 Pro Points throughout the season placing him second in the 2006 Player of the Year Race, only four points behind winner Shouta Yasooka.[9]

The 2007 season was not quite as successful for Nakamura, however, he did manage to make his fourth Pro Tour Top 8 appearance at PT Valencia.[10]

The 2008 season started off perfect with a victory in the first professional tournament of the season, Grand Prix Stuttgart. This victory made him only the third player to have won a Grand Prix in Europe, Asia, and North America. Nakamura proceeded to manage Top 4 finishes at Pro Tour Hollywood,[11] Grand Prix Copenhagen, and Grand Prix Rimini. He finished the season with 70 Pro Points to become Pro Player of the Year.[12] Nakamura was the fourth of five Japanese players to win the Player of the Year title in a row, preceded by Kenji Tsumura, Shouta Yasooka, Tomoharu Saito and followed by Yuuya Watanabe. Nakamura has personally referred to this period as a 'golden age' for Magic in Japan.[13]

In 2009 Nakamura finished third at Grand Prix Rotterdam in February, but achieved no further final eight appearances until his victory at the Japanese Nationals in July.[14]

On 19 August 2011 it was announced that Nakamura will be inducted into the Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame along with Steven O'Mahoney-Schwartz and Anton Jonsson.[15] The ceremony took place on 17 November at the 2011 Magic: The Gathering World Championship.

In the 2012 season, Shuhei placed tenth in the Pro Players Club Standings at the end of the season with 51 Pro Points.[16] This performance earned Nakamura an invite to the inaugural 2012 Magic Players Championship. Shuhei would take fifth place at the inaugural event, narrowly missing the cut to Top 4.

Accomplishments
 Season   Event type   Location   Format   Date   Rank 
2001–02 Grand Prix Kobe Block Constructed 18–19 August 2001 2
2001–02 Grand Prix Fukuoka Limited 16–17 February 2002 8
2001–02 Grand Prix Nagoya Team Limited 11–12 May 2002 2
2002–03 Grand Prix Utsunomiya Limited 12–13 October 2002 2
2003–04 Nationals Osaka Special 11–13 June 2004 4
2003–04 Grand Prix Yokohama Block Constructed 23–24 August 2004 6
2005 Pro Tour Columbus, Ohio Extended 29–31 October 2004 2
2005 Grand Prix Seattle Extended 5–6 March 2005 3
2005 Grand Prix Matsuyama Limited 14–15 May 2005 6
2005 Worlds Yokohama Special 30 November – 4 December 2005 5
2006 Pro Tour Prague Limited 5–7 May 2006 3
2006 Grand Prix Toulouse Limited 24–25 June 2006 3
2006 Grand Prix St. Louis Limited 22–23 July 2006 1
2006 Grand Prix Hiroshima Limited 19–20 August 2006 1
2007 Pro Tour Valencia, Spain Extended 12–14 October 2007 4
2007 Invitational Essen Special 18–21 October 2007 6
2008 Grand Prix Stuttgart Limited 15–16 December 2007 1
2008 Pro Tour Hollywood Standard 23–25 May 2008 3
2008 Grand Prix Copenhagen Standard 23–24 August 2008 4
2008 Grand Prix Rimini Block Constructed 13–14 September 2008 2
2009 Grand Prix Rotterdam Limited 21–22 February 2009 3
2009 Nationals Hiroshima Standard and Booster Draft 18–20 July 2009 1
2010 Grand Prix Houston Extended 3–4 April 2010 5
2010 Grand Prix Florence Sealed and Booster Draft 27–28 November 2010 3
2011 Grand Prix Prague Sealed and Booster Draft 21–22 May 2011 3
2012 Grand Prix Nashville Sealed and Booster Draft 17–18 March 2012 8
2012–13 Grand Prix San Jose, Costa Rica Sealed and Booster Draft 15–16 September 2012 1
2012–13 Grand Prix Philadelphia Sealed and Booster Draft 27–28 October 2012 1
2013–14 Grand Prix Providence Team Limited 8–9 June 2013 4
2013–14 Grand Prix Houston Sealed and Booster Draft 15–16 June 2013 7
2013–14 Grand Prix Hong Kong Sealed and Booster Draft 19–20 October 2013 1
2013–14 Grand Prix Beijing Standard 29–30 March 2014 5
2014–15 Grand Prix Shanghai Sealed and Booster Draft 4–5 October 2014 5
2014–15 Grand Prix Dallas/Fort Worth Sealed and Booster Draft 25–26 July 2015 1
2015–16 Grand Prix Kobe Standard 21–22 November 2015 8
2015–16 Pro Tour Atlanta Modern and Booster Draft 5–7 February 2016 5

Last updated: 7 February 2016
Source: Event Coverage Archive at Wizards.com

Other accomplishments

References
  1. Shuhei Nakamura 2007 Pro Player card (from the Magic: The Gathering Time Spiral expansion)
  2. "Top 200 All-Time Money Leaders". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  3. "Lifetime Pro Tour Top 8s". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  4. "Lifetime Grand Prix Top 8s". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  5. "Canali Crushes Columbus". Wizards of the Coast. 31 October 2004. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  6. "Worlds 2005: Japan's Crowning Achievement". Wizards of the Coast. 4 December 2005. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  7. "Osawa's Wurms Flog Prague". Wizards of the Coast. 7 May 2006. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  8. "Pro Tour Hall of Fame 2011: Shuhei Nakamura" (Video). Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  9. "2006 Player of the Year Race". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  10. "Fortier Reigns in Spain". Wizards of the Coast. 14 October 2007. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  11. "Gindy Puts Name in Lights". Wizards of the Coast. 28 May 2008. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  12. "2008 Pro Tour Player of the Year". Wizards of the Coast. 22 December 2008. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  13. Nakamura, Shuhei (29 September 2011). "Feature Article – Shouta Yasooka – English". ChannelFireball.com. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  14. "Shuuhei Rocks Japan!". Wizards of the Coast. 20 July 2009. Retrieved 20 July 2009.
  15. "Introducing the 2011 Hall of Fame Class". Wizards of the Coast. 19 August 2011. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  16. "2012 Pro Players Club Standings". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
Preceded by
Tomoharu Saitou		 Pro Player of the Year
2008		 Succeeded by
Yuuya Watanabe
Preceded by
Masashi Oiso		 Magic Japanese National Champion
2009		 Succeeded by
Katsuhiro Mori
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