Grand Prix (Magic: The Gathering)

Grands Prix (GPs) are professional Magic: The Gathering tournaments, awarding cash prizes, Pro Points and invitations to Pro Tours. They are open to all players and are usually the biggest Magic tournaments. The first Grand Prix was held on 22–23 March 1997 in Amsterdam (Netherlands). More than 450 Grands Prix have been held since, the biggest being GP Las Vegas 2015 with 7,551 competitors, making it the biggest trading card game tournament ever held.

The Grand Prix was introduced in 1997. In contrast to the Pro Tour, which requires the players to qualify before the event, GPs have always been open to all players. The first Grand Prix was held in Amsterdam and was also the first professional Magic tournament held outside the United States, although awarding comparatively small cash prizes — $30,000 in total compared to $250,000 at Pro Tour Paris a few weeks later. Grands Prix have since been held in such diverse places as Tokyo, Moscow, Rio de Janeiro, Toronto and Cape Town. Approximately 20–30 Grands Prix are held each year throughout the world. In 2015 GP Las Vegas marked the biggest Magic tournament ever held with 7,551 competitors, which had to split into two independent Grand Prix event sharing the same venue.

All Grands Prix are two day tournaments, taking place on weekends. They are run using a modified Swiss system. On Saturday nine rounds of Swiss are played, however the exact amount formerly depended on the number of participants. Competitors may be awarded up to three byes for earned Pro Points, having a certain rating (later replaced by Planeswalker points), and winning special tournaments, called Grand Prix Trials. All players achieving a record of 6−3 or better (prior to 2015 required a 7-2) at the end of first day are qualified for the second day of the tournament. If less than 64 players achieve such a record the best 64 players are qualified for the second day instead. On the second day six rounds of Swiss are played, before a cut to the final eight is made. These competitors determine the winner of the tournament by playing an additional three rounds of single elimination. Team Grand Prix are using similar rules, the only differences are teams with a record 6−3 or best 40 teams advance to day 2, and only the best 4 teams after Swiss will enter the two round single elimination.

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