Quick Facts
Biography
William Jensen is an American Magic: The Gathering player. He won Pro Tour Boston 2003, and has finished in the top 8 of four additional Pro Tours. He also has 18 Grand Prix top eights, including four wins. Jensen is one of the few players to have beaten Kai Budde in the elimination rounds of a Pro Tour. In 2013 he was voted into the Hall of Fame. He is the current record holder of most Grand Prix top eight finishes within a single season, with eight in 2013–14.
Career
William Jensen started playing Magic in 1995 at age 13, and his first Pro Tour was Pro Tour Rome 1998. One year later, at Pro Tour London 1999, he got his major breakthrough by making the top 8, ultimately finishing 6th, losing to eventual champion Kyle Rose. Only one month later, at Grand Prix San Diego, Jensen experienced his first Grand Prix success by not only making the top 8, but winning the event.
The 2000–01 Pro Tour season started with Jensen winning the inaugural Masters event, beating among others eventual Hall of Famers Nicolai Herzog, Olivier Ruel, and Bob Maher en route to the title. Jensen continued to be a mainstay on the professional scene, putting up additional Grand Prix top 8s, including another win at Grand Prix Pittsburgh 2000, as well as solid Pro Tour finishes. In 2003, Jensen returned to the top 8 of the Pro Tour, finishing 8th at Pro Tour Chicago, once again losing to the eventual champion, in this case Kai Budde. However, Jensen would return to the top 8 at the very next Pro Tour, finishing 4th at Pro Tour Venice 2003.
The first Pro Tour of the next season, the 2003–04 Pro Tour season, was a Team Rochester draft Pro Tour in Boston. Teaming up with Brock Parker and Matt Linde as 'The Brockafellars', Jensen won his first Pro Tour. The team defeated the German team 'Phoenix Foundation', the winners of the previous two Team Limited Pro Tours, with Jensen defeating Kai Budde 2–0 in his match. In the finals, they faced the Norwegian team 'Unoriginal Slackers', where Jensen won his match 2–0 over Jake Smith. Jensen continued to play on the pro circuit for one more year, his final Pro Tour being the 2004 World Championships, before he retired from professional play. Jensen has cited being tired of traveling and friends leaving the scene as the reasons for quitting.
In 2012, despite not having played a professional event in almost eight years, William Jensen was among the top candidates for getting voted into the Hall of Fame. He eventually missed by a single vote, but received a special invitation to play at Pro Tour Return to Ravnica. He playtested for the event with team StarCityGames Black (currently known as Team Pantheon), featuring players like Jon Finkel, Gabriel Nassif, and Jelger Wiegersma. This reignited his interest in competitive Magic. One year later, he was voted into the Hall of Fame, garnering a total of 59.97% of the votes.
The 2013–14 Pro Tour season was Jensen's comeback season. He won his third Grand Prix shortly after being voted into the Hall of Fame by defeating Neal Oliver in the final of Grand Prix Oakland. He continued to make additional Grand Prix top 8s throughout the season, though without winning another one. At the end of the season, he had made the top 8 of eight total Grand Prix, setting the record for most Grand Prix top 8 finishes within a single season. In the final event of the season, Pro Tour Magic 2015 in Portland, Jensen made his fifth Pro Tour top 8, finishing 7th. His overall performance in the season earned him an invitation to the 2014 World Championship.
The very first Grand Prix of the 2014–15 Pro Tour season, Grand Prix Portland, was won by Jensen's team, 'Peach Garden Oath', with teammates Reid Duke and Owen Turtenwald. This was Jensen's fourth Grand Prix win. At the 2014 World Championship, Jensen came close to reaching the top 4, but lost the last round of Swiss to Yuuya Watanabe, resulting in an 8th-place finish. He finished the season on 47 points, enough for Platinum status in the Pro Player Club, but not enough to qualify for the 2015 World Championships.
Achievements
| Season | Event type | Location | Format | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | Pro Tour | London | Block Constructed | 15–17 October 1999 | 6 |
| 1999–2000 | Grand Prix | San Diego | Limited | 20–21 November 1999 | 1 |
| 1999–2000 | Grand Prix | Philadelphia | Extended | 19–20 February 2000 | 5 |
| 1999–2000 | Grand Prix | Cannes | Team Limited | 26–27 February 2000 | 4 |
| 1999–2000 | Grand Prix | Pittsburgh | Team Limited | 24–25 June 2000 | 1 |
| 2000–01 | Masters | New York City | Extended | 29 September–1 October 2000 | 1 |
| 2000–01 | Grand Prix | Detroit | Limited | 31 March–1 April 2001 | 5 |
| 2000–01 | Nationals | Orlando | Standard and Booster Draft | 1–3 June 2001 | 6 |
| 2001–02 | Grand Prix | Houston | Extended | 5–6 January 2002 | 3 |
| 2001–02 | Grand Prix | Milwaukee | Standard | 11–12 May 2002 | 7 |
| 2002–03 | Pro Tour | Chicago | Rochester Draft | 17–19 January 2003 | 8 |
| 2002–03 | Pro Tour | Venice | Block Constructed | 21–23 March 2003 | 4 |
| 2003–04 | Pro Tour | Boston | Team Limited | 12–14 September 2003 | 1 |
| 2003–04 | Grand Prix | Orlando | Block Constructed | 24–25 July 2004 | 5 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Oakland | Limited | 24–25 August 2013 | 1 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Louisville | Standard | 19–20 October 2013 | 8 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Toronto | Limited | 30 November–1 December 2013 | 3 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Dallas/Fort Worth | Standard | 7–8 December 2013 | 2 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Barcelona | Team Limited | 1–2 March 2014 | 3 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Philadelphia | Limited | 12–13 April 2014 | 6 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Atlanta | Limited | 24–25 May 2014 | 3 |
| 2013–14 | Grand Prix | Washington DC | Limited | 28–29 June 2014 | 5 |
| 2013–14 | Pro Tour | Portland | Standard and Booster Draft | 1–3 August 2014 | 7 |
| 2014–15 | Grand Prix | Portland | Team Limited | 9–10 August 2014 | 1 |
| 2014–15 | Grand Prix | Denver | Standard | 3–4 January 2015 | 6 |
| 2015–16 | Grand Prix | Detroit | Team Limited | 15–16 August 2015 | 3 |
| 2015–16 | Grand Prix | Washington, D.C. | Team Limited | 12–13 March 2016 | 3 |
| 2015–16 | Grand Prix | Barcelona | Limited | 16–17 April 2016 | 3 |
Last updated: 19 April 2016
Source: Wizards.com