Yu-Gi-Oh/Expert Profile

Expertise

Actively considering seeking a new guru for the category - have not been playing often enough to keep up with the metagame. If I come back at the beginning of April, it may be for rulings questions only; I'm simply ending up question pooling too many deckfixes that I would otherwise known if I regularly played.

Experience in the area

Player/trader/collector for 7.5 years

Publications

Writer for Beckett Yu-Gi-Oh Collector, Beckett Anime Collector, Beckett Pokemon Collector, and various books produced by Pojo.com

Education/Credentials

Player of the American TCG since January 2002, tournament player since March 2002

Awards and Honors

Duelist King Tournament Season 3 Champion -- Jahinie Productions, West Mifflin, PA...which has since, sadly, closed its doors.
148th/482 players at 2005 Yu-Gi-Oh Nationals
Top 4 at April 2005 Butler Regionals (Chaos/Trinity format)
Top 4 at August 2005 Butler Regionals (Chaos/Trinity format)
Top 8 at July 2008 Monroeville Regionals (Oppression Monarch)
Top 4 at October 2008 at Coraopolis Regionals (Tele-DAD)
Top 4 at June 14, 2009 Coraopolis, PA Regionals (Blackwings) Qualified for 2005, 2006, 2009 Yu-Gi-Oh Nationals

Non-gameplay Yu-Gi-Oh Credentials:
Have made over $120,000 in the past 6 years from dealing in bulk quantities of Yu-Gi-Oh collectibles
Created "the point system", a method for fairly trading large quantities of low-valued cards in exchange for high-valued items, commonly accepted throughout the Yu-Gi-Oh community

What do you like about this subject?

It's fun, it makes me a heck of a lot of money, and it allows me to basically live out my life mottos in card game form.

What do you still hope to achieve/learn in this field?

I wish to expand on the business part of this game, continuing to make as large of a profit as possible by buying, selling, and trading Yu-Gi-Oh cards.

Something interesting about this subject that others may not know:

It's entirely possible to determine what rarity of card you will pull before you open a booster pack, using a tool that can be purchased for less than $25 -- a pocket scale. Just search the internet for "pocket scale", and next time you get Yu-Gi-Oh packs, use the scale.

Something controversial or provocative about this subject

As mentioned above, netdecking and scaling are two things that are rather controversial. Many players are on opposite sides of the fence; I fully support both of these actions 100% and encourage others to do both. My philosophy; as long as you're not breaking any laws, do whatever it takes to get an advantage in the game; know your opponents will try and do the same!