Dear Joe Black,
You’ve been on the Pro Tour for some time now and it seems like you are friends with a majority of the pros. I was just curious if you ever get intimidated when playing against someone? I’m pretty new to the game and when I was playing at Grand Prix: New Jersey I was paired against Pro Tour superstar Gerry Thompson and couldn’t stop shaking during the match. Does this ever happen to you or any other noted Pro, and if so how do you get over it?
Sincerely,
Geordie from Sarnia.
Dear Geordie,
As you mentioned, I have been on the Pro Tour for a while and the intimidation factor tends to go down some the more experienced you become. I can remember back to my first Pro Tour how scared I was when I found out I was paired against Mikey P. I didn’t know much about Mikey P back then, all I knew was that he won a Pro Tour and was one of the best Pro players in the world. For many people, that would be enough to intimidate them and lead them to make mistakes during the match. However, after time, the more you play and as you start to get to know these so called "name" players more, you become much less intimidated by them. Example. . .
I mentioned in a previous AJB that Kai Budde stayed at my place right before Worlds. Now, Kai is most successful Magic player of all time, and if there’s any one player you would be intimidated by, it would be him. He carries himself in a very dignified manner and transmits an aura of confidence that cannot be mistaken. And although I’ve known Kai for a while now, even I get a little nervous if I see my name next to his on the pairings board. He’s the best player and you know that you can’t make a single mistake against him or you’re dead. That’s a lot of pressure.
Of course, the intimidation factor Kai had over me seemed to disappear every morning when I woke up while he was staying at my house. You see, Kai is European, and like most Europeans, they dismiss boxer shorts for the more conventional tighty whiteys. However, European tighty whiteys aren’t even white, they’re various colors ranging from brown to blue. So waking up every morning and seeing the best Europe has to offer in the tightest pair of underwear these eyes have ever seen, standing at a kitchen table drafting on Magic Online flushes all the fear and intimidation you might have right out of your body.
This was also the case with Jelger Wiegersman when he stayed at my place for GP:NJ. So to all you kids out there, the next time you’re paired against Gabriel Nassif, Nicolai Herzog, Olivier Ruel or any other well known European Pro and you’re scared of them, just picture them in their underwear and you should be just fine. If you happen to be paired against an American Pro, don’t worry, you’ll probably beat them anyway.
Sincerely,
Osyp "Joe Black" Lebedowicz
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