The Providence National Championships proved to be Major League Gaming's best Event to date. With seven simultaneous streams across four tournaments, it would take two monitors each running Quad View to capture all the action at once. Fortunately, we've got you covered with a a minute-by-minute rundown of the weekend's action from all the Pro Circuit titles. 

 

Friday:

 

12:00 AM – As the clock strikes midnight and the calendar ticks over to Friday, November 18th, Major League Gaming Day officially starts in Providence. Cue the 17-hour countdown to the start of tournament play!

 

8:00 AM – MLG's beloved CEO Sundance hits the airwaves, appearing on local Fox TV's 8 AM news show to promote the League and the weekend's festivities. 

 

1:30 – Hordes of restless fans get their first taste of reprieve as the venue doors open to the public in Providence. 

 

2:30 – Redditors take the Redditour, led by the ubiquitous Sundance DiGiovani. Fans enjoy a behind the scenes look at the MLG setup while being bombarded by knowledge bombs and enjoying a succulent selection of milk and cookies. 

 

5:00 – Players clear the stations as Event officials announce the first round match-ups. Brace yourself for a weekend of four-shots, proxy barracks, baron kills and twitch shots!

 

5:44 – Brothers Roy and Lunchbox won the no-bloom 2011 Stride Championship Series against Cloud and Clutch, with a 25 – 23 victory. Historically speaking, teaming with your twin brother has been a remarkably successful 2v2 strategy. 

 

5:52 – In conclusion of MLG Global Invitational, Idra takes first blood in a ZvZ against Nestea! Just a weak after losing to Huk in the GSL, Nestea is looking surprisingly mortal, as Idra overruns Nestea with a roach-hydra composition. 

 

6:00 – The weekend's Call of Duty action kicks off with the Bic Flex4 Pro FFA, and JKap takes the title by a landslide!

 

6:27 – Strongside wins with 66 kills and a mere 46 deaths in a bloomless BIC Flex4 Pro FFA Exhibition. Heinz, the runner-up, finished 8 frags behind the Revolution shooter. 

 

6:29 – Nestea! Much to Artosis' delight, the Korean Zerg shows brilliant play strings together back-to-back victories to defeat Idra in the Global Invitational. 

 

7:44 – Naniwa defeats MVP 2 – 1 in the Global Invitational! It would be a sign of things to come, as Naniwa's weekend dominance over players from the Incredible Miracle clan was just beginning. 

 

8:19 – The Call of Duty All-Star Classic starts out on even footing as the East and West trade the opening two games, but it was a blowout from there. The East team won five straight games to take the exhibition 6 – 1. Congratulations to BazookaJoe, Assassin, Stainville, Proofy, Jkap, John, ScumperJumper and Felonies on the victory. 

 

8:35 – Naniwa takes the Global Invitational over Nestea! After his victory, Naniwa didn't mince words when expressing his thoughts on the three-time GSL champion. “I thought he was that genius, but apparently he's just an idiot. What he did made no sense.” 

 

8:44 – Halo: Reach All-Star Classic – East continues their historic dominance over the west, as a studded lineup takes the All-Star Classic by a 5 – 2 tally. Congratulations to Enable, APG, Pistola, Ogre 2, StrongSide, Tsquared, Ryanoob, and Heinz.

 

10:14 – An Open Bracket player with a MeowMix-esque tag LambNRice completes the first major upset of the Starcraft 2 weekend. LambNRice defeats Orlando Pool Player Ddoro 2 -1 in OWR2. 

 

10:42 – European squads LowLandLions and Apex Link advance undefeated from Providence's Reach Open Bracket. Each would carry their momentum into the Championship Bracket, winning their first round matches in the Winners Bracket. List of undefeated Open Bracket teams: 

 

(17) Crowd Pleasers – Cratos, LifeStyle, Chaser, Shooter

(18) LowLandLions – Shinato, Pino, BUK 20, BUK 57

(19) Apex Link – Reaction, Ramirez, Riotz, Fuzion

(20) Ability – Voxy, Xploits, Expozur, Fragthat 

 

10:57 – European squad Infused caps off a nearly flawless Call of Duty Open Bracket run with a sweep against the second-seeded Open team Defying History. The teams advancing from the Black Ops Open Bracket are: 

 

(1) Notorious

(5) Brain Dead

(27) abV

(26) Infused

 

Brain Dead and Notorious advance from the Open Bracket without dropping a single game. 

 

1:01 – Gatored continues to make a name for himself in the Starcraft community. Following his breakout showing at IEM New York, Gatored rocks the bracket with consecutive sweeps over Axslav and Ganzi in the Open Bracket. 

 

Saturday: 

 

10:00 – Saturday's action kicks off for all the MLG titles. Saturdays are always a chaotic day during Pro Circuit event, as hundreds upon hundreds of gamers see their title hopes extinguished. Also, the League of Legends tournament begins, with Epik Gaming, Team Solo Mid, Dignitas and RFLX Gaming in Providence for the National Championship Event.

 

12:33 – Previous Major League Gaming tournament experience appears to be paying off as the two returning teams Epik Gaming and Team Solo Mid sweep their opening matches to reach the Winners Bracket Finals.

 

2:31 – RFLX Gaming are the first League of Legends team eliminated, as they fall to Dignitas 2 – 0 in the Losers Bracket. Dignitas' victory was fueled by a Baron kill that provided the momentum to take the series. 

 

3:12 – (1) Epik Gaming defeats (2) Solo Mid 2 – 1 in the League of Legends Winners Bracket Finals. Team Solo Mid tried to mount a comeback with some tricky play and a Baron steal, but Epik's Game 3 lead proved to be insurmountable. 

 

4:19 – Advancing undefeated from the Open Bracket: Leenock, Nestea, MVP and Hero! All Korean

 

5:08 – (11) TGN Vendetta put an end to European team Infused's Providence run in Losers Bracket Round 5. Even in victory, Vendetta praised Infused's marksmanship, which was stunningly accurate all weekend long despite the team's inexperience playing on the PS3. 

 

5:15 – (10) Classic win over Dallas Champions (2) Status Quo 3 – 1, as Classic win three matches in a row to reach the Winners Bracket Semi-Finals. 

 

5:29 – Puzzle is eliminated by teammate Ganzi, marking Providence's first elimination of a Code S player. Soon after, sC, Oz and even Ganzi himself join the ranks of top Korean players eliminated in the Open Bracket. What a slaughterhouse!

 

6:34 – (7) Quantic Next Threat performs a team-kill, knocking (2) Quantic Fear to the Losers Bracket. More team-kill action on slate as Quantic Next Threat move on to face (3) Quantic Leverage in the Winners Bracket Semi-Finals. 

 

6:45 – Raleigh Halo Champions (3) Infamous lose to (6) Believe the Hype! Slowly but surely, the season's Event winners are falling to the Losers Bracket, as both Infamous and Status Quo will have to fight their way into the money. The lower seeded squads' aren't making it easy in Providence. 

 

7:10 – (2) eon Optic Gaming sweep (4) Icons Xtravagant to reach the Providence Winners Bracket Finals.

 

8:02 – Winners Bracket Round 4 wraps up on the Halo: Reach stage, and it's been a blowout Saturday so far. 16 Winners Bracket matches in the books, and not one has gone to Game 5.  

 

8:13 – MarineKing eliminates fellow countryman sC in OLR8 with an extended 4-3 series victory. The win marks the close of Open Bracket action in Providence's Open Bracket. Advancing the the Championship Bracket in the final round are Artist, Violet, DDE, Spanishiwa, Illusion, Keen, CuteAngel (Major) and MarineKingPrime. 

 

8:15 – Hold the phone! The stars somehow align to produce the most fantastic round of matches in Major League Gaming history. It's not even Sunday and fans are getting ready for a tale for the ages: Naniwa vs. Nestea, Huk vs. Hero, Idra vs. MC, and DongRaeGu vs. MMA! Each match represents a rivalry unto itself, and all the players will be out for blood. 

 

9:01 – In a battle of tournament dark horses, (6) Believe the Hype top (10) Classic 3 – 2 to reach the Winners Bracket Finals. Could another National Championship run in the cards for Believe the Hype?

 

9:14 – (2) Quantic Fear are eliminated by (6) SvG Collapse in a five-game series that fans are sure not to soon forget. Collapse accidentally destroy a headset during their emotional celebration. 

 

9:15 – MC is a murloc.

 

9:26 – In one of the most action packed hours of competitive Black Ops history, (7) Quantic Next Threat win a marathon match over (3) Quantic Leverage. 

 

9:57 – Walshy's team Turning Point eliminated 50 – 48 by Active Rush in Game 5 of LBR6, the evening's final round. Grandpa Walsh is  relegated to the role of spectator for Championship Sunday, as only 8 teams remain. 

 

10:05 – Lightning strikes twice as Naniwa beats Nestea again! Fans can feel the skill gap between Korea and the top foreigners shrinking with each passing game. 

 

10:15 – (1) Instinct defeat (4) Dynasty 3 – 1 in the Winners Bracket Semi-Finals. After two disappointing Events, Instinct are looking like their old selves and pulling off the mark of a true championship squad: winning objective games while getting outslayed. 

 

10:15 – (5) Warriors, who have made a career in the Losers Bracket, find themselves in a bracket that lines up three of the four MLG Event winners as opponents, and that's just to reach Top 4! The Warriors take it one step at a time, starting with a 3 – 1 win over Raleigh Champions (3) Infamous. 

 

10:18 – PvP is normally provides fast matchups, but the match between Huk and Hero was abnormally quick. Each game came down to very technical micro, and Huk stole the show with his Top 3 control. 

 

10:49 – Rally time! Eon Envy win their third straight in the Losers Bracket, inching past Quantic Leverage in a tense five-game series. 

 

10:54 – Str8Sick takes the Bic Flex4 Halo: Reach Free-For-All by a single frag over Kampy, and earns himself a $4,000 check for his efforts. 

 

11:01 – Before Anaheim, MMA declared to the world that he wanted to face and defeat DongRaeGu. MMA's wish came true in Anaheim, but it was DongRaeGu who would get the last laugh, defeating MMA 2-0 in OWR4. 

 

11:15 – MC logs another chapter into his storied rivalry with Idra by winning 2-0 in OWR4. MC lost when the two first met in pool play in Columbus, but has since then has beaten Idra three times in bracket play by a combined tally of 8 – 1 games. To celebrate, community caster Tumba proposes to his girlfriend. 

 

12:00 – The Nestea-Naniwa saga continues, this time with a clarification from Naniwa via Twitter: “I must have formulated myself badly in the interviews I did not mean to call nestea bad. Or. An idiot watch next col iview. . .”

 

Sunday

 

12:08 – (7) Quantic Next Threat will not be stopped! Trailing 0 -2 to (1) eon Optic Gaming in the Winners Bracket Finals, Next Threat faced a gut check moment and came through the other side with a 3 – 2 series victory. Quantic Next Threat are in the finals!

 

12:36 – The (5) Warriors' streak continues through to the morning, sending Dallas Champions (2) Status Quo packing for the off-season. 

 

12:58 – Bad leads to worse for defending Champions eon Optic Gaming, as they are upset for the second time in an hour. This time, the defeat comes in the form of a 3 – 0 sweep at the hands of (5) eon Envy. The win caps a five-match Losers Bracket rally for eon Envy, and propels the team into the Grand Finals. 

 

1:32 – (5) Warriors face their third title-winning opponent in Losers Bracket Round 8, and show no signs of slowing down. They continue their streak by sweeping reigning champions Dynasty out of the tournament!

 

2:05 – Haypro over Nestea! Many fans wondered whether Haypro even deserved to be in Championship Bracket after average performances all season, but silences all the critics by defeating the supposed best ZvZ player in the world. His reward for the victory? A date with MVP!

 

2:38 A tournament packed with nail-biting endings concludes with a 3-2 victory by (7) Quantic Next Threat against (5) eon Envy! Congratulations to Virus, Douggyfresh, MutaySean and Vengeance for becoming the 2011 Black Ops National Champions!

 

Final Call of Duty Standings: 

1 – (7) Quantic Next Threat – $50,000

2 – (5) eon Envy – $30,000

3 – (1) eon Optic Gaming – $20,000

4 – (6) SvG Collapse – $14, 000

5 – (4) Icons Xtravagant – $10,000

6 – (3) Quantic Leverage – $7,000

7 – (17) mg Notorious – $5,000

8 – (2) Quantic Fear – $4,000

 

2:57 – The streak continues! (5) Warriors pull out a Game 5 victory over (10) Fnatic Classic to reach the Losers Bracket Finals. 

 

3:27 – Haypro's Providence run comes to a close, but not before pushing MVP to the brink. Haypro held a huge supply lead in Game 3, but appeared to give MVP too much respect in the final game and didn't press his advantage. Either way, a win over Nestea and a near win over MVP… not bad for a weekend's work. 

 

3:34 – Leenock refuses to die. He dropped to the Losers Bracket in Round 2, but has since topped Boxer, Slush, MMA, Idra, and now Huk by a 2 – 0 count. What did you achieve at age 16?

 

4:00 – Instinct are looking better and better with each passing round. It's the Winners Bracket Finals, and (1) Instinct calmly dispatch of (6) Believe the Hype in a 3 – 0 sweep, and now stand one match away from making history. 

 

4:28 – MVP, the lone remaining Terran in the tournament, enters his match against MC at a 2 – 1 extended series deficit. No sweat for the three-time GSL Champion, as he tallies 3 straight wins over to take the series 4 – 2 over the mere two-time GSL Champion. 

 

5:17 – In the League of Legends Losers Bracket Finals, Team Solo Mid sweeps Dignitas thanks to strong teamwork and especially strong gameplay from Reginald. The win sets up a rematch between TSM and Epik Gaming, with TSM trailing 2 – 1 in the extended Bo7 Series. 

 

5:18 – Leenock, while no stranger in Korea, is making an emphatic debut to the foreign scene. The young Korean Zerg defeats MVP 2 – 0 after falling behind in the opening in each game! Amazing play from Leenock, who becomes the only Open Bracket left in the tournament. There can be only one!

 

5:58 – What is with this team? Warriors looked inept in the Winners Bracket, but completely transformed when every match was do-or-die. In the Losers Bracket Finals and Warriors' sixth Losers Bracket match of the tournament, (5) Warriors edge out (6) Believe the Hype with a 50 – 46 Game 5 victory. 

 

May I say on behalf of all Halo fans: It's getting old Warriors! For seasons now you have made a living in the Losers Bracket, long overstaying your weekend's welcome and ruining the event for a dozen or so players that you send packing. Don't ever change. 

 

6:06 – The League of Legends finals between Team Solo Mid and Epik Gaming kicks off, with Dyrus picking Singed for the opening game. Epik Gaming lands the first blood of the game, but a series of well organized ganks earns TSM a massive gold lead and a game victory. Series tied 2 – 2.

 

6:09 – Leenock trends on worldwide on Twitter! 

 

6:12 – Naniwa denies DongRaeGu the pre-game handshake in an entertaining bit of pregame trash talk, then denies DongRaeGu entry to the Grand Finals with a 2-0 sweep and a beautiful display of army control. 

 

6:45 – Pistola runs the final flag of the tournament, as (1) Instinct takes the Grand Finals 3 – 0 over (5) Warriors! Instinct simply stood above the field the entire weekend, taking the National Championship with a 12 – 2 game record. Roy and Lunchbox collect their first National Championship title, and Ogre 2 adds a peerless 5th National Championship Trophy to his collection. 

 

Final Halo: Reach Standings: 

1 – (1) Instinct – $100,000

2 – (5) Warriors – $60,000

3 – (6) Believe the Hype – $40,000

4 – (10) Classic – $28,000

5 – (4) Dynasty – $20,000

6 – (9) Final Boss – $14,000

7 – (2) Status Quo – $10,000

8 – (12) Active Rush – $8,000

 

7:23 – Holy guacamole, series for the ages went down between DongRaeGu and Leenock. DRG entered with a 2 – 0 victory, but Leenock was undeterred and rattled off three straight. DRG stopped the bleeding temporarily to level the score 3 – 3, but Leenock stole Game 7 with a devastating wave of banelings to take out DongRaeGu's Hydra composition. On to the finals!

 

7:29  - Team Solo Mid takes Game 5 of the Grand Finals with a Vayne, Yorkick, Alistar, Karthus and Maoka lineup. 

 

8:22 – On the backs of a Baron kill and a massive gold lead, Team Solo Mid takes the Providence Grand Finals with a 4 – 2 series victory over Epik Gaming! Congratulations to our champions Team Solo Mid!

 

Results: 

Team Solo Mid – $15,000

Epik Gaming – $8,000

Team Dignitas – $5,000

RFLX Gaming – $2,000

 

 

9:04 – Leenock pulls it off! FXOLeenock completes a guantlet that included five MLG champions to take Major League Gaming's biggest Starcraft 2 purse yet. The budding Korean star offed the invincible looking Naniwa with a 4 – 1 series score, and flies home $50,000 richer. Congratulations to Leenock, our 2011 Starcraft 2 National Champion!

 

Final Standings: 

1 – (Z) Leenock – $50,000

2 – (P) Naniwa – $25,000

3 – (Z) DongRaeGu – $15,000

4 – (T) MVP – $10,500

5 – (P) Huk – $7,500

6 –  (P) MC – $5,250

7 – (Z) Haypro – $3,750

8 – (Z) Idra – $3,000

 

See you in 2012!