Winners of PokeBeach’s January 2018 PTCGO Tournament!

By: PMJ · Posted Feb 19, 2018 at 2:18 PM · 0 Comments

PokeBeach’s January 2018 PTCGO Tournament is over and the winners have been crowned!

Seventy-two players competed for the title in this exciting monthly event, with the top eight players facing off in a top cut. The tournament was played in the Standard format at the time the tournament began — BREAKthrough through Crimson Invasion.

Interview with the Champion

After several placements in the Top 8, Julio Penaloza finally walks away with his first tournament win! As a subscriber, he will be shipped two booster boxes free of charge, courtesy of TCGplayer.com!

Here’s our interview with him:

What is your real name, and where do you live?

Julio Penaloza is my real name. I live in Los Angeles, California.

How are you doing this season in Play! Pokemon tournaments?

Unfortunately I am not as involved as I would like. Time is limited and would be difficult for me to travel long distance.

Why did you decide to participate in this tournament?

This is a GREAT tournament who has a GREAT organizer! Oh and it is free! Being able to schedule tournament at the convenience of my time is a huge plus! Thank you PokeBeach and PMJ for hosting this tournament!

[cardimg name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Why did you play Greninja BREAK? Were you considering any other decks?

A friend of mine introduced me to Pokemon TCG. He let me borrow this deck and allowed me to play with it. As time went by, I enjoyed playing with the deck and decided to build my own. That was a little over a year ago and the deck was Greninja BREAK. When I understood what rotation was and realized that [card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] had little time before being rotated out from Standard, it motivated me that much more to play with it. I have been playing Greninja BREAK ever since.

You use variations of the same deck in every tournament. Are you that confident in frogs?

As [PokeBeach Premium Article writer] Caleb [Gedemer] once wrote, “It’s the biggest glass cannon deck, and while the games you win are beautiful, the ones you lose are absolutely horrifying.” I couldn’t agree more. And often times when I am losing, I find myself wanting to give up, scoop, and quit. However, I have learned that it’s always best to finish the game even when odds are stacked against you. I have won games when I am 6-1 prizes and reflected back telling myself, “if I had given up when my opponent had 1 prize left while I had 6, I would have never won.” With Greninja BREAK, it is never over until the last prize has been taken.

What decks did you play against? Did any interesting techs stand out to you?

[card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] is an interesting deck and if I hadn’t been introduced to Greninja BREAK, I would be playing Volcanion-EX. I don’t remember all of them. I think I played against 2 Volcanion-EX, 1 [card name=”Golisopod-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”17″ c=”name”][/card], 1 [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ c=”name”][/card], 1 Lycanroc-GX / [card name=”Buzzwole-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card], and 1 [card name=”Vikavolt” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”name”][/card] deck in finals.

What was your most exciting game or set?

Without a doubt, the final round against Bulu. Not only did I have Weakness, but I bricked second round. I had 1 [card name=”Froakie” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”38″ c=”name”][/card] in Active with all my other Froakie prized. My opponent had Bulu in Active and I went second. I couldn’t draw Energy and so Bulu knocked out my ONLY Froakie in play. On to round three we went. Round three was better and I was able to duplicate. However, I only had two [card name=”Greninja” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] and one Greninja BREAK which I had discarded. I was in trouble. My opponent was in a similar situation with only one Bulu in Active and no Bench. At the end I was able to win with only one Greninja BREAK.

Would you make any other changes to your list?

Possibly taking out [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Wally” set=”Radiant Collection 2″ no=”RC27″ c=”name”][/card] since I rarely get to pull the combo.

**How do you think Ultra Prism affects Greninja decks in general?**

I don’t think Ultra Prism will affect Greninja as much as other decks. I believe we will be seeing a change in a lot of Metal decks with unique touches. However, the card that did catch my attention is [card name=”Cyrus Prism Star” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”120″ c=”name”][/card]. I might test Cyrus in Greninja BREAK.

Congratulations, Julio!

Here is the deck list he used to win the tournament:

[decklist name=”julio 1st place list” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Starmie” set=”Evolutions” no=”31″][pokemon amt=”24″]3x [card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Greninja” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Frogadier” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”39″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Froakie” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”38″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Talonflame BREAK” set=”Steam Siege” no=”21″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Talonflame” set=”Steam Siege” no=”96″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Remoraid” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”31″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Starmie” set=”Evolutions” no=”31″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Staryu” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”26″]4x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Wally” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Fates Collide” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Evosoda” set=”XY” no=”116″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Noble Victories” no=”95″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Brooklet Hill” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”120″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”10″]7x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”XY” no=”134″ c=”deck2″ amt=”7″][/card]3x [card name=”Splash Energy” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Other Top Finishers

Below are the top eight players and the decks they used:

1st: Julio Penaloza — [card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card]
2nd: Nicholas Tyson (MoFoTY86) — [card name=”Vikavolt” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”name”][/card]
3rd: Kyle Reddy (Knite) — [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Mew-EX” set=”Dragons Exalted” no=”120″ c=”name”][/card]
4th: Eduardo Arana — [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card]
5th: Greg Minklei (Gengar master) — Zoroark-GX / [card name=”Giratina” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY184″ c=”name”][/card]
6th: Blaine Prow (tiffuts) — [card name=”Wishiwashi-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”133″ c=”name”][/card] / Walls
7th: Brad Brown (doubleb036) — Zoroark-GX / Lycanroc-GX / Mew-EX
8th: Alice Z (YuriGirl) — [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Shining Mew” set=”Shining Legends” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card]

Lots of new faces in the Top 8 this month! Always great to see new people taking high placements in our tournaments.

Julio, Nicholas, Greg, and Brad will all be seeing a huge increase in prizes because they are premium subscribers. You can see how many packs each of them earned at the top of this page. The deck lists of second, third, and fourth place can be seen below:

Nicholas Tyson, Second Place

[decklist name=”mofo 2nd place” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″][pokemon amt=”14″]3x [card name=”Vikavolt” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Grubbin” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”13″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]4x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”N” set=”Black and White Black Star Promos” no=”BW100″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Lillie” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Primal Clash” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Energy Recycler” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”72″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Heavy Ball” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”123″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]7x [card name=”Grass Energy” set=”Black and White” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”7″][/card]5x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”Black and White” no=”108″ c=”deck2″ amt=”5″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Kyle Reddy, Third Place

[decklist name=”knite 3rd place” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Mew-EX” set=”Legendary Treasures” no=”RC24″][pokemon amt=”18″]4x [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Zorua” set=”Shining Legends” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”74″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Rockruff” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”73″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew-EX” set=”Legendary Treasures” no=”RC24″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”33″]4x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Mallow” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”127″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Puzzle of Time” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Fates Collide” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”124″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Energy Loto” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”9″]4x [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Strong Energy” set=”Furious Fists” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Fighting Energy” set=”XY” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Eduardo Arana, Fourth Place

[decklist name=”eduardo 4th place” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″][pokemon amt=”12″]4x [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Remoraid” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”32″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”36″]4x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Lillie” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Professor’s Letter” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Energy Retrieval” set=”Primal Clash” no=”126″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Brooklet Hill” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”120″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]12x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”XY” no=”133″ c=”deck2″ amt=”12″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

In addition to all 8 top finishers above, everyone in the Top 32 also earned Prize Wall points on TCGplayer.com, which allows them to exchange their points for even more products like booster packs and promo boxes. Points are received via e-mail. If you won points, be sure to check your inboxes!

(Note: your PokeBeach account email address must match your TCGplayer account email address. If they don’t, you won’t receive your points. Please contact PMJ if you are missing points from a previous tournament or you have not received points from the current tournament after two weeks.)

Creative Deck Winners

As part of every tournament, PokeBeach’s article writers voted for the five premium members that didn’t make Top 16 whom they felt used the most creative deck lists. Each of them earned some additional booster packs or a promo product.

shadyyeezy, woahaustin, CassieBrown, TgHuy, and RisingRaichuu each walked away with five booster packs or a specially selected Pokemon promo product from TCGplayer.com. The decks they played were [card name=”Salazzle-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Vikavolt” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Golisopod-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”17″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Weavile” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Yanmega BREAK” set=”Steam Siege” no=”8″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Lurantis” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM25″ c=”name”][/card], respectively.

You can find each of their deck lists in the forum thread below.

Want to Become a Premium Member?

February’s tournament is currently underway. Each tournament awards up to 7 booster boxes of product to top finishers plus promo products and additional booster packs to premium members. The prizes for premium members are bigger than ever before, so don’t miss your chance to play in the next tournament! Signups for March are currently scheduled to start on Monday, February 26th. Mark your calendars!

If you’re interested in becoming a premium member, be sure to check out this link. All premium members get reserved slots in the tournaments, a huge increase in prizes, double the amount of Prize Wall points, a chance to win even more product for using creative decks, and of course all the other benefits that go along with having a premium membership, including weekly articles from the game’s top players and deck help from said players. A premium membership is extremely diverse!

Thanks, TCGplayer!

All of these prizes are brought to you by TCGplayer.com. Their online store offers the cheapest Pokemon cards on the Internet from thousands of different sellers — you will find no better deals! So be sure to check them out any time you want to purchase or sell Pokemon cards!

You can always check the “Sets” tab at the top of our website to access their store.

(Note: The Pokémon Company International is not a sponsor or endorser of PokeBeach’s tournaments, contests, or prizes, nor does the company or its affiliates have any formal association with PokeBeach. Our activities are by fans, for fans, and are not sanctioned or approved by TPCi.)