Fortnite just finished its 2019 World Tour tournament in New York City. The tournament comprised of all different aged, all-male challengers, each wanting to grab the winnings for the solo grouping. The winner of the solo group wasn’t a big name streamer or a pro backed by a professional team from L.A. The winner of the solo group was a 16-year-old American by the name of Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf. Giersdorf signed with the LA Sentinals, a pro esports team from California.
The tournament for individual players had a grand prize of $3 million dollars. This being the largest payout for any single player tournament in the esports world. All the practice and dedication this teenager put into this popular game, it paid off for him quite literally. The second-place winner was 24-year-old Harrison ‘Psalm’ Chang. He stated to CNN Business after winning second place,
“It’s great representing the old dudes: Experience and composure trump everything.”
According to Twitch, the tournament held more than a million viewers watching online. Fortnite for their last season and the season before that took a nose dive straight down in terms of viewership on streamers playing the game. Fortnite was presumed a soon-to-be-dead game by many. Recently, for their last season, there was an uptick in viewers watching and people playing the game via Twitch. The last season incorporated many new features and additions including giant fighting robots.
The tournament itself this year had the biggest winnings ever. The losers of the tournament who lost early on still received $50,000 dollars.
Giersdorf already made a presence for himself and his name in the competitive esports world. Fortnite’s World Cup Tournament definitely gave him more notice and prestige. Many players who play the game casually are not aware of the new king in town. People will be looking to see what happens next with the new professional player.
