herO doubles, MaxPax wins EU

Week #196 of the Open Cups was the first to be played fully on the new 5.0.12 patch, with EPT points being awarded once more following a one-week pause in Week #195.

herO started the ESL week off by winning the Korean server cup, taking down an impressive list of opponents including Ryung, Cure, Dark, and ByuN.

Next, MaxPax took the European crown, defeating his frequent finals opponent Clem in the finals by a 3-2 scoreline.

Finally, herO completed a weekly double by winning the American server cup as well, prevailing 3-1 over GuMiho in the finals. The American cup was notable for yet another deep run by Wayne (aka Rattata), who beat an off-racing Dark to reach the semifinals for the second straight week (he upset Dark’s main-race Zerg in week #195).

In the non-ESL weeklies, Dark won Kung Fu Cup Winter #2, narrowly beating Oliveira 3-2 in the finals. In KSL Weekly #30, herO completed an unofficial triple by defeating Dark in the finals.

ESL Open: Korean Cup (partial bracket shown)

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ES Open: European Cup (partial bracket shown)

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ESL Open: American Cup (partial bracket shown)

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Kung Fu Cup Winter #1 (partial bracket shown)

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Korean StarCraft League #30 (Partial bracket shown)