For the first time in almost 16 years, a non-Korean player has won the StarCraft 2 tournament Kespa Cup.
Native to the United States, Alex “Neeb” Sunderhaft won a very nice 4 – 0 series against South Korean Cho “Trap” Sung Ho. Neeb made StarCraft history as he became the first non-Korean player to reach the finals of a Premier Korean StarCraft tournament since 2000, and became the first foreigner to win a Premier StarCraft 2 tournament held on Korean soil.
The tournament was populated by 16 players from a variety of events. The top 8 players in a global qualifier of 56, the top 2 players in a North American Seed event of 16, the top 2 players of a European seed event of 16, and 4 invited players from the Premier League in South Korea. Of all these events, Neeb was the only American, and only one of three foreigners, to make the main event.
Neeb has done quite well this year in many worldwide tournaments, having accumulated over $50,000 so far in winnings, taking 3rd in the WCS Copa Intercontinental, 2nd at IEM Season XI in Shanghai, and 2nd at the 2016 DreamHack Open in Austin.
To watch all the videos of the finals, just take a look here.