CWL Pro League Stage 1 Playoffs Recap – Powered by KontrolFreek®
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Stage 1 of the Call of Duty World League, presented by PlayStation 4 came to an end this weekend with the Stage 1 Playoffs at the MLG Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The top eight teams competed for their share of the $500,000 prize pool.
After three days of Call of Duty: WWII action, FaZe Clan took the crown and secured the $200,000 first place prize!
Bracket Play:
On Friday, the winners bracket play kicked off with the four quarterfinals matches. Some intense matches took place on Day 1, along side many unexpected results. In the first match of the day, eUnited, a team that has been struggling so far this season was able to take down Rise Nation 3-0 in their series. Luminosity had a tough fight against EU’s Red Reserve, but captured the series win 3-2.
The eL Classico match-up between OpTic Gaming and Team EnVyUs had no surprises, as OpTic ran through the series with a 3-1 win. In the final series of the day, Team Kaliber was able to hold down FaZe Clan to advance forward in the bracket.
In the next set of matches, Luminosity came out strong to send eUnited to the Losers Bracket. OpTic Gaming also had no issues taking down Team Kaliber, with a fast 3-0 win. In the losers bracket, FaZe eliminated Team EnVyUs; Rise Nation, the CWL Atlanta Champions were eliminated by the last EU team in the tournament.
Winners Finals:
In the winners final, OpTic Gaming took on Luminosity, the CWL Birmingham Champions. The first Hardpoint match went in Luminosity’s favor, but the match shifted in OpTic’s momentum when they won Game 2 in Round 11. OpTic completed the series win, 3-1, and advanced to their first grand finals in the WWII esports season.
Losers Finals:
Knocked down to losers by OpTic, Luminosity had to take on FaZe Clan. FaZe was able to push forward in an impressive losers bracket run for the struggling team. Luminosity started off strong holding a 2-0 series lead, but FaZe pushed back to force the final Game 5. FaZe won the final S&D and advanced to the Grand Finals.
Grand Finals:
The Grand Finals saw OpTic Gaming go head to head against FaZe Clan. FaZe Clan started big with a huge comeback in Game 1 Hardpoint; their momentum continued into Game 2, as they held a 2-0 series lead. OpTic fought back to force a Game 5 in the best of five series. The series was reset as FaZe clutched up to force the second best of five series.
In the second series, the battle went all the way to another game 5! The final Game 5 went to FaZe Clan, who took the series 3-2 and were crowned the champions of Stage 1 of the CWL Pro League! This is FaZe Clan’s first event win of the Call of Duty: WWII esports season.
Next CWL Open Event: CWL Seattle
The next Call of Duty World League, presented by PlayStation 4 2018 Open Event will be CWL Seattle, live April 20-22, which features a $200,000 prize pool. Spectator Passes are available at MLG.com.
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