PGStats has compiled numerous brackets into an algorithm that empirically measures the strength of each player relative to each other. The X-Factor also makes a return with a new notation with a positive score indicating public opinion is in favor of the player, while a negative score shows the opposite. For more information on the process, visit the FAQ .

With set counts and placements indexed into the database, the algorithm makes sense of 81 events that occurred this season and produced the Top 50 presented before you.

Welcome to the PGRU!

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 20: WaDi © Kenneth Rodriguez (@XenosMcCloud)

Overall Score: 65.9

Claiming the first spot in the top 20 is the king of The Cave himself, Virginia's own Chris “WaDi” Boston. WaDi had a very consistent season, maintaining his status as one of the best ROB players in the world and holding on to his spot at the top of the MD/VA Smash Ultimate rankings. After being named the 26th best player of all time for Smash Wii U and ranking 24th on the first PGRU, WaDi continues his steady upwards trajectory by climbing another four spots to #20 this time around.

His results improved throughout the season, beginning with a solid 17th place at Evo 2019 and Super Smash Con 2019 and finishing with an amazing run of 7th, 9th and 9th place at Glitch 7, The Big House 9 and Kongo Saga respectively.

Perhaps even more impressive than WaDi’s collection of great results is the fact that he has no bad ones to invalidate them. Additionally, he has picked up wins on ESAM, Abadango, Wishes, Stroder, VoiD and more -— all while only being upset a small handful of times. At this point, the only thing holding him back from a higher placement is a lack of wins on the very top echelon of players. If his consistent upward trajectory continues, it’s easy to imagine that these wins are all but inevitable.

Written by: Trevor "Kantrip" Lukan | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 19: Protobanham © Darimoko (@Darimoko)

Overall Score: 67.2

Few things get closer to the fabled Melee HD than ProtoBanham’s Lucina. His take on the character brings out what many believe to be her true potential through impeccable spacing, relentless edgeguarding and a masterful use of aerials that make you think he’s playing a different game. Though he initially started off a hidden Smash Wii U talent, he has since bloomed into a full-blown international threat in Smash Ultimate -- as evident by his #17 spot on the 2019 Fall PGRU.

This season, he took out the likes of KEN, Raito, Kameme, Light and more. These wins earned him top-level placements, like 13th at CEO, 5th at Umebura SP6 and 5th at EVO. The consistency doesn’t stop there, however. Aside from a rough 257th at Umebura SP 7, ProtoBanham hasn’t dropped below 25th place throughout Smash Ultimate’s lifespan. In the US, consistency is notable. In the volatile region that is Japan, consistency is incredible. Even his peers like Zackray, Kome, KEN, and Raito have all dropped below 25th twice or more.

ProtoBanham is already the world’s best solo Lucina. This season, he was a few hits away from being one of the world’s best. Given the right circumstances, we could very well see him breaking into the top 10 sooner than later.

Written by: Austin “Plyff” Ryan | Edited by : Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 18: Kuro © Darimoko (@Darimoko)

Overall Score: 67.4

As one of the strongest players native to Japan, Shintaro "Kuro" Kakihara has often hovered around the top of the region, bringing his Zero Suit Samus to the apex of the Japanese Smash scene. Over the course of PGRU’s second season, he was able to take things up a notch and shed his hidden boss status to solidify himself as a genuine worldwide presence.

The highlight of his season came with a win at Umebura SP6, and he also managed to rack up even more impressive performances in later months. With wins over the country’s most talented players, such as Kameme, KEN and Zackray, he established himself as a serious top talent in his home region over the course of 2019. Although most of his notable wins came on the Japanese stage, a 17th place finish at December’s Kongo Saga in the US showed that he could stack up against the West’s best.

In 2019, Kuro’s dominance of Japan was enough to warrant a spot atop the majority of the professional Smash scene. In 2020, there’s no reason to believe that he won’t be able to ride that momentum into an even more successful year.

Written by: Michael “Ginsync” Kelly | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 17: Raito © Darimoko (@Darimoko)

Overall Score: 68.8

Hailing from Kanto, Japan, Ishiguro “Raito” Tetsuya is the perfect example of a player sticking by their game and going the distance with it. Armed with an unusual pair of characters at the top level -- his Smash Wii U main in Duck Hunt and an equally dangerous Banjo & Kazooie -- Raito makes the most out of both and is one of the primary drivers of their respective metagames. While ranking 20th last season was already commendable, his innovative nature and solid portfolio allowed him to further rise and lay claim to the #17 spot.

The past six months have been some of Raito’s best. The indisputable highlight of his PGRU Fall 2019 season was finishing 5th at the 3000-entrant EVO 2019, where he took out Shuton and Dabuz on his road to qualifying for top 8. He also scored some good placements domestically, such as 3rd at Umebura SP7 and 5th at EGS Cup 2 -- eking out wins over the likes of HIKARU, Gackt and Kuro. along the way.

A couple of sub-par runs like 96th at Super Smash Con 2019 and 48th at Umebura SP4 did lower Raito’s stock in the grand scheme of things, but his year in general was impressive nonetheless. If he can continue performing on the big stage in 2020 like he did throughout 2019, while also improving upon his lowlights, expect nothing but greatness from him in the coming months.

Written by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 16: KEN © Darimoko (@Darimoko)

Overall Score: 70.2

Kengo “KEN” Suzuki has been a mainstay since 2015, getting 7th out of 190 at his earliest recorded tournament. Since then, the Japanese Sonic main has stayed true to his character and hasn’t slowed down. He ended Smash Wii U ranked 9th best in the world, and he made every single PGR save for the first seasons of both Smash Wii U and Smash Ultimate. This makes it no surprise to see him at the #16 spot on the 2019 Fall PGRU.

In the first season of PGRU, KEN hit two road bumps: a lack of international travel and a disappointing showing at the few local majors he did attend. He solved the latter this time around. While he finished a disappointing 65th place at the only stateside event he did attend, he made up for that locally -- where he hasn't dropped below 17th since the Umebura Japan Major. He placed 4th at Umebura SP 4 and 6 and 2nd at Umebura SP 7, all A-Tier events. Along the way, he took sets off of Kuro, T, Raito, Abadango, Protobanham, Kameme, Shuton, Zackray, and pretty much every top Japanese competitor.

KEN only lacks international wins to make it even further on the PGRU. At the rate he’s been progressing as of late, it’s looking like he’ll catch up quickly.

Written by: Austin “Plyff” Ryan | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 15: T © Javier Leyvas (@JaviLeyvas)

Overall Score: 71.2

When discussing top Link players, it’s impossible for Isami “T” Ikeda to not come up in the conversation. He has long been one of Japan’s most talented players, as well as one of the most globally traveled players in all of Smash Ultimate.

After posting back-to-back fourth places at Sumabato SP 9 and Umebura SP 7, T has managed to stay near the top of the talent pool in Japan. During his travels, T has also managed a fifth place finish at 2GG: Kongo Saga with statement wins over zackray, Gackt, and Dabuz to cement his #15 placing in the wake of a stellar season.

Written by: Pete "PAC-DIESEL" Casella | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 14: ESAM © Athel Rogers for Big Blue Esports (@Athel_Rogers)

Overall Score: 75.5

Despite ending last season as #16 in the world, Eric “PG | ESAM” Lew had a bit of a rough start this time around. Placements like 17th at Low Tier City 7 and 25th at Evo 2019 weren’t the norm for the Floridian Pikachu, and losses to lower ranked players such as Pandarian, Joker and Elegant took his stock down a notch.

ESAM was not to be deterred; he placed higher and higher with each bracket he entered, eventually finishing 9th at both Super Smash Con and Shine. These were great, but just teasers of what was about to come. He soon made his first top 8 appearance of the season at DreamHack Montreal, where he placed 2nd and took sets off of Blacktwins13, Gen and Marss. The next weekend, he put on the best performance of his ultimate career and took home 1st at Glitch 7 - Minus World. This was arguably his most significant tournament win ever and gave him wins over the likes of Nairo, Tweek and Light.

ESAM rounded out his season with a handful of solid results, including 13th at The Big House 9 and 5th at Smash Ultimate Summit 2. In the process, he defeated players like Riddles, Lea, VoiD, Light, zackray, Dabuz and MkLeo.

Though he had some less-than-stellar losses this season, ESAM has great potential going into the spring 2020 season. He boasts lifetime winning records against many of the best players in the world, including MkLeo, Tweek and Nairo. ESAM has finished 2019 within the top 15, and may very well have what it takes to reach the top 10 come summer.

Written by: Dylan "Dilly-Jo" Tate | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 13: Shuton © Darimoko (@Darimoko)

Overall Score: 78

Shuto “Shuton” Moriya is perhaps the world's most notable solo Olimar player, hailing all the way from Fukoka, Japan. Consistency has always been the name of the game for this Brawl veteran, boasting one of the most stable results portfolios among his countrymen in the PGRU apart from Zackray.

Despite nerfs to Olimar that hindered many of his peers, Shuton’s season was nothing short of incredible. He found his way to 1st place/Top 8 at every single Sumabato SP regional that Japan had held. On top of that, he won 2GG: SwitchFest 2019 and Umebura SP 5. And when he didn’t win major tournaments, he’d usually place just outside of Top 8. His only “questionable” results were 13th at EVO 2019 and 17th at 2GG: Kongo Saga. Don’t you wish those were your worst placements? Plus, he’s one of five players who boast a positive win record over the incumbent top dog on the PGRU, MKLeo.

Olimar’s metagame isn’t as stagnant as most think, especially in Shuton’s hands. If he continues to travel and gain experience like he has been, he’ll only climb even higher next season.

Written by: Alessandero "Thwack" Poehlman | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 12: Tea © Javier Leyvas (@JaviLeyvas)

Overall Score: 80.1

As the best Pac-Man in the world and one of the best players in Japan, Takuma “Tea” Hirooka returns to the top 15 for the second season of the PGRU. One of the most energetic players both of his character and in his country, Tea’s signature playstyle tends to amaze viewers and confound opponents. This season, he brought his hype with him to not only four tournaments in his home country, but also one in South Korea and six in the United States. This makes Tea the only Japanese player on the PGRU to have attended more events in the United States than in his home country.

Tea’s top 15 status is anchored by these international performances, placing in the top 12 at every single international event he attended and in the top 6 at all but one of them. Some events are especially noteworthy. At Thunder Smash 3: Clash of the Pandas, Tea defeated MuteAce, ESAM, Salem, Cosmos and Marss to win the tournament. At Mainstage, he sent BestNess to losers and eliminated Maister, Samsora, Glutonny and MuteAce en route to a 5th place finish. At every international event he entered with a top 10 player in attendance, Tea netted at least one top 10 win. And out of the 11 events Tea entered overall, five saw him place in the top 2.

Tea is unfortunately weighed down by sub-par performances for a player of his caliber in his home country, where he made top 8 at only one event and failed to crack the top 16 in two. While there’s no doubt Tea has the potential to reach the coveted top 10 status in the future, he will rest just outside of it for now.

Written by: Stuart "Stuart98" Hepworth | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Fall #PGRU2019 No. 11: Kameme © Darimoko (@Darimoko)

Overall Score: 81.3

Since the days of Brawl, veteran smasher Takuto “R2G | Kameme” Ono has been a consistent force in any title he competes in. While he’s always succeeded in prior entries in the Smash series, he’s been looking better than ever in Ultimate. Throughout the past year, he has worked his way to his personal highest placing in the global rankings with his signature Megaman and an iron will -- achieving a rank of #11 on the 2019 Fall PGRU.

Consistent improvement has been the name of the game for the Japanese star. At the biggest Smash Ultimate event to-date, EVO 2019, Kameme became the only entrant of the entire tournament to take a set from the reigning top player in the world MKLeo. His wins didn't stop there, though. He ended the season with sets over players Nicko, MVD, WaDi, Tea, Kome, Riddles and ESAM, giving him one of the most impressive win portfolios this season.

Having recently added Wario to his arsenal, Kameme shows no intention of slowing down. As he continues to perform well -- like placing 3rd at the first major of the decade, Let’s Make Big Moves -- he positions himself to keep rising through the PGR. With a fresh new decade of Smash ahead of us, Kameme seems determined to reach the summit of the mountain that is Smash Ultimate.

Written by: Colton "Coltor" Costopoulos | Edited by: Justin “Popi” Banusing

Administrative Team:

PGstats Director: Luis “suar” Suarez

Statistician: Andrew “PracticalTAS” Nestico

Videographer & Graphic Designer: Kud

Project Manager: Justin “Popi” Banusing