We often misuse the word “unlucky.” Usually, it’s used to be a catch-all term for bad things that occur in our lives. “Ah, bad teammates. Unlucky.”



“Failed my test. Unlucky”



“The parmesan cheese I put on my pasta is rotten beyond belief. Unlucky.” However, Chon "Ado" Gihyeon is one of the founding fathers of the Unlucky Club. After having a glowing debut with MVP Space in the Bigfile Battle Royal he was slated to be one of the better projectile DPS players coming out of South Korea at the time. Not the best, a few games in a strange king of the hill style tournament isn’t going to prove that, but statistically, he looked very promising. Unfortunately for him, MVP Space wasn’t as promising. They weren’t “bad”, but “good” was a carrot on a stick, just always at an arm’s length away. Even his individual performance at APAC 2017 wasn’t terrible if anything it showcased more of his potential. If only Ado could land on a new upstart team with some talent to back him up. I doubt, even then, he could have been a star player, but he’d be a great fixture on a number of teams. On February 13th, 2018, it is announced that Ado and a smattering of other players were set to join the, at the time, 0-10 Shangai Dragons. Oh no.

Overwatch League fans know how bad this team was in 2018, but for the freshmen and visitors who don’t know let me add some context to my concern. The Shanghai Dragons now hold the record for most consecutive losses ever in a professional esport, with a losing streak of 42 games that spanned from January 10th, 2018 to February 22nd, 2019. Ado and his ragtag group of players were sent to save a dumpster fire, on top of an unstable uranium deposit covered in angry cats with knives. There was nothing he, or anyone for that matter, could have done to save that team. It was beyond bad. They had 40 chances to score a match win and to their credit, they came close, but couldn’t manage a single win in 2018. I feel like we can safely drop a point in the “unlucky” column. But the show doesn’t end their kids, why would it? On December 5th, Ado was announced to be joining one of the new expansion teams being introduced in the 2019 season, the Washington Justice. A fresh start with a new organization, things couldn’t get worse, could they? Well, things did improve for Ado, only just slightly. Read more: I’m Sorry Paris Eternal. I Was Wrong. Trivia time! Who in the Overwatch League boasts a total of 36 consecutive losses with the Shanghai Dragons and Washington Justice? Ding, ding, ding! It’s our luck challenged protagonist, Ado. He earned his first win in the Overwatch League over the Florida Mayhem in Stage 1. If that doesn’t crystalize Ado’s career thus far, I don’t know what else would.

However, the victory would be short-lived as the Justice quickly ended their 2019 season a part of the bottom five teams with a 8-20 match record. While the team did perform extremely well during Stage 4 in Role Lock, it was far too late. GOATS had already taken its toll on the league and its teams and the Justice were known for being exceptionally bad at GOATS. Is Ado’s story up until this point a cautionary tale? No. Sometimes you have to take what life dishes you and make the most of it. Is that incredibly cliche? It sure is, but it’s those saying we hear over and over that hold some essence of wisdom in their words. But that’s what makes this story truly a bad stroke of luck. Your teammates probably are not that bad. In actuality, what is losing you games is more than likely tilt swapping Widowmaker and running it down as Torbjörn. You could have easily prepared more for your test. But beer pong and Taco Bell at the butt crack of dawn is a tempting mistress. And checking the date on graded parmesan cheese takes a total of 5 seconds. Yes, I’ve timed it. No, I don’t want to talk about it. Read more: The Seoul Dynasty Will Rise To The Occasion It’s why we see so many professional players jump at the chance to play on stage, no matter the circumstance. On the flip side to that, it’s why we see players that can’t play on the Overwatch League’s stage, step down to the amateur division to continue moving. Words like “bad” or “good” can be perfected and improved, “stagnation” is the ultimate death sentence. “Well, we all know Ado didn’t retire or just become inactive, so things must have turned around for him, right?” Yes and no. After being listed as a free agent on the Overwatch League’s Player Contract Status article published on October 4th, 2019, Ado found himself back on the market and listed as a “free agent.” Days later, the Washington Justice announced his official departure from the team. However, Ado has now taken his talents to China and has joined the Hangzhou Spark in their 2020 efforts.

Hangzhou Spark @ Hangzhou_Spark We are delighted to announce Gi-hyeon ‘ADO' Chon has joined us as projectile DPS! His skill and professionalism impressed us during his 2-month tryout and we believe the OWL veteran will be a great addition to our team! Welcome @OW_ado and show him some love!(♡˙︶˙♡)