The Last Chance Qualifier has set the stage for the PCS5 Americas Grand Final. Sixteen of the region’s best teams have earned themselves a spot in what could turn out to be the season’s most important event yet. The PUBG Global Championship is just around the corner, making it more important than ever to claim as many PGC Points as possible during PCS5. Results from this tournament will determine which teams represent the Americas region on PUBG Esports’ grandest stage, and which teams have their season come to an end early.
Struggling through the Last Chance Qualifier is never how teams picture themselves advancing to the Grand Final. The LCQ presents every team with an ultimatum that ramps the stress and pressure levels of a normal match up to eleven. Half of the lobby are teams that you finished nearby during Group Stage, and the other half are teams from another subregion, adding more unpredictability to the game because you’re less familiar with their tendencies.
It’s a tough route to take when planning your journey to the PCS5 Americas Grand Final. That said, four teams managed to weather the storm and secure their spot in the final. It gave all sixteen another shot at glory, but only four could move on.
Several high-profile orgs failed to qualify out of Groups and would be forced to keep their hopes alive in the abbreviated two-day event. The LCQ offered just four invites to the PCS5 Americas Grand Final, but there were still teams like TSM FTX, Spacestation Gaming, Dignitas, 303 Esports, A Creche, Dodge, and 22 Esports fighting for a spot in the final. With so many experienced and skilled teams in the mix, the best-of-twelve generated plenty of exciting moments as the games proceeded.
TSM FTX
TSM FTX picked up two Chicken Dinners and eighty-seven kills across twelve matches. Their play from the start of the LCQ pointed towards a top-four placement, but the team’s second win on Match 11 sealed the deal.
Exiting the Group Stage, TSM FTX was accumulating enough kills to give them the advantage over any team with the same number of wins. Posting the fourth-highest kill total over twenty matches with 102. Unfortunately, as the Group Stage continued, a second chicken dinner to dismiss eUnited from their top-six position eluded them. Now, rejoining the lobby for the PCS5 Americas Grand Final, TSM FTX has a fresh start to keep pace with the likes of Oath and Soniqs.
SPACESTATION GAMING
In the final match of the Last Chance Qualifier, Spacestation Gaming manufactured the results necessary to secure a top-four placement. The team’s incredible 18-Kill Chicken Dinner during the final match of the LCQ sent them up the leaderboard from 10th to 3rd. In the ‘Most Chickens’ ruleset, it doesn’t matter how you win, it only matters how many you win.
Earning their one and only win of the Last Chance Qualifier during the final match proved to be enough, bouncing EosGuri and A Creche from the top-four in the process. It’s said that ‘winning cures all’ but we’ll see which Spacestation Gaming arrives at the PCS5 Americas Grand Final. Will we get the dangerous squad featuring four of the region’s strongest players? Or will the new lobby present unforeseen challenges for this squad?
THREE HUNDRED
Coming into the PCS5 North America Group Stage, I had some lofty expectations placed on this team. Adding ‘Xtreme’ to the already talented roster instantly made them a team to watch for me. Just like Spacestation Gaming, Three Hundred sat on the outside looking in as the twelfth and final match began. Thankfully, the team was trailing A Creche in fourth by just two kills, considering both teams had already claimed one Chicken Dinner.
As the match progress, Three Hundred traded positions on the leaderboard with a couple of other squads. Single kills separated numerous teams as Three Hundred remained extremely close to securing a top-four placement. As the zone shifted to Sosnovka Island, the team set the perfect bridge camp to collect a couple of major kills. This decision earned the team a top-four placement at the time, which they would hang onto and finish in third overall.