Career
He also enjoys playing poker, having moderate success at the World Series of in recent years. In 2010, Nassif was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Gabriel Nassif first caught public attention at Magic Block Constructed Grand Prix London, 2001 where he reached the finals with his aggressive White/Blue/Red deck, and lost to German "Juggernaut" Kai Budde.
This was only the first of many successes Nassif would have in Constructed.
At that time he was already wearing his trademark yellow hat that eventually led to his nickname "Yellow Hat". Only one week later Nassif made Top 4 at Pro Tour: New York 2001 with teammates Nicolas Olivieri and Amiel Tenenbaum, in what was only his second Pro Tour.
He again lost in the finals to Kai Budde"s team Phoenix Foundation. He has been dubbed by many as the best Constructed player in Magic.
Indeed, he has often met success with home-made designs.
Tooth and Nail, a deck directly derived from Nassif"s TwelvePost deck he piloted to the finals at the 2004 Pro Tour Kobe, was one of the best performing deck in Standard until Mirrodin rotated out of the format in 2005. He showed his gaming prowess again when he made the Top 8 of the 2006 World Championships piloting a blue/white MartyrTron deck that, according to Randy Buehler, "broke the format". Nassif lost in the semifinals to Makahito Mihara and his Dragonstorm combo deck.
Ironically, Nassif made Top 8 of the 2007 World Championships with a mono-red Dragonstorm deck designed by him and American teammate Patrick Chapin, where he again made a semifinal exit while playing against Patrick Chapin in the mono-red Dragonstorm mirror.
2008 was a weaker season for Nassif. Distinctions
Nassif has lost more Pro Tour Finals than any other player.
According to Ask Wizards, Nassif also boasts the highest-ever constructed rating at 2318 in round 18 of Pro Tour–Kobe in February 2004. Last updated: 26 October 2009
Source: Event Coverage at Wizards.com
Three-time player at the Magic Invitational
Nassif has had 30 cashes at the World Series of, including back-to-back cashes at the 2010 and 2011 main events, finishing 73rd and 189th respectively.
As of June 2014, Nassif"s live tournament earnings exceed $800,000.