Smasher:Axe

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Axe
Axe.png
Character info
Melee main Pikachu
Other Melee characters Falco, Young Link, Marth, Fox, Ice Climbers, Pichu
Brawl mains Toon Link, Meta Knight
Other Brawl character Ice Climbers
Ultimate main Young Link
Project M mains Marth, Pikachu
Other Project M character Falco
Team info
Sponsor(s) Tempo Storm
Former sponsor(s) Mortality eSports, Most Valuable Gaming
Former crews AGC
Rankings and results info
Most recent ranking Super Smash Bros. Melee 2019 MPGR: 4th
Winnings Super Smash Bros. Melee ~$64,829.91
Personal and other info
Real name Jeffrey Williamson
Birth date (age 33)
Location Avondale, Arizona United States
Miscellaneous info
Skill Super Smash Bros. Melee Top professional
Project M Top professional
This article is about the smasher known as Axe. For the similarly-named smasher, see Ax.

Axe is a smasher from Sierra Vista, Arizona, who currently lives in Avondale, Arizona and is considered to be one of the best Melee players in the world. He primarily mains Pikachu, being widely recognized as the best Melee Pikachu player as well as the best Young Link player in the world; he also uses Falco, Marth, and Fox at a professional level. Since his first national in 2009, GENESIS, Axe's play with Pikachu has drawn a lot of attention, as he has placed in the top eight of large nationals several times and has beaten many of the best players in the world with Pikachu. Axe is widely credited for Pikachu's movement up the tier list from a mid-low tier character to a solid mid-high tier character. He is currently ranked 4th on the 2019 MPGR and was formerly ranked 1st on the Arizona Melee Power Rankings.

Axe also plays Pikachu in Project M, and is considered to be one of the best Pikachu players along with Anther.

Axe was picked up by Mortality eSports on July 9th, 2014, but ultimately left the team on April 9th, 2015. He was picked up by Tempo Storm alongside Westballz on July 2nd, 2015.

Tournament history

2009-2010

Axe's breakout performance occurred at GENESIS in 2009, where he defeated Jman 2-1 in the second round of winners' bracket, who was considered one of the best players in the United States at the time. However, he did not make a long run after that, losing to Raistlin and then to Linguini, placing 33rd at the tournament. Axe later surprised many by placing 17th at Pound 4, where he defeated PPMD (then known as Dr. PeePee) 2-0 in winners' bracket, before losing to Mango and then to Linguini once again.

Axe later attended Apex 2010 and defeated Blunted Object in winners' bracket before losing to Armada 0-2. He made a stellar run through losers' bracket, defeating RaynEX, Cyrain, DaShizWiz, and Jman before losing to Armada 1-2 in losers' quarters, ending his run at 5th place. By this time, Axe had surprised many by taking sets off of top players using what was usually considered a mid-low tier character at the time.

2011-2013

Axe placed 4th at Pound V, defeating Colbol, Remen, and Cactuar 2-0 in winners' bracket before losing to Armada 1-3 in winners' semis. He defeated Hax 2-1 in losers' quarters, with a 3-stock victory in game 3, before losing to Hungrybox 0-3 in losers' semis.

Axe did not perform as well at the nationals he later attended, although he was still able to hold his own against top players. He placed 17th at GENESIS 2, losing to MacD 1-2 in the first round of winners' bracket, and then defeating PewPewU 2-0 before losing to Shroomed 0-2, and 33rd at Apex 2012, losing to StriCNYN3 1-2 in the first round of winners' bracket, and then defeating Linguini in losers' bracket before losing to Darc 0-2.

Later in 2012, he placed very highly at MELEE-FC10R Legacy, where he reached 3rd place. At said tournament, he made it to the final round-robin bracket, where he defeated SFAT 3-0, Kage 3-2, Kels 3-1, Darkrain 3-1, and Hax 3-1, but lost to Hungrybox 0-3 and Mango 0-3. He once again placed 3rd at Kings of Cali, where he made a long run through losers' bracket after losing to Westballz 0-2 in the third round of winners', defeating Lucky, Fiction, SFAT 2-1, S2J 2-1, PewPewU 3-0 (with a 4-stock lead at the end of game 3), and Shroomed 3-1, before being taken out by PPMD 2-3 in a last game, last stock situation in losers' finals.

At Apex 2013, Axe defeated G$ and then S2J 2-0 in winners' bracket before losing to Overtriforce 0-2. He then took out Tope and JAVI 2-0 in losers' bracket before losing to Hax 0-2, placing 9th. He also placed 7th at Kings of Cali 2, losing to Fly Amanita 2-3 in winners' quarters and to SFAT 2-3 in losers' top 8.

At EVO 2013, Axe defeated Reno 2-0 and Bladewise 2-0 in the winners' quarterfinals pool, before losing to Mango 1-2. He then defeated Fiction 2-0 in the losers' quarterfinals pool to secure a spot in the losers' semifinals pool, where he was knocked out by Shroomed 1-2, ending his run at 13th place.

Pre-summer 2014 season

Axe placed 9th at Apex 2014, defeating Zhu 2-0 and PewPewU 2-0 in the second round of pools after losing to Leffen 1-2. He was taken out by Hungrybox 0-2 in losers' finals of the pool.

Axe later placed 7th at Pat's House 2, losing to Mew2King 0-3 in winners' bracket and to SFAT 0-3 in losers' top 8, and 4th at Super SWEET, defeating KirbyKaze 3-1 in winners' quarters before losing to Mango 1-3 in winners' semis, and then defeating Kels 3-0 in losers' quarters before losing to Mew2King 0-3 in losers' semis.

MLG Anaheim 2014 and EVO 2014

Although Axe had previously maintained high placings at nationals, he surprised many with an extremely stellar performance at MLG Anaheim 2014 in the summer of 2014. In the open winners' bracket, he defeated Ken 2-0 to secure one of the four available spots in the championship pools. In his pool, he defeated Hax 3-1, Colbol 3-0, Remen 3-0, s0ft 3-0, and Mew2King 3-2 in a large upset, although he lost to Leffen 1-3 and PPMD 2-3. Seeded in losers' bracket in the championship bracket, he secured a spot in the top 8 by defeating Lucky 3-0. However, Axe's largest upset came shortly after; in losers' top 8, after losing the first game against Hungrybox, he closed out the set 3-1, before losing to Mew2King 0-3 in a rematch in losers' quarters, ending his run at 5th place.

Axe managed to repeat this performance at EVO 2014. In the winners' quarterfinals pool, he defeated HugS 2-0, J666 2-0, and ChuDat 2-0, before losing to Mango 1-2 in a set that went down to the last stock. He made it into the top 8 by defeating Plup 2-0, and then proceeded to eliminate Silent Wolf 2-1 in losers' top 8, including a 4-stock in game 3 that took only 55.51 seconds to complete. Axe then lost to Armada 1-2 in losers' quarters in a set that went down to the last stock, placing 5th once again. By this time, many considered Axe to be one of the "Demi-Gods" (along with players such as Leffen, Hax, and Westballz), as he had taken sets off of three of the "Five Gods" (PPMD, Hungrybox and Mew2King), and individual games off of the other two (Mango and Armada).

Post-summer 2014 season

At Zenith 2014, Axe placed 4th in Melee singles. He lost to Wizzrobe 1-2 in winners' quarters, though he still managed to defeat Swedish Delight 2-0, The Moon 2-1, and Nintendude 2-1 to make it to losers' semis, where he lost a close set to Zhu 2-3. Axe also placed 2nd in Melee doubles with ZeRo, losing to Mew2King and Hax in winners' finals, then winning a close set against Zhu and Cactuar in losers' finals before losing to Mew2King and Hax again in grand finals.

At the Apex 2015 qualifier Tipped Off 10, Axe placed 5th in Melee singles and 4th in Melee doubles, teaming with ESAM. In Melee singles, Axe beat Wizzrobe 3-1 to enter Top 8 in winners' side, but later lost to Hungrybox 1-3 in winners' semis, and to Colbol 0-3 in losers' quarters to end his run.

At the Midwest major The Big House 4, Axe placed rather low at 9th in Melee singles, 5th in Melee doubles (teaming with SFAT), and 13th in Project M singles. In Melee singles, Axe defeated Colbol 2-1 to reach winners' quarters, but then lost to Mew2King 0-3. In the losers bracket, Kels performed a surprising upset on Axe, where Axe fell 1-3 and did not reach top 8. In Melee doubles, Axe and SFAT faced Colbol and DoH in winners' quarters and lost 0-2. They then defeated Zhu and Cactuar 2-0 to reach top 8, and Wizzrobe and Gahtzu 2-0 to reach losers' quarters. The team then lost to Leffen and Hax 1-3. In Project M singles, Axe was sent to losers' bracket by Hungrybox 1-2. He defeated DJ Nintendo 2-0 and VaNz 2-1 to reach top 16, but was then beaten by Seibrik 0-2.

Early 2015

At the Apex 2015 qualifier Paragon Orlando 2015, Axe placed 7th in Melee singles and 7th in Melee doubles with Westballz. Axe was able to reach winners' quarters by beating Shroomed 2-0. He then faced Mew2King, where he lost 0-2 and was sent to the losers bracket. He was able to eliminate SFAT to reach top 8, but was later eliminated himself, by Leffen in a close 2-3 set. In Melee doubles, Axe and Westballz reached winners' quarters only to lose to Leffen and MacD 0-2. They defeated Wizzrobe and Gahtzu 2-0 to reach top 8, but then they were eliminated by Colbol and Harriettheguy.

At a local tournament held by MVG, Axe reached winners' finals against Mew2King in Melee singles, and lost 1-3. He reached grand finals for a rematch, and was able to take 2 consecutive sets off of Mew2King, the second set being a 3-0.

At Apex 2015, Axe placed a somewhat disappointing 13th place in Melee singles. He lost early in bracket to SFAT, beat Colbol 2-1, but then lost to Shroomed 0-2, being double eliminated by NorCal residents.

At Sandstorm, Axe placed a phenomenal 3rd place in Melee singles, and 4th in Melee doubles with Forward. He was able to take down Leffen for the first time in winners' quarters 3-1. He then made an unexpected feat by defeating Mango 3-2 in Top 8. Axe was then defeated 0-3 by Armada, and eliminated by Westballz in a 1-3 set. In Melee doubles, Axe and Forward defeated Hungrybox and Silly Kyle 2-1 to reach top 8. The team was later defeated 0-3 by Leffen and MacD and sent to the losers bracket. Axe and Forward then beat Taj and Wobbles 2-0, and then were eliminated by Hungrybox and Silly Kyle in a losers' semis rematch.

Late 2015

At the Eclipse tournament, Axe faced Armada in Top 8. He won the first and third game in a best out of 5 set, he went to game 5 to a last-stock match and was defeated 2-3. He finished 3rd in what was the largest European tournament of all time. Despite this he won the doubles tournament along side Plup in which they won 3-1 against Leffen and Ice.

At DreamHack Winter 2015, he paired up with Hungrybox to win the doubles tournament.

2019

Axe was finally able to take his first major tournament win at Smash Summit 8. This also marked the first major where a solo Pikachu main (or Pikachu in general) won a major.

Playstyle

Tournament placings

Super Smash Bros. Melee

Tournament Date 1v1 placement 2v2 placement Partner
Arizona T5 April 14th, 2007 7th 9th V3ctorman
GENESIS July 10th-12th, 2009 33rd 33rd Tag
Pat's House November 14th-15th, 2009 9th
Pound 4 January 16th-18th, 2010 17th 13th Taj
Nice Shot Hugo March 27th, 2010 3rd 4th MacD
Apex 2010 August 6th-8th, 2010 5th 7th Taj
Don't Go Down There Jeff December 18th, 2010 17th 5th Taj
Pound V February 19th-21st, 2011 4th 13th Pluto the Planet
Zenith 2011 May 28th-29th, 2011 3rd 1st Kage
GENESIS 2 July 15th-17th, 2011 17th 5th Taj
Fuck Your Johns January 5th, 2012 1st
Apex 2012 January 6th-8th, 2012 33rd 13th Pluto the Planet
Northwest Manifest March 24th-25th, 2012 5th 2nd SFAT
MELEE-FC10R Legacy August 12th-14th, 2012 3rd 3rd Kage
Kings of Cali November 10th, 2012 3rd 5th OkamiBW
Apex 2013 January 11th-13th, 2013 9th 25th Pluto the Planet
Kings of Cali 2 April 13th-14th, 2013 7th 4th OkamiBW
NorCal Regionals 2013 August 26th-28th, 2013 9th
Project AZ Melee June 1st, 2013 1st 2nd Pluto the Planet
EVO 2013 July 12th-14th, 2013 13th
Southwestern Justice November 24th, 2013 1st 2nd Pluto the Planet
Kings of Cali 3 December 14th-15th, 2013 4th 3rd OkamiBW
Apex 2014 January 17th-19th, 2014 9th 9th Kage
Southwestern Justice 2 February 22nd, 2014 1st 5th Tag
SoCal Regionals 2014 February 28th-March 2nd, 2014 4th
Mayhem 3-8 March 8th, 2014 1st 2nd OkamiBW
Pat's House 2 May 24th-25th, 2014 7th 4th OkamiBW
Super SWEET June 7th-8th, 2014 4th 5th Drephen
MLG Anaheim 2014 June 20th-22nd, 2014 5th 9th OkamiBW
EVO 2014 July 11th-13th, 2014 5th 13th Pluto the Planet
Zenith 2014 August 2nd-3rd, 2014 4th 2nd ZeRo
Monday Night Smash 3 August 11th, 2014 2nd
Tipped Off 10 September 20th-21st, 2014 5th 3rd ESAM
The Big House 4 October 4th-5th, 2014 9th 5th SFAT
Forte 2 December 20th-21st, 2014 2nd 4th Tai
Smash the Target January 3rd, 2015 1st 1st Medz
Paragon Orlando 2015 January 17th-18th, 2015 7th 7th Westballz
MVG Super Smash Bros. Tournament January 25th, 2015 1st
Apex 2015 January 30th-February 1st, 2015 13th 17th Tagless Kyle
Aftershock March 28th-29th, 2015 1st 1st Wobbles
Monday Night Melee 22 March 30th, 2015 2nd
Sandstorm April 18th-19th, 2015 3rd 4th Forward
Press Start May 9th-10th, 2015 3rd 5th Medz
Revelation 2 May 16th-17th, 2015 2nd 2nd Medz
EVO 2015 July 17th-19th, 2015 7th 5th Medz
Smash Factor 4 July 24th-26th, 2015 2nd 2nd Medz
Low Tier City 3 August 1st-2nd, 2015 3rd 1st Mew2King
Monday Night Melee 40 August 3rd, 2015 2nd
Super Smash Con August 6th-9th, 2015 3rd
Paragon Los Angeles 2015 September 5th-6th, 2015 5th
HTC Throwdown September 19th, 2015 9th 5th Ken
The Big House 5 October 2nd-4th, 2015 17th 9th Westballz
MLG World Finals 2015 October 16th-18th, 2015 3rd 2nd Chillin
Smash Summit November 7th-8th, 2015 7th 5th Kage
Eclipse November 14th-15th, 2015 3rd 1st Plup
Kickstart 4 November 22nd, 2015 2nd 3rd Siren
DreamHack Winter 2015 November 26th-29th, 2015 9th 1st Hungrybox
GENESIS 3 January 15th-17th, 2016 4th 4th Hungrybox
PAX Arena January 29th-31st, 2016 4th 4th Gahtzu
Rubicon 7 February 27th, 2016 1st 1st Prince Abu
Battle of the Five Gods March 17th-19th, 2016 14th
Battlefield 7 March 28th, 2016 1st
Pound 2016 April 2nd-3rd, 2016 25th 5th DoH
Frame One April 9th-10th, 2016 3rd 5th HugS
Full Bloom 2 April 16th, 2016 2nd 3rd Voorhese
Smash Summit 2 April 21st-24th, 2016 7th 5th Wobbles
Enthusiast Gaming Live Expo April 29th-May 1st, 2016 5th 7th Prince Abu
DreamHack Austin 2016 May 6th-8th, 2016 7th
Runback 2016 May 15th, 2016 1st 2nd Wobbles
CEO 2016 June 24th-26th, 2016 5th 2nd Plup
EVO 2016 July 15th-17th, 2016 17th 13th Medz
Super Smash Con 2016 August 11th-14th, 2016 4th 17th Wobbles
Shine 2016 August 26th-28th, 2016 5th 7th Kage
The Big House 6 October 7th-9th, 2016 65th 13th Taj
Battlefield 9 October 29th, 2016 1st
Smash Summit 3 November 3rd-6th, 2016 5th 7th Duck
Rewired 2016 November 19th-21st, 2016 2nd 1st Medz
UGC Smash Open December 2nd-4th, 2016 13th 5th Swedish Delight
Battlefield 10: 7 Days to GENESIS January 14th, 2017 2nd
GENESIS 4 January 20th-22nd, 2017 7th 4th Plup
Boss Rush: Shroomed February 11th, 2017 1st
Smash Summit Spring 2017 March 2nd-5th, 2017 5th 5th Hungrybox
Boss Rush: Duck March 11th, 2017 1st
Full Bloom 3 March 25th, 2017 4th 9th Trix
Boss Rush: SFAT April 1st, 2017 1st
Smash Rivalries April 8th-9th, 2017 5th 5th Westballz
CEO Dreamland April 14th-16th, 2017 9th 5th Plup
DreamHack Austin 2017 April 28th-30th, 2017 17th
Runback 2017 May 20th-21st, 2017 5th 2nd Medz
Smash 'N' Splash 3 June 2nd-4th, 2017 7th 4th Plup
CEO 2017 June 16th-18th, 2017 3rd
Boss Rush: SmashG0D July 8th, 2017 1st
EVO 2017 July 14th-16th, 2017 9th
FUSE July 16th, 2017 3rd Plup
DreamHack Atlanta 2017 July 21st-23rd, 2017 4th 7th Vro
Super Smash Con 2017 August 10th-13th, 2017 5th 3rd Westballz
Boss Rush: The Moon September 16th, 2017 1st
GameTyrant Expo 2017 September 29th-October 1st, 2017 9th
The Big House 7 October 6th-8th, 2017 17th
DreamHack Denver 2017 October 20th-22nd, 2017 3rd
Boss Rush: Mexico October 28th, 2017 1st
Smash Summit 5 November 2nd-5th, 2017 5th 3rd aMSa
Smash Camp December 9th, 2017 1st
GENESIS 5 January 19th-21st, 2018 7th 7th Medz
Esports Arizona: Talking Stick Resort (February 2018) February 10th, 2018 1st
EGLX 2018 March 9th-11th, 2018 9th 3rd aMSa
Full Bloom 4 March 24th-25th, 2018 25th
Boss Rush: Captain Jack April 14th, 2018 1st
Flatiron 3 April 21st, 2018 2nd 2nd S2J
Smash Summit 6 May 3rd-6th, 2018 9th 5th aMSa
Get On My Level 2018 May 18th-20th, 2018 3rd 4th aMSa
Esports Arizona: Talking Stick Resort 4 June 23rd, 2018 5th
Runback 2018 July 14th-15th, 2018 1st
EVO 2018 August 3rd-5th, 2018 17th
The Big House 8 October 5th-7th, 2018 7th
GameTyrant Expo 2018 November 2nd-4th, 2018 9th
The Mang0: Homecoming November 10th-11th, 2018 49th
Smash Summit 7 November 15th-18th, 2018 5th 4th aMSa
Ludwig Ahgren Championship SeriesOnline December 29th-30th, 2018 2nd
Smash Camp 2019 January 5th-6th, 2019 2nd
GENESIS 6 February 1st-3rd, 2019 2nd 33rd Taj
Poop House Invitational February 23rd, 2019 2nd
Battlefield 11 February 24th, 2019 2nd
Suit & Tie March 23rd, 2019 5th 1st Taj
Battle of BC 3 March 30th-31st, 2019 1st
The Nick Yingling Dave & Busters Melee Experience April 13th, 2019 2nd
Pound 2019 April 19th-21st, 2019 7th
Infinite Melee: Endgame April 27th, 2019 1st
Get On My Level 2019 May 17th-19th, 2019 2nd 2nd aMSa
The Kid, the Goat, and the Mang0 June 8th-9th, 2019 7th PewPewU
Smash Summit 8 June 13th-17th, 2019 1st 5th aMSa
Ascension VII July 20th, 2019 1st
Super Smash Con 2019 August 8th-11th, 2019 13th 4th aMSa
Ascension VIII August 17th, 2019 1st
Smash Camp: End of Summer September 14th-15th 25th
Mainstage September 20th-22nd, 2019 2nd 5th aMSa
Settle It! - Pizza Bites vs. Chicken Nuggets January 18th-19th, 2020 1st 1st Taj
GENESIS 7 January 24th-26th, 2020 33rd
Smash Summit 9 February 13th-16th, 2020 5th
Pound Online Online April 24th-26th, 2020 17th
Smash is RAD Online May 9th, 2020 9th
Get On My Line 2020 Online July 18th-19th, 2020 65th (DQ)
Ludwig Ahgren Championship Series 2 Online July 25th-26th, 2020 9th
East Park Rollback Online August 16th, 2020 1st
Frame Perfect Series 2: ONLINE Online September 19th, 2020 5th
Slippi Champions League - Season 1 Week 1 Online October 11th, 2020 5th
Smash Summit 10 Online Online November 19th-22nd, 2020 13th
Ludwig Ahgren Championship Series 3 Online December 19th-20th, 2020 4th
Frame Perfect Series 4: ONLINE Online January 16th, 2021 9th
Four Loko Fight Night Online March 6th-7th, 2021 9th
Galint Melee Open: Spring Edition Online March 19th-21st, 2021 7th

Project M

Tournament Date 1v1 placement 2v2 placement Partner
MELEE-FC10R Legacy August 12th-14th, 2012 4th 1st Vro
Project AZ June 1st, 2013 1st
Salvation June 22nd-23rd, 2013 2nd
Southwestern Justice November 24th, 2013 3rd 2nd Neon
Apex 2014 January 17th-19th, 2014 17th
Southwestern Justice 2 February 22nd, 2014 2nd 1st K9
Super SWEET June 7th-8th, 2014 5th
The Big House 4 October 4th-5th, 2014 13th
Forte 2 December 20th-21st, 2014 4th Tai
Infinity and Beyond! 48 March 26th, 2015 2nd 1st Westballz
Aftershock March 28th-29th, 2015 4th 2nd Aero
Sandstorm April 18th-19th, 2015 Top 3 5th Medz
Dismantle May 31st, 2015 9th
Low Tier City 3 August 1st-2nd, 2015 3rd 2nd iPunchKidsz
Paragon Los Angeles 2015 September 5th-6th, 2015 49th (DQ) (DQ) Aero
Battlefield 4 December 13th, 2015 3rd

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Tournament Date 1v1 placement 2v2 placement Partner
Glitch 6 January 19th-20th, 2019 97th 33rd Rishi

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Tournament Date 1v1 placement 2v2 placement Partner
Tuscon Monthly March 2012 March 31st, 2012 4th OkamiBW
MELEE-FC10R Legacy August 12th-14th, 2012 3rd PikaChad
Salvation June 22nd-23rd, 2013 25th
Southwestern Justice November 24th, 2013 4th

Trivia

  • Axe is one of the only 3 players to have competed at every Smash Summit for Melee, along with Plup and Mango.
  • It was a joke within the Arizona and California Smash communities that there needs to be a tournament match to decide the best person named Jeff - SilentSpectre or Axe.
  • Axe is the subject of a meme in the Melee community concerning his resemblance to pop artist Drake. This came about when someone in the Arizona region took a picture of Axe working at the department store Walgreens, then used that picture to make a page on Facebook entitled "Walgreens Drake", proclaiming that the two look very similar. People familiar with the Smash scene quickly found that page and pointed out that it was in fact the professional Melee player, and linked to that page on other social media, causing the moniker "Walgreens Drake" to become very widespread.

External links

Gameplay videos

Super Smash Bros. Melee