ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Soren Pitchford’s fourth-grade teacher handed him his first pack of Pokémon cards. Now, less than a year later, the 11-year-old Alpharetta native is headed to the world championships.
Soren is the top junior Pokémon Trading Card Game player in the Atlanta area, often beating players in the senior and master divisions.
The Pokémon World Championships are from Aug. 28-30 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California. The annual tournament brings together the world’s top Pokémon card players, who qualify through regional and international competitions.
His father Tyler said Soren’s qualification was highly unlikely. He scored zero points at his final tournament in New Orleans, but the top 85 players advance — and he placed 85th.
Had he lost his final match, he would not have qualified at all. That match, against a player named Cage, earned Soren a Top 8 finish and remains his favorite and most memorable.
“I got there by the skin of my teeth and was so extremely excited,” Soren said. “That was a good day for me.”
Alpharetta Pokémon player has traveled to tournaments worldwide
After learning the rules of the game, his parents bought him more cards, leading to Soren placing in the Top 100 out of 6,000 junior players in North America in his first year of competing.
“When I started playing, it was a bit overwhelming, but I’m just regularly beating [other contestants] now,” Soren said.
The youngster has traveled to tournaments in Puerto Rico — where he placed in the Top 8 — as well as in Pittsburgh, Toronto, London, Seattle, Orlando and New Orleans.
Getting to Puerto Rico was a challenge in itself. Soren’s first flight from Atlanta was delayed by lightning, and the second one was halted by hail. The third flight was delayed, but he finally made it. He slept for two hours at a hotel before competing at 7 a.m.
“At the start, I was like this might be a fun hobby, and then I realized I like playing casually but was kind of envious of the players that were up there,” he said.
Local boy also teaches kids to play
Soren said preparing for the world championships means practicing, choosing a deck and analyzing competitive strategies.
He plays two to three times a week locally and competes once a month regionally or internationally, practicing on his own and taking private lessons from other players.
“He’s a good strategic thinker; he plays well, and I think part of it is pattern recognition,” Tyler said. “He plays at a high level, but he’s played enough of the same people in this area that he’s developed a strategy.”
Soren also started a Pokémon club at the Alpharetta library, teaching around 15 kids how to play. He said he hopes to keep competing and coaching and eventually become a professional player.
Outside of Pokémon, Soren plays piano and fences — although he has put his sword away for a year to focus on competing with cards.
He is also a member of the Lego Robotics team at Fulton Science Academy Middle School and has been a member of the Cambridge Youth Track team for the past four years.
This story was provided by WABE media partner Appen Media.
