Intel Extreme Masters Season 10 kicked off today with the StarCraft II tournament in Shenzhen, where the world’s best players will compete for the trophy and their share of the US$25,000 prize pool. The event began with players from groups A and B battling it out for a spot in the playoffs - see how it all went down below!

Group A

The biggest surprise of group A was Jaedong having to withdraw due to visa issues. To fill the gap, the players who placed third in the open bracket played an additional game to determine who going to take his place. In end, it was Heart, SuperNova, TY and Losira who fought for a place in the playoffs, with the last two emerging victorious. Here is how the matches unfolded:

Winners’ bracket

Losers’ bracket

Group B

Labeled the group of death, group B was stacked with StarCraft II superstars: GSL champion Rain, SSL champion Classic, YongHwa and big foreign hope Snute. Despite being a StarCraft II and Intel Extreme Masters veteran, Snute was considered the underdog of the group. Classic himself said in a post-match interview that although he did not want to undermine Snute, he thought it would come down to the group’s Korean players. However, despite the odds it was Snute who breezed through the group and took the first qualifier spot followed by Classic.

Winners’ bracket

Losers’ bracket

The action continues tomorrow!

Intel Extreme Masters Shenzhen has only just begun - be sure to tune in tomorrow to watch the players of groups C and D battle it out for the remaining spots in the playoffs!

Tune in here on Saturday the 18th of July at 03:30 CEST!

To stay up to date with all the latest information about the event, be sure to follow Intel Extreme Masters on Twitter and Facebook as well as checking out the official website.