Joseph Saelee
From Liquipedia Tetris Wiki
Joseph Saelee
Player Information
Name:
Joseph Saelee
Nationality:
Born:
August 21, 2002 (age 23)
Region:
North AmericaAlternate IDs:
JdMfX_, JD
Approx. Total Winnings:
$5,524
Links
Joseph Saelee is an American classic Tetris player. He won CTWC 2018 in a debut performance, defeating against Jonas Neubauer in the finals, which ushered in a new generation of young players. He repeated the next year against fellow tapping progenitor Koryan, and would string together six CTM titles from 2019 to 2021.
His competitive run paused after a third-place finish at CTWC 2021, where he fell to roller player Huffulufugus. With the game evolving rapidly through the rise of rolling, Saelee remained absent from the scene for nearly four years.
Saelee made a highly anticipated return in CTM Tap Masters 2025, his first tournament appearance since 2021. Despite the four-year hiatus, he delivered an impressive performance, advancing all the way to the semifinals.
Biography
[edit]2018: Debut
[edit]Saelee debuted in the 2018 edition of the Classic Tetris World Championships. He would advance in the bracket, going on to make the finals up against reigning champion Jonas Neubauer. He would sweep Neubauer 3-0 to earn his first title.
2019: Second victory
[edit]In 2019, Saelee successfully defended his title after defeating Koryan 3–2 in the finals. This would make him a two-time world champion, only second (at the time) to ever do so.
2020: First CTWC defeat
[edit]In 2020, the competition would be held online. Saelee would advance to the top 8 of the 2020 edition of the Classic Tetris Championships, and was looking to achieve his third win. However, upon facing newcomer Huffulufugus, he would fall in an unexpected 2-3 loss. This was the first time Saelee was defeated in the Classic Tetris World Championships. After his defeat, he took a month long break before competing again in January 2021.
2021: Final year before hiatus
[edit]Before the 2021 tournament, a new method known as rolling was introduced to the scene, which allowed for incredible movement speed. However, Saelee did not take up this new playstyle, instead sticking to the "hypertapping" technique he had won with in previous years. He was able to reach the semifinals, where he would once again face up against Huffulufugus. Saelee would be defeated in a 2-3 loss. Following this, Saelee soft-retired from competition and remained inactive for the next four years before making a surprise return at CTM Tap Masters 2025. He had a stellar run to the semifinals, beating Tugi, Oscar, and Dillan along the way, before ultimately falling to dogplayingtetris in a riveting decider.
Results
[edit]| Date | Place | Tier | Tournament | Team | Result | Prize | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08-31 | 3rd - 4th | Monthly |  | CTM Tap Masters 2025 | 2 : 3 |  | $192.41 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021-11-15 | 3rd - 4th | S-Tier |  | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 | 2 : 3 | | $750 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021-03-03 | 3rd - 4th | B-Tier |  | WPL Classic Tetris Open 5 | 0 : 2 | | $17.18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021-01-27 | 1st | B-Tier | | WPL Classic Tetris Open 2 | 3 : 2 | | $64.70 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020-12-07 | 5th - 8th | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2020 | 2 : 3 | | $500 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020-01-04 | 1st | Monthly | | CTM January 2020 | 3 : 0 |  | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019-10-20 | 1st | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2019 | 3 : 2 |  | $3,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019-10-05 | 1st | Monthly | | CTM October 2019 | 3 : 0 | | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019-02-02 | 1st | Monthly | | CTM February 2019 | 3 : 2 | | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018-10-21 | 1st | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2018 | 3 : 0 | | $1,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Extended list of results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date | Time | Tier | Tournament | Score | Vs. Player | VOD | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08-31 | 01:00 UTC | Misc |  | CTM Tap Masters 2025 | 2 | : | 3 | dogplayingtetris |  |
| 2025-08-07 | 03:00 UTC | Misc | | CTM Tap Masters 2025 | 3 | : | 0 | Dillan | |
| 2025-08-07 | 01:30 UTC | Misc | | CTM Tap Masters 2025 | 3 | : | 0 |  Oscar | |
| 2025-07-23 | 20:50 UTC | Misc | | CTM Tap Masters 2025 | 3 | : | 2 |  Tugi | |
| 2021-11-15 | S-Tier |  | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 | 2 | : | 3 | Huffulufugus | | |
| 2021-11-15 | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 | 3 | : | 2 | Ruins | | |
| 2021-10-16 | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 - Group Stage | 3 | : | 1 | Benjy | | |
| 2021-10-16 | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 - Group Stage | 3 | : | 0 | Rhubarb | ||
| 2021-10-16 | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 - Group Stage | 3 | : | 1 | Alex T | ||
| 2021-10-16 | S-Tier | | Classic Tetris World Championship 2021 - Group Stage | 3 | : | 0 | Tsuki | ||
| Complete list of matches in any tournament | |||||||||