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The Melee Stats Top 100: 90-81

By Melee Stats | 11/03/21

The Melee Stats Top 100 Players of All-Time as presented by PGstats continues today with the reveal of players 90-81.

For more on the methodology behind these rankings, the people who made this all possible, and the schedule going forward, read our introductory article here.
For other articles in the series, see below:
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
The Midwest has had so many incredible players over two decades of Melee, and
is absolutely near the top of the list.
In his prime year, 2006, the Michigan Falco defeated Isai and
, as well as won Show Me Your Moves 6. He then finished No. 1 in the Midwest Power Rankings in 2007, above even
and
, two of the greatest Midwest players to ever do it.
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
It's probably an understatement to say that
's been around the block. In the early days, he was the Midwest's Ganondorf, even winning a fabled money match over Ken in 2003 and remaining active in the scene for another 15 years.
However, the peak of Eddie's career was driving all the way from Illinois to Orlando and winning MLG Orlando 2005. What was the prize for his efforts? $500. We've come a long way since, but don't take my word for it. Ask him.
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
For as much attention as Wife got in the "Smash Brothers," his doubles partner
was just as good as a competitor in singles. Throughout his career, Husband made it to top eights at countless regionals, having also slain many Peach players in his brackets.
Today, Husband is trying to get back into competing, and his lessons with
provide valuable insight for any aspiring Marth players, as well as entertainment for anyone who wants to see more of Husband.
By Leon "ycz6" Zhou
’s high-speed play, lethal punish game, tireless work ethic, and immaculate meme game epitomize modern Melee. A self-described “doc kid” and the youngest player on this list, Spark attended his first tournament in 2014 and quickly tore up the ranks alongside his frequent doubles partner
; he first made the NorCal Power Rankings in 2016, and reached its top five by 2017.
Wins on
and
at Smash Camp 2019 helped propel him to a No. 22 spot on the 2019 MPGR, and while he’s currently on hiatus from competition due to living in Pakistan, all Melee spectators with good taste eagerly await his return to the fray.
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
Three Fox players have defeated
in a full set: Mango,
, and
, the first one to do it before any of them. Better yet, he did it three months before Armada's breakout at Genesis.
Not content with that, he followed it up at Pound 4, where he stunned
and
, two of North America's strongest players. Making the Top 100 from 2015 to 2017 is only the icing on top of one of the most quietly successful Melee careers.
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
On a surface level, it's easy to understand how
made this list. In addition to making the Top 100 four years in a row, he was one of the better players of the post-Brawl era, at one point coming all the way to the West Coast for a great 13th place run at Don't Go Down There Jeff.
However, the most remarkable thing about his career is how regularly he would stun prominent players on the big stage.
,
,
, and many others have randomly found themselves at the losing end of a Swiftbass upset at a national. This guy had it out for California, didn't he?
By Eryk "Ambisinister" Banatt
I know what you're thinking: haha,
, the funny guy who fluffed
's opponents as the world's second best Jigglypuff. And, well, yes, that is what he was - a good player who ascended to greatness by finessing a career where he was arguably the world's most sought-after practice partner.
His career is appropriately impressive: multiple appearances in the global Top 50; wins on
,
, Druggedfox, and a particularly memorable victory over
en route to ninth place at Evo 2017.
By Melissa Blight
What's so crazy about DieSuperFly's famous win over Ken is how quickly DSF rose through the ranks to become a top threat. He only started seriously training to get better for a month or two before eliminating the King of Smash at Tournament Go 6.
After his breakout, DSF stayed at the top level for many years to come, at one point having a positive record against Mango in 2007. He also was a top five player in early Brawl, arguably No. 2 behind Mew2King in 2008.
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
When you think of people who routinely made top eights at SoCal locals,
has to be one of the first to come to mind. Boosted by his local accomplishments in the most dangerous region of the world, the former Brawl aficionado finished Top 50 in the world for not one, not two, not three, but five years in a row.
In one of those years, he defeated Mango at UGC Smash Open, an upset that should probably be more recognized than it actually is by most people in the scene. MikeHaze's accomplishments as a competitor—and his notable presence within the weirdly storied tradition of Smash hip hop—should never be taken for granted.
By Anokh "EdwinBudding" Palakurthi
has something not too many others have: five straight years on the Melee Top 100. Before that, he was an annual mainstay on NorCal's power rankings, certainly not something to take for granted in one of the most storied Melee regions. If anyone else had taken tournament sets from
,
, and Plup, the whole community would be talking about it, but because it's HomeMadeWaffles, these accomplishments tend to fly under the radar.
Along with everything else he's done for the scene, he was a damn good player; one of the few who could casually trash talk Hungrybox, one of the greatest players of all time, to his face and school him in an exhibition.
The Melee Stats Top 100 will continue Friday with the reveal of players 80-71. Follow @MeleeStatsPod and @PGstats on Twitter to keep up with the full series.