Fortnite player Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf is a household name in gaming, but what’s his true claim to fame?
When it comes to esports prize pools, Fortnite has been among the most lucrative games in the world. The most successful players in the game have earned millions of dollars in prizes, and Bugha stands atop them all.
Bugha is one of the highest-paid esport players thanks to his victory at the 2019 Fortnite World Cup. The solo event featured 100 pro Fortnite players all striving to earn a piece of a $15,287,500 prize purse. Bugha racked up the most points from kills and high finishes across six matches by a wide margin, making him the undisputed champion of the tournament.
In the process, Bugha also became one of the wealthiest pro esports players of all time. Along with a golden battle bus-themed trophy, Bugha took home $3 million in grand prize winnings. In combination with this other tournament winnings, Bugha is currently ranked the #21 highest-earning esports pro. He is the winningest esports pro outside of Dota 2.
As for Bugha in 2022, he continues to compete in professional Fortnite esports. He is sponsored by North American organization Sentinels. In early 2022, Bugha and teammate Matthew “Mero” Faitel won the eastern conference grand finals for Fortnite Champion Series: Chapter 3 Season 1. The pair took home $65,000 in prize money for the first-place finish.
Bugha also regularly streams Fortnite on Twitch. He currently has 945 subscribers and over 5 million followers on the platform. Bugha occasionally streams Valorant and single-player games in addition to his main Fortnite content.
Bolstered by his $3 million 2019 Fortnite World Cup championship victory, Bugha has won approximately $3,431,661.
The vast majority of his winnings came from the 2019 Fortnite World Cup, but he has also taken home several five-figure prize pools outside of that event. He earned half of $65,000 in 2022 in the Fortnite Champion Series: Chapter 3 Season 1 tournament. He also won $95,000 at the 2021 Grand Royale.
No, Bugha is not named after the religious figure Buddha. The name Bugha is adapted from something his grandfather used to say.
During an episode of The Tonight Show, he told the story of how his username came to be. As a baby, his grandpa would use the nonsense word “bugha” to make the infant Giersdorf laugh. He would later adopt the word as his nickname and become one of the most iconic gamers in the world.
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