Grand Prix are open tournaments.
A player may be awarded byes for individual-format Grand Prix based on one or more of the following criteria:
Players can be awarded one-, two-, or three-round byes for individual-format Grand Prix. Byes are not cumulative within a given Grand Prix or from one Grand Prix to another. Byes may not be passed down to other players for any reason and are not transferable. Byes may not be deferred from one Grand Prix to another and must be earned each time. Players that accumulate multiple byes to a Grand Prix are awarded only the bye for the greatest number of rounds.
If a player is awarded a bye, he or she is considered to have earned 3 points in the Grand Prix for each of those rounds. Byes are not counted toward a player’s opponent’s match win percentage. Players with byes will usually have an advantage in tiebreakers over players that do not have byes.
Teams are not awarded byes in team-format Grand Prix.
Planeswalker Points-based byes at individual-format Grand Prix are based on the Yearly Award Points Seasons designated to award byes to all Grand Prix held during a specific range of dates. See Section 5 – Planeswalker Points Based Invitations and Byes for complete information:
| Grand Prix Dates | Seasons used to Award Byes |
|---|---|
| June 1, 2015 through May 29, 2016 | 2015 Yearly Award Season 2016 Yearly Award Season |
| May 30, 2016 through May 28, 2017 | 2016 Yearly Award Season 2017 Yearly Award Season |
During each Yearly Award Season, players that have accumulated the minimum required number of Yearly Award Points will receive a one-round or two-round bye for each individual-format Grand Prix Event that is held during the remainder of that season and for the designated Yearly Award Season immediately thereafter:
| Byes | Minimum Yearly Award Season Points |
|---|---|
| One-round bye | 1300 |
| Two-round bye | 2250 |
Players also receive a number of byes at an individual-format Grand Prix based on the Pro Tour Players Club membership level of the player (as of the date of the Grand Prix):
| Byes | Players Club Level |
|---|---|
| Two-round bye | Silver Level |
| Three-round bye | Gold or Platinum Level |
Members of the Pro Tour Hall of Fame receive a three-round bye at each individual- format Grand Prix.