2005 Pro Tour Season

The 2005 Pro Tour season was the tenth Pro Tour season. It started on 10 September 2004 with Grand Prix Rimini, and ended on 4 December 2005 with the conclusion of the 2005 World Championships. It was the longest ever Pro Tour season, as it was a time of transition for the Pro Tour circuit; starting with this season, Pro Tour seasons would take place across a calendar year instead of the latter half of one year and the first half of the next. The Hall of Fame was also introduced during this season, with the inaugural class being Jon Finkel, Darwin Kastle, Tommi Hovi, Alan Comer, and Olle Råde.

2005 season changes
Previous Pro Tour seasons had taken place across two calendar years: the latter half of one year, and the first half of the next. Starting with the 2005 season, Pro Tour seasons would correspond with the calendar year, with the World Championships taking place in November or December as the last event of the season.

Furthermore, the previous system of Pro Standings and End-of-the-Year Payout were phased out during the course of the season. End-of-the-Year Payouts were still in effect for the 2005 season, but more than halved, from $635,000 in 2003–4 to $300,000 in 2005, and completely removed for future seasons. To replace it, the Pro Tour Players Club was introduced. Players were assigned levels based on Pro Points accumulated during the previous and current seasons, and they could advance in levels by earning more Pro Points. The benefits ranged from invitations to all Pro Tour events at Level 3, to free airfare and hotel room and an appearance fee of $2000 for each Pro Tour at Level 6, the highest level.

Pro Tour Colombus
29–31 October 2004 in Colombus, Ohio, United States.

Pro Tour Nagoya
28–30 January 2005 in Nagoya, Japan.

Pro Tour Atlanta
11–13 March 2005 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.

Pro Tour Philadelphia
6–8 May 2005 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.

Pro Tour London
8–10 July 2005 in London, Great Britain.

Pro Tour Los Angeles
28–30 October 2005 in Los Angeles, California, United States.

2005 World Championships
30 November–4 December 2005 in Yokohama, Japan.