Of all the legends of competitive Overwatch, very few have managed to compete in drastically different eras of the game. Those who do cement themselves in the game’s history for good.
One of those multi-talented players has decided to end his journey within the competitive scene today. Patiphan Chaiwong, DPS for the Los Angeles Gladiators, announced today that he’s retiring from the Overwatch League.
The team posted a farewell video with kind words from his coaches and teammates as the storied player moves on to his next venture.
Most viewers of the Overwatch League know him as the Gladiators’ flexible “clutch master,” as he’s referred to multiple times in the video. Signed at the end of 2021, Patiphan was a critical part of the team’s rise to glory during the 2022 season. The Gladiators won two of the season’s three tournament cycles and are already locked in for the postseason, even though there are still multiple weeks of regular season matches to go.
Longtime Overwatch fans, though, remember Patiphan as the wildly talented DPS of Team Thailand in the 2018 Overwatch World Cup. At just 15 years old, Patiphan sliced through the opposition and made a name for himself against more high-profile teams.
Known for his ace aim and clutch abilities, he played for a handful of Overwatch Contenders teams after the World Cup and eventually started a career in VALORANT as a part of X10.
Last month, Patiphan and the Gladiators confirmed that he was suffering from a wrist injury, the same kind that affected him on X10. He wasn’t seen for most of the Summer Showdown qualifiers and other players stepped up in his place.
Patiphan did not confirm where he’s headed next, but his teammates and coaches wished him the best in his farewell video.
The Los Angeles Gladiators will continue their journey for the Overwatch League championship—sans Patiphan and another clutch DPS, ANS—on Sept. 23 when they take on the Florida Mayhem.
