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A string of consecutive The International victories have placed OG in the top of DOTA 2's food chain not only in terms of legacy but also in terms of overall networth. In fact, the top five earners in esports stem from them, for this one we are looking at Jerax.
OG would never be at the top of the DOTA world for two straight years if it weren't for the sum of their pieces. Most notably, the man responsible for salvaging the team in pressure situations, Jesse “JerAx” Vainikka. JerAx has always been a consistent performer in the teams he played, but it was with OG especially in their down years where he truly shined.
Sadly, JerAx shocked the hearts of the DOTA community when he retired on January 2021, stating his dwindling passion for the game and his desire to explore other career options. Though he may have ended his career abruptly his legacy will always stand the test of time.
JERAX'S NETWORTH STANDS AT $6.5 MILLION
JerAx is second to his teammate, Johan “N0tail” Sundstein, in overall esports earnings. A huge bulk of what contributes to their networth are the prize pool rewards from winning the grandest DOTA 2 tournaments in both the International 2018 and 2019. Once you further dissect his overall earnings, you'll realize how these two tournaments salvaged everything as his earnings from other tournaments will reveal the lackluster performances of his team. JerAx earned $2.2 million in TI8, and it increased in TI9, where he brought home $3.1 million.
However JerAx doesn't only rely on his playing career for revenues as he has unveiled his own merchandise website, jerax.gg.
THE SAVIOR OF OG!
Surprisingly after a horrid 2017-2018 DPC outing, where the team had to endure a massive roster shakeup which led to N0tail's stare of death on his former best friend Tal “Fly” Aizik, OG did the unthinkable. First they took some last minute bold moves by acquiring an unproven talent in Topias “Topson” Taavitsainen and two forgotten former players in Sébastien “Ceb” Debs and Anathan “ana” Pham. Second was their playstyle as OG deployed heroes which are considered to be outdated and irrelevant yet managed to surprise their opponents. Third is the contributions of their players specifically JerAx who was integral in keeping the team alive in dying moments. Who wouldn't forget his Earthshaker against PSG.LGD in the upper bracket final where OG look destined to lose, yet their fortunes changed due to his heroics. The casters dubbed him as “The Savior of OG” during that match.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKLUJ1klTuQ
Not only was his Earthshaker highlighted as his mastery of Io and Rubick have likewise been a factor as well. This immediately debunked the notion that JerAx is only an Earth Spirit god as he can make other heroes look like they're worth the millions as well.
If you'll watch their True Sight video you'll realize how cool and composed he is in times of crisis, a perfect mindset for aspiring millionaires.
POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE
If TI8 was more of an uphill crawl to Mt. Everest, TI9 on the other hand was a smooth sailing experience for JerAx. His teammates have improved since their TI8 experience and their chemistry have reached their highest pinnacle.
However it wasn't always been smooth experience as their performances during the 2018-2019 DPC season have received mixed results. At the beginning, they struggled to carry on with their momentum from their miraculous TI8 victory as their new members didn't integrate well. It was only after Ana's return where they truly shook the world. This also marked the return of OG's signature positive mental attitude identity.
The dynamo Finn is the heart and soul of the team's optimistic mindset in TI9. He embodied that meme loving, play for fun mindset as seen when he picked Techies against Vici Gaming as well as the spray paints and chat wheel spams in every match. It served as a psychological weapon, adding a lot of pressure on their opponents to perform.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from this experience is that having that the right mindset is also a crucial piece in becoming a millionaire.
