About Tyler Severance
Tyler Severance (born July 15, 1991) is a professional yoyo player originally from Delaware, now based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He competes primarily in the 5A (freehand/counterweight) division and is widely credited with reshaping the competitive 5A meta in the mid-2000s. His signature approach — integrating complex wraps and tanglers into contest freestyles — was largely novel at the time of his 2007 World YoYo Contest victory, which he won using a Duncan Freehand Zero, an entry-level plastic yoyo. That year he also claimed the US National title in the same division, making 2007 a double-championship year. He went on to win US Nationals 5A again in 2012 and 2014, and finished 2nd at the World YoYo Contest in 2013.
After early sponsorships with Duncan and a signature collaboration with SPYY and Save Deth (the Trainwreck, c. 2007–2008), Severance joined YoYoFactory’s contest team in 2009, eventually becoming the company’s American Production Manager. During his YoYoFactory tenure he produced a series of signature models — the Severe (2009), Severe 2010, Supernova (2011), Supernova Lite, Nova, and the Space Cowboy (2014), the latter being YoYoFactory’s first worldwide bi-metal release. In 2015 he departed to found Recess Intl., a US-based manufacturer that debuted at the World YoYo Contest that same year.
Beyond competition, Severance operates a yoyo education program through the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation, logging over 70 recreation center visits per year. He has appeared on Fox 29 Philadelphia and CBS New York to demonstrate modern yoyo play, and hosts The Goods, a podcast and video series on YouTube. As of 2025 he remains active competitively, placing 4th in the 5A final at US Nationals in Las Vegas.
In Their Own Words
From his Recess Intl. player biography:
“I live a very monotonous life of yo-yoing.”
