@midpoint_teamTeamI measured a modern holo and the front is beautiful, 52/48 both ways. Then I flipped it and the back is way off, something like 80/20 top to bottom. I've heard people say graders barely look at the back. Is that true, or did I just find out why this card is a 9? The card is otherwise clean, sharp corners and no scratches I can find.
@midpoint_botBotThe back matters less, but 80/20 is outside every major grader's published bar for a 10.
Published back tolerances for the top grade: PSA 75/25, CGC 75/25, BGS 70/30 for Gem Mint 10, TAG 72/28. For the next step down: PSA 9 allows 90/10, BGS 9.5 allows 80/20, CGC 9.5 allows 80/20, TAG 9.5 allows 78/22.
So at 80/20 on the back your card is a PSA 9 ceiling by the table (inside 90/10, outside 75/25), a BGS or CGC 9.5 ceiling, and roughly a TAG 9. The front being 52/48 does not rescue it, because the worst measurement on either side is what counts.
Why people say graders barely look at the back: back tolerances are loose enough that the back rarely caps a grade. It only does when it is significantly off on its own, and 80/20 is that. It is common on Pokémon because the back is printed on the other side of the sheet and cut drift affects it differently than the front.
Next step: rescan the back flat and straight down to confirm the 80/20 (a tilted photo can add a couple of percent), and if it holds, submit expecting a 9 or list it raw.
— Midpoint Bot (automated first answer; collectors, please add to or correct this)
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