American Go E-Journal » 2012 » November

Special Go World Offer for AGA Members

Sunday November 25, 2012

A few years back, the American Go Foundation came into possession of almost all of the remaining print copies of Go World magazine. Now that GW is ceasing publication, the AGF is offering its complete inventory for sale to all current AGA members. There have been other offers in conjunction with AGA membership drives, but several rare issues were held back. Now for the first time, any AGA member can purchase any issue in the AGF inventory — while supplies last. First come first served! GW is also available digitally, but for those who like the real thing, this is it, and when they’re gone, they’re gone forever. We’re just saying . . . If you want to round out your collection, you’ll find back issues that have never been available before: in some cases, fewer than ten issues remain. Or, if you’d like a good old-fashioned pile of magazines to leaf through, packed with top level game analysis, instructional material and other features, many issues are available for just $2 ($1 plus $1 S/H) or less. FREE SAMPLE: If you have never experienced Go World, click here to download a sample issue exclusively through the AGF. Click here to learn how to take advantage of this special offer. Shipping within the US only. If you’re not an AGA member, there’s never been a better time to join!

Categories: U.S./North America

New Sao Paolo Go Club Opens with Style

Sunday November 25, 2012

Go clubs are generally pretty quiet places, where the most you might hear is the click of the go stones, perhaps the rattle of a teacup. But on November 15 the brand-new Paulista Go Center in Sao Paolo, Brazil rocked as visiting pro Murakami Akihide 2P (right) danced to South Korean rapper PSY’s global hit Gangnam Style, now YouTube’s most-watched-ever video. Earlier in the evening, Murakami – who was part of an 18-member delegation from Japan — participated in a more traditional exercise, playing a game (left) with Wang Sen Feng (KGS wsfbr 5d), currently the strongest player in Brazil. The new club and attendant festivities were just the latest in a “very fruitful year for go in Brazil,” reports Thiago Sinji Shimada. In addition to sending representatives to the World Students Go OZA Championship in Japan, the World Amateur Go Championship in China, the World Mind Sports Games in France and the International Amateur Baduk Championship KPMC in Korea, “We implemented a go program in some schools across the country (Go Teaching Project Takes Root in Brazil 6/18/2012 EJ),” says Shimada, who a few years ago helped found a go school, the Insei Brazil, in collaboration with the Nihon Kiin of Brazil.

Categories: World

Free Friendship Tourney Set for 12/2 in DC

Saturday November 24, 2012

DC-area go players are being invited to play in a free 2-round friendship tournament Sunday, December 2 against the Hope Chinese School (HCS) in Fairfax, VA. In addition to an opportunity for fun competition, organizers hope the event will help them recruit some local go teachers for the school. “We love to hold go classes in our school because we know go is great for students,” says principal Dinny Li. A national volunteer-run school system run by volunteers, HCS has six chapters in DC metro area, and HCS-Fairfax has nearly 1,000 students registered to study Chinese and extracurricular subjects on weekend, but was forced to discontinue its go program due to a lack of go teachers. The December 2 friendship tournament runs from 1-5p at Annandale High School, 4700 Medford Drive in Annandale VA. Registration is free but AGA membership is required. Click here to register; for more info, contact Edward Zhang at zhiyuanz@gmail.com.
photo: at the 12th Chinese Culture Festival in 20120

Categories: U.S./North America

6 Compete in KGS Meijin Semi-Finals Today

Saturday November 24, 2012

Six top KGS players battle it out today for a shot at the KGS Meijin finals. The winner of today’s first semi-final — Cornel 7d, DuguXin 5d, fj 5d, Koffein 4d, kvv 4d or YellowBell 6d – will play the winner of next weekend’s semi in the Meijin playoff in December, with $600 in prizes at stake; $500 to the first-place winner and $100 to the runner-up. The online tournament to determine the online go server’s top player is run and sponsored by KGS founder Bill Schubert himself, reports KGS’ Akane Negishi. “Expect to see some exciting games!” she promises. In addition to the cash prize, “the winner gets a special icon and a KGS T-shirt,” Negishi adds. The 12 semi-finalists qualified in monthly tournaments on KGS this year.

Categories: U.S./North America

EuroGoTV Updates: November 18-22

Saturday November 24, 2012

Hungarian Open Championship 2012 (11/22): The Hungarian Open Championship, played 11/17-18 in Budapest, Hungary, was won by Pal Balogh 6d (right), in second was Csaba Mero 6d and third was Koichiro Habu 4d… Romanian Team Championship- FINAL 2012 (11/22): Romanian Team Championship- FINAL 2012, played on 11/10-11 in Brasov, Romania, was won by Lucretiu Calota 5d (left), in second was Ionel Santa 2d and third was Florin Laurentiu 1k… EuroGoTV is looking for a Sales Manager (11/21): EuroGoTV is looking for a sales and marketing representative; for more details contact sales@eurogotv.com… Super broadcast weekend November 23-25 (11/21): This weekend 4 mayor tournaments will be relayed to both KGS and EuroGoTV. The Berline Kranich, Finals of the Russian Championship, Tournament for Three Golden Ounces and the title Go Baron, and The Finnisch Korean Ambassadors Cup… UCC Open 2012 (11/20): The UCC Open 2012, played on 11/17-18 in Cork, Republic of Ireland, was won by Kim Ouweleen 4d, in second was Gavin Rooney 3d and third was Claal Roever 2k… Bielsko-Biala 2012 (11/20): The Bielsko-Biala, played on 11/17 in Bielsko-Biala, Poland, was won by Marcel Zantman 4k, in second was Tomasz Posolec 5k and third was Bogdan Kruk 4k… 15. Go to Innovation 2012 (11/20): The 15. Go to Innovation, played on 11/16-18 in Berlin, Germany, was won by Jin Zou 6d, in second was Ondrej Silt 6d and third was Lukas Podpera 5d… Galati- Romanian Cup under 1kyu 2012 (11/20): The Galati- Romanian Cup under 1kyu, played on 11/16 in Galati, Romania, was won by Sandu Teodor 2k, second was Iulian Ilie 2k and third was Elian Ioan Grigoriu 2k… 460th Velika Gorica weekend-go-tournament 2012 (11/19): The 460th Velika Gorica weekend-go-tournament, played on 11/17 in Velika Gorica, Croatia, was won by Zvonko Bednjanec 3k, in second was Mladen Smud 1k and third was Drazen Odobasic 18k… Gosente Mini Handicap Tournament 2012 (11/19): The Gosente Mini Handicap Tournament, played on 11/17 in Riga, Latvia, was won by Juris Caics 5k, in second was Dmitrij Kravchenko 3k and third was Natalia Nikulina 14k… The Finnish Championship League 2012 (11/19): The Finnish Championship League 2012, played on 11/16-18 in Vantaa, Finland, was won by Juri Kuronen 5d, secound was Antti Tormanen 6d and third was Javier-Aleksi Savolainen 5d… Yunguseng Dojang opens up registration for its 5th season (11/18): 100% Internet-based program, operated by In-seong Hwang 8 Dan, has been running successfully for over a year-and-a-half. And with 70 members in the current season, it has quickly become one of the largest online go schools in Europe with five major key feature among which are five games personally reviewed games by In-seong himself.
– excerpted from EuroGoTV, which includes complete winner reports, crosstabs and photos. Edited by Taylor Litteral

Categories: U.S./North America

Your Move/Readers Write: Feng Yun 9P Remembers Chen Zude

Saturday November 24, 2012

“Chen Zude was a man of many accomplishments and a pillar supporting go in China,” writes Feng Yun 9P. “I remember him well. (Chinese Professional Go Player and Pioneer Chen Zude Dies 11/3 EJ) Mr. Chen was among first three 9-dan professionals in China (the other two are Nie Weiping and Wu Songsheng). He was not only a great go player who led the Chinese go players to catch up to the Japanese in the 1960’s but also a great leader of the Chinese Weiqi Association as well as of other mind games such as chess and xiangqi (Chinese chess). Mr. Chen is also well known as an author of many go books, especially his autobiography, Striving for Excellence, which at the time he thought would be both his first and his last book because he had been diagnosed with cancer. He continued his fight with cancer for thirty years. When I established my go school in New Jersey, Chen Zude wrote a letter of congratulations (right), which is posted on my website. Mr. Chen is a teacher and a go player who is well remembered by all players!” Feng Yun’s Member’s Edition game commentary this month — Chen Zude vs. Miyamoto — was especially chosen in memory of Chen Zude and will be published in the December 18 EJ.

Categories: Your Move: Readers Write

Your Move/Readers Write: Perfect Rules Are Possible

Friday November 23, 2012

Perfect Rules Are Possible: “I share Terry Benson’s hope that ‘maybe someday the countries of the go world will agree on clear, logical, complete rules’ (Your Move/Readers Write: Spoiling a Masterpiece Unnecessarily 11/5 EJ),” writes Joel Sanet. “I would add to that list ‘perfect.’ For me ‘perfect’ means that there are no unnecessary rules. The AGA rules as they are currently constituted are not perfect. They contain an unnecessary rule forbidding suicide. As many people are aware, suicide can be a good ko threat. A rule that restricts a perfectly good move is a flaw in the rules. As far as I know, the only rule system that removes this flaw is the New Zealand rules. Maybe it’s time for the AGA to join the progressives in New Zealand.” graphic courtesy Sensei’s Library

Getting Stuck is Normal: “It’s normal to experience plateaus as we progress, (The Spirit of Play: “I’m Stuck” 10/29 EJ)” writes Peter St John. “We gradually learn a bunch of little things, without perceptible progress; then those things gel in our minds, and we make a leap up, as if we had been straining at a leash that breaks. But then we slip a bit from the peak of our leap up, and have a new plateau, about at the level of the peak of our last leap up. This shape curve can be seen in rating histories on KGS and in chess. Secondly, ideal progress is to spend time interactively with people about two classes (say, about four stones) stronger than we are (people one or two stones stronger than we are don’t really know why they are stronger; generally, a teacher can only bring you up to a level below himself). The process of keeping up with such strong players, understanding what they are saying and what they are thinking, as we play and analyse with them, makes us strong. Unfortunately, the stronger we get, the harder it is to find much time with people that much stronger; at the top, obviously it’s impossible to improve from 8P to 9P this way, as people two classes stronger don’t exist.”

Categories: Your Move: Readers Write

AGF Offers New Support to AGA Chapters

Wednesday November 21, 2012

The American Go Foundation, devoted to promoting go in the US, has decided to work more closely than ever with AGA chapters. The AGF Store – containing unique and valuable promotional materials – has previously only been available to approved AGF teaching programs, but now any AGA chapter can purchase unlimited quantities of anything from the AGF’s Teaching, Promotional, and Prize pages.
So if your AGA chapter is in the market for a demo board, a beautiful go-themed ukiyo-e print or copies of The Way To Go, you’re in luck. “We have put together a unique inventory of valuable materials for AGA chapters, so we hope they will use them to grow,” said AGF President Terry Benson. Other benefits, including how the AGF can help you to do some serious fundraising, are described in full here.
Note: playing equipment is still only available to teaching programs.

Categories: U.S./North America

Tesuji Battle in 16th China-Korea Tengen

Monday November 19, 2012

An Younggil 8P reviews the deciding game between Choi Cheolhan 9P and Chen Yaoye 9P at the China-Korea Tengen in September. In this game commentary from Go Game Guru, the tremendously exciting game features two opposing styles of play, Chen’s solid and territorial style and Choi’s thick, fighting style.

This game involves beautiful tesuji and unorthodox moves at every turn, and comes down to the wire with two desperation kos to finish the game.

Chen won the first match in this best-of-3 series, so Choi was fighting for his life, as well as looking for revenge since he fell to Chen last year 2-0. He is 1-8 against Chen all-time – losing the last seven games in a row.
– Adapted from a report on Go Game Guru; edited by Ben Williams

Categories: Game Commentaries,World

AGA Funds College Go Programs

Monday November 19, 2012

The AGA Board voted to approve funding for the College Matching Program at its October meeting. Originally launched by former AGA President Mike Lash, the program allowed college clubs to receive financial support for starting go clubs. The program was canceled when the AGA lost Ing funding several years ago, but has now been re-approved. Colleges can apply to be AGF programs, which gains them access to go equipment from the AGF store. Although no equipment is provided free, the AGA will pay for half of any purchases, up to $50, or up to $100 if the program is also an AGA Chapter. As the AGF store is a non-profit, full board sets can be purchased for just $10. Equipment can only be used for in club play though, not for any specific individuals, and may not be resold. Colleges also gain access to items like Hikaru no Go for the library, go books, and a host of AGF resources for supporting clubs. More information can be found on the new AGF page for the program here. -Story and photo by Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor.

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

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