American Go E-Journal

The United States Youth Go Championships (USYGC), held Jan. 19th on KGS pulled in 63 players.  The withdrawal of the Ing Foundation from the event did not appear to have any effect on attendance.   Kids and teens competed in five different bands, with players ranging from 7 dan to the double digit kyus.  First place winners will be receiving crystal trophies in the mail, while second place winners will get a Sai plushie.  All players can also now claim $400 scholarships to the AGA Go Camp, or $200 scholarships to US Go Congress, on a first come first serve basis.  The scholarships are courtesy of the AGF, which helps bring dozens of young players to the Congress every year.   Dan level kids were also competing for entry into the four player finals, and the big prize of a free trip to the US Go Congress. Sixteen-year-old Calvin Sun 7d (at left) finished first in the qualifiers for the Senior Division (under 18) while ten-year-old Jeremy Chiu 5d (at right) placed first in the Junior (under 12).  The finals are double-elimination, and the first two rounds were held Jan. 20.  The finals for the Senior Division will continue over the next few weeks, while Jr. Division kids will square off in person in March, at the BAGPA ratings tourney in Menlo Park CA.  For full qualifier results, go here.   The senior finalists were Calvin Sun 7d, Albert Yen 6d,  Andrew Lu 6d, and Andrew Huang 6d; The Junior Division had only five players, and used double elimination from the start.  Jeremy Chiu 5d, and Aaron Ye 5d are the last two still standing. Winners Report: 1st place Sr. 1-4 dan: Jerry Shen 4d; 1st place Sr. 1-5 kyu: Larry Qu 1k; 1st place Jr, 1-5k: Eric Liu 5k; 1st place Sr. 6-10 kyu: Royce Chen 10k; 1st place Jr. 6-10 kyu: Tianyi Tina Li 10k; 1st place Sr. 11-15 kyu band: Henry Hathaway; 1st place Jr. 11-15 kyu band: Frederick Bao 13k; 1st place Sr. 16-30 kyu band: Sarah Amano 18k; 1st place Jr. 16-30 kyu band: Alex Kuang 23k.  The tournament was run by Paul Barchilon and Hugh Zhang. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor