May « 2014 « American Go E-Journal

First Knockouts in Euro Pro Qualifications

Monday May 26, 2014

The first two rounds of the European Go Federation (EGF) / CEGO Pro Qualification Tournament were held on Friday May 23 at Strasbourg, with four of the 16 who started in this double-elimination Swiss tourney no longer in the running to achieve professional status this year: Viktor Lin 7d of Austria, Timur Sankin 6d of Russia, Dusan Mitic 6d of Serbia and Juri Kuronen 6d of Finland, who all lost both games.

One of the four who won both their games at Strasbourg and who goes on to win both games at Amsterdam on May 29 will become the first-ever European Pro (under this EGF/CEGO procedure). Those four are: Pavol Lisy 7d (left) of Slovakia, Thomas Debarre 6d of France, Mateusz Surma 6d of Poland and Cornel Burzo 6d of Romania.

The remaining eight, who have so far won one and lost one, all still stand a chance of becoming the second new European professional. That could be one of those eight who wins both his games at Amsterdam (where four more will be knocked out of the running) and then both games at Vienna on June 20. Those eight are: Benjamin Teuber 6d of Germany, Fredrik Blomback 6d of Sweden, Lukáš Podpera 6d of Chechia, Csaba Mero 6d of Hungary, Jan Hora 6d of Chechia, Cristian Pop 7d of Romania, Ali Jabarin 6d of Israel and Jan Simara 6d of Chechia.

The games are all being broadcast live with professional commentary by Korean website WBaduk. For full details of the tournament, including results table, player profiles and links to tournament rules and constitution, visit the EGF’s European Pro Qualification webpage.
Report by Tony Collman. Photo courtesy EGF/CEGO website.

Correction (5/27): In the 3rd paragraph, second sentence, “That will be the one of those eight” has been corrected to “That could be…” It could also be one of the four who won two games at Strasbourg the other day.

Categories: Europe,Events/Tournaments,Go News

Igolocal.net Relaunched as “Find Go Players”

Monday May 26, 2014

Chuck Thomas has launched Find Go Players, “which is a fresh rewrite of my old website Igolocal.net,” he tells the E-Journal. “It’s become difficult to find games where I live, and I hope this will help others as well as me.” Users put themselves on a map and can use it to find other players nearby; the site also automatically notifies users when a new user appears in their area. Thomas, who ran Shodan Imports until shutting it down four years ago, is now a freelance software consultant and says he hopes to re-use the Find Go Players platform with other websites “to help facilitate local communities for people with rare interests such as go.”

Categories: Tools: books, software & hardware,U.S./North America,World

Andy Liu 1P Wins Maryland Open

Sunday May 25, 2014

Andy Liu 1P continued his recent run of wins (Andy Liu 1P Sweeps Washington Baduk Open 4/27/2014) EJ on Memorial Day weekend, winning the 41st Maryland Open on May 24-25 with a perfect 5-0 record. Daniel Chou 6d, with 3 wins, was the top qualifier for the Pro Certification tournament, Joe Maia 2k was the Kyu Champion and the Feng Yun Go School won the Gregory Lefler Award. There were 57 players; Todd Heidenreich directed and Keith Arnold was the organizer.

Open Section: Andy Liu 1P (5 wins); Zhaonian Chen 7d (4 wins); Xinying Jiang 6d (3 wins); Daniel Chou 6d (3 wins; top qualifier for Pro Certification tournament); Yuan Zhou 7d (3 wins); Joshua Lee 5d (3 wins); James Pinkerton 5d (2 wins); Zhenying Gu 5d (2 wins); Zhihong Ma 5d (2 wins); Willis Huang 5d (2 wins); Juntin Ching 5d (1 win).

A Section: Patrick Allen 3d; Jared Beck 3d; Brian Gu 3d
B Section: Victor Kang 1d
C Section: Joe Maia 2k (Kyu Champion); Yukino Takehara 1k
D Section: Bob Bacon 6k; Steve Colburn 5k
E Section: Brendan Berger 9k; Tevis Tsai 9k
F Section: Elizabeth Small 12k; Deirdre Golash 13k

Categories: Events/Tournaments,U.S./North America

Lee Sedol Takes Lead in Jubango With Gu Li

Sunday May 25, 2014

Focus was the name of the mid-point Game 5 in their 10-game match on May 25 but the intense altitude at the jubango venue in Sangri-La added an extra obstacle for Gu Li 9P and Lee Sedol 9P. Held at 3,000 m (10,000 ft) above sea level, both players took breaks but Lee battled through what Go Game Guru’s An Younggil 8P called “the most spectacular game of the match so far.” Just when everyone thought Gu would take the game, Lee dusted himself off and landed several critical blows against Gu in the final complicated fights. With questionable moves beginning at 140, Gu eventually resigned after Lee’s move at 223. Lee will be able to bask in his 3-2 lead for the next two months as the players take leave until Game 6 on July 27. For more information, including photos (check out the one of Lee using an oxygen mask and Joanne Missingham and her sister modeling local costumes) and preliminary analysis from Younggil, visit Go Game Guru.
—Annalia Linnan, based on a longer article by Go Game Guru; photo and game record courtesy of Go Game Guru

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Categories: Events/Tournaments,Go News,Go World,World

Congress Earlybird Registration Deadline Fast Approaching

Sunday May 25, 2014

The end of May is coming fast, and with it, the end of the US Go Congress’s early bird pricing. “Register before June 1st to secure the current lowest price,” urges Congress Director Matthew Hershberger. After June first, the registration fee will go up by $50. “This is also the deadline to submit your answers for our contest!” Hershberger adds. “Everyone who sends the correct answer to the problem on the Congress logo will be entered to win an extra $50 off their Go Congress registration. Send your solution to registrar@gocongress.org before June 1st; see the Congress website for more details and a larger view of the problem. “So far, only a handful of players have found the correct answer,” says Hershberger. “Perhaps the problem is too difficult? Don’t give up!”

Categories: U.S. Go Congress,U.S./North America

San Diego Spring Soiree Draws Record Turnout

Sunday May 25, 2014

A record number of players turned out for the San Diego Go Club’s 2014 Spring Go Soiree on Saturday, May 17. Over 30 players, aged 7 to 70+ attended the all-day informal event at chapter president Ted Terpstra’s home. Tony Koslow 16k walked off with the $50 first-place prize for most number of AGA-rated wins, while David Baran, who traveled down from Beverly Hills, took second place. There was spirited action from a group of 3-dan players from the club and the UCSD club. After the games, people were treated to a burgers and chips dinner as analysis carried on into the evening.
– photos courtesy Jenna Jansen

Categories: U.S./North America

Game 5 Will Break Tie in Mlily Gu-Lee Jubango This Weekend

Friday May 23, 2014

One thing’s for sure about this weekend’s Gu-Lee game: one of them will take the lead in their historic 10-game jubango. With the score tied at 2-2 and their upcoming break in July, whoever wins this game will take the lead for at least two months until they play again. Lee won the first two games but Gu Li has been making a mighty comeback inside and outside the jubango arena. Including matches from other tournaments, Gu currently has a four-game winning streak against Lee, which according to Go Game Guru is “something that’s never happened before between these two players.” Baduk TV will provide live coverage and commentary and Go Game Guru’s An Younggil 8p will translate and discuss the game with Baduk TV Live viewers via chat. For more information including past games and when game five will be available in your time zone, please visit Go Game Guru.
— Annalia Linnan, based on a longer article by Go Game Guru; photo courtesy of Go Game Guru

Categories: Events/Tournaments,Game Commentaries,Go News,Go World,World

Nihon Kiin to Celebrate 90th Birthday With Special Summer Camp

Thursday May 22, 2014

In celebration of the 90th birthday of Nihon Kiin, a special summer go camp will be held in Tokyo August 26 through September 4. Included in the camp are daily pro instructions in separate dan and kyu sections, playing in the largest Japanese amateur tournament — the Takara Shuzou Cup, where the 1000+ participants will all receive special commemorative prizes — and visits to the Honinbo title ceremony, to Kamakura, site of the Go Seigen-Kitani jubango, and to Yugen no ma, the legendary tatami playing room adorned by a Kawabata calligraphy (right). The camp fee is between JPY 50 to 55K (about $500); housing starts at ~$40 a night. The camp is recommended for players 10 kyu and up, including high dans. For further information and registration forms, contact igf@usgo.org.
– photo by John Pinkerton

Categories: Japan

Go Classified: Go Equipment Sought

Thursday May 22, 2014

Beginner located in Montgomery County, Maryland seeking used go equipment at reasonable price. Preferably good quality, thick shin-kaya (or kaya if the price is right), stones and bowls. Contact acheson.daniel@gmail.com.

Categories: Go Classified

Go Quiz Reminder: The UK Weighs In With A Hint…

Thursday May 22, 2014

This Week’s Quiz: Who said this? “The rules of go are so elegant, organic and rigorously logical that if intelligent life forms exist elsewhere in the universe they almost certainly play go.” Was it Albert Einstein, John Nash or Edward Lasker? Click here to submit your answer. “I had read and been amused by this quote some time ago, then referenced it just a couple of weeks ago, in correspondence with my frequent go adversary, John Collins, who in retirement is doing an M.Sc. in Astrophysics,” writes Tony Collman, the EJ’s UK correspondent. “Annoyingly, although it was beautifully apposite in the context, I couldn’t at the time remember the exact words or who said them, but mere days later I was enquiring about a set of go quotes which had embellished bottles of Monkey Jump Ale, given by the sponsor as prizes for the Skye Tournament back in March. As luck would have it, the full quote was amongst them, together with the author’s name.”

Categories: Go Quiz

American Go E-Journal » 2014 » May