Slate & Shell has just re-issued Yilun Yang’s “Whole Board Thinking in Joseki Volume 2.” Long out of print, this is a continuation of Mr. Yang’s exploration of joseki, written in collaboration with former AGA president Phil Straus. “The title of this book is a bit misleading,” notes Slate & Shell. “It does not aim to teach you josekis.
It aims to teach you how to decide which joseki to use in a particular situation (assuming you know the relevant josekis). So what it is really about is judging how to play in the early opening. To narrow down this enormous topic and provide a very thorough treatment of it, Yang focuses on situations in which a few opening moves have been made, including in all four corners, and your opponent has approached your 3-4 stone in one corner. The issue is how should you respond: by settling the corner, trying to get out (in the proper direction), or attacking from the outside. It depends on the rest of the board, of course, and this book shows you how to determine the correct response in terms of the whole board situation. This is very useful knowledge even if your understanding of how to achieve the correct goal in that situation is somewhat limited. At least you will know what you should try to do instead of just guessing the proper continuation.” 181 pages, $26
American Go E-Journal » 2016 » June
“Whole Board Thinking, Vol.2” Back in Print
Sunday June 12, 2016
“JustGo” Game Recording App to Demo at Go Congress
Sunday June 12, 2016
Automatic game recording app “JustGo” will be demonstrated at this year’s US Go Congress. Lei Chen 7d and Yi Tang 2p from WanTong technology will be on hand at the Congress with their newest technology. Click here to see a demo; the app will be available both in iOS and Android.
Cotsen Open Set for October 22-23 in LA
Sunday June 12, 2016
Save the dates of October 22-23 on your calendar for the 2016 Cotsen Open. The popular tournament returns to the Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles this year, thanks to the support of the Korean Consulate and KCCLA. The 2016 tournament will feature all of the things that previous participants have come to expect and look forward to from the Cotsen Open, including roving masseuses, free lunches, gorgeous trophies, a game between Yilun Yang 7p and another top pro, and thousands of dollars in prizes. “This is a tournament you won’t want to miss!” say local organizers. Registration will open soon; stay tuned for more details and get updates on the Cotsen Open Faceboo page. photo: Mark Lee gets a massage at the 2015 Cotsen Open; photo by Chris Garlock
Go Classified: Go stones wanted
Sunday June 12, 2016
Slate and Shell Go Stones (Used) Needed: Mr. Wan is collecting all types of shell & slate go stones. If you have such stones in good condition and willing to sell, please email zhang.tfa@gmail.com with your offer price and pictures.
“Introduction to Applied Go Studies” brings together music, art, improvisation, and philosophy Sunday in Philly
Thursday June 9, 2016
Philadelphia-area go players will want to check out the interesting and unusual go and music event scheduled for this Sunday, June 12. “Introduction to Applied Go Studies” is a day-long workshop in which participants will learn how to play the game, “and we will ask if music, art, improvisation, or philosophy has anything to learn from Go,” say organizers. “What bridges can be built? And which models will we smuggle across?”
The event runs from 12-8pm at the University Arts League, 4226 Spruce Street, and is being put together by Penn Go Society club member Quinn Dougherty. RSVP on Facebook here or to sothis.ensemble@gmail.com. Dougherty can be reached for further inquiries at quinndoughtertymusic@gmail.com or 484 883 9487.
Huaxia Chinese School Hosts Tri-State Area Go Tournament
Thursday June 9, 2016
More than 30 participants turned out for the June 5 tournament sponsored by the Huaxia Chinese School of Greater New York held at White Plains High School, NY. Go players came from various cities in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut for the first AGA-rated tournament organized by Leon Lei and Jie Tang. Attendees included children 6-12 and go students from the Chinese school who competed in a casual round-robin tournament while adults (AGA members) played in rated games.
The tournament featured a special guest, Matthew Hu 2P from California. Along with Yingshyan Ku 3k, the two of them gave a presentation on the highlights of the Lee Sedol v. Alpha Go games. Hu also played simultaneous games with students of the Huaxia Chinese School.
“The tournament was a great success, and there are plans to host another tournament in the Tri-State Area next year,” reports organizer Leon Lei. “The attendees provided positive feedback on their experiences and appreciated the opportunity to play go at this convenient location.”
photos courtesy Leon Lei
AGA YouTube: Lee, Park in Ing Quarterfinal; then Women’s HuangLongShi final
Thursday June 9, 2016
Park Junghwan 9p and Lee Sedol 9p face off tonight in the first game of a best of three for the quarterfinals of the 8th Ing Cup Professional. Myungwan Kim 9p will give his commentary on the AGA YouTube channel starting at 8 p.m. PDT tonight, hosted by Andrew Jackson. After the Ing match, probably around 11pm, if time permits, Myungwan and Andrew will continue with the final match of 6th 黄龙士双登杯 (HuangLongShi ShuangDengBei), the Nongshim Cup for women. The final players are Choi Jung 6p of Korea and Wu Zhiying 5p of China. Both of them are the strongest women professionals in their country and whoever wins will bring the trophy home.
AGA, AGF, KBA and EGF Share in Google’s AlphaGo Prize Money
Monday June 6, 2016
Making good on their promise to support both go and educational initiatives, the developers of AlphaGo Monday announced the division of the $1 million prize fund they won in March’s historic match with Lee Sedol 9p, including grants to both the American Go Association and the American Go Foundation.
“Pleased to confirm the recipients of the #AlphaGo $1m prize! @UNICEF_uk, @CodeClub, and the American, European and Korean Go associations,” tweeted DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis. “@theaga, EGF and KBA will use the #AlphaGo donation to raise awareness of Go worldwide and encourage participation especially at youth level.”
The biggest recipient, UNICEF UK, will receive $450,000 to support global education work including girls’ education and gender equality, while $100,000 will be granted to Code Club UK for the creation of more clubs around the world for children to learn to program. The go community grant is $150,000 each to European Go Federation, the Korea Baduk Association and the American go entities. The AGF will receive $60,000 and the AGA $90,000, DeepMind said.
“It has become clear that the AlphaGo match was the biggest promotional boost the game of go has received in many years, and most of the credit for that is due to DeepMind’s people and how hard they worked from the start to make sure the match gave the widest and most positive exposure possible to the game,” said AGA President Andy Okun. “The announcement of these grants shows they are continuing that good work. I am happy to express to them the thanks of our whole North American go community for the love and respect they have shown for the game.”
“Go is good for kids and the Google grant will help us reach and teach more of them. Broaden the base!” said AGF President Terry Benson.
AGA’s proposal to DeepMind was to use the AGA grant as the basis of a North American pro championship tournament over six years, and for AGF to use the grant to explore methods of more effectively spreading go in schools, said Okun.
Register Now for the US Go Congress and Save $50
Sunday June 5, 2016
Register for the 2016 US Go Congress by midnight Monday and save $50! The $25 registration will increase to $75 Monday, 6 June at 11:59 pm EST. The US Go Congress is the largest go activity in the United States. It happens once a year and runs July 30 – August 7 in Boston, MA this year. Events include the US Open, the largest annual go tournament in the US, professional lectures and game analysis, continuous self-paired games, and all kinds of go-related activities from morning to midnight. “Come for the go. Come for the camaraderie of old friends,” says Congress Director Walther Chen. “Whatever your reason, we are looking forward to seeing you there.”
Players Sought for 2016 Samsung World Cup
Sunday June 5, 2016