by John Power, Japan correspondent for the E-Journal
Kono to challenge for Kisei title
After the fourth round of the S League in the 45th Kisei tournament, Takao Shinji 9P was in the sole lead, but he slipped up in the final round, losing to Murakawa Daisuke 9P. Kono Rin won his final game, against Cho U, so he ended on 3-2, even with Takao, Murakawa Daisuke, and Ichiriki Ryo. In such a short league, multiple ties are common, but there are no play-offs. The higher-ranked player prevails, and this was Kono, who was number one. However, Takao, as number two, came second and so qualified for the irregular knock-out tournament that decides the challenger. Below are S League results since my last report and details of the knock-out.
(Aug. 20) Cho U 9P (W) beat Murakawa Daisuke 9P by resig.; Kono Rin 9P (B) beat Kyo Kagen 8P by resig.
(Aug. 31) Takao Shinji (B) beat Cho U 9P by half a point.
(Sept. 14) Murakawa (W) beat Ichiriki by 1.5 points.
(Sept. 21) Murakawa (W) beat Takao by 4.5 points.
(Sept. 24) Kono (W) beat Cho U by resig.; Ichiriki (W) beat Kyo Kagen by resig.
The play-off between the winners of the two B Leagues was held on September 19. Shibano (B) beat Mutsuura Yuta 7P by 3.5 points. Results that follow are those in the Tournament to Decide the Challenger, an irregular knock-out.
(Oct. 5) Shibano Toramaru Meijin (B), winner of the B Leagues, beat Hong Akiyoshi 3P (Kansai Ki-in), winner of the C League, by resig.
(Oct. 19) Yamashita Keigo (B), winner of A League, beat Shibano by resig.
(Oct. 30) Takao Shinji 9P (B), second in S League, beat Yamashita by resig.
(Nov. 9) (Best-of-three match to decide the challenger, Game 1). Takao (B) beat Kono, first in S League, by resig.
(Nov. 12) Kono (B) beat Takao by half a point. Kono started this “best-of-three” with a one-game advantage, so he won it 2-1. He is making his second successive challenge to Iyama Kisei.
New Meijin League
The new players in the 46th Meijin League are Anzai Nobuaki 7P, Motoki Katsuya 8P, and Yo Seiki 8P. Anzai has played in a Honinbo League, but is a debutant in the Meijin League. Motoki has played in three Honinbo leagues and has challenged for the title, but this is his first Meijin League. Yo is playing in his third Meijin League and had made five appearances in the Honinbo League. Only one round was completed by the end of the year. Results follow.
(Dec. 3) Ichiriki Ryo Gosei (B) beat Anzai by resig.
(Dec. 10) Kono Rin 9P (B) beat Yamashita Keigo 9P by resig.
(Dec. 14) Kyo (W) beat Shibano Toramaru Oza by half a point.
(Dec. 17) Yo Seiki 8P (B) beat Motoki by resig.
22nd Nong Shim Cup
The conclusion of the 21st Nong Shim Spicy Noodles Cup was delayed until August (see the first installment in this report), but the 22nd Cup got off to a start on schedule, though, like the final round of the previous cup, it was played on the net. So far, the first two rounds, that is, nine games have been played. As a tournament, it has been more even than usual, with no one player dominating. In fact, only one player, Gu Jihao of China, has won successive games. China has four wins to Korea’s three and Japan’s two; each country has two players left. The final round is scheduled for February 22 to 26.
Round 1
Game 1 (Oct. 13). Hong Kipyo 9P (Korea) (B) beat Fan Tingyu 9P (China) by resig.
Game 2 (Oct. 14). Kyo Kagen (Xu Jiayuan) 8P (Japan) (W) beat Hong 9P by resig.
Game 3 (Oct. 15). Gu Jihao 9P (China) (W) beat Kyo by resig.
Game 4 (Oct. 16). Gu (W) beat Kang Dongyun 9P (Korea) by resig.
Round 2
Game 5 (Nov. 20). Gu (W) beat Murakawa Daisuke 9P (Japan) by resig.
Game 6 (Nov. 21). Shin Minjun 9P (Korea) (W) beat Gu by half a point.
Game 7 (Nov. 22). Shibano Toramaru 9P (W) beat Shin by resig.
Game 8 (Nov. 23). Tang Weixing 9P (China) (B) beat Shibano by resig.
Game 9 (Nov. 24). Shin Jinseo 9P (Korea) (W) beat Tang by 4.5 points.
Tomorrow: Ichiriki wins Tengen; Shibano defends Oza; Ke Jie wins Samsung Cup
