The only player to go 3-0 in a strong 10-player Open section, King Bi 5d won the 2022 San Diego Go Championship last weekend. In a four-way tie for second place were Yifan Qu 4d, Aiyang Lu 7d, Yingxu Zhu 6d, and Yixian Zhou 6d, all with 2-1 records. Yifan Qu and Aiyang Lu were declared second and third respectively in the Open based on tiebreakers and took home trophies and cash awards.
Prize money for all sections totaled more than $800.
There was a three-way tie at 3-1 for the leaders of the Handicap Section. By tie-breakers, the results were:
1st: Roxin Cao 1d; 2nd: Isaiah Bird 1d; 3rd: Pasco Kwok 2d.
The single-digit kyu section had 27-single-digit kyu players, so it was divided into two divisions. The top three finishers in both divisions were awarded cash prizes.
1st Division: 1st: Les Lanphear 2k, AGA Board member (it was his first trophy in more than 50-years of playing go!); 2nd: Angel Zhou 2k, and Pete Schumer 2k, who was recognized for coming the furthest: from Vermont.
2nd division: 1st: David Baran 6k, the only player to go 4-0 & just moved to SD; 2nd: Lucia Moscola 9k; and 3rd: Jackson Hranek 7k.
Double-Digit Section:
1st: David Saponara 16k, president of the host San Diego Chess Club; 2nd: Donovan Chen 20k; and Rain Zhang 25k.
Nine-year-old Roxin took home a second trophy for becoming the U16 2022 Boys San Diego Go Champion. Angel – also 9 – won her second trophy of the day for being the U16 2022 Girls San Diego Go Champion.
Prizes for the youngsters included those from Yellow Mountain Imports (magnetic go boards, traveling boards, go stones, wooden bowls…). Rubio’s Coastal Grill also provided a meal voucher for it’s famous fish tacos for every youth in attendance.
Five-year-old Ken Lin collected a prize for being the youngest player in the tournament, a SDGC tradition. And “Yes, he did win a game,” reports TD Ted Terpstra.
Covid precautions were followed, with all players and spectators asked to wear masks (except when posing for an E-Journal picture) and be vaccinated. Most go tables had only one game on them and players could take the boards and stones outside to play on picnic tables on a perfect 72-degree San Diego May day.
“SDGC thanks its sponsors, Yellow Mountain Imports, Rubio’s Coast Grill, and State Farm Insurance,” Terpstra says.
SDGC will be hosting the fifth annual California Go Championship on the Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving, again at the San Diego Chess Club.
