American Go E-Journal » Columns

by John Power, Japan correspondent for the E-Journal

Ichiriki wins Tengen

After failing in five challenges to Iyama Yuta for top-seven titles, Ichiriki Ryo finally prevailed in his sixth challenge, which was for the 46th Tengen title. He now has two top-seven titles to his name.

First of all, Ichiriki had to overcome the redoubtable resistance of Kono Rin 9-dan, whom he defeated in the play-off to decide the challenger. The game was played on September 4, and Ichiriki (W) won by resignation. The results in the title match are detailed below. Ichiriki made a lucky start by scoring a half-point win, but Iyama fought back to take two games in a row. At this point, it looked like the same old story, but Ichiriki has acquired some tenacity. He scored two successive wins and won his second top-seven title, to add to the Gosei he won earlier in the year from Hane Naoki. Iyama, with his major triple crown of the three top titles, is still indisputably the number one, but Ichiriki is competing for the number two position with Shibano Toramaru.

Game 1 (Oct. 8). Ichiriki (B) by half a point.
Game 2 (Oct. 20). Iyama (B) by resig.
Game 3 (Nov. 27). Iyama (W) by resig.
Game 4 (Dec. 7). Ichiriki (W) by resig.
Game 5 (Dec. 16). Ichiriki (B) by resig.

Shibano defends Oza title

The 68th title match pitted two of the new leaders of Japanese go against each other: the 22-year-old Kyo Kagen 8P and the 20-year-old Shibano Toramaru Oza. The latter’s play in the Oza title match showed that he had recovered from the shock of losing the Meijin title. He managed to fend off Kyo’s challenge while dropping just one game, though he did seal his victory with a half-pointer.

Game 1 (Oct. 23). Shibano (W) by resig.
Game 2 (Nov. 6). Shibano (B) by resig.
Game 3 (Nov. 17). Kyo (B) by 5.5 points.
Game 4 (Dec. 3). Shibano (B) by half a point.

Ke Jie wins Samsung Cup; Ichiriki carries the flag for Japan

Four players from Japan took part in the 25th Samsung Cup, which, like other international tournaments these days, was played on the net. Ichiriki Ryo 8P and Kyo Kagen 8P were seeded for Japan. Sada Atsushi 7P won a seat in the open section and Mimura Tomoyasu 9P in the senior section respectively of the Japanese qualifying tournament. Once again, Ichiriki led the way for Japan, reaching the quarterfinals with two wins (the first win was on time, but he was ahead). Fittingly, the final featured the top two ranked players in the world: Shin Jinseo, who is number one, and number two, Ke Jie. The latter won 2-0, but Shin was handicapped in the first game by a move that was made accidentally. The cord of his mouse touched the “touch panel” of his notebook computer and triggered a ridiculous move: Black’s move 21 on the 1-8 point. There was a technical problem in the 21st Nong Shim Cup (see the first installment of this report), which led to a replayed game, but Shin not appeal, something that the Samsung rules for this tournament did not allow for anyway. In the second game, Shin took the lead but fell victim to an upset in the endgame. Ke picked up his fourth victory in the Samsung Cup and his eighth international victory overall. First prize is worth 300,000,000 won (about $272,000).

Selected results:

(Round 1, Oct. 27). Ichiriki Ryo 8P (Japan) (W) beat Gu Jihao 9P (China) on time; Shi Yue 9P (China) (W) beat Sada Atsushi 7P (Japan) by resig.; Kang Jihoon 2P (Korea) (W) beat Kyo Kagen 8P (Japan) by 1.5 points; Choi Jaeyoung 5P (Korea) (W) beat Mimura Tomoyasu 9P by resig.;

Round 2 (Oct. 28). Ichiriki (W) beat Shin Minjun by resig.; Ke Jie 9P (China) (W) beat Cho Hanseung 9P (Korea) by resig.; Shin Jinseo 9P (Korea) (W) beat Lian Xiao 9P (China) on time.

Quarterfinals (Oct. 30). Xie Erhao 9P (China) (B) beat Ichiriki by resig.; Yang Dingxin 9P (China) (B) beat Li Weiqing 8P (China) by resig.; Ke (B) beat Li Xuanhao 8P (China) by resig.; Shin Jinseo 9P (Korea) (W) beat Shi Yue by resig.

Semifinals (Oct. 31). Shin (W) beat Xie by resig,; Ke (W) beat Yang by resig.

Final
Game 1 (Nov. 2). Ke (W) by resig.
Game 2 (Nov. 3). Ke (B) by half a point.

Tomorrow: Sumire’s progress; Ida wins 5th Crown

by John Power, Japan correspondent for the E-Journal

Seki wins 45th King of New Stars title

This year’s title match was fought between Sada Atsushi 7P (aged 25) of the Kansai Ki-in and Seki Kotaro 3P (aged 18) of the Tokyo branch of the Nihon Ki-in Sada had recently earned promotion to 7P for winning a seat in the Honinbo League; this title is restricted to players 6P and under, but he had already qualified for the next term of the tournament before the promotion, so this was his second-last chance. He started out well with a win, but Seki made a strong comeback to win the next two games and secure his first title. Seki commented that winning this title made him feel he had “been rewarded” for his efforts, since it had been his main target, which he reached on his third attempt in the main tournament.

There was an unusual incident toward the end of the game. The contraption placed by the board to film the game for a net commentary suddenly started streaming the verbal commentary. Fortunately, officials were able to have the mistake rectified before the commentary got too personal. Results follow.

Game 1 (Sept. 18). Sada (W) by resig.
Game 2 (Sept. 28). Seki (W) by resig.
Game 3 (Oct. 16). Seki (W) by resig.

Cho U scores 1,000 wins

On November 2,Cho U 9P became the 28th player at the Nihon Ki-in to win 1,000 games. His record was 1,000 wins, 451 losses, 2 jigo, and 1 no-contest. His winning percentage of 68.9 is the best for 1,000-game winners. At 40 years nine months, he is the second youngest and he reached the landmark in 26 years seven months, the second quickest.

Fujisawa wins Young Carp in first for a woman player

The Hiroshima Aluminum Cup Young Carp Tournament is open to players 30 and under and 7-dan and under. First prize is 3,000,000 yen (about $28,800), which is about par for a tournament with limited participation.

The main tournament (for the top 16) was held at the Sotetsu Grand Fresa Hiroshima on November 21 and 22. Reaching the final were Fujisawa Rina, women’s triple crown, and Son Makoto 7P. Taking white, Fujisawa won by half a point and made history as the first woman professional in Japan to win an official tournament open to both male and female players. (Actually, Xie Yimin, then 3P, won the 1st Cup, but for the first five terms it was not an official tournament.)

Fujisawa Rina wins Women’s Honinbo

It was no surprise to see Fujisawa Rina emerge as the challenger to Ueno Asami in the 39th Women’s Honinbo title match, as she had already played in the title match six years in a row. She won the title three times but each time failed to make a successful defense. Against that, all her challenges were successful.

The match was highly competitive, with Fujisawa starting off well, then surrendering the lead to Ueno. After Fujisawa caught up again, the fate of the title was decided by the narrowest of margins. This came just three days after her Young Carp win by the same margin.

This was Fujisawa’s 14th title. She now held five titles: the Women’s Honinbo, Women’s Meijin, Women’s Hollyhock, and the Hakata Kamachi Cup, and the Young Carp. The only women’s titles missing are the Women’s Kisei (Suzuki Ayumi) and the Senko Cup (Ueno Asami). Results of the title match are given below.

Game 1 (Oct. 1). Fujisawa (B) by resig.
Game 2 (Oct. 18). Ueno (B) by resig.
Game 3 (Oct. 31). Ueno (W) by resig.
Game 4 (Nov. 7). Fujisawa (W) by 5.5 points.
Game 5 (Nov. 25). Fujisawa (B) by half a point.

Iyama wins Agon Kiriyama Cup

The final of the 27th Agon Kiriyama Cup was held at the Kyoto headquarters of the Agon Buddhist sect on October 3. Taking black, Iyama Yuta beat Yamashita Keigo 9P by resig. This is the fifth time Iyama has won this title; he is tied with Cho U for the record. It is also his 61st title, which moves him one ahead of Kobayashi and into sole third place. (Still ahead of him are Sakata Eio with 64 and Cho Chikun with 75.)

Ichiriki sets new record for Ryusei title

The final of the 29th Ryusei tournament was telecast on October 26. It featured a clash between the top two exponents of rapid go in Japan, Iyama Yuta and Ichiriki Ryo. Taking black, Ichiriki won by resignation after 221 moves. He set a new record for this tournament by winning it for the third year in a row, a first, and the fourth time overall, also a record. These two players have now met in the finals of five TV tournaments, and Ichiriki has a slight edge, having beat Iyama twice in this tournament and once, to two losses, in the NHK Cup.

Ichiriki leads Honinbo League

The first of the vacant seats in the 76th Honinbo League was decided on August 27. Taking black, Onishi Ryuhei 5P (aged 20) beat Kono Rin 9P by resig. (if the game had been played out, the margin would have been 1.5 points). This is Onishi’s first league place and he earned an automatic promotion to 7-dan (effective the following day).

The next two seats were decided on August 31. Tsuruyama Atsushi 8P (B) beat Ida Atsushi 8P by 6.5 points and Sada Atsushi 4P (W) beat Yo Seiki 8P by resig. Both these players will play in a league for the first time. Tsuruyama gave himself a good present on what was his 39th birthday. Sada (aged 24) earned himself an automatic promotion to 7-dan.

The new league started on October 8. After three rounds, Ichiriki Ryo is the only undefeated player. Results in the new league follow.

(Oct. 8) Shibano Toramaru Meijin (W) beat Sada Atsushi 7P by half a point; Kyo Kagen 8P (W) beat Tsuruyama Atsushi 8P by half a point.

(Oct. 15) Ichiriki (B) beat Hane Naoki 9P by resig.
(Oct. 22) Onishi Ryuhei 7P (W) beat Ko Iso 8P by resig.
(Nov. 5) Hane Naoki 9P (B) beat Koi Iso 9P by resig.
(Nov. 12) Ichiriki (B) beat Tsuruyama Atsushi 8P by resig.
(Nov. 20) Kyo Kagen 8P (W) beat Shibano Toramaru Oza by resig.
(Nov. 26) Sada Atsushi 7P (B) beat Onishi Ryuhei 7P by resig.
(Dec. 10) Ichiriki (W) beat Ko Iso by resig.
(Dec. 18) Shibano (B) Onishi by resig.; Hane (B) beat Kyo by resig.

Tomorrow: New Meijin League; Kono to challenge for Kisei; 22nd Nong Shim Cup

by John Power, Japan correspondent for the E-Journal

Iyama regains Meijin title and triple crown
With both the challenger, Iyama Yuta, and the champion, Shibano Toramaru, holding three of the top-seven titles, the 45th Meijin title match represented the peak of Japanese go. The same was true of the preceding Honinbo title match. Unfortunately for Shibano, Iyama seems to have the edge on him in two-day games: he won the earlier match 4-1.

The first game of the match was played, as has been the practice recently, at the Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo on August 25 and 26. Japanese tournaments, unlike international ones, have resumed face-to-face play, though the usual precautions (wearing face masks, checking body temperatures, avoiding crowded rooms) are observed. Iyama, who drew white in the nigiri, took the lead in the opening and early middle game, but he made a mistake that threw the game into confusion. A large ko led to a large-scale trade; the game became a half-pointer, but Iyama just managed to fend off the defending champion. A slip by Shibano let Iyama secure a win by 1.5 points. The game concluded after 275 moves.

The second game was played at the Takarazuka Hotel in Takarazuka City, Hyogo Prefecture, on September 15 and 16. Shibano (W) played well and seemed to have victory within his grasp, but he slipped up and allowed his opponent to pull off an upset. Iyama won by resignation after 213 moves. Shibano’s grip on his title had been considerably loosened.

The third game was held at an historical building, the Yamaguchi City Saikotei, on September 23 and 24. Like the second game, Shibano (B) had the lead, but Iyama make a tricky attack in an attempt to stage another upset. He almost succeeded, but this time Shibano just barely managed to ride out the storm. Iyama resigned after 211 moves. This win could have become a turning point in the series.

The fourth game was played at the Todaya, a hotel in Toba City, Mie Prefecture on September 29 and 30. This was Shibano’s chance to even the score. He did his best to capture a large black group, but Iyama came out on top after some complicated fighting, forcing Shibano to resign after 145 moves. The title-holder was now faced with a kadoban.

The fifth game was played at the Atami Sekitei inn in Atami City, Shizuoka Prefecture, on October 13 and 14. Playing white, Iyama was in outstanding form. He dominated the game and forced Shibano to resign after 178 moves. After a gap of two years, Iyama was Meijin again. This was the fifth time he had won this title and the third time that he had secured the big triple crown of Kisei, Meijin, and Honinbo. He also held the Tengen, so he had four of the top seven titles. It was his 60th title—he drew even with Kobayashi Koichi in third place. At 31 years of age, he is still the central figure on the Japanese tournament scene.

China wins 21st Nong Shim Cup
The much-delayed final round (originally scheduled for Shanghai in February 2020) of the 21st Nong Shim Spicy Noodles Cup was held on the net in August. Both Korea and Japan were down to their last player, so China, which had suffered only one loss in the first two rounds, was the overwhelming favorite. Brilliant play by Park Junghwan of Korea, however, made the contest an exciting one right to the finish.

The first game of the round was a clash between the Japanese and Chinese number ones; as usual, victory went to Park Junghwan of Korea. He went on to eliminate three Chinese players as well, so the match became a showdown with the Chinese number one. Along the way, however, there was a complication: the game between Park and Fan Yuting of China ended up as a no-result that was the first of its kind. In the endgame, Park had the lead, but when he clicked with his mouse to play move 158, there was no response; he was in byo-yomi and lost on time. After the Korean and Chinese officials conferred, it was decided to declare the game a no-result. Park won the replay comfortably. As the result shows (see below), Game 13 was a tight contest, but Xie missed a clever move that would have made it a half-pointer that could have gone either way. The reverse happened in the final: this time Park missed a brilliancy that would have made the game favorable for him. Ke’s win secured victory for the Chinese team for the second year in a row and the eighth time overall. First prize is 500 million won (about $420,000). Results are given below.

Game 10 (Aug. 18). Park Junghwan 9P (Korea) (B) beat Iyama Yuta 9P (Japan) by resig.
Game 11 (Aug. 19). Park (B) beat Mi Yuting 9P (China) by resig.
Game 12-1 (Aug. 20). Park (W) v. Fan Yuting 9P (China): no result.
Game 12-2 (Aug. 21). Park (B) won by resig.
Game 13 (Aug. 21). Park (W) beat Xie Erhao 9P (China) by 1.5 points.
Game 14 (Aug. 22). Ke Jie 9P (China) (W) beat Park by half a point.

Ichiriki does well in Ing Cup
The Ing Cup, which is held every four years in the year of the Olympics, shared the fate of the other international tournaments, but, unlike the Olympics, did manage to be staged in 2020. The first three rounds of the 9th Cup were held on the net from September 8 to 11. For Japanese fans, the welcome news was the success of Ichiriki Ryo, who won all his games and qualified for the semifinals.

This tournament was founded by the Taiwanese industrialist Ing Chang-Ki, partly as a means of promoting the rules he developed. It features the biggest prize for international tournaments, $400,000. The time allowance is three hours per player, with sudden death if your time runs out. However, you can buy extra time twice, at the rate of 20 minutes for two points of komi. Komi is eight points, with black winning a tie.

A total of 30 players competed this year. There were six from Japan, of whom Iyama Yuta, Shibano Toramaru, and Murakawa Daisuke lost in the first round. Kono Rin and Kyo Kagen lost in the second round. Selected results are given below. Note that Tang Weixing 9P, the previous winner, and Park Junghwan 9P (previous runner-up) were seeded into the second round.

Round 1 (Sept. 8). Gu Zihao 9P (China) (B) beat Iyama Yuta 9P (Japan) by 3 points; Yang Dingxin 9P (China) beat Shibano Toramaru 9P (Japan) by 5 points; Ichiriki Ryo 8P (Japan) (W) beat Mi Yuting 9P (China) by resig.; Jiang Weijie 9P (China) (W) beat Murakawa Daisuke 9P (Japan) by 1 point; Kono Rin 9P (Japan) (B) beat Lin Lixiang 8P (Ch. Taipei) by resig.; Kyo Kagen 8P (Japan) (B) beat Dang Yifei 9P (China) by resig.; Ke Jie 9P (China) beat Kim Jiseok 9P (Korea); Tao Xinran 8P (China) beat Lee Donghoon 9P (Korea); Xie Ke 8P (China) beat Ali Jabarin 2P (Europe); An Soonjoon 8P (Korea) beat Li Wei 5P (Ch. Taipei); Shin Jinseo 9P (Korea) beat Xie Erhao (China); Fan Tingyu (China) beat Shin Minjun (Korea); Xu Haohong 6P (Ch. Taipei) beat Byun Sangil (Korea); Zhao Chenyu 8P (China) beat Ryan Li 1P (USA).

Round 2 (Sept. 9): Ichiriki (B) beat An by resig.; Gu (B) beat Kono by 3 points; Xu (W) beat Kyo by resig.; Tao beat Tang; Ke beat Jiang; Xie beat Yang; Shin beat Fan; Zhao beat Park.

Round 3 (Sept. 11): Ichiriki (B) beat Tao by resig.; Xie beat Ke; Shin beat Gu; Zhao beat Xu.

NOTE: This is the first of a series of 2020 year-end reports on Japanese go news we’ll be publishing over the next week. Tomorrow: Ueno wins Senko Cup; Zhou wins 3rd Go Seigen Cup; Fujisawa wins 1st Hakata Kamachi Cup