American Go E-Journal » N.A. Go Convention

The Capital Go Club in metro Washington is “looking for partners in operation and strategic planning,” reports club organizer Edward Zhang. The club has been serving area go players since 2010, organizing nearly a dozen events with professional go players, team competitions among American, Taiwanese, Chinese and Korean players, friendly matches between AGA members and students at local schools, and the 2013 NA Go Convention (photo), which featured tournaments covering two weekends in New Jersey and Virginia, instruction by professional players and more. The club’s top priorities over the next year include “setting up official go program in local schools, facilitating visits by players from Asia and planning for the 2014 edition of the NA Go Convention,” says Zhang. “If you want to be part of these exciting projects, please let us know!” Volunteers don’t need to live in the Washington DC metro area, Zhang adds. “We currently have a small but energetic and talented team, and there will be multiple types of rewards for a job well done.” Reach Zhang at zhiyuanz@gmail.com.

Liu Xiaohan 7D (right) won the Bei Dou Xing Cup, the second leg of the recent North American Go Convention, held February 16-17 in Arlington, VA. Zhang Shujian 5D won the Expert division, Feng Wei 6K the Proficient division, Frederick Bao 13K the Intermediate, and Sarah Crites 20K (below left) the Novice.

Zhou Xinyu and Zheng Xiangnan won the Pair Go championship in DC despite handicap disadvantage. Notably, in the Pair Go semi-final, Yukino Takehara teamed up with Benjamin Coplon and bested her big brother Keiju Takahara and partner Ziyi Ge. The Ge/Takahara and Rongrong Zhang/Nathan Epstein pairs took 3rd place. In the NY/NJ NAGC Pair Go, Amy Wang 2D and Justin Ching 3D from the Feng Yun Go School won the final match against Yinyu Zhou and Wuhao Jiao; Ziyi Ge /Xinzeng Feng and Yingzhi Qian/Michael Zhaonian Chen tied for 3rd. Ge was extremely excited to play Pair Go, saying “It is so much fun, and you can feel the sweetest moment when your partner plays at the exact spot you want it.” Wuhao Jiao/Xinyu Zhou and Yingzhi Qian/ Michael Zhaonian Chen took 3rd places.

Ruxu Cao 7D showed his mastery of Blitz Go, topping the competition in both NAGC chapters. With his star performance and solid support from other teammates, Team Beijing, consisting of just nine visiting players from mainland China, took the NAGC Team champion title. Yuan Zhou directed the DC event; Zhiyuan ‘Edward’ Zhang was “Commissioner and Chief Judge” of the NAGC.
– photos by Joshua Guarino (except top right, by Liang Yu); Pair Go photos: Rongrong Zhang-Nathan Epstein (top left); Xiangnan Zheng-Xinyu Zhou (top right); Yukino Takehara-Benjamin Coplon (bottom left); Keijiu Takehara-Ziyi Ge (bottom right)
CORRECTION: The following correction was posted on 3/26/2013: In the NY/NJ NAGC Pair Go, Amy Wang 2D and Justin Ching 3D from the Feng Yun Go School won the final match against Yinyu Zhou and Wuhao Jiao; Ziyi Ge /Xinzeng Feng and Yingzhi Qian/Michael Zhaonian Chen tied for 3rd. Also: Click here for Joanne Missingham’s Interview on VOA during NA Go Convention and N.A.G.C photos & updates.

The North American Go Convention continues tonight as professional go players Myungwan Kim 9P and Joanne Missingham 6P (at right, playing Pair Go; click here for the game record) give lectures, play simuls or provide game reviews from 7-10p in Parsippany, NJ. The action shifts south tomorrow, moving to McLean, VA (8200 Greensboro Drive, Suite 900) and then to GMU in Arlington for the weekend (3351 Fairfax Dr.)

Results from the NAGC Days Inn Cup New York Metro Open: Open Division (6d and above): 1^st: Ruxu Cao 7d; 2^nd: Ruinan Wang 7d and Zeyu Xu 7d (tie). Expert Division (3d-5d): 1^st: Zhihong Ma  4d; 2^nd: Justin Ching 3d; 3^rd: Willis Huang  3d. Proficient Division (1k-2d): 1^st: Xinyu Zhou  1d; 2^nd: David Glekel  2d; 3^rd: Yunxiu Zhang  1k. Intermediate Division (12k-2k): 1^st: Dan Ambrose 4k; 2^nd: Barbara Huang 7k; 3^rd: Bab Crites 12k. Novice Division (13k and below): 1^st: Sarah Crites 28k; 2^nd: Eric Weiss 17k; 3^rd: James-Lee Meredith 18k. There were 33 players in the Dan and 1k Division, 16 players in the Kyu Division, for a total of 49 players. There were 17 players in the Blitz Go tournament, and eight in the Pair Go tournament.
Click here for the Dan Division Cross Tab and the Kyu Division Cross Tab. 
– Yue Zhang, Tournament Director; photo by Liang Yu

The North American Go Convention continues on Sunday, February 10. Cut-off time is 8:45A for the first round. “Drive safe” urges organizer Edward Zhang. Highlights include 3-4 rated games in the Open, awards for day-trippers 4-win trophies and 3-Win certificate), the Blitz Go Final, Pair Go Final and the Award Ceremony. Four pros are on hand: Myungwan Kim 9P, Joanne Missingham 6P, Andy Liu 1P and Stephanie Yin 1P. Click here for photos from Day One or here for more photos on Facebook.
Game records:
Round 1: zhaonian-chen-xuzeyu
Round 2: Cao-Ruxu-chen-zhaonian
Round 3:  wang-jun-chen-zhaonian
Round 4: zhaonian chen-wang ruinan

The North American Go Convention launched Friday night with welcoming speeches from organizers and professionals and simuls at the Days Inn Hotel in Parsippany, New Jersey. Action continues Saturday with tournaments, lectures, simuls and more. Call 703-888-9240 or 407- 810-4098 for info. photos by Errol Missingham; collage by Chris Garlock

Plans for this weekend’s North American Go Convention are proceeding as a winter storm bears down on the region. “Our three professionals have arrived on-site and we’ve arranged for shuttle service from both Newark Penn Station and the Park & Ride in Parsippany-Troy Hills,” says NAGC Commissioner Edward Zhang (at right with Joanne Missingham and her parents, Nan-Ping and Errol). Click here for a short video overview about the NAGC.

Shuttle sign-up is strongly encouraged so the NAGC volunteers can plan accordingly and reduce wait time. Players may also stay at the Days Inn Hotel on Friday if they wish to avoid traveling on Saturday, when the storm is forecast to hit. “Keep in mind that there is a second chapter of the NAGC in DC from February 13-17, with same three Open, Blitz and Pair Go tournaments,” adds Convention Director Yue Zhang 7D.

With the first-ever North American Go Convention just over a week away, over 110 players have now registered for the Feb. 8-17 event. The field is shaping up to be fairly strong, with 30 players 5 dan and above, another 32 players 1d-4d and 30 single-digit kyu players. The total prize purse is $3,170 and includes the NAGC Open, a Team Competition, Blitz Go and Pair Go (check here for complete, up-to-date info). The week-long event spans two weekends, beginning in Parsippany-Troy Hills, NJ (2/8-12) and then moving to Arlington, VA (2/13-17); click here for the full schedule. A one-day option offers up to seven games per day, with trophies, books, and certificates awarded to 3- and 4-win players. Yuan Zhou 7d will be etaching at the DC event as Joanne Missingham 6P (right) – who will be welcomed to DC by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office — can only teach on 2/13-14 due to a professional tournament game scheduled on 2/17 in Taiwan. Shuttle buses may be available to NJ from New York City; click here to sign up.

Registration for the upcoming N.A. Go Convention is nearing 100, reports organizer Edward Zhang. The week-long event February 8-17 spans two weekends, beginning in Parsippany-Troy Hills, NJ (2/8-12) and then moving to Arlington, VA (2/13-17); click here for the full schedule. Organizers are welcoming daytrippers by rewarding 3-win and 4-win players, and Zhang says that with $3,170 in cash prizes, plus trophies, books, convention certificates, and rank certificates, “everyone will win something!” Those “who can only make it one day, Saturday or Sunday, may see our event as a traditional one-day-four-round tournament, with a possibility of fifth and sixth rounds in Blitz or Pair Go at your discretion” adds Zhang. The pre-registration deadline for reduced rates has been extended to January 20. “Special thanks to Zhimin Zhang, president of Bei Dou Xing restaurant franchise in Hebei, China, for donating part of the cash prize pool,” Zhang adds. Transportation is being arranged for players traveling from New York to Parsippany; sign up here and “If there are enough requests, we will schedule a shuttle bus to pick up and drop off,” says Zhang.

The N.A. Go Convention next month is attracting players from as far away as China, reports organizer Edward Zhang. “At least half a dozen Chinese players with strengths equivalent to AGA 6 dan and higher have registered in the past week,” says Zhang.  They include Ruxu Cao (right), who won third place in the 2011 World Mind Sports Games amateur division, and Zhiyao Li, Heilongjiang Province Youth Go champion in 2004 and 2007. Click here to see who’s coming. Team spirit is also a big part of the Convention, which uses a “team score” measure similar to the Cotsen Open’s, in which individual player wins contribute to their team’s overall score as they compete for a $1,000 team prize in addition to individual awards and prizes. “Players don’t need to be all strong players, and they just need to do well in their own divisions,” Zhang explains. Though most teams will likely be made up of players from the same area/city, that’s not required. “All you need to do now is to find seven players and get them pre-registered, “ added Zhang. “You can come up with a team name later.”