Ryan Li 3P, a North American Go Federation certified professional, defeated European Go Federation professional Ilya Shikshin 4P by 2-0 in the best-of-three final of the 1st Transatlantic Pro League on August 15. Li wins the €1,000 prize along with the Transatlantic Pro League title. A recording of the live commentary on Twitch can be viewed by clicking here.
In the match to decide the 3rd place winner, Artem Kachanovskyi 2P defeated Tanguy Le Calve 1P by 2-1. For full details on the Transatlantic Professional Go League, visit the official tournament website.
The San Diego Go Club participated in the Japanese Friendship Garden’s celebration of its ancestors at the annual Toro Nagashi Festival in honor of the tradition of Bon Odori. Toro Nagashi (floating lanterns) is a ceremony in honor of those who have passed. The floating lanterns commemorate loved ones and wish them peace.
SDGC took over the exhibition hall during the festival to teach Go, recruit new members, and demonstrate how the game is played. Over 65 copies of “The Way to Go” (provided by the American Go Foundation) were handed out to those festival participants who asked for a Go lesson. All were required to wear masks in the indoor spaces. The eight-hour event, attended by thousands of people on a perfect 73-degree San Diego day, also included food vendors, dancers, singers, sales of Japanese products, and ended with the traditional floating of lanterns down the creek running through the garden.
For over ten years, the SDGC has been giving weekly Go lessons at the Japanese Friendship Garden (JFG), located in Balboa Park. Based on it volunteer work, the SDGC is invited to participate in the JFG’s special celebrations.
-report and photos provided by Ted Terpstra, President of the San Diego Go Club
The final round of the 1st Transatlantic Professional Go League will feature a showdown between North American pro Ryan Li 3P and European pro Ilya Shikshin 4P. The players will compete for a first-place prize of €1,000.
In the semi-final round, Li defeated Artem Kachanovskyi 2P and Shikshin defeated Tanguy Le Calve 1P to earn their seats at the final table. Kachanovskyi and Le Calve will play on Saturday, August 14 to determine the third- and fourth-place finishers. The final best-of-three match between Li and Shikshin will begin on Sunday, August 15.
All games will begin at 11AM EDT (5PM CEST). The European Go Federation will broadcast the match with professional commentary on its Twitch channel. For full details on the Transatlantic Professional Go League, visit the official website.
The Evanston Go Club returned to in-person competition with a tournament on Saturday, July 31. “Turnout was excellent, with 36 players ranging from 30 kyu to 8 dan, including 15 first-timers and seven players from out of state,” says club president and TD Mark Rubenstein. “I wasn’t sure whether attendance would be low due to COVID concerns, or high due to people eager to get out and play in person. But I had an inkling it would be the latter, since attendance at our weekly club meetings in the last month has been much higher than normal.” Rubenstein also notes that this may be a very good time for clubs to reach out to new players. “We’re seeing lots of first-time players, and they’re coming back each week!” Winners received cash prizes, and the winner of the low dan band also received a copy of Albert Yen’s new book “Overcoming Human Igo” (available on Amazon).
Results: High dan 1st place: Albert Yen High dan 2nd place: Alexander Qi Low dan (three-way tie): Wanqi Zhu, Lee Huynh, Sungsoo Kim Low kyu 1st place: Aaron Soley Low kyu 2nd place: Mike Neigebauer High kyu 1st place: Robert Qi High kyu 2nd place: Lewis Herman
Yoonyoung Kim 8P won her two opening games against Sujang Kim 7P and Yoo Changhyuk 9P on July 26 and 27 at the 15th Gigi Auction Cup veteran-women Go Challenge in Seoul, Korea. Each team, a women’s team and a veterans team – with players all 45 years old or above – has 12 players and sends out one competitor at a time. All games are live on BadukTV and can be found on their YouTube channel. On Monday morning, August 2nd, Kim 8P will take on Lee SungJae 9P hoping for a three-win streak, which will mean an additional prize. The winning team prize is $100,000 (120 million won). Since 2007, the women’s team has won eight times (the 1st, 4th, 6th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 14th) and the veterans team has won six times.
Today is the final day to bid in the auction to benefit the AGF. Participants can bid on Go lessons from online teachers, dojo membership, Go equipment, Go books, old Go periodicals, and more! Players can also donate directly to the AGF to help support the amazing projects they do every year. Funds donated to the AGF support the following programs, and more:
Send free Go equipment to hundreds of schools across the nation
Help teachers to purchase additional equipment on a matching basis
Provide matching startup funds for new Go programs for children
Publish The Way to Go, the most widely read Go book in English
Distribute free copies of Go As Communication, a book about teaching Go
Purchase specialized equipment for Go instructors in schools
Cover thousands of dollars of scholarships for kids and youth players at the Go Congress
Bring the AGF Teacher of the Year to the Go Congress
Grant annual college scholarships to players who promote go in their communities
Provide youth scholarships to attend the AGA Summer Go Camps
Maintain the KGS server as a go owned and operated community
The NYGHS is proud to announce the conclusion of our first official tournament. The tournament ran smoothly despite the unconventional format. Participants spent their first competition day, June 27th, competing for a seed in the second day. On the second competition day, which took place on July 3rd, players were placed into brackets based on their seeds and competed for first, second, and third place in their respective divisions. All tournament participants were given a chance to play on the second competition day regardless of how they had initially performed.
Totaling 32 players, participants were split into three divisions with each division featuring a $75 prize for first and a $50 prize for second. Top three players in each division will also receive a one month silver subscription to the NYIG YouTube channel. The tournament concluded with a first place finish from Tony Tang 7d in the Dan Division after his win against runner-up Eric Yoder 6d.
Full Results: Division A: 1st place – Tony Tang 7D 2nd place – Eric Yoder 6D 3rd place – Jate Greene 3D
Division B: 1st place – Albert Tang 1K 2nd place – Michael Sherman 2K 3rd place – Jamie Tang 5K
Division C: 1st place – Della Tang 12K 2nd place – Benjamin Lo 9K 3rd place – Ajay Dheeraj 14k
“Thank you so much to all our engaged participants who were able to make the tournament possible,” says Patrick Zhao. “We will do our best to provide and improve upon events such as these in the future. After other summer Go events, namely the e-Go Congress, stay on the lookout for the return of the NY GO League. We hope to see you soon!”
Above, Mitani 7p and Tormanen 1p. Photos provided by Nihon Kiin.
Event 1 – August 2 2021, US Eastern time 21:00 to 22:30. Lecture for kyu players by Mitani Tetsuya 7p (三谷哲也) and Antti Tormanen 1p. This pair has frequently visited Europe and given many popular lectures since 2012. This event is limited to the first 100 people. Register for this webinar.
Above, Taijiri 5p. Photo provided by Nihon Kiin.
Event 2 – August 7 2021 US Eastern time 21:00 to 22:30. Interactive AI play for kyu players with Tajiri Yuto 5p (田尻悠人). All participants will join in to play with AI, led by Mr. Taijiri who will also provide Q&A, quizzes, and commentary. Register ahead of time for this webinar.
Additional events will be forthcoming. Please check INAF website and on AGA e-journal for announcements.
Lecture by Tsuruyama Atsushi 8p, a student of Cho Chikun, on “Key points of Capturing Race” (single-digit kyu to 4d players);
Lecture by Michael Redmond 9p on “Technical Improvements” (dan players);
Lecture by Mitani Tetsuya 7p and Antti Tormanen 1p on “Understand Go Rules and How to Play on 9×9” (beginners);
Lecture by Ichiriki Ryo 9p, commentary on his recent games (all players). This will be presented on YouTube.
A summer tournament was held at Umstead State Park in Raleigh, NC on July 11, 2021. Twenty four Go players participated. This was the Triangle Go Group’s first paired tournament in nearly 2 years. In keeping with tradition, all entry fees were returned to the players as prize money.
In the very competitive Open Section, there was a 3 way tie for first place honors: Jeff Kuang, Nianci Gan and Sheng (Thomas) Huo each racked up 3 wins and 1 loss. Second place was earned by Xiaoping Wu. Strengths in the top band ranged from 1d to 4d.
Players enjoyed typical North Carolina summer weather that varied from comfortably warm to occasional late day showers, perfect for playing Go. Tournament Director Jeff Kuang ran the show smoothly and pairings appeared quickly. Charles Alden provided invaluable offsite support. A pizza lunch was provided by the Triangle Go Group, along with donuts and iced water.
First place in Section B was captured by Leroy Anderson III with an impressive 3-1 record, losing only to a strong player from the Open Section. Justin Blank placed second with 2 wins and 2 losses. Section C was won by Tom Roncoli, finishing the day with a 3 and 1 tally, and second place was shared by 4 players each winning 2 games: Stephen Gilbert, Andrew Thieman, Harrison Pedigo and Bob Bacon.
The only perfect record of the day was attained by Justin Su in Section D, handily winning all 4 of his games. Second place in Section D was awarded to Russel Herman with a 3-1 performance.
The annual New York Youth Open (NYYO) will take place on Saturday, August 7, 2021 in the KGS AGA Tournament Room. The NYYO is a one-day, 4-round open Go tournament for all players under the age of 18. The tournament will begin with a short opening ceremony online at 11:30 – 11:45 AM EDT on Saturday, August 7, 2021. There is no rank requirement to enter.
The top three players in each division (based on rank) will receive certificates and trophies. For registration, schedule, and rules, tournament video requirements, please visit the website. Registration will close on August 4, 2021. Interested players can also join other young fighters preparing for the tournament at the NYIG summer Go camp.
INAF and Nihon Kiin upcoming events
Wednesday July 21, 2021
The Iwamoto North America Foundation (INAF) and the Nihon Kiin announce two upcoming joint online events. Anyone may sign up on a first-come-first-served basis.
Event 1 – August 2 2021, US Eastern time 21:00 to 22:30. Lecture for kyu players by Mitani Tetsuya 7p (三谷哲也) and Antti Tormanen 1p. This pair has frequently visited Europe and given many popular lectures since 2012. This event is limited to the first 100 people. Register for this webinar.
Event 2 – August 7 2021 US Eastern time 21:00 to 22:30. Interactive AI play for kyu players with Tajiri Yuto 5p (田尻悠人). All participants will join in to play with AI, led by Mr. Taijiri who will also provide Q&A, quizzes, and commentary. Register ahead of time for this webinar.
Additional events will be forthcoming. Please check INAF website and on AGA e-journal for announcements.
Go to the INAF website to sign up: http://www.inaf-go.org/2021/07/sign-up-for-joint-inaf-nihon-kiin-online-events/
Zoom links will be sent to all registrants by the end of July.