American Go E-Journal » U.S. Go Congress

“Minnesota, home of the 2015 US Go Congress, celebrated its’ annual fishing opener over the weekend,” reports Congress Director Josh Larson. A guided fishing tour is among the traditional day-off options for this year’s Go Congress.  Discounted Go Congress registrations will expire June 1st.  Click here to register and pay now to take advantage of early bird rates “and while you’re there, vote for your favorite day-off activities,” Larson urges.
photo courtesy Pioneer Press Archives

Registration has just launched for the 2015 US Go Congress, the biggest go event of the year. The Go Congress will take place August 1-9 at St. Thomas University in St. Paul, Minnesota in the Anderson Student Center. “St. Thomas is nestled along the Mississippi River, with easy access to both downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul,” reports Congress Co-Organizer Aaron Broege. “At St. Thomas, you’ll be just two blocks away from over 100 miles of bike and running paths that run along the river, through the cities, and around the region’s urban lakes, which are bustling with activity during the summer.”

Click here to register or follow @tcgocongress for latest updates.

The Anderson Student Center (left) is a state-of-the-art facility, opened in 2012, “with beautiful rooms for competitive play, professional lectures, and other Congress activities,” Broege adds. The main playing room in the Woulfe Alumni Hall, with carpeted flooring and natural lighting, “will provide a great environment for competitive play in the U.S. Open Tournament.” The three-floor structure houses the cafeteria where attendees will take their meals, as well as numerous locations throughout the building for socializing and enjoying time with friends. For housing, attendees can choose between standard dorm rooms or suite-styled (pictured) housing on campus.

“When you are taking a break from playing go, the Twin Cities offer many activities for enjoyment and relaxation,” says Broege. “Minneapolis and St. Paul boast an attractive balance between urban living and the joys of nature. The easy-to-use Nice Ride bike sharing system will allow you to easily jump on a bike and see the beauty of the Twin Cities. Catch a Twin’s game at Target Stadium. Take the light rail down to the Mall of America and enjoy a rollercoaster ride at Nickelodeon Universe. Check out the great theater, music, and art that the Twin Cities has to offer. There is so much to experience that is easily within reach from our home base at St. Thomas University.”

New York University Game Center Director Frank Lantz’ keynote speech at this year’s US Go Congress (Game Theorist Frank Lantz on why go should be “A little less Tang Dynasty and a little more NASCAR” 8/13 EJ) is now available online. Click here for a video of the talk, here for a Powerpoint version and here for a PDF. Lantz says he’s interested in “continu(ing) to be involved in helping grow and promote go worldwide.”

The 2014 US Open Masters tournament has now been rated, and the other Congress tournaments are expected to follow suit soon. “We are
cleaning up the last few membership issues and glitches in the data,” said AGA President Andy Okun.  “I hope to have the games from the US Open rated within the coming week, with the Die Hard, Self-Paired and Midnight Madness very close behind.  I am grateful for everyone’s patience.” Okun said that the kinds of issues that sometimes delay ratings “…errant digits in AGA ids, getting everyone’s renewals and new memberships processed, handling overseas guests and the like…” are amplified in a tournament with more than 300 players like the US Open. Watch the EJ for news about Congress ratings.
photo of the 2014 US Open main playing area by Chris Garlock

Terri Schurter 9K posted her best-ever US Go Congress tournament results this year, taking second place in the 9K division. The retired high school art teacher (at left) from Ewing, New Jersey, is a longtime go player who’s taken up fiber arts in retirement and could be seen calmly stitching together hexagonal pieces of fabric throughout the weeklong Congress. “I decided to document my stitching by photographing my progress each day on a go board,” she writes on her Hexy Lady blog. “I think that stitching throughout the week calmed my nerves,” Schurter told the E-Journal. “I find it to be a form of meditation, so it may have helped me to maintain a calm mind.  Stitching during games is of questionable value, though sometimes I could not resist the urge with adequate time on my clock.”
photos by Chris Garlock (left) and Terri Schurter

The 2014 US Open crosstab has been updated with nearly 60 game records sent in by players. Deadline for submitting game records is this Friday, August 29; email them to journal@usgo.org. Games must be in sgf format with all game info complete, including both players’ full names, and the round number(s); also be sure to name the file in this format: US-Open_Rd1-Su-Kierulf (white player first). The US Open Masters Division crosstab has also been updated with game records of the top-board games.
photo: at the US Open; photo by Dahye Lee

Photographer Sarah Small’s album of 31 images of the 2014 US Pair Go Championships is now posted on the AGA’s Facebook page. Small brings an original and creative eye to the highly popular go variant first introduced in 1990.
photo by Sarah Small  

Response to our request for US Open (or Masters Division) game records from last week’s US Go Congress has been so enthusiastic that we’re extending the deadline one week. Over 50 games have already been sent in for posting to the official US Open crosstab, so you can check out how your friends (and/or opponents) played (sometimes with variations and comments from pros at the Congress). Games must be in sgf format with all game info complete, including both players’ full names, and the round number(s); also be sure to name the file in this format: US-Open_Rd1-Su-Kierulf (white player first). Email game records by midnight next Friday, August 29 to journal@usgo.org.
– photo by Nate Eagle

Reminder to players in last week’s US Open (or Masters Division) tournaments to send in your game record(s) and we’ll add it (them) to the official US Open crosstab. Thanks to Anders Kierulf (at right), Keith Arnold, Andrew Hall and William Luff for sending in their games. Games must be in sgf format with all game info complete, including both players’ full names, and the round number(s); also be sure to name the file in this format: US-Open_Rd1-Su-Kierulf (white player first). Email game records by this Friday, August 22 to journal@usgo.org.
– photo by Nate Eagle