Bian Wenkai 2P, a young pro from the Nihon Ki-in, visited the Seattle Go Center from March 23 to March 28. Originally from Shanghai, Mr. Bian is fluent in Japanese and Chinese, and also speaks some English. 
A friendly and generous teacher, Bian Sensei visited the McDonald International School Go Club, the Zoka Coffeehouse group, and played against a team of players at Nick Sibicky’s DDK Class at the Seattle Go Center. He gave a lecture on Sunday afternoon, replaying an old game that he lost by a half point, and a more recent tournament game that he won. He also played simultaneous games four times at the Go Center. Forty-nine people visited the Go Center during the Tuesday when Bian Wenkai was there. Report and photo by Brian Allen
American Go E-Journal
Nihon Ki-in Pro visits Seattle Go Center
Monday April 3, 2017
AGA Go Camp Set for Week Before Congress – Outside San Diego
Thursday March 30, 2017
The AGA Go Camp is moving west this year, and will be held at Schoepe Scout Camp at Lost Valley, just outside of San Diego, from July 30th to August 5th. Myungwan Kim 9P will return as the instructor, and Fernando Rivera, Wenguang Wang, and Yanping Zhao will be camp directors. The location, in the mountains above Anza-Borrego State Park, and surrounded by 1,500 acres of national forest, will give kids a taste of the outdoors. The camp features many activities, including high-wire walking, hiking trails, horse-back riding, two swimming pools, boating, and shooting ranges. “During our drive around the camp, I saw herds of deer wandering about. Birds, and other critters are frequent visitors of the camp also,” reports Congress Director Ted Terpstra. “There are native American artifacts on site including rocks where they ground the grain into flour. This is the flagship camp of the Boy Scouts in southern California. I was impressed with the care that has gone into the maintenance of the facilities. It certainly gives an entirely different feeling compared to the packed freeways of southern California.” Camp will be the week before the US Go Congress, and a two hour drive from the site. Youth of all ranks can come and learn from a pro, improve their skills, and then come to compete in the US Open the following week. Airport pick up is available in San Diego for unaccompanied minors. The AGF is again offering a range of scholarships. Youth who played in either the Redmond Cup or the NAKC are eligible for $400 scholarships, and the winning teams in the School Teams Tournament will also receive full scholarships to camp. For more info about the location click here, for pricing and registration info, click here. – Paul Barchilon EJ Youth Editor. Photo by Ted Terpstra.
NJ tourney on Saturday offers free registration, pro game reviews
Monday March 27, 2017
The Confucius Institute of Rutgers University (CIRU), together with the Feng Yun Go School, will host a 3-round 
tournament in New Brunswick, New Jersey, this Saturday, April 1st. Doors open at 11a. Thanks to support from the CIRU, players of all strengths are welcome to participate free of charge; register online using Eventbrite no later than Thursday, March 30 to guarantee a spot.
tournament in New Brunswick, New Jersey, this Saturday, April 1st. Doors open at 11a. Thanks to support from the CIRU, players of all strengths are welcome to participate free of charge; register online using Eventbrite no later than Thursday, March 30 to guarantee a spot.Participants winning all three of their games will receive both a Rutgers T-shirt and also a performance rank certificate signed by Feng Yun 9p.
As an added bonus, Feng Yun 9p will provide game reviews between rounds. “Often players win or lose with little understanding of why, and this tournament will provide a teacher to shed some light,” notes tournament director, Paul Matthews. “We think that the combination of competition and instruction is important, and everyone is invited to come see.”
See the tournament webpage for more information.
– Brian Kirby
– Brian Kirby
School Teams Deadline April 8th
Monday March 27, 2017
Registration for the AGHS 2017 North American School Team Tournament is open until April 8th. “Grab two friends and represent your high school, club, or language school,” urges AGHS Promotions Head Albert Yen. “Any non-go institution is eligible to compete, and there is no cap on the number of teams per institution. The tournament will be held on KGS; all participants are eligible for an AGA summer Go camp scholarship. Prizes include cash, trophies/medals, and AGHS custom T-shirts for the winning teams.” For this year’s official STT rules click here. Register by April 8th here. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Image by April Ye.
Latest AGA pro videos: Jennie Shen 2P on Master vs Tang Weixing 9P; Michael Redmond 9P on his Kiriyama Cup game vs. Kobayashi Izumi 6P
Monday March 27, 2017
In the latest AGA Master Review Series, Jennie Shen 2P, hosted by Andrew Jackson, translates Meng Tailing 6P’s 
commentary and adds her own analysis of Master/AlphaGo’s game against Tang Weixing 9P.
And in the latest Redmond’s Reviews, Michael Redmond 9P and Chris Garlock, American Go E-Journal Managing Editor, review Redmond’s recent Kiriyama Cup match against Kobayashi Izumi 6p. See the game record below for additional comments/variations. Both videos are produced by Andrew Jackson and Michael Wanek
South Central Go Tournament draws 38 Players from four states
Saturday March 25, 2017
The 2017 South Central Go Tournament was held in Dallas on February 18-19 drew 38 players from four states – 13 in the 
Open Section and 25 in the Handicap Section. There were six rounds played. In the Open Section, the winner was Bulin Zheng, 6d; second place Muzhen Ai, 7d; third place, Mark Ma, 5d. In the Handicap Section, top band, the winner was Tim Cox, 2k; second place Jeremy Fernandez, 1k; third place Anthony Long, 1k.
– report/photos by Bob Gilman
Ketner and Pitchford Top Davis/Sac Spring tourney
Saturday March 25, 2017
The Davis/ Sacramento Go Club held its Spring Tournament on March 18th at the South Natomas library in Sacramento. 
There was a good field of eleven players with groups from Reno and the bay area. The Upper Division was won by Jonathan Ketner, 1d (left), with a 3-1 score and Travis Pitchford, 3k (right), also 3-1, lead the Lower Division by a tie break.
There was a good field of eleven players with groups from Reno and the bay area. The Upper Division was won by Jonathan Ketner, 1d (left), with a 3-1 score and Travis Pitchford, 3k (right), also 3-1, lead the Lower Division by a tie break.– Willard Haynes
New York pros visit Evanston club
Saturday March 25, 2017
New York City-based professionals Ryan Li 1p and Stephanie Yin 1p paid a visit to the Evanston Go Club on Wednesday night,
taking time out from their vacation in Chicago. Turnout at the club was higher than usual, with 14 players attending. Li played 6 simuls and Yin played 4.
taking time out from their vacation in Chicago. Turnout at the club was higher than usual, with 14 players attending. Li played 6 simuls and Yin played 4.
“I asked Stephanie what was the most number of simultaneous games she ever played,” said club president Mark Rubenstein. “Nothing could have prepared me for the answer: 30! Thanks to Ryan and Stephanie for taking time out from their busy schedule to visit our club! Attendance was great, and we even saw some players who had never come to the club before. Special thanks to Simon Guo for making the arrangements.”Korea’s Park Jeong Hwan 9P wins 2017 World Go Championship, claims “best player” title
Friday March 24, 2017
Staking his claim as the best go player in the world, Park Jeong Hwan 9P of Korea has won the 2017 World Go
Championship, defeating Mi Yu Ting 9P of China in the final on March 24. In third place was DeepZenGo with one win and Yuta Iyama 9P of Japan took fourth place. Details, including the tournament results table and game records, are here. The Nihon Kiin sponsored the tournament to decide “the best go player in the world.” Park called the opportunity to compete in the tournament “an honor” and said that it was “a good opportunity to improve my skills.”a good opportunity to improve my skills.a good opportunity to improve my skills.think that this is a good opportunity to improve my skills.
New AlphaGo doc premieres at NYC Tribeca filmfest
Saturday April 1, 2017
Man is pitted against machine as the DeepMind AI takes on go grandmaster Lee Sedol in ALPHAGO, a brand-new
documentary that will have its world premiere at the 2017 Tribeca film festival in New York City later this month. Director Greg Kohs’ absorbing documentary chronicles Google’s DeepMind team as it prepares to test the limits of its rapidly-evolving AI technology. Kohs and his team were on hand last year in Seoul to document the historic battle with more at stake than the million dollar prize, and the film “reveals as much about the workings of the human mind as it does the future of AI.” ALPHAGO screens April 21, 23, 24 and 26; click here for details and tickets.