AMERICAN GO E-JOURNAL
World Go News from The American Go Association

 

 

 

MEMBER'S EDITION BONUS CONTENT:
Our first bonus file today is a translation of Wang Yuan 8P's article on "Lee Changho's Whole Board Strategy" originally published in The World of Weiqi last year; Kazunari Furuyama is back this week with a look at "Common Amateur Mistake 114" and Yilun Yang presents one of his monthly endgame problems. Non-members: join the American Go Association and get all this great content with every EJ! It's all just a click away!

May 19, 2008; Volume 9, #22

YEARBOOK SURVEY: "Great quality, great value, and a great member perk!" How about "a section with strong players describing the way they actually thought about a game in progress"? "Include pdf files of out of print issues of the American Go Journal." Tell us what YOU think of the new American Go Yearbook and you could win a prize! Click here to take our brief survey. Thomas A. DiMattia is this week's winner. The 124-page compilation is the biggest Yearbook yet, featuring the best of last year's world go coverage in the E-Journal, including major event reports, photos, youth and world go news and a Yearbook CD that includes every 2007 E-Journal, including all game records.

REDMOND TO PLAY FOR U.S. AT WMSG: Michael Redmond (right) will play for the U.S. at the World Mind Sport Games in Beijing this October, reports American Go Association (AGA) President Michael Lash. The Nihon Kiin 9-dan professional from California accepted a special invitation by the AGA, Lash says. Although Redmond is not eligible to represent the U.S. in other international events -- an AGA policy requires that reps reside in the U.S. at least six months per year -- the AGA Board decided to make an exception in this case, AGA Board Chairman Roy Laird said. "Michael is a special case," Laird said. "He learned his basic go here in America, then went to Japan and succeeded far beyond anyone else in the West. He is a well-known figure on the world go stage, 'the pro from America.' But as a US citizen, if he doesn't play for America (in the WMSG), he can't play at all. We felt that as a unique living example of the ideals the event will promote -- international exchange, excellence, discipline - Michael's presence was essential." Redmond will compete under the same conditions as other team participants, including sharing the expense of participating. In other WMSG news, more than 70 donors have now contributed more than $14,000 to support the U.S. team. "Won't you help us reach $15,000?" asks Laird; click here for details.

ANDY LIU & DAE HYUK KO ADVANCE IN KGS TOURNEY: Andy Liu (left) has defeated Cho SeokBin in the second round of the Suk B. Choi Invitational tourney on KGS. Dae Hyuk Ko also won his way through to the semi-final round, defeating Junfu Dai. "Both games were very exciting," reports KGS's Akane Negishi. "Because of the time zone, the Dae Hyuk Ko - Junfu Dai game got over 900 observers." Click here for the game files. Two more quarter-final games remain to be scheduled; stay tuned for details.

REDMOND CUP GETS UNDERWAY: The Redmond Cup, the longest youth tournament in North America, got underway last Sunday online. The senior division has ten players, including five U.S. Youth Go Championship (USYGC) finalists -- William Zhou 7d, Jimmy Guo 6d, Ricky Zhao 6d, Cherry Shen 6d, and Lawrence Ku 6d -- who will also be playing this weekend in New Jersey for the chance to represent the US at the World Youth Go Championship (WYGC). In addition, two Canadians -- Gansheng Shi 6d and Patrick Lung 5d -- are also playing in the Redmond Cup, making it highly like that all the games will be very fierce battles. In the junior division, there are five USYGC finalists -- Calvin Sun 7d, Hugh Zhang 6d, Christopher Kiguchi 5d, Maverick Lin 4d, and Sudhir Vel 3d -- as well as Colorado USYGC regional winner Nathan Harwit 4K. These rising stars will battle it out for a chance to travel free to the US Go Congress this year in Portland, Oregon, where the two top players from each division will compete for the largest cash award of any youth tournament in the US. The standings can be seen online and will be updated periodically.
- reported by Lawrence Ku

PASADENA BESTS SANTA MONICA IN TRAFFIC CUP: Pasadena's Yu-Go Club team bested the Santa Monica Go Club team by one point in Southern California's first ever Traffic Cup on May 17. Held in the Reiyukai America Association offices in Pasadena, the two-round handicap contest included 2-0 performances by Pasadena's Gary Fresquez, 9k, and Luis Armendariz, 14k, and Santa Monica's Janek Klawe, 3k, while Santa Monica's David Dows, 1k, and Ryan Downing, 2d, each won their single games. Joe Walters, Luke Gordon and Alf Mikula also played for Pasadena, and Andrew Okun, Samantha Davis and Terry McIntyre for Santa Monica. It is hoped the inter-club team contest, put together by Walters, will be the start of a series of such match-ups between Southern California clubs. Other clubs interested in participating can get in touch with Walters or Okun at andy@okun.name. Photo: Terry McIntyre v. Luis Armendariz; photo by Andrew Okun

9 PROS CONFIRMED FOR U.S. GO CONGRESS: Feng Yun 9P and James Kerwin 1P are the latest professional go players to confirm their attendance at this year's U.S. Go Congress, bringing the total to nine. Feng Yun, the second woman to ever become a 9-dan pro, became a professional after 3 years of study and founded the first 9-dan school in North America, In New Jersey, where she resides. Kerwin, a student of Iwamoto Sensei since 1973, was the first American to achieve a professional ranking in the Nihon Kiin and has taught extensively throughout the the U.S. and Canada. Click here for the complete list and here to register for the Congress.

BRISCOE TOPS ROCKY MOUNTAIN SPRING GO TOURNEY: Andrew Briscoe 3d won the May 3 Rocky Mountain Spring Go Tournament. Players ranging in age from 11 to 71 played at Colorado Technical University in Colorado Springs, Colorado. With many go clubs now active along the front range of the Rocky Mountains, each is growing a group of youthful players who are challenging the old-timers at all levels. Winner's report: Section A: 1st: Andrew Briscoe 3d, 2nd: David Weiss 3d; Section B: 1st: Brian Kenyon 1k, 2nd: Aeones DeVeyra 2k; Section C: 1st: Nathan Herwit 5k, 2nd: Albert Hwang 7k; Section D: 1st: Steve Ingham 9k, 2nd: Brad Edwards 14k.
- reported by Jim Michali TD Springs Go Club. Photo clockwise: Eric Sears vs Brad Edwards, Nathan Herwit vs Amy Chen

GO REPRESENTS AT CHI ANIME CONVENTION: The Evanston Go Club (EGC) again taught hundreds of people to play go over the May 17-18 weekend at Anime Central (ACEN) (left), held at the Hyatt Recency O'Hare in Chicago, IL. "This is our favorite event of the year!" said EGC President Mark Rubenstein. "This is our fourth year at ACEN, and it's always a lot of fun. We teach mostly one-on-one, and we also do classroom-style events during the day. At the end of the day on Saturday we close with a 9x9 tournament. These kids are great, nearly all of them just learned to play go the same day, and they come to the tournament and have a blast! We would like to say a very special ‘Thank You!' to Yellow Mountain for donating 50 go sets for us to give away." Check out more pictures by clicking here and clicking the New Photos link at the bottom of the page.

JENNIE SHEN WORKSHOP FILLING UP: "There are still a few openings for the Jennie Shen 2P workshop in Kalamazoo the weekend of June 27-29," reports organizer Jason Preuss. The workshop will include lectures, game play and analysis, and a simul with Shen, a Chinese pro. Click here for details or email Preuss at preuss@jasnetworks.net for more information.

N.A. FUJITSU SELECTION CHALLENGED: Questions are being raised about the selection process for this year's North American Fujitsu Qualifier. After Mingjiu Jiang 7P won the Qualifier in February, it was discovered that he should not have participated because of an AGA rule that limits players to representing the U.S. or North America in two international tournaments each year; he represented North America in the Ing Cup in April and - along with Jie Li 9d, will represent North America at the Toyota Denso World Oza Cup later this year. Fujitsu runner-up Jie Li 9d was set to take Jiang's place but when concerns were raised by the Fujitsu's organizers and sponsors, American Go Association Board Chairman Roy Laird reinstated Jiang as the U.S. representative to the Fujitsu, the oldest of the current international professional tournaments. Jiang lost in the first round to Japan's Kono Rin 9P. Li has challenged Laird's decision based on the AGA's 2-event rule and because Laird did not consult with the full AGA Board before acting. The Board met yesterday and after lengthy discussion issued a statement noting that Laird, "faced with a situation that he honestly and reasonably believed required urgent action. attempted to act in the best interest of the AGA when he reversed the disqualification of Mr. Jiang in the recent Fujitsu Qualifier."The Board added that it "disapproves of the fact that Mr. Laird acted without attempting to consult with the whole Board first, and we trust that such unauthorized action will not happen again." Laird has apologized privately and publicly to both Li and the Board. Click here for Jie Li's Open Letter and here for Laird's response.

CORRECTION: The photo beneath Lee ChangHo's last week was not Park YeongHoon (right) but TaeGon Song (who is also a previous Chunwon title holder). Our apologies for the error and thanks to John Lee and Hwa-Seo Park for catching it.

GO CALENDAR: Baltimore, Palo Alto & Newton
May 24-25: Baltimore, MD: 35th Maryland Open
World Mind Sport Qualifier
Keith Arnold hlime81@comcast.net 410.788.3520
May 24: Palo Alto, CA: Bay Area Go Players Association Monthly AGA Ratings Tournament
Steve Burrall sburrall@comcast.net 916.688.2858
May 24: Newton, MA: Boston Open (NAIM Qualifier)
Ke Lu go.boston@yahoo.com 617.969.1959

JAPAN FIELDS ALL-STAR TEAM FOR WMSG: The Nihon Kiin and Kansai Kiin have put together an all-star team for the 2008 WMSG, reports Thomas Hsiang. "Twenty pros and four amateurs make up the team," Hsiang tells the EJ. On the pro side, the players include twelve men -- Yamashita, Takao, Kono, Kobayashi (Satoru), Hane, Yoda, Hisosaka, Imamura, Mimura, Yamada, Sakai, Iyama - and eight women - - Umezawa, Suzuki (Ayumi), Aoki, Konishi, Koyama, Tsukuda, Yashiro, Manami. "This is a very young roster that includes three ‘seniors' in Kobayashi, Yoda, and Umezawa, mixed with all of the current title holders of Japanese nationality," adds Hsiang. "This shows that the Japanese are serious about trying to do well in WMSG." The amateur players on the team are not yet known.

TAKAO TAKES FIRST GAME IN HONINBO TITLE MATCH: Takao Shinji (left) 9P defeated Hane Naoki 9P in the first game of their Honinbo title match by 3.5 points on May 14-15. Takao is hoping to extend his reign as Honinbo to a fourth straight year since he took the title from Cho U 9P in 2004. Cho got revenge by taking away Takao's Meijin title last Fall. Takao also holds the Judan title, which he took from Cho Chikun 9P in three straight games earlier this year. Hane currently holds the Okan title, from an event that is restricted to members of the Nagoya branch (central Japan) of the Nihon Kiin. He won the NHK Cup last year and was Kisei in 2004 and 2005. The second game in the Honinbo title match is scheduled for May 27-28.

IYAMA YUTA VS. CHO U IN DAIWA CUP: Iyama Yuta 7P, the twenty year old who set records as a teen, is matched against Cho U (right) 9P, one of the top Japanese players who holds five national titles at the moment, in the Daiwa Cup Grand Championship, which is played on the Internet. Iyama does hold the Shinjin O (King of the New Stars) title, though he lost out in the preliminary rounds of this year's event. The second round of the Daiwa included a husband-wife match back in April: Kobayashi Izumi 6P, holder of the Daiwa Women's Cup title, played her husband Cho U. Cho won and then defeated Kono Rin 9P to reach the finals.

IYAMA HOLDING LEAD IN MEIJIN LEAGUE: Iyama Yuta (left) 7P, at twenty the youngest member of the nine player Meijin League, is holding on to his slight lead as the eight game round robin match passes the halfway mark. Iyama now has a score of 4-1, and all the other players have lost at least two games. The only other player with four wins is Kobayashi Satoru 9P at 4-2, whom Iyama has yet to play. Iyama's other remaining opponents are Yoda Norimoto 9P and Cho Chikun 9P--a challenging list. Ko Iso 7P is only one year older than Iyama, but his record is now 2-3, so his chances are very slim. Several players have two losses.

JIMMY CHA NOTCHES 5 WINS IN KOREAN TOURNEY: Jimmy Cha (right) 4P kicked off the GG Auction Cup with a five-game winning streak before falling to Lee Minjin 5P, one of the top current Korean women pros. The Auction Cup is a win-and-continue tournament between twelve Korean women pros and twelve senior (over-50) male pros. Last year the women were quite successful until the last senior, Cho Hunhyun 9P stepped in, defeating several female players before finally losing, and the women won the Cup's first edition. The first senior male up this year was Jimmy (Minsoo) Cha 4P, who for many years lived in California and was very active in US go before moving back to Korea a few years ago. Cha managed to defeat five of the women before losing by a mere half-point to Lee Minjin 5P, one of the top current Korean women pros. She won three games in a row to win the women's international team event, the Jeongganjang Cup, in April and was in the finals of the women's Kuksu in March, losing 1-2 to Park Jieun 9P. She defeated Rui Naiwei 9P to get into those finals. Park Yeongchan 3P is the next senior male in line to challenging Lee in the Auction Cup.

TARANU WINS ROMANIA CUP: Catalin Taranu (left) 7d won the Cup of Romania tournament, held May 17-18 in Poiana Brasov. Dragos Bajenaru 6d took second and Lucian Corlan 3rd in the 18th edition of the country's second main national tournament. Two dozen top players, qualified from semifinals, participated in the event, which started in 1991. The event's first winner was Lucretiu Calota, but Cristian Pop 7d has won it five times. Taranu will represent Romania at the KPMC International Amateur Baduk Championships in Korea later this year.
- reported by Marilena Bara, Romanian correspondent for the E-Journal

WORLD AMATEUR PLAYER PROFILES: Argentina, Ecuador, Guatemala
Players from 70 countries and territories will compete in the 29th annual World Amateur Go Championship that start a week from today and run May 29-31 in Tokyo, Japan. The American Go E-Journal will once again provide full live coverage of the 8-round tournament, posting daily updates on the web and in the EJ, including news, features, photos and game records from the playing venue at the Nihon Ki-in. We've been profiling WAGC players and this week we're pleased to introduce the players from Argentina, Ecuador and Guatemala. All profiles published thus far are online.
- Chris Garlock

ARGENTINA: Fernando Aguilar (right) 7d is a 48-year-old civil engineer from Santa Fe who won the 2007 Iberoamerican Tournament. He's married with two children and also does social work related with habitat, especially with indigenous peoples. His favorite thing about go is that "It provides a sense of equilibrium" and he adds that "I hope that go-playing activities will serve as means for people understanding."

ECUADOR: Sergio Quevedo 1k is a 21-year-old student from Quito who's been playing for two years. His favorite thing about go is that it's "magic."

GUATEMALA: Fifty-four year-old Hector Paiz Castillo (left) 1k is a civil engineer who's completed many housing projects in Guatemala. He's married with five children and his hobbies include dancing. His favorite thing about go is its' "immense possibilities."

GO PHOTOS: Old Stones: Former AGA President Phil Straus (r) and E-Journal editor Chris Garlock play go in an ancient Utah canyon last week. Photo by Joe Pacheck. Got go photos? Email them us at journal@usgo.org!

YOUR MOVE: Readers Write
WANT ADS WORK: " Please take down my advertisement in the E-Journal for sale of the collection of Go World journals," writes Ed, "They've successfully sold and your role in finding them a good home is really appreciated."

GO QUIZ: Remembering Chengdu
There are six former Congress Directors registered so far for this year's U.S. Go Congress in Portland. They are, in chronological order - Dave Weimer (7th Rochester), Jean de Maiffe (8th Salem), Ken Koester (10th Arlington), Keith Arnold (17th York), Bob Barber (18th Chicago) and Steve Stringfellow (21st Tacoma). I am sure the number will rise considerably between now and the event. Congrats to winner Phil Waldron, selected at random from those answering correctly.
THOUGHTS ELSEWHERE: Instead of worrying about a quiz answer this week, I think it is appropriate for us to turn our thoughts to the earthquake victims around Chengdu, China. Daniel Chou 7d informs me than Chengdu is known as the "City of Qi" or "City of Chess." All games in China using turn- based movement of pieces share this root term - including Weiqi and Xiangqi (Chinese Chess). Chengdu is the birthplace of current China top player Gu Li 9P, as well as noted female player Kong Xiangming 8P.
- Quizmaster Keith Arnold

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GO SET FOR SALE: set purchased 55 years ago in Japan (left). With legs, 16.5x16.5x12". 36 pounds. Could use some cosmetic work; see photo. $300 includes shipping; negotiable. Contact: whitton.norris@mcritical.com (5/19)

GO PLAYERS WANTED: Juneau, Alaska. email Charles McKenry at: kyouhon_chuck@yahoo.com (5/19)

GO PLAYERS AND/OR CLUBS WANTED: Endicott, NY: email Trevor Douglas; chaos56459@gmail.com (5/5)

GO PLAYERS WANTED: Greenville, NC, near ECU. Contact: o.marrow@gmail.com (4/28)

GO PLAYERS WANTED: Tallahassee, FL: Looking for players in the Tallahassee area. Contact Noel at emmalark@comcast.net (4/21)

Published by the American Go Association
Managing Editor: Chris Garlock
Assistant Editor: Bill Cobb
Professionals: Yilun Yang 7P; Alexandr Dinerchtein 3P; Fan Hui 2P
Contributors: Paul Barchilon (Youth Editor); Lawrence Ku (U.S. West Coast Reporter); Brian Allen (U.S. West Coast Photo Editor); Peter Dijkema (Dutch/European Correspondent); Marilena Bara (Romania/European Correspondent); Ian Davis (Ireland Correspondent)
Columnists: James Kerwin 1P; Kazunari Furuyama; Rob van Zeijst; Roy Laird; Peter Shotwell
Translations: Chris Donner (Japan); Bob McGuigan (Japan); Matt Luce (China)

Text material published in the AMERICAN GO E JOURNAL may be reproduced by any recipient: please credit the AGEJ as the source. PLEASE NOTE that commented game record files MAY NOT BE published, re-distributed, or made available on the web without the explicit written permission of the Editor of the E-Journal. Please direct inquiries to journal@usgo.org

Articles appearing in the E-Journal represent the opinions of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the American Go Association.

 

 
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