May 26, 2008; Volume 9, #23

YEARBOOK SURVEY: “It is so fun to read about my own clubs and tournaments” “(The Yearbook) needs to help members get better at go with MORE TESUJI” “I was so happy to get it, I spent all night reading it.” Tell us what YOU think of the new American Go Yearbook and you could win a prize! Click here to take our brief survey. Tom Haig 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.

OUYANG SHAOYOU MAKES KGS QUARTER-FINALS: Ouyang Shaoyou made the quarterfinals of the KGS Suk B Choi Amateur Invitational in a game against Bi Jang that drew nearly 1,000 observers. “Ouyang played very well and kept the good lead from mid-game to the end,” reports Akane Negishi of KGS. “Though Bi Jang made a nice seki on the right side, he was slightly behind on territory and couldn't catch up.” In the battle for the last quarter-final slot, Al Jang -- who beat top seed Bao Yun in the first round -- plays Chris Wong on Tuesday, May 27th Tuesday at 8A EST (5A PST). Game playbacks are available from the tourney website

SAN MATEO HIGH BLOCKS MISSION SAN JOSE HIGH FROM 4-PEAT: An undefeated San Mateo High School team finally dethroned 3-time defending champions Mission San Jose High School in the Northern California High School Team Tournament on May 18th. Six high school teams attended the 5th annual tournament, held at the ING Goe Center in Menlo Park, California. USYGC finalists Jimmy Guo and Lawrence Ku both competed with their schools. Each team was required to have five players, at least one of whom was female; teams were also able to borrow one player from another school. After a heated first round, Carlmont High School edged out the defending champions Mission San Jose, and when Carlmont fell to San Mateo High School in the last round, San Mateo was left standing the only undefeated team and new champions. Players on the winning team were Justin Shieh, Lim Leong, Daniel Ju, Alex Shieh, and Jacklyn Yen. Mingjiu Jiang 7P directed the tournament. Winner’s Report: 1st: San Mateo High School; 2nd: Carlmont High School; 3rd: Mission San Jose High School photo: Montevista High’s Nickie Ding (l), vs. San Mateo High’s Jacklyn Yen.

GO CONGRESS TOPS 200, ADDS PROS: Registration for this year’s U.S. Go Congress has now topped 200 and the field of professionals attending the event – August 2-9 in Portland, OR -- has now grown to 11 with the addition of Xuefen Lin 1P (l) and Nakano Yasuhiro 9P. Born in 1973 in Guangdong Province, China, Ms. Lin learned go at age 11 and obtained one-dan professional rank in China in 1992. She played for the Guangdong Professional Go Club in numerous regional and national Chinese professional tournaments from 1985 thru 2001 and was involved with go education at Nanjing University from 1998 to 2001. Ms Lin moved to the United State in 2001 and won the 2003 Cotsen Cup Championship and 2005 US Open Championship. Nakano Yasuhiro attended the 2007 U.S. Go Congress where he also demonstrated his mastery of the shamisen, a three-stringed musical instrument. This year, he'll be visiting the Congress for the first 3 days. Click here for the complete list of pros at the Congress.

AGA BOARD NOMINATIONS UPDATE: Nominations are starting to come in for the Board of Directors of the American Go Association, reports Arnold Eudell. Dr. Roy Laird has been confirmed as a candidate for the At-Large directorship. There are four seats open this election for the East, West and Central regions and the At-Large seat. Nominations close in less than one month on June 15; click here for complete information

THE TRAVELING BOARD: Finding Tokyo’s Heart Of Stone
by Chris Garlock
Saturday night in Tokyo and the city glistens in a cool May rain. The streets reflect the twinkling neon lights outside Ikebukuro station in Toshima ward, one of Toyko’s major commercial and entertainment districts. A million people pass through the station each day but EJ photographer John Pinkerton and I are looking for just one, our go-to Man in Tokyo, Jeremy Banzhaf, who’s promised to take us to a local go club recommended by popular EJ contributor Kaz Furuyama. Just off the grueling 14-hour flight from DC, we’re ready for some Tokyo go adventures before we start our coverage of the World Amateur Go Championships, which begin Tuesday. Soon enough, Jeremy shows up, resplendent in his bright orange Cyprus Go Association t-shirt, and we’re off to find the Seki Shin go club. It’s just a few blocks from the station, the club’s unlit sign a beckoning dark space amidst the neon blazing through the wet night. We take a small elevator up, stopping to let the giggling Japanese schoolgirls off onto a club pulsing with Saturday night fever and step out on the sixth floor to the familiar sound of go stones rattling in their bowls. Within minutes, I’ve been matched with a 4-dan, we take our places at the board, bow, and begin playing. Rain falls on the busy streets outside, music pulses from below and all around me is the clatter of other games but soon there’s nothing but the stones on the board before me. Tokyo go clubs are notorious for being everywhere and nowhere, popping up and vanishing like mushrooms after rain, but the Seki Shin go club has been around for nearly a quarter of a century and from the looks of things this Saturday night – the most popular night at the club -- stones will continue to fly there for years to come. Owner/manager Akio Watanabe has only owned the club for a few years, but has been playing go for 30 years. Strength at the club ranges from 2k to 7d and four pros give lessons there three times a week. Mr Watanabe likes the creativity of the game and says that “like painting, you can only improve with practice.” Most of all, though, he says the best thing about go is “Friends. Unlike friends at work, your go friends are friends for life.” The Seki Shin club – the name means “heart of stone” -- is open 11-10 daily and closes at 9 on Sundays; the daily playing fee is $10. Midway through the game, Kaz shows up, as does Michelle, a friend of Jeremy’s, and after I manage to turn around a lost position in mid-game, we all head out to Jeremy’s favorite local restaurant, where Kaz analyzes the game as we feast on Japanese delicacies and beer, toasting to lifelong go friendships.
Seki Shin has a website in Japanese and can be reached by phone: 03-3980-5056. Foreign players are welcome and the club is smoke-free. Photos by John Pinkerton; click here for more photos