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by John Power, EJ Japan Correspondent

Cho Chikun Wins 73rd Title: The final of the fourth Igo Masters Cup was held at the Nihon Ki-in in Ichigaya, Tokyo, on July 12. Taking black, 25th Honinbo Cho Chikun (right) defeated Kobayashi Satoru 9P by 6.5 points to win this title for the second time. This is Cho’s 73rd title, so he extends his Japanese record. Incidentally, this was the 59th game between these two; Cho now has a lead of one over Kobayashi.

Meijin League: Kono Rin (left) won his seventh-round game, so he stays in a tie for second with Cho U 9P. Kono and Cho play each other in the final round, so, if Yamashita loses, the winner will meet him in a play-off to decide the challenger.
(July 11) Kono Rin 9P (B) beat Ryu Shikun 9P by resig.; Murakawa Daisuke 7P (W) beat Yuki Satoshi 9P by resignation.

Kono’s Winning Streak Ends At 19: A loss, to Murakawa Daisuke 7P, in the quarterfinals of the 62nd Oza tournament on July 17 was Kono Rin’s first since mid-April. His record of 19 successive wins is the best winning streak so far this year.

Iyama Catches Up In Gosei Title Match: In the second game of the 39th Gosei title match, played in the Hokkoku Newspaper Hall in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture, on 20 July, Iyama Yuta (B) defeated Kono Rin 9P by resignation after 151 moves. This gave him revenge for his loss of the first game in 129 moves. Kono perhaps lost the game because of pessimistic positional judgement:  he believed that the result of the first big fight was unfavorable for him — the players following the game disagreed — so he made a deeper invasion than he would have otherwise. Iyama attacked aggressively and killed a large group. The third game will be played on August 11.
By the way, I need to correct a mistake I made in my report on the first game. I wrote that Kono suffered straight losses last year, but I was confusing this title match with the 2012 Tengen title match, which Kono did lose 0-3. In the 2013 Gosei, he won the first two games, then lost the next three.

Kisei Leagues: The first third-round game in the A League was played on July 11. Hane Naoki 9P (W) beat Ichiriki Ryo 7P by resig. This was Hane’s first win after two losses. Ichiriki drops to 0-3; he is having a tough initiation in league play. On July 17, Yamashiro Hiroshi 9P (W) beat Takao Shinji Judan by resignation. More games played on July 24 clarified the lead. In the A League, Yamashita Keigo 9P (W) beat Kono Rin 9P by resignation. Kono (2-1) suffered his first loss, so Yamashita (3-0) is the sole undefeated player. In the B League, Murakawa Daisuke 7P (B) beat Yuki Satoshi by resignation. Yoda Norimoto 9P (B) (2-1) beat Kobayashi Satoru 9P (2-1) by 1.5 points, so Murakawa (3-0) is the sole undefeated player. It looks as if we might see a replay of last year’s play-off between Yamashita and Murakawa. The latter’s continued success shows that he is close to joining the top group of tournament players in Japan.

Obituary: Sasaki Tadashi
Sasaki Tadashi 8P died of acute leukemia on July 20. Born on May 28, 1963, Sasaki (right) was a disciple of Sakata Eio, 23rd Honinbo. He became 1-dan in 1980 and reached 8-dan in 2001. Sasaki was very active as a teacher and was well known in Japan. He was also working on a biography of his teacher. According to an obituary article in Go Weekly by his friend the go journalist Akiyama Kenji, Sasaki had suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage two years ago; ironically, he was visiting a hospital at the time, so he got prompt treatment. Recently he held a party to celebrate his complete recovery. At such parties, guests are usually given a little present, and Sasaki’s showed his sense of humor, being a hand towel with a picture of a spider’s web on it. He was planning to take a group of disciples to the US Go Congress this year. Akiyama wrote that he first met Sasaki 40 years ago when he was in elementary school. Sasaki introduced himself by handing over a name card detailing his position as an insei. Akiyama thought that this was a bit over the top for an elementary-school pupil, but there was a good reason for it. When returning home late from insei games or watching professional games, Sasaki would often be stopped by policemen and scolded for being out so late, so the name card was his defense. photo by Brian Allen

An education program for middle level players…an educational library on the web site for members only… a rewards program. These are some of the ideas Central Region Director Bob Gilman is looking for feedback on in preparation for a special session at the upcoming US Go Congress to discuss ideas for overall development of the organization. Read more about these ideas and comment here.

Ieri si è tenuta l'assemblea generale dell'EGF. Di seguito un sommario molto sintetico.

C’è ancora qualcuno in città o siamo ormai tutti in vacanza? Anche se l’estate praticamente assomiglia più all’autunno, una bella partita a Go tira sempre su il morale…

Per gli irriducibili rimasti in zona, propongo un incontro al bar Florida a Reggio Emilia in via Samoggia 12 per giovedì 31 luglio alle ore 21.

Ancora più del solito, fate cosa gradita confermando o meno la vostra presenza con un semplice commento a questo post. Spero di non essere il solo!

A domani, e per chi non c’è, buone vacanze!

Attenzione: diversamente da quanto indicato in precedenza, il luogo del ritrovo di questa settimana non sarà Fiorano ma Reggio Emilia, in quanto il pub è in chiusura estiva.

David Cho 2D topped a field of 30 players at the Massachusetts Go Association’s annual Skip Ascheim Memorial Go Tournament on July 13th. The winners were David Cho 2D (at right in photo at left), who took first place with a 4-0 record; Pete Schumer 2k (at left in photo at left) was second, also scoring 4-0; Brandan Williams 20k (at left in photo at right), and Alex Linden 11k, both 4-0, tied for third. “Wang Ma 7D said he would be glad to play games online with fellow members of the Massachusetts Go Association,” says Tournament Director Eva Casey.  Reach him at doctormawang@126.com. photos by Eva Casey; click here for tourney photos.

Students at McCormick Elementary, in Chicago, IL, had the opportunity recently to learn to play go from Xinming Simon Guo 2d, a licensed math teacher and founder of the GoAndMath Academy. “Students were playing a simple game during the class, blissfully unaware that they were also working on math skills as they put every stone on the board and counted the result at the end of the game,” Guo told the E-Journal.

At McCormick, the go class is part of the Chinese Artists-In-Residency Program, co-sponsored by Confucius Institute in Chicago (CIC) and GoAndMath Academy. The Chinese language teachers at McCormick — where 99.5% of the students are hispanic and 50% are English Language Learners – Ms. Yeh and Ms. Huang, heard about the go program during the professional workshop organized by CIC last year. “Go is an ideal tool to achieve the goal of our Chinese curriculum–to enhance students’ understanding of Chinese culture, and reinforce their learning of language skills,” says Guo. “During the entire 2013-2014 school year, the go program offered more than 130 learning sections to more than 4500 students in Chicago public schools,”  said Jane Lu, the director of CIC and coordinator of CPS Chinese World Language Program.

“Go is not just a simple game,” says Guo. “Research by GoAndMath Academy reveals that there exists a hidden natural connection between math and go. Students can experience math concepts without even noticing them. More specifically, go helps students develop number sense, and three domains in Common Core standards: Counting and Cardinality; Operations and Algebraic Thinking; and Number and Operations in Base Ten. GoAndMath Academy designed the educational go program, which is appropriate for Pre-K through eighth grade, is aligned with the common core standards, and can be played with peers in school or around the world. This fantastic game combines math, science, art, and competition, as well as ancient oriental philosophy and culture. Go requires the highest level of critical thinking. It cultivates the abilities of observing, reflecting, imagining, reasoning, innovating, and decision-making,” says Guo.
- Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor.  Photo: Guo demonstrates the secrets of holding the go stone.

Go World: Complete Print Collection for Sale: All 129 issues, most in mint condition. Best offer over $1000 plus shipping, or pick them up at the Congress. Write to roylaird@gmail.com.
Go Review Print Collection for Sale: More than 100 issues of Go World‘s predecessor, an English-language monthly published by the Nihon Kiin. The first attempt ever to explain the finer points of the game in English. Starting with issue #1, this collection contains all issues  through 1972 (except for 1964 and two 1968 issues). Quarterlies from 1975 to 1977 also included. Good condition. Best offer over $500 plus shipping, or pick them up at the Congress. Write to roylaird@gmail.com.

La selezione per il Pair Go di ottobre è terminata. L'Italia sarà rappresentata dalla coppia Minieri-Biscaro.

After the first two rounds of the European Go Congress, there are only three Europeans with perfect scores: Ilya Shikshin from Russia, Fan Hui from France and Cristian Pop from Romania. Also undefeated are Yulin Tong, Chi-min Oh, Chen Wang, Young-Sam Kim and Zexiang Sui (click here for latest results).

The MLily-WeiqiTV European Go Congress – the 58th edition of the EGC – is being held July 26th through August 9th in Sibiu, Romania.

Alexander Dinerstein (left), several-time European champion faced Fan Hui (right), last year’s winner, in the second round. “Fan Hui won by 3.5 points but according to several players there, Dinerstein must have made a mistake because the feeling was that the Russian was ahead.” Click here for the latest EGC blog reports.

Sasaki Tadashi 8P of the Nihon Ki-in passed away on July 20 at just 51. Sasaski, who visited the United States many times doing teaching games and workshops, had attended most of the U.S. Go Congresses over the last few years and had planned to attend this year’s in New York City.  His death was a shock his many American friends and fans. “It’s terrible news,” said AGA President Andy Okun.  “His teaching was always sharp, but full of humor as well, and his company warm and enjoyable.” “Mr. Sasaki was a big supporter of the Seattle Go Center and an enthusiastic hiker,” added Brian Allen of the Seattle Go Center. “We always enjoyed his visits to the Northwest.” Plans for a memorial ceremony at the Congress will be announced soon.
- photo of Sasaki playing Andrew Jackson at the  2011 US Go Congress, posted on Sasaki’s Facebook page.

Lee Sedol 9p (left) advanced his lead in the MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango after defeating opponent Gu Li 9p in their most recent match on July 27 in Liuan. After six games, Lee is ahead of Gu at 4-2.

During Game 6, the opening favored Gu (B) but Lee (W) seemed to ensure his victory over the course of the game through insightful cuts, sacrifices, and trades. However, the game became more complicated with moves 146 and 148, leaving fans with white knuckles for the last 30 moves. Each move could have swayed the game but Lee persevered until Gu resigned at 178.

Although Gu and Lee have established a pattern for their wins and losses (Lee won games 1 and 2 while Gu took games 3 and 4, etc.), game 7 will be a key match in the 10 game series. If Lee succeeds, he will force Gu against the ropes. If Gu comes back, Lee will need to be nearly flawless in games 8 through 10.

Game 7 will take place in Lhasa on August 31. In the meantime, fans can read preliminary analysis on game 6 by An Younggil 8p on Go Game Guru. For more information about the MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango including photos and coverage of previous games, please visit Go Game Guru.

—Annalia Linnan, based on a longer article by Go Game Guru; photo and game record courtesy of Go Game Guru

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VenetoGo in collaborazione con l'associazione Giovani D'Este organizza il 2° torneo di Go ad Este.

Il torneo di classe A si svolgerà nei giorni 6 e 7 Settembre 2014 immersi nella spendida città di Este. Il primo premio sarà del valore di 100 €.

Maggiori informazioni e preiscrizioni al seguente link.

Poland: The Summer Go School Jerzy Sacharewicz Memorial finished on July 20 in Pryzstanek Alaska with Stanislaw Frejlak 4d in first, Gerd Mex 1d in second, and Marcin Majka 3d in third. Finland: Jusso Nyyssonen 5d (left) took the NGA Summer Camp Tournament in Espoo on July 19. Behind him were Tuomas Hella 4d in second and Bean Yang 3d in third. Hungary: At the 2014 Hungarian Go Camp in Szazhalombatta on July 13, Renato Tolgyesi 2d placed first, Bulcsu Fajszi 3k came in second, and Gyorgy Zahonyi 9k was third.
– Annalia Linnan, based on reports from EuroGoTV, which include complete result tables and all the latest European go news; photo courtesy of EuroGoTV

After a 2-month break, the MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango resumes this weekend with Game 6 scheduled for 1p Korea time on Sunday, July 27 (12:00a Sunday morning, US EST). Lee Sedol currently leads the match 3-2 after breaking his losing streak against Gu Li in Game 5. Live coverage with commentary of the match will start on Baduk TV three hours after the first move is played. The commentators will replay and analyze the game from the beginning and Go Game Guru’s An Younggil 8P will translate and discuss the game (in chat) with Baduk TV Live viewers. You can watch for as little as $2.70 with a Baduk TV Day Pass. If you plan to watch the game from the very start, subtract three hours from the times given above. Baduk TV starts the coverage three hours later because the games go for so long.
- GoGameGuru.com

The new Korean action go movie “The Divine Move” (Dramatic Korean Go Movie Due Out in July 6/1 EJ) hits movie theaters across North America this Friday; click here for a trailer and local theater listings.

The movie has received warm reviews from Korean audiences, earning an 8.24 out of 10 rating on Korea’s search engine Naver.

When one thinks of the go community, violence and action are seldom the first thoughts that spring to mind. But Korean director Jo Beom-gu has painted go players in a new light in his action movie about a professional go player whose brother is murdered. Framed for the crime, he must spend time in jail. While there, he learns hand to hand combat and emerges tough as nails. After enlisting help from some unlikely candidates, he sets about getting his revenge, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake. The film’s North American posters promise “War On The Board.”

It is not the first time that go has made it onto the big screen. But in Western movies, the scenes are often short or unrealistic. The Divine Move is different in that go is central to the theme of the movie and appears in many scenes. Several fights are decided over the board or with life and death problems, and each section of the movie is labelled according to the various phases of a game, opening, counting etc.

The film in US-Canada release is in Korean with English subtitles and opens in a second wave of theaters on August 1.
- Ben Gale, Korean Correspondent for the E-Journal.

 

 

Per chi ancora non è partito per le vacanze, l’appuntamento settimanale con il nostro gioco preferito sarà giovedì 24 luglio alle ore 21, presso il bar Florida a Reggio Emilia in via Samoggia 12. Gli incontri sono aperti anche a chi si sta avvicinando al gioco ed è ancora inesperto.

Come sempre fate cosa gradita confermando o meno la vostra presenza con un semplice commento a questo post.

A giovedì! Non mancate!

Here’s an unusual stratagem for hooking new players in Japan: a free go-themed girls’ magazine with topics such as extreme go and finding your dream go-playing soul-mate. According to a recent report on RocketNews24, Goteki magazine explores such things as defining an “Igogirl” (black or dark-brown hair, a natural make-up style and enjoys getting presents) and the four species of Igomen (Yuru Fuwa Shikkari Igomen, Cabbage Roll Igomen, Chara Maji Igomen, and Ora Ama Igomen) as well as a handy love map to determine which Igomen you’d fall for. There are also some sexy photo spreads (right) featuring high level go players like Akihiko Fujita. Noting that manga and anime have been used in the past to introduce less popular activities like basketball and soccer to Japanese youths with relative success, the report concludes that we’ll know if this latest effort works “when we see Igogirls walking around with dark hair and sakura-pink dresses.”
- Thanks to Jonathan Thomas of the Mohawk Valley Go Club in Utica, NY for passing this along, via Richard Moseson

“Not sure if the movie White Vengeance has already been mentioned before in the American Go E-Journal,” writes Erwin Gerstorfer. “Just by chance I saw it recently on German TV. The storyline is sometimes a little bit confusing, but nevertheless this movie contains many go references.” White Vengeance, also known as Hong Men Yan, is a 2011 Chinese historical film directed by Daniel Lee, loosely based on events in the Chu–Han Contention, an interregnum between the fall of the Qin dynasty and the founding of the Han dynasty in Chinese history, according to Wikipedia. “Most notably, the film shows a blind go player playing five simultaneous games, and the coordinates of the first moves are mentioned explicitly, e.g. 4 – 4 in the lower left corner,” says Gerstorfer. “Go boards with stones are shown often, although in some close ups, the board position looks strange.” The film is available online or through Amazon.

The Twin Cities Go Club 2014 Summer Tournament was held on Sunday, July 20th, in the clubhouse of the Goodrich Golf Course in St. Paul, MN. The tournament was four rounds using McMahon pairings. 29 individuals participated, 14 of whom registered as 1 dan or stronger. Player strength ranged from 5 dan to 16 kyu. “It’s always a pleasure the play at this venue, which provides a peaceful background to some great games of go,” reports local organizer Aaron Broege. “The weather was warm with a slight breeze, allowing some individuals to play their games outside.” Bongkyun Moon 5D, winner of the Twin Cities 2014 Winter Tournament, came out on top again with four wins. Yi Tong 1D took second place and Josh Larson 3D placed third. Being the only other person to win all four of his games, Shuping Wang 1K “had a fantastic day, placing fourth,” says Broege. After the final game, Bongkyun Moon used the demonstration board to briefly review the game for the other players. Visit the club’s Facebook page for more pictures of the event and information about the Twin Cities Go Club.
photo: Matt Mackall 4K (left) and Paul Canfield 6K (right) were among those electing to play outside. 

BadukTV has hired Shawn Ray 4d, better known as Clossius to his YouTube and KGS fans, to do a series of lessons in English for the network. “Thanks to the success of my YouTube channeI, I was offered a job at BadukTV – on the condition that I relocate to Korea,” Ray told the E-Journal. “I took this opportunity to move to Seoul and study baduk  (go in Korean) seriously. I am planning to stay until I become 9D and then I want to come back to America to become a Pro player in the AGA.” Ray’s first video for BadukTV, which includes a fun animated opening, is available here.

“I chose Blackie’s International Baduk Academy (BIBA), as it was the only baduk school that I knew of that spoke English,” said Ray. “Since arriving, I have learned how to truly study baduk, and how many hours you really have to put into this game to become strong. I am sure many are interested in my training schedule so I will break it down.  We wake up and get to BIBA around 11 or noon, and stay until 9 pm. Once we arrive it is self-study until about 2pm, then we play league games with players stronger and weaker than ourselves. In between games we do more self-study, until about 5 or 6 pm and then go eat dinner. We get back around 7 pm and Blackie (9p) reviews our games, or goes over pro games with us and helps us understand them. It is nice when a 9P helps you review pro games, because then you can see that they are human too and also make mistakes. Just mistakes you would never notice being an amateur!  Once 9 pm hits, we all go home together. Once we get home, some of us do more studying, or we can relax until we go to sleep.”

“Our self-study consists of reviewing at least 4 pro games a day, doing at least 1 hour, or more, of life and death problems. Problems at your level can take anywhere from 1-5 min. Usually we go through nearly 100 problems per week. We also study Baduk books and analyze positions and new openings or joseki. It is a very intensive schedule to maintain and can mentally exhaust you very quickly. It took me a whole week before I was fully able to deal with the training regimen,” said Ray.

“My dream is to become a Pro player and start a go school in the U.S. and find a way to make a living teaching go. It is my hope that I can help raise the level in the U.S. so that one day we can compete internationally with the top Asian players. I have to thank all my friends and followers for their support, otherwise I would have never made it this far. In addition I would like to thank Jennie Shen 2P, who has been my teacher ever since I started playing go. Lastly, the inspiration to think I can still become pro is due to Andy Liu 1P, who is around the same age as me, yet is one of the top players in our country. It is my hope to rise to his level, and he showed me it was possible even at my age,” said Ray. Interested readers can join Clossius’s Go Group on Facebook, where he will be posting about his adventures, and even offering discounts on go books. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Image courtesy of BadukTV.