The February 25 Year of the Dragon Winter Go Tournament in Atlanta, GA will be the first North American Ing Masters qualifying tournament of the year to be held in the East. The tournament starts at 9a at the Peachtree Executive Office Park. Be sure to register at least 4 days in advance; there’s a $15 entry fee, and prizes will be awarded in all divisions. The players of the high dan division are eligible to win points toward competing in the North American Ing Masters Tournament at the 2012 US Go Congress in Black Mountain, NC. See the Atlanta Go Club’s Facebook page, GT Go Club@Atlanta for more details.
- Karoline Burrall, AGA Tournament Coordinator
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Feb. 25 Atlanta Tourney First Ing Qualifier in Eastern U.S.
February 3, 2012
Your Move/Readers Write: Cuban Go?
February 1, 2012
“Do you have any contact information for Cuban go players?” wonders Phil. “I’ll arrive in Havana on Saturday, Feb. 4. I did play at the Havana club in 2003, but perhaps someone has more up-to-date information.” Email us at journal@usgo.org with any info/contacts, and muy gracias!
“We have an Go Academy,” reports Rafael Torres Miranda; the address is: Academia Cubana de Go (Cuban Go Academy),Centro Deportivo ( Sport Center) Eduardo Saborti; 5ta Ave y 120. Playa. email: academiacubanadego@yahoo.com. Contact: Rafael Torres Miranda ( 57 5 2850452 ); rafael@supplyinbond.
Choi Jung Wins Female Myeongin at 15
January 31, 2012
On January 26, 2012, Choi Jung 1P defeated Kim Miri 2P in Korea’s 13th Female Myeongin. At only 15 years of age, Choi also became the youngest female title holder in Korea – just 18 months after turning pro. En route to the final, Choi defeated the likes of Park Jieun 9P and Cho Hyeyeon 9P, but lamented the fact that she was unable to challenge Rui Naiwei 9P, because Rui recently to returned China. The cheeky youngster even went so far as to joke that Rui had run away from her. The Myeongin is Korea’s equivalent of the Japanese Meijin title. Choi’s next goal for 2012 is to get selected by a team to play in the popular Korean Baduk League. Congratulations Choi Jung!
- Jingning; Games and photos are available in her original article: Choi Jung makes her breakthrough in the 13th Female Myeongin. Photo: Choi Jung 1P (pictured) plays against Kim Miri 2P in the 13th Female Myeongin final.
Huiren Yang 1P Wins N.A. Ing Cup Selection Tournament
January 30, 2012
Huiren Yang 1P defeated Janice Kim 3P and Feng Yun 9P last weekend to win the right to represent North America at this
year’s Ing Cup World Professional Goe Championship. Yang, taking White, beat Kim on January 28 (see below left for game record) and then, taking Black, defeated Feng Yun on January 29 (game record at right). The knock-out North American Ing Cup Selection Tournament was held on IGS. Established in 1988, the Ing Cup was the first worldwide international professional tournament. With $500,000 in prizes, it has the largest prize of any international tournament. Every four years, 24 top players from around the world are invited to play.
Chunlan Cup Spots Still Available; Deadline Thursday, Feb. 2
January 30, 2012
Spots are still available in the Chunlan Cup 2012 Selection Tournament for professionals and amateurs 6-dan and stronger. U.S. citizenship is required. Registration closes at midnight on Thursday, February 2nd. To register for this tournament, email tournaments@usgo.org. Click here for full details on the tournament schedule, rules and procedures.
Sun Wins U.S. Youth Go Championships
January 30, 2012
Fourteen-year-old Calvin Sun 7d reasserted his position as the strongest youth player in America this past weekend. He entered the double elimination finals for the US Youth Go Championships as one of four finalists, in the Senior Division, but went on to win every game in a dynamic show of force. Andrew Lu 6d was the only player to beat Sun in the qualifiers, also scoring a win against Hugh Zhang 7d, which gave him the top slot as the finals began. Lu started out well, defeating Zhang again in the first round of the finals, while Sun beat Matthew Harwit 4d. Round 2 saw Zhang knocking out Harwit, while Sun got even with Lu for his earlier defeat. Next Lu and Zhang squared off, but Zhang was determined not to lose a third time to Lu, and knocked him out in a strong third round showing. Zhang was now aiming for Sun again, the two boys have been rivals for years, competing in the Redmond Cup and other events since they were both small children. Sun stood his ground yet again though, knocking Zhang out in the exciting final match – and claiming the championship. The games drew over 200 spectators on KGS, and a great deal of enthusiasm from US youngsters who had competed in the qualifiers the week before. Sun will go on to represent the US at the World Youth Go Championships this summer. In the Junior Division, Aaron Ye 4d and Jeremy Chiu 4d faced off against Daniel Liu 3d and Justin Ching 1d. Ching was knocked out, setting the stage for a showdown between Liu, Chiu, and Ye. As all three boys live in the Bay Area, they will compete live at the BAGPA ratings tourney on Feb. 11. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Photo by Brian Allen: Calvin Sun at the US Go Congress.
Vincent Zhuang 6D Wins Jin Chen Memorial Tournament
January 30, 2012
Fifteen year old Vincent Zhuang 6D won the 2012 Jin Chen Memorial Tournament on Jan. 8. The annual tournament attracted 42 players, and was the largest AGA-rated event at the Seattle Go Center in several years.
Zhuang is a 10th grader living in Portland, Oregon. He won the 19×19 Iwamoto Youth Tournament at the Seattle Go Center two and a half years ago, when he was rated as a 1 kyu. This time he bested several 7 dans in the open section.
The total prize money was $1,000, thanks to a matching donation from the Ourjin Foundation. Winners in the Open Section were: Vincent Zhuang – 1st, Dong Baek Kim – 2nd, Edward Kim – 3rd, Jon Boley – 4th, Dong Ho Kim – 5th. “A” Handicap section: Chris Kirschner – 1st, Daniel Top – 2nd, Takehito Furuyama – 3rd. “B” Handicap section: Peter Christensen – 1st, Larry Eclipse – 2nd, Frank Brown – 3rd. “C” Handicap section: Bill Thompson – 1st, Gaurav Oberoi – 2nd, Yuriko Miyake – 3rd.
- report/photo by Brian Allen
This Week’s Go Calendar: Columbus, Burlington, Germantown
January 30, 2012
February 4: Columbus, OH
2012 Chinese Spring Festival Go Tournament
Corey Sanders corey.thecolonel@gmail.com 614.208.3061
Tim Kington timkington@gmail.com
February 5: Burlington, VT
Escape from The Elements Go Tourney
Dave Felcan dfelcan@yahoo.com 802.860.9587
February 5: Germantown, MD
Yuan Zhou’s Group Go Lesson
Yuan Zhou yuan.zhou@zhouyuan.com 240.271.2304
Check the very latest tournament information.
Yearbook Contributors Wanted
January 28, 2012
If you’d like to help put together the 2011 American Go Yearbook, email journal@usgo.org Experience with InDesign preferred. Be part of the team producing the annual collection of the best material from the American Go E-Journal.
Lu and Chiu Top USYGC
January 23, 2012
The United States Youth Go Championships (USYGC) pulled in almost 70 players this past weekend on KGS. Kids and teens competed in five different bands, with players ranging from 7 dan to the double digit kyus. Dan level kids were also competing for entry into the four player finals, and the right to represent the US at the World Youth Go Championships this summer. Fifteen-year-old Andrew Lu 6d (at left) finished first in the qualifiers for the Senior Division (under 16) while nine-year-old Jeremy Chiu 4d (at right) placed first in the Junior (under 12). The finals are double-elimination, and the first two rounds were held Sunday. The finals continue next week on KGS for the Senior Division, while Jr. Division kids will square off in person on Feb. 11th, at the BAGPA ratings tourney in Menlo Park CA. For full qualifier results, go here; for schedule and results in the finals go here. Senior finalists are Andrew Lu 6d, Hugh Zhang 7d, Calvin Sun 7d and Matthew Harwit 4d; Junior finalists are Jeremy Chiu 4d, Justin Ching 1d, Aaron Ye 4d, and Daniel Liu 3d. Winners Report: 1st place Sr. 5-8 dan: Andrew Lu 6d; 1st place Jr. dan: Jeremy Chiu 4d; 1st place Sr. 1-4 dan: Matthew Harwit 4d; 1st place Sr. 1-5 kyu: Anurag Varma 3k; 1st place Jr. 1-5 kyu: Austen Liao; 1st place Sr. 6-10 kyu: Louie Liu 7k; 1st place Jr. 6-10 kyu: Raymond Liu 6k; 1st place Sr. 11-15 kyu band: Kalinda Fraser 12k; 1st place Jr. 11-15 kyu band: Bryan Tan 12k. The tournament was run by Paul Barchilon and Karoline Burrall. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor