News / Articles

IYAMA YUTA 9P'S VERY GOOD YEAR

Iyama Yuta 9P, the young turk among Japanese pros, is doing well in his first year as Meijin. He is about to start his first defense of that title against Takao Shinji 9P and has played in every Japanese tournament this year, except for those restricted to women and members of other branches of the Nihon Ki-in. Here's his record this year in the top seven Japanese titles: in the Kisei League B, he is the only player with two victories; in the Honinbo he lost the challenger decision match to Yamashita Keigo; he's in the semi-finals of the Judan, lost in the semi-finals of the Oza to Yamada Kimio 9P, lost in the second round of the Tengen to Cho U 9P, and lost in the final of the Gosei to challenger Sakai Hideyuki 7P. In lesser tournaments, he lost in the first round of the Agon Cup, lost in the final preliminary game of the Ryusei, is seeded into the second round of the NHK Cup, is in the second round of the NEC Cup, in the third round of the Daiwa Cup, and lost in the semifinals of the Daiwa Cup Grand Champion to Takao Shinji. Given this track record, it seems likely that he will become an ever bigger threat to Cho U’s current dominance of the Japanese scene. - Bill Cobb