Banquet and Awards

 

Celebrate the final night of the U.S. Go Congress with our traditional Closing Banquet and Awards Ceremony on Saturday evening. This festive gathering features:

• Banquet Dinner

• Song & Poetry Contest

• Presentation of tournament awards

• Announcement of the American Go Foundation’s “Teacher of the Year”

• A special auction of a valuable Go board to benefit the AGF

• And more!

This  event is a wonderful opportunity to relax, reflect, and connect with friends—both old and new—before everyone departs on Sunday morning. You can sign up for the banquet when you register for the Congress.

 

Banquet Dinner

This year's banquet will feature a BBQ buffet. If you are not into meat, there will be vegetarian options as well. The buffet will include:

• Salad
• Bread
• Choice of two sides
• Choice of two entrees
• BBQ sauce
• Assorted sweet desserts

Song and Poetry Contest

 

The Bob High Memorial Song and Poetry Contest is a beloved tradition at the congress, celebrating creativity and humor through Go-themed songs, poems, and performances. Named in honor of longtime congress-goer Bob High, the contest invites all attendees to share original works for fun and informal competition.

 

Rules of the Contest

1. Subject matter: Should relate to Go in some way.
2. Length: each entry should fit on a single, double-spaced page.  Use two columns if necessary. If two pages are used, it may be edited for publication.
3. There are two separate competitions: Poetry and Song. There is a maximum of three entries per person total. For each written entry in either contest, a performance/reading of that entry may be uploaded as an audio/video attachment as well. The performance may be played for winners in the closing ceremony.
4. Entries may not be under consideration for publication elsewhere.
5. Your uploaded written entry file should make NO REFERENCE to the author.  All entries will be judged anonymously and solely based on the written entry. If two judges know the author of a piece, it will be disqualified.
6. Entries remain the property of the author.  However, the AGA is entitled to print the entry in the AGA Songbook, and the AGA E-Journal.
7. The contest is open to all current AGA members, and members of their immediate family.  (Spouse, Children, grandchildren, parents, and grandparents.)  The contest is also open to all participants in the Go Congress and their immediate family.
8. The judges will select the finalists. An online vote will determine the winners. Any performance attachment will not be viewed by the judges nor shown as part of the online vote.

Identification of Pieces

Because judges will view your piece as an anonymous entry, it is important that you do two things:

1. DO NOT INCLUDE any identifying information in the

• Title of your entry
• Special information about your entry
• File with your written entry

2. DO INCLUDE the title of your entry on the file(s) that you upload. Use the same title on any performance file. This will be the only way that we can identify your written entry and, if needed, the performance file.

 

Judging of the Contest

Step 1: A panel of 3-5 judges will each read and rate all entries.  The top scoring entries will become the finalists.

Step 2: A small number of entries that become finalists will be publicized on the AGA's Twitch channel.  Online voters will choose the winners from among the finalists.

 

Note: Youth (< 18) entries are encouraged and may be judged separately.

 

Awards and Prizes

• The number of prizes to be awarded in each category will be determined at the sole discretion of the judges.
• Selected winning entries may be read and/or sung at the closing ceremony, and subsequently may be published in the AGA E-Journal, and a future edition of the AGA songbook.

Note: There is a special prize for best first time submission.

 

Additional Information

Keep in mind that if you are writing a parody of a song or poem, the judges may or may not be familiar with that work.  If there is any special information we should know about the origin of your piece, please include that information below. We need both the name and the author of the original and, if possible, also provide a recording of the original song or a text of the poem.

Contest Submission

When you've created something unique and interesting, and are ready to share it with others, click here:

Submit Entry