AMERICAN GO E-JOURNAL: News from the American Go Association

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January 27, 2003

In This Edition:
SCOREBOARD: Boston, MA
GAME COMMENTARY: The 2003 N.A. Fujitsu Final
GO NEWS: World Go: Japan, the Nordic Scene; New AGA Team Shapes Up More Lessons Of A Game Recorder GO ONLINE: Reams & Reams of Free Stuff GO CLASSIFIED AGA CONTACT LIST

CALENDAR OF EVENTS (U.S.)

February 22: Toronto, Canada
Toronto Go Tournament
Monks@pmonks@look.ca 416-591-6414

March 1-2: Princeton, NJ
New Jersey Open
Rick Mott 609-466-1602 rickmott@alumni.princeton.edu

March 13-16: Germantown, MD
Greater Washington Go Club's Yang Workshop
Anand Modak 301-513-8233 amodak@mcps.k12.md.us

March 22: Arlington, VA
Cherry Blossom
Allan Abramson 703-684-7676 mediate8@worldnet.att.net

NOTE: this listing is not all-inclusive, featuring only upcoming tournaments in the next month or events which require early registration. For a complete U.S. listings, go to http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368757&u=http://www.usgo.org/usa/tournaments.html&g=0&f=63368763
For the European Go Calendar see http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368758&u=http://www.win.tue.nl/cs/fm/engels/go/tourn.html&g=0&f=63368763

YOUR MOVE

SCOREBOARD: Boston, MA

Boston, MA: January 19
MGA Winter Handicap Tournament
44 players
TD: Don Wiener

5d-5k Section Winners: 1st: Gregory LEFLER, 3k, 4-0; 2nd: John CHAMBERLAIN, 4k, 4-0; 3rd: Won KIM, 5d, 3-1.

6k-22k Section Winners: 1st: Susan SCOTT, 21k, 4-0; 2nd: Leif GERJUOY, 13k, and Gregory ROSENBLATT, 16k tied with 3-1.


GAME COMMENTARY: The 2003 N.A. Fujitsu Final

"It's no secret that Jimmy Cha is a very strong player, especially great in fighting games but I felt I would have a chance if I were to take black," says John J-S Lee in today's game commentary on last week's dramatic North American Fujitsu final, played on January 19 in Baltimore, Maryland. Lee did get Black in the final, grabbed his chance with both hands and forced a resignation in just 153 exciting moves.

BONUS: This week we're pleased to include a brand-new set of life and death problems from master tsume-go creator Yilun Yang, 7P. Try your hand at solving the problems, which range in difficulty from beginner to intermediate and advanced. Watch for the solutions in next week's E-Journal!

The weekly Games Edition is a terrific bargain at just $20/year: sign up today at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368755&u=http://www.usgo.org/org/application.asp&g=0&f=63368763


GO NEWS

WORLD GO: Japan

The ten game match between Rui Naiwei and Park Jieun is now tied at four each, with Park 3P winning the last two consecutive games, forcing Rui 9P to a handicap of playing Black two out of three games, so Rui will play Black in the last two games in the match. These are fast games, with only 30 minutes of basic time and no komi. The next game is on February 2nd. Check out the games at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368750&u=http://www.kyoto.zaq.ne.jp/momoyama/news/kr/rp/rp.html&g=0&f=63368763 .

Michael Redmond 9P has won his first and second round games in the current Gosei Tournament in Japan. Redmond's second-round win was over Yamashita, who had just beat Cho Chikun in the Honinbo League. Redmond went on to defeat Sonoda Yuichi 9P playing Black by 3.5 points on December 12th and Yamashita Keigo 7P by resignation playing White on January 23rd. His opponent in the quarterfinals will be either Otake Hideo, Rin Kaiho, or Cho Chikun. That will be one to watch! -William Cobb, Assistant Editor

WORLD GO: The Nordic Scene

If you're heading to Sweden, Denmark, Norway or Finland, check out the g scene there in the latest Nordic Go Journal at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368747&u=http://wend.cc/go/1%3f03.pdf&g=0&f=63368763
Even if your Swedish is rusty, you can check out Chris Garlock's review of MasterGo on page 37, which originally appeared in the American Go E-Journal.

Catch up on the active Nordic tournament scene at the websites below or email Erik Ekholm at erik.ekholm@telia.com

Swedish Go Assoc: http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368740&u=http://go.polopoly.com/go/jsp/polopoly.jsp%3fd=110&g=0&f=63368763
Danish Info: http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368746&u=http://users.cybercity.dk/~dko7155/cgc.html&g=0&f=63368763
Finnish Go Assoc: http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368749&u=http://www.helsinki.fi/~msiivola/sgl.html&g=0&f=63368763
Norwegian Go Assoc: http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368745&u=http://norway.european-go.org/&g=0&f=63368763

NEW AGA TEAM SHAPES UP

At their first official meeting on January 2, the American Go Association's Board of Directors confirmed CHRIS KIRSCHNER as President, BEN BERNSTEIN as Treasurer, and SUSAN WEIR as Secretary. The Board also voted to approve key appointments recommended by the President: CHRIS GARLOCK, Vice-President of Communications; KEITH ARNOLD, National Coordinator, Governance and Policies; PAUL MATHEWS, National Coordinator, Ratings; JEFF SHAEVEL, National Coordinator, Rankings; LEE ANN BOWIE, National Coordinator, Education; MICHAEL BROCKBANK, National Coordinator, Legal and Compliance; ROY LAIRD, National Coordinator, Website; and TERRY ASSAEL, National Coordinator, Recruiting and Human Resources. PAUL CELMER, National Coordinator of Chapter Management; JOHN GOON, National Coordinator, Community Outreach; JUDY DEBEL as Congress Liaison. DUANE BURNS will serve as National Coordinator, Tournament Regulation, overseeing certification of tournament directors, and will coordinate a team co! nsisting of KEN KOESTER, JEFF SHAEVEL, and CHUCK ROBBINS, who will work on regulations for Internet tournaments, an updated Tournament Guide, and tournament coordination, respectively.

The Board also took steps toward developing a statement of ethical standards to help guide members of the Board and AGA officers and has begun work on developing a mission statement for the AGA that will provide officers with guidance on priorities and present the AGA to the world. Over the next few months, the Board expects to begin discussions about the role of professional players in the AGA and the operation of the ratings system, as well as to develop a practical way to hold more public Board meetings.
- Dave Weimer, Chair


MORE LESSONS OF A GAME RECORDER
By Keith Arnold

I just spent over ten hours in the past two days recording the games of North America's top players in the 2003 Fujitsu tournament. I do not think I have ever been so engrossed in games I was not playing. The power, strength, and concentration of these men were no surprise, although beyond my ability to fully appreciate. More comprehensible, and in some ways more admirable, was their easy grace in handling the outcome of each game, despite the effort and pressure of the games. I can never hope to play as well as them, but I can strive to bring my own best effort to my game, and to share their humility and acceptance in victory and defeat.

I pleased and surprised to find that I do share something completely and deeply with these men: the absolute joy of this game. With the greatest prize in American go on the line, these guys were having fun, the same pleasure I feel when I sit across from a worthy opponent and create a good game (a pale imitation of what I just watched perhaps) but no less joyful. In go, there are wonderful surprises around each corner and they are reflected in the face of your opponent. Or in the pit of your stomach.

We can only create this shared experience face to face, across the board. I play on the internet all the time but it is not the same. Go players, turn your computers off and go to the club and to your local tournaments. Organizers - start your own clubs and hold tournaments. This is important and rewarding work.

One day at a racetrack, Abe Yoshiteru 9P is said to have remarked, "It is so sad for horses that they can not play go. Really." So let's spread the word, and play the games. We must try to keep sente for if we wait, we may never get a chance to make the best play. I am sure that Hans Pietsh was looking forward to a long endgame, but some sequences are impossible to read, no matter how strong you are.

GO ONLINE: Reams & Reams of Free Stuff
By Roy Laird, AGA Webmaster

Oddly enough, one of the most valuable go-related things you can do online is to find materials that are best printed and perused offline. If you know where to look, you can find printed materials that aren't even available in print. By "printed materials", I mean text and diagrams presented in a format that is easier to use in print than online, in contrast to the many online resources we have discussed previously. Whether you want to strengthen your game, learn more about the amazing history of go, or sing a silly go song, you can do it in your easy chair, using freely available downloads.

Let's start with a site maintained by the Wings Across Calm Water Go Club, the AGA's only official online chapter. Go to http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368759&u=http://www.wingsgoclub.org/,&g=0&f=63368763 click on the button on the left labeled "Books." Here you will find three outstanding full-length books, worth $60 or more if they were available in print -- which they are not. Wings member Steve Bretherick has translated the popular two-volume "How to Play Against the Stronger Player," and John Stephenson prepared the manuscript of this valuable addition to the growing body of work devoted to handicap go. Through a special arrangement as an AGA chapter, Wings makes these materials available to English-speaking go players at no cost. Over 10,000 users have downloaded these books. Also available is the massive "Go on Go," a detailed commentary on some of Go Seigen's greatest games by the master himself, translated by Jim Yu. Download up to ! 4 MB and print out over 1000 pages of great material available nowhere else!

Two reams worth of free material for study isn't enough? No problem. For starters, check out the "Articles" section of the mammoth gobase.org site at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368743&u=http://gobase.org/studying/articles/.&g=0&f=63368763 This is a deceptively rich page: many of the links contain dozens of articles. New players should especially check out the "Hanging Out at Dan's" series, by Teach Yourself Go author Charles Matthews. Several chapters of a new book explaining the concept of "shape" in simple terms are also available at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368744&u=http://gobase.org/studying/articles/matthews/shape_up/.&g=0&f=63368763

If you've printed out all the good stuff we've found so far, it's time to check your cartridge, reload the paper drawer and forge ahead to http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368760&u=http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/igo_e/igomenu.htm.&g=0&f=63368763 Here you will find more than 200 installments of "The Magic of Go,", a weekly English-language column started by Kiseido founder Richard Bozulcih and continued presently by Dutch pro Rob Van Ziejst.

There's lots more instructional material -- see http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368756&u=http://www.usgo.org/resources/internet.asp&g=0&f=63368763 for details -- but the list of online articles about go doesn't stop there. If you didn't know that go has played an important role in Asian culture for millennia, expand your appreciation of go by checking out some of the historical material that's available. For a general grounding in the subject, the articles you can find at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368741&u=http://gobase.org/information/history/&g=0&f=63368763 will get you started. John Fairbairn's articles at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368751&u=http://www.msoworld.com/mindzine/news/orient/go/special/gofeatures.html&g=0&f=63368763 go into greater depth in a number of areas.

Those who believe that go is just a game can skip this paragraph, but those who know otherwise can find some anecdotal writings on subjects as diverse as dragons, Albert Einstein, and sex discrimination in go can be found at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368742&u=http://gobase.org/stories/%3fid=intro.&g=0&f=63368763 But when it comes to whimsical and non-technical material, the Bob High Memorial Library at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368754&u=http://www.usgo.org/bobhighlibrary/,&g=0&f=63368763 is the mother lode. Still want to know more about the role of weiqi in Chinese society? Could go somehow help bring North and South Korea together? Why can't computers play go? Does playing actually strengthen the brain? Where and how did go begin? Here you will find links to essays addressing all of these questions, plus annotations of go "sightings" in Western literature, and much more. For the ultimate in pun-ishin!
g whimsy, don't miss "Adventures of Go Kiburi", professional player extraordinaire who wanders through time with his sidekick, iki Jibiki. Or try out a few of the silly go songs on offer there, before settling down to study your new acquisitions.


GO CLASSIFIED

WANTED: A copy of "First Kyu" Peter Shotwell shotwell@nyc.rr.com

FOR SALE: Sets of old "Go World" magazines: 1-48 and 1-15; 17-25; 50-56 and individual copies #22, #40, #43, and #51. Check them out at http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368748&u=http://www.eskimo.com/~dobe/Dobe_ForSale_GO_Worlds01.htm&g=0&f=63368763
Or email dobe.doinat@verizon.net

FOR SALE: Refrigerator Go sets for displaying (or playing) the game on the large laminated board attached to the metallic surface (for example, a refrigerator - see http://www.promptpublishing.com); $45 from Michal Lebl, storyspyder@aol.com

FOR SALE: Go boards made of 2.5" mahogany or pine, about 17X19", with 19X19 grid (cut with small saw, not drawn) and a 9X9 or 13X13 grid on the back. Sanded and waxed, without feet. $260 ea or $170 ea for 10 or more.
Jim Thomas; waldomesa@cybermesa.com

WANTED: Go players in the West Lafayette, Indiana/Purdue area; e-mail Chris Kubica at ckubica@insightbb.com

WANTED: Copy of the go novel "First Kyu."
Mark Lybrand; maryesme@shore.net

WANTED: MasterGo Team volunteer to enter data into a player biography database. No pay but get your name on the MasterGo website and, possibly, get a free copy of the program. Charles G. Robbins, crobbins@ctipc.com

WANTED: "All About Life and Death, Volume 1," by Cho Chikun; "The Breakthrough to Shodan," by Naoki Miyamoto. John Pinkerton, john.pinkerton@watsonwyatt.com

WANTED: Issues of 'Go World' from the past couple of years. Prefer someone who has several issues to offer. sfragman@netvision.net.il

Got Go stuff to sell, swap or want to buy? Do it here and reach more than 5,000 Go players worldwide every week at Go Classified! Send to us at journal@usgo.org


GET LISTED & BOOST TURN-OUT! Got an upcoming event? Reach over 5,000 readers every week! List your Go event/news In the E-Journal: email details to us at MAILTO:journal@usgo.org

Ratings are on the web! Check the website; http://gm14.com/r.html?c=171523&r=171125&t=88498618&l=1&d=63368753&u=http://www.usgo.org&g=0&f=63368763 for the full list.

GET YOUR TOURNAMENT RATED! Send your tournament data to MAILTO:ratings@usgo.org

AGA CONTACT LIST:
President: Chris Kirschner: president@usgo.org
Secretary Susan Weir: Secretary@usgo.org
Treasurer Ben Bernstein: Treasurer@usgo.org
VP - Communications: Chris Garlock Journal@usgo.org
Archivist Craig Hutchinson: Archives@usgo.org
Chapter Management: Paul Celmer chapterservices@usgo.org
Nicole Casanta: Chapters@usgo.org
Community Outreach: John Goon Outreach@usgo.org
Congress Liaison: Judy Debel Congress@usgo.org
Education Coordinator: Lee Ann Bowie Education@usgo.org
Equipment Distribution: Paul Celmer Equipment@usgo.org
HR & Recruitment: Terry Assael Hr@usgo.org
Membership Services: Tom Hodges, Joel Gabelman membership@usgo.org
Policy & Governance: Keith Arnold Governance@usgo.org
General Counsel: Michael T. Brockbank legal@usgo.org Professional Players' Representative: Zhu-jiu (Jujo) Jiang Professionals@usgo.org
Ranking Issues: Jeff Shaevel Rank@usgo.org
Ratings Coordinator: Paul Matthews Ratings@usgo.org
Tournament Coordinator: Chuck Robbins Tournaments@usgo.org
Tournament Regulations: Duane Burns Regulations@usgo.org
Webmaster: Roy Laird: webmaster@usgo.org
Youth Coordinator: Non？Redmond youth@usgo.org
American Go Foundation: Terry Benson terrybenson@nyc.rr.com Database Manager: Sam Zimmerman database@usgo.org AGA BOARD OF DIRECTORS Dave Weimer (Chair): weimer@lafollette.wisc.edu Chen-dao Lin: cdlin5@yahoo.com John Stephenson: Jcs@wingsgoclub.org
David Dinhofer: David.dinhofer@alum.mit.edu
Harold Lloyd: Hlloyd@core.com
Bob O'Malley: omalley@coas.oregonstate.edu
Jon Boley: Jon@airsltd.com

Published by the American Go Association
Material published in " AMERICAN GO E-JOURNAL" may be reproduced by any
recipient: please credit the AGEJ as the source.

To make name or address corrections - notify us at the email address below.

Story suggestions, event announcements, Letters to the Editor and other material are welcome - subject to editing for clarity and space -- and
should be directed to:

Editor: Chris Garlock
email: journal@usgo.org
Voice: 202-857-3410
Fax: 202-857-3420

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