9th Jeongganjang Cup wrap up: Park Jieun and team Korea win

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There must’ve been some in the Korean camp who were nervous today. Around the middle of last week there were five remaining players in the 9th Jeonganjang Cup (an international women’s Go team tournament). Four of those players were flying the Korean standard, while one lonely player was still standing in the Chinese corner.

3rd BC Card Cup: Quarter final lineup

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The round of 16 has concluded in the 3rd BC Card Cup with Gu Li (9p) beating Cho Hanseung (9p) to claim the final spot in the quarter finals. The other quarter finalists are Lee Sedol (9p), Park Junghwan (9p), Heo Youngho (8p) and Kim Jiseok (7p) of Korea and Chen Yaoye (9p), Zhou Ruiyang (5p) and Zhong Wenjing (5p) of China. The quarter finals will begin on 31 March 2011.

Lee Sedol makes quarter finals in 3rd BC Card Cup

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On 12 March 2011, Lee Sedol (9p) claimed a spot in the quarter finals of the 3rd BC Card Cup by winning against fellow countryman Park Seunghwa (4p). As the defending champion, one might expect Lee to be the clear favourite. However, many Go enthusiasts watched this game keenly, as Lee and Park have only played each other twice before and the record before this game stood at one all.

Want to improve your Go and see China? Shanghai Go Camp 2011

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If you’re like most Go players, you dream of getting just one, three or even ten stones stronger. Have you also wondered what it would be like to see China, with all its ancient history, its modern marvels and, of course, Go? Do you wish you could play Go in China?

Tiger Cubs Storm into 11th Ricoh Cup Final

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The march of the Chinese tiger cubs continues in China as Tan Xiao (4p) and Li Zhe (6p) storm into the final of the 11th Ricoh Cup. The Ricoh Cup is a Chinese domestic tournament. This is the first Ricoh Cup final where the tiger cubs have reached the final and yet another milestone for the tiger cub generation. Earlier last month, Zhou Hexi (4p), another tiger cub, became the challenger for the 25th Tianyuan title.

Piao Wenyao wins 15th LG Cup

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On 23 February 2011, the finals of the 15th LG Cup concluded with Piao Wenyao (5p) taking out the championship against fellow countryman and defending champion, Kong Jie (9p). Piao won the first match, of this best of three final, two days ago on 21 February 2011. Now having won the second match, he has taken the title without having to proceed to the third and final match.

Rising young Go players at 25th Tianyuan Tournament

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The 25th Tianyuan tournament is currently underway in Beijing, China. Three young Chinese professional Go players: Zhou Hexi (4p), Li Haojie (4p) and Shi Yue (4p) have reached the semi final of this year’s Tianyuan. The three players are part of a group of rising young Go professionals that the Chinese media has affectionately dubbed “the tiger cubs generation”. The three cubs will be joined in the semi final by stalwart, Yu Bin (9p).

Lee Changho won’t play in 24th Fujitsu Cup

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The qualifying tournament for the 24th Fujitsu Cup is currently taking place in South Korea. In a surprise upset on 9 February 2011, Won Seongjin beat Lee Changho. This is the first time in 18 years (since the 7th Fujitsu Cup) that “The Stone Buddha” (Lee Changho) will not appear at the international phase of the Fujitsu Cup. Many fans will be sorely disappointed.

Top 20 Pro Go Players of 2010

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Have you ever wondered how top professional Go players compare? Here Dr Bae Taeil, who created the Korean ranking system, made an announcement of the World Go Ranking for the end of 2010. Calculating a world ranking is very difficult because of the differences between the systems in Korea, China, Japan and Taiwan.

Iyama Yuta leads Cho U 2-1 in the Kisei

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The 3rd game of the 35th Japanese Kisei Tournament was held on February 2nd and February 3rd in Toyama, Japan. The challenger Iyama Yuta (9 dan) defeated the Champion defender Cho U (9 dan) with 1 point and half and leads the game series 2 to 1. The Kisei title is decided in a best of seven matches with 8 hours thinking time per person. The challenger comes from a large knockout tournament where the final is decided in a best of three matches.