O Rissei 9-dan held on to the most prestigious title in go when he won Game 6 of the 25th Kisei on 8 March 2001. As the two-day game finished at 4 minutes past 7, and the scorekeeper announced that O had won by 5.5 points, both O and his opponent Cho Sonjin 9-dan lapsed into total silence. After a while it was O who spoke up, in a small voice, to begin the customary post mortem, but neither had their hearts in it and it lasted a mere ten minutes.
O's 4-2 victory was aided by a very lucky win in Game 5, which convinced him - he is fond of biorhythms - that the flow was with him. But despite the large margin of victory in the final game, it was a gruelling contest, played at one of go's regular venues, the Saihokukan Hotel in Nagano City.
The opening developed into a Black (O Rissei) moyo versus White profit game and soon evolved into a fight for life by a small white group on the fringes of the moyo. O would have found the game easier if he had played 95 at 271, and also 119 at 131, sacrificing five stones to settle the territory on the right, would have let him take the lead.
White 120 was praised as a good reply, and led to a big trade.
At the end O gave a big sigh of relief. He is now free to concentrate on the Judan bout against Kobayashi Koichi, having gone one game down already.
For his part, Cho was philosophical, acknowledging that he had to try harder.
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Older News From 22 february 2001: O RISSEI MOVES BACK INTO THE LEAD
O Rissei 9-dan moved to within one game of retaining his title when he won Game 5 of the 25th Kisei on 21 and 22 February 2001. The match score stands at 3-2 against Cho Sonjin 9-dan.
The game was played in a traditional inn at the holiday/spa resort of Hawai in Tottori Prefecture.
67 moves were played on Day 1, with Cho using rather more of the time. After a normal nirensei by White (O) against a Chinese fuseki, the game immediately took an unusual turn in the upper left, but settled into a Black-moyo versus White-territory contest.
It was not until deep into Day 2 that a clear leader emerged, and it was Cho when he captured six white stones in the centre with 145. But O came up with a meltdown move 152. He was aiming at the liberty-depriving move 164.
During the ensuing semeai, Black 187 was a mistake while Cho was in byoyomi (O had 20 minutes left). Commentator Shiraishi Yutaka 9-dan reckoned that Cho would have won with 187 as a hane two points to the right.
O conceded he was on the verge of resigning. He added that you can't expect to win of you play inferior moves like White 68. Cho said Black 151 was awful and should have been one point to the right. And he didn't have the confidence to play 162 instead of 161.
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Older News From 15 February 2001: CHO WINS GAME 4 MARATHON
The prediction of a dour struggle in the 25th Kisei final remains spot on. Game 4 on 14 and 15 February 2001 was a monster of 346 moves, and at the end challenger Cho Sonjin was able to tie the match score at 2-2 by a mere half point.
Cho took on O Rissei 9-dan this time in Oita City in the south of Japan, in the new ANA Hotel. (Click here for the game.) There was a question mark over Black 111 to 117 by O - did he resist too hard in trying to deny White the possibility of territory in the centre set up by 110? Black had enjoyed a smooth run up till then, but 119 was a meltdown move. There was a feeling by commentator Awaji Shuzo 9-dan that O was then obliged to keep playing meltdown moves just to keep his chances alive, although in that respect he was successful.
O was dissatisfied with the early trade at the top and the right - the black group died without sufficient aji. Cho felt he was ahead towards the end but admitted it was impossible to count properly with all the kos going on.
Both players used their full allowance of 8 hours, and indeed went on until past 8pm after a 9am start on Day 2.
Game 5 will be on 21 and 22 February, overlooking Togoike Lake in Hawai Spa, Hawai-cho,
in Tottori Prefecture. The township likes to play on the identity of the name (in Japanese) with Hawai, and bills itself as an all-year holiday resort. When Cho and O hit town, though, playtime will take on a whole new meaning.
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Older News from 1 February 2001: O RISSEI MOVES INTO THE LEAD
Holder O Rissei 9-dan moved smoothly into a 2-1 lead in the 25th Kisei final when he won Game 3 on 31 January and 1 February 2001. The only consolation for challenger Cho Sonjin 9-dan was the opportunity to soak away his sorrows in the waters of Bandai-Atami spa, the venue in Fukushima Prefecture.
Both players probably needed to unwind after a particularly tough fight that had possibilities of turning into a quadruple ko. The serious fighting part of the game began with the shoulder hit Black 87. It spiralled into a huge semeai with hidden ko features, but Black went astray with 131, and when the final ko crunch came, White's ko threat 152 was unmatchable, and so White got the better of the trade.
Observer Ishida Yoshio 9-dan, who should consider applying to the UN as he seems to have almost permanent observer status at present, rated White 108 an optimistic move. He thought pulling back at K7 was better, and in the case of the losing move 131, he said the correct alternative was L1. O himself conceded 108 was reckless and said he was relieved when he got a ko in the corner.
Cho felt he was forced to hang on for most of the game, and he was kicking himself for being sloppy about ensuring his group had eyes.
O used 6 hours 53 minutes of his 8 hours allowance, and Cho used 7 hours 31.
Game 4 will be at the other end of the country on 14 and 15 February at the new ANA Hotel in Oita City.
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Older News From 25 January 2001: O RISSEI TIES IT UP
The gruelling battle predicted for the 25th Kisei looked even more likely when holder O Rissei 9-dan pulled back to all-square in more ways than one in Game 2 on 24 and 25 January 2001. Apart from tieing up the match at 1-1, he also pegged back the career score between him and challenger Cho Sonjin 9-dan to 5-5.
Despite the apparently early finish, after just 181 moves, both players took almost their full 8-hour time allocation at the Entaijiso Inn in the tiny spa and ski resort of Unazuki in eastern Toyama Prefecture. O took 7 hours 6 minutes to Cho's 7 hours 33.
O took the initiative on Day 1 when he formed a large moyo, and his 61 and 63 won praise from commentator Hikosaka Naoto 9-dan. But the game was well poised over night as Cho plunged into the moyo with the sealed move 88. The next morning he started off brightly, skilfully leaving aji in the moyo, but he went astray when he opted to take territory with 114 and 116. O was able then to mount an attack with 117 which gave him the edge. Cho felt obliged to respond with a somewhat desperate 130, but O held his nerve to serve out the game.
When the players gave their post-mortem comments, O said he thought he had played a poor fuseki, but the game became easy for him when he got Black 87 in, the prospect of some territory in the centre giving him a slight edge. Cho said 24 was a try-on but felt 58 was a poor knee-jerk move, and the game then went downhill for him in the course of the first day's afternoon.
Game 3 will be on 31 January and 1 February at another hot spring resort, Bandai-Atami Spa in Koriyama City, Fukushima Pref.
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Older News From 13 January 2001: HOLDER O LOSES FIRST GAME AT HOME
After Okinawa summit land last year, it was somehow appropriate that Game 1 of the most important Japanese title - the 25th Kisei - went back overseas on 12 and 13 January 2001, for both players were born outside Japan.
For holder O Rissei 9-dan it was a home game as it was held in the Hotel Royal Taipei in Taiwan. Unlike most of the older overseas players such as Cho Chikun and Rin Kaiho, O went to Japan rather late. He went in 1971 when he was 13 and his home ties are still strong.
But that didn't stop Korean-born Cho Sonjin 9-dan, 30, raining on his parade. A marathon 291-move duel ended in a 1.5 point victory for Cho as Black.
Click here for the game. O had the better of the early game. An early ko fight saw him weather an attack and live comfortably in the centre, and Black helped with an inaccuracy - 163 should have been at 165. But White 188 was an oversight. He could have won with 213, answering a Black move at 181 at the left of 71.
Cho for his part admitted it was a tough game. He had miscounted the value of the centre fight in which he lost four stones, he said, and he was always playing catch-up.
The next game is back in Japan, at the Entaijiso Inn in the tiny spa and ski resort of Unazuki in eastern Toyama Prefecture on 24 January. A gruelling battle is expected as both players are in reasonable form. O starts the year on the back of a 31-18 score in 2000, and Cho had a more restful 25-15 score. Furthermore, prior to this match they were level pegging in previous results: 4-4 in eight games since 1989.
Games 3 to 6 will be at the following venues:
Hotel Hananoyu, Bandai-Atami Spa, Koriyama City, Fukushima Pref.
The just opened ANA Hotel, Oasis, Oita City, Oita Pref.
Bokoro, Hawai Spa, Hawai-cho, Tottori Pref., overlooking Togoike Lake
Saihokukan Hotel, Agatamachi, Nagano City, Nagano Pref.
The venue of Game 7, if needed, will be decided later.
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Older News From 3 November 2000: CHO SONJIN WINS PLAY-OFF
Cho Sonjin 9-dan has won the right to challenge for the Kisei title by defeating Awaji Shuzo 9-dan on 2 November 2000 in the playoff between the winners of the two leagues.
Cho now goes on to meet holder O Rissei 9-dan for the title, thus ensuring that a foreign-born player will win the title. Game 1 will be held in Taipei on 12 January 2001, home territory for O Rissei. The title match, the most lucrative in Japan, is a best-of-seven.
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Older News from 15 October 2000: CHO SONJIN AND AWAJI TO CONTEST PLAY-OFF
There was heartache in both 25th Kisei leagues, with players tying for first place on scores but losing out because of lower rankings.
In League A, Awaji Shuzo, once a frequent title challenger, surged back to form to score 4-1, and although Ryu Shikun made the same score, Awaji won the league on the strength of his previous higher performance in this event. In the tables below, the players are ranked according to previous form.
In League B, Ishida Yoshio suffered the same disappointment as Ryu, though it was in his hands. The decisive game took place on 14 October 2000 against Cho Sonjin. Cho was on 3-1, Ishida on 4-0. Cho won and was able to exercise his ranking prerogative.
Cho and Awaji now play off to see who will challenge holder O Rissei for the title.
In League A Imamura and Yo will be the two players demoted, and in League Hikosaka and Hasegawa.
Final league standings:
LEAGUE A
C
A
I
Y
I
R
Cho Chikun 9d
*
1
0
1
1
0
3-2
Awaji Shuzo 9d
1
*
1
0
1
1
4-1
Imamura Toshiya 9d
0
0
*
1
0
0
1-4
Yo Kagen 9d
0
1
0
*
0
0
1-4
Ishida Atsushi 8d
0
0
1
1
*
0
2-3
Ryu Shikun 7d
1
0
1
1
1
*
4-1
LEAGUE B
C
I
M
H
H
C
Cho Sonjin 9d
*
1
1
1
1-
0
4-1
Ishida Yoshio 9d
0
*
1
1
1
1
4-1
Miyazawa Goro 9d
0
0
*
1
1
0
2-3
Hasegawa Sunao 9d
0
0
0
*
0
0
0-5
Hikosaka Naoto 9d
0
0
0
1
*
1
2-3
Cho U 6d
1
0
1
1
0
*
3-2
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Older News From 28 May 2000: FIRST NEW-LOOK LEAGUE TAKES SHAPE
The Final Preliminary of the 25th Kisei tournament has now been completed and the eleven players who will join last year's losing finalist (Cho Chikun 9-dan) in the new two-part challenger's league are known.
They are Miyazawa Goro 9d, Cho U 6d, Imamura Toshiya 9d, Hasegawa Sunao 9d, Ishida Yoshio 9d, Hikosaka Naoto 9d, Awaji Shuzo 9d, Ishida Atushi 8d, Yo Kagen 9d, Cho Sonjin 9d and Ryu Shikun 7d.
It is not absolutely clear whether the new format has had the desired effect of giving the lower grades a fairer crack of the whip, but one performance to note was that of teenager Tsuruyama Atsushi 2-dan, a pupil of Cho Chikun. He reached the Final Preliminary before going down to Miyazawa.
The Kisei tournament is sponsored by the newspaper Yomiuri Shinbun, which does not have the oldest pedigree in go sponsorship but certainly the grandest. Top prize is 33 million yen.
The title holder is challenged in January-March by a challenger who is the winner of a complex year-long qualification system designed to give lower ranked players their moments of glory. (The winner also became the title holder in the first term).
Players at each of the nine dan grades play a knockout among themselves. The number of rounds obviously varies but is usually six or seven. The winners of the 1- to 6-dan events and the runners-up in the 7- and 8-dan events then join together in another knockout tournament. (This stage has been handled differently in the past. The 1-dan winner played the 2-dan winner; the winner of that game played the 3-dan winner, and so on up the chain. This was called the Paramas system).
The winner of this knockout, the top places in the 9-dan events and the 8-dan and 7-dan winners go forward to yet another knockout where they join various seeds - winners of other major tournaments and the former Kisei and challenger.
The composition of the seeds depends on who holds which title, but as an example, the 23rd Kisei featured the Fujitsu, Oza, Judan and Tengen champions. The semi-finalists of this knockout, called the Strongest Players Challenge, play a best-of-three final to determine the challenger.
In the final (best-of seven) each player has 8 hours thinking time over two days. Each game of the final is played in a different city. In all other games thinking time is 5 hours each. Komi has always been 5.5 points.
The word Kisei means Go Sage and has traditionally been regarded as a supreme accolade for a go player. It goes back almost 2,000 years to Han times in China (as Qisheng; Korean: Kiseong).
In Japan the first Kisei was Honinbo Dosaku (1645-1702). Honinbo Jowa (1787-1847) was regarded as a Go Sage by some, but lost the accolade when his political shenanigans were exposed. Honinbo Shusaku (1829- 1862) is currently ranked with Dosaku as the only two historical Go Sages.
