The natural order of things reasserted itself as Rui Naiwei 9-dan triumphed against plucky challenger Cho Hye-yeon 2-dan in the deciding Game 3 of the 7th Women's Kuksu final in Seoul on 11 August 2000.

We have no further details just yet, but Japanese pro Kiyonari Tetsuya 9-dan, who was in Seoul recently for the Japan-Korea New Stars match, commented on his return that the young Korean female players had already made astonishing progress through having Rui as their lodestar.

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In one of the most astonishing results of the year, 15-year-old Cho Hye-yeon 2-dan has pulled level in the best-of-three final of the 7th Women's Kuksu final, beating no less than the holder of the "men's" Kuksu, Rui Naiwei 9-dan on 3 August 2000 in Seoul.

We have yet to see the game, but it was a slow grind over 262 moves, Cho winning by 1.5 points, suggesting there was nothing too flukish about the result. Rui can hardly complain, of course - the very reason she was invited to play in Korea was to improve the standard of women's go there.

Cho, who just turned 15 in June, has been a pro for three years already and had already earned the nickname of the Female Yi Ch'ang-ho. She is a provincial, from Suwon City, and her route to the professional ranks was also far from the mainstream. She is a pupil of Kim Weon 6-dan, who is himself just 33. Cho can certainly give the male master a hard time. Now it's the turn of the female master!

The final game is scheduled for 11 August.

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Chinese guest Rui Naiwei 9-dan has moved into pole position to retain her hold on Korea's Women's Kuksu title, taking Game 1 of the 7th term against Cho Hye-yeon 2-dan (just turned 15) in Seoul on 28 July 2000. The final is a best-of-three, with the other two games scheduled for 3 and 11 August.

The final stages of the route to the final were that Cho and Rui won their way through to the final of the winners' section (the event this year being run on a repechage basis like the Japanese Judan), beating Yi Min-chin, just promoted to 2-dan, and Pak Chi-eon 2-dan respectively. Rui won the final of the winners' section, and Cho moved over top contest the final of the losers' section against Kweon Ho-chin 2-dan. She did this successfully and so won the chance the face Rui yet again in the title final.

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The preliminary stage of the 7th Women's Kuksu has been completed. Rui Naiwei 9-dan, the present holder, and the runner-up to Rui, Yi Chi-hyeon, now 2-dan, gain free entry to the final knockout, and the qualifiers who will join them include Pak Chi-eon 2-dan, Cho Hye-yeon 2-dan, Yi Yeong-sin 2-dan, Kweon Ho-chin 2-dan, Ha Ho-cheong 1-dan and Yi Min-chin 1-dan.

• The 6th Women's Kuksu

The Pro Women's Kuksu Tournament is sponsored by Han-kuk Kyeong-che Sin-mun (Korean Economic Newspaper). 

The total prize in 1998 was 28 million won, with first prize of 7 million won, and second 2 million won. This has been increased in 1999 to 35 million won (first prize 9 million won; second prize is 3.5 million won). 

The main tournament is currently a 16-woman knockout, without seeds, culminating in a best-of-three final. This format has varied slightly in earlier years because of the relatively small number of eligible players. 

Time limits are 4 hours each (3 hours in any qualifiers). Komi is 5.5 points. 

The word kuksu is the Korean equivalent of the Chinese guoshou (national hand). Originally it meant a person who was able to lead the nation through his example of supreme skill. It became the main word in China to denote a go champion, and is thus in effect the proper equivalent of the Japanese Meijin.  

WOMEN'S KUKSU FINALISTS (The year is the year the tournament starts)

Note: All Korean names are in McCune-Reischauer transcription.