XIE TAKES LEAD IN HONINBO DEFENSE: Xie Yimin 4P and current Women's Meijin and Honinbo defeated challenger Aoki Kikuyo 8P by 2.5 points to take a 2-1 lead in the 28th Women's Honinbo title match. . Aoki won the first game. Xie won this title last year for the first time and became the Women's Meijin-Honinbo. Xie, still a teen, is also the most recent winner of the Daiwa Women's Cup, an internet event and has reached the third round of the current NHK Cup--an impressive achievement for a woman player. Women pros rarely even make it to the second round in the NHK.

WANG XI WINS CHANK-KI CUP: Wang Xi 9P defeated Wang Yao 6P 2-0 in the best-of-three-games final of the 6th Chang Ki Cup. The second game, played on October 25th, was a one point victory (using Ing rules). Wang Yao took a two-point penalty to gain extra time under the Ing system so the one-point loss was painful. Wang Yao also took time penalties in the two semifinal games in which he beat Chang Hao 9P by 3 points and by resignation to gain the finals. Wang Xi has won two previous titles, the Liguang Cup and the Asian TV Cup, both in 2006. In the Asian TV Cup he defeated Lee Changho 9P of Korea. Both players are in their twenties. The Chang Ki Cup commorates  the founder of the Ing Foundation, Ing Chang-Ki, and the finals start on his birthday, October 23rd, each year.
- Bill Cobb, from reports in GoGameWorld, Sensei's Library, AGA website, and Go News

KOREA WINS KOREAN PM CUP: According to unofficial reports, Korea has won the Korean Prime Minister Cup, in which representative from 69 countries and territories including Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas competed from October 23-27 in Jeonju Korea. According to these reports, China took second place, third was Hong Kong, then Japan, US (Yuan Zhou 7d), Taipei, Canada, South Africa, Thailand and Ukraine.

CREEKS TOPS NOVA PUMPKIN CLASSIC: Jimmy Creeks 6d (r) topped the NOVA Pumpkin Classic tournament last Saturday, winning all four rounds. There were 40 participants in the October 24 Northern Virginia Go Club event, “vying for the prize pumpkins,” reports TD Allan Abramson. Winners Report: First place: Jimmy Creeks 6d, 4-0; Justin Teng 2d, 3-1; Xiaojing Du 2k, 3-1; Kelsey Dyer 3k, 3-1; Yukino Takehara 4k, 3-1; Caleb Furth 8k, 3-1; Joey Phoon 9k, 4-0; Kurt Haldeman 14k, 3-1; Tristan Tran 18k, 2-2. Second Place: Daniel Chou 6d, 2-2; Hal Small 3d, 2-2; Ethan Baldridge 2d, 2-2; Todd Blatt 1k, 3-1; Alex Yen 8k, 2-2; Min Soo Kang 13k, 3-1; Alan Chen 16k, 3-1; Ben Soto Reiner 19k, 2-2; Marcus Phoon 20k, 2-2. Special achievement prize, including long distance, Paul Celmer 1d, 3-1. 

ZIPEI FENG WINS ROCKY MOUNTAIN TOURNEY: Zipei Feng 8d won the Rocky Mountain Fall Go Tournament on October 24, topping the field of 45. Second place went to Ryan Bernstein, who entered as a strong 1 kyu, but beat two 3 dans in even games.  The winner of the handicap section was 9 kyu Cory Wiersema, playing in his first AGA tournament. “Five-year-old Robin Luo entered as a 14 kyu, and won two out of three games,” reports David Weiss. “He’s been playing go for just 6 months.” 

DAI SWEEPS IN BRUSSELS AND LYON: Dai Junfu 7d of Lyon (France) swept the Brussels Open 5-0 on October 24- 25. Hwang In-seong 7d (Berlin, 2nd) and French Champion Zhang Yanqi 6d (Grénoble) only lost to Dai. Antoine Fénech 5d (Strasbourg) and co-organizer Jan Ramon 4d (Leuven) shared 4th place. Click here for results and here for a photo album. Kyu players did well in Brussels: 7 had a 4-1 result, while Dominique Versyck 5k, Joost Vannieuwenhuyse 7k, Alain Cano 8k and David Khatchaturian 12k, the local hero of Pantin club, all won all their five games. Two weeks earlier, Dai had also defeated Hwang in his local Lyon tourney, which he swept 5-0. Another local 7d, Miyakawa Wataru won the bronze. Among 78 participants, only Thomas Leclerc 15k also won all five rounds. Click here for results.
- Peter Dijkema, based on a report by Pierre Wegnez

UNDEFEATED HIDDEMA WINS DUTCH INDIS: Herman Hiddema 4d has completed a clean sweep of the Inter-District, or InDis tourney, winning all four rounds at European Go Centre in Amstelveen, Holland on October 24-25 for a final score of 8-0.  Hiddema finished two wins ahead of veteran Michiel Eykhout 6d, Merijn de Jong 3d and Andreas Drost 4d. Youth Champ Alexander Eerbeek 3d (16) and Michiel Tel 2d (18) also won a place in the final of 16 qualifiers for the 8-round Dutch title tournament, to be played over two weekends in January 2010. For the full table of 30 participants, click here. Hiddema, a fresh four-dan, is now undefeated in two tournaments. After organizing this year’s European Go Congress, he won the Leksand Pandanet 6-0. "Ïn the InDis, all the guys who were recently promoted did well," Hiddema modestly told the EJ. "Merijn de Jong and Michiel Tel qualified, Sjoerd Kuperus also won five games."
- Peter Dijkema

SCHLADITZ SWEEPS LEIPZIG “MINER'S”: Tommy Schladitz 3d won all 5 rounds in the 35th "Bergmannsturnier" ('Miner's tourney') October 17-18 in Leipzig. Maria Wiebe 1d - also of Stuttgart - took silver with 4-1, ahead of Rene Hilpert 2d of Bonn, who won bronze with 3-1. In Leipzig, 35 took part, including many women and girls. Click here for results. - Peter Dijkema

3RD KIM-IN SENIOR TOURNEY REGISTRATION OPENS: The 3rd annual Kim-in Cup International Senior Baduk Competition has been scheduled for November 20-23 in Jeollanam-do, Korea. To be eligible, male players must be at least 50 years old, while female players must be at least 30. “This looks to be a fun event, as well as a great chance to explore Korean go” says American Go Association President Allan Abramson, “and I encourage all eligible players to attend.” The tournament – sponsored by the Korea Baduk Association and the Korean Amateur Baduk Association -- will include both team (men’s and women’s) and individual sections. The player participation fee is free, and includes accommodation, meals, transportation and sightseeing; players must cover their own travel costs to the venue. For an application form, call +0082-2-3407-3860-3 or fax +0082-2-3407-3875.

THREE TOP PROS TO TEACH IN VIENNA: Three professional go players will teach in Vienna, Austria at a workshop November 27-29. Kobayashi Chizu 5P, who has won many female titles in Japan, will fly in from France, and Aoki Shinichi 9P -  recently resident in Vienna - will be joined by his younger sister Aoki Kikuyo 8P, who is currently fighting the female Honinbo match with Xie Jimin. Click here for details and to register. - Peter Dijkema

PAIR GO ESSAY CONTEST ANNOUNCED: Anyone who’s ever participated in a Pair Go tournament is being invited to submit an essay about Pair Go to help commemorate the 20th anniversary of the game. Entrants should select one of the following themes -- How can we make Pair Go the 'friendship game' of the world? The fun and benefits of Pair Go or Memories of Pair Go – and submit the essay by November 5 to ipgc20@pairgo.or.jp  Entries by pairs is permitted, and there’s no limit on the number of entries, but they must be in either English or Japanese. Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, and the year or years you played in the International Amateur Pair Go Championship. Prizes will be awarded by the Japan Pair Go Association. Entries can also be mailed to: The Pair Go Prize, The Japan Pair Go Association, 8F, Shin-Kokusai Building, 3-4-1 Marunouchi Tokyo 100-0005. Entries from those who have not played in Tokyo may be submitted to Allan Abramson at president@usgo.org for recognition by the AGA.

BOARD CONSIDERING AGA MEMBERSHIP ISSUES: In response to problems implementing the new one-year continuous membership rule for eligibility to participate in qualifiers for international tournaments, AGA President Allan Abramson has developed some options to improve the situation. He presented them to the AGA board at its last meeting, and is now polling the chapters. “One of the major ideas we have developed is intended to eliminate the membership renewal problem for youth by offering a ‘Youth-time’ membership, similar to life-time memberships,” he reported to the assembly of chapter leaders, which has 30 days to consider the issue and submit comments. Abramson also reported that the AGA is moving administratively on this issue by considering changing youth membership expiration dates to the first of the month following their birthdays; ensuring that members receive email renewal reminders 90, 60, and 30 days before expiration, and once after; adding an check box to the AGA website authorizing automatic membership renewal by credit card (this would apply to all forms of membership); crediting renewal dates from the date of postmark, tournament date if renewed at a tournament, or the date of electronic submittal, not the date of AGA processing, to eliminate any breaks in membership due to AGA processing times; and considering a change in policy allowing youth joining the AGA for the first time to participate in any international qualifiers without the one year requirement.

IN MEMORIAM: TRILLING PASSES: Longtime LA area go enthusiast Tom Trilling (at left in photo) succumbed to cancer in May. Trilling "was a stalwart who played regularly with the South Bay Ki-in and often at other local clubs and attended every local event he could, including a pro workshop only weeks before his death," reports Andy Okun. "He loved playing go," said son Andy Trilling, "and it was a source of great support, comfort and distraction, especially during his final weeks.” Trilling played since the early 60's, says Richard Dolen, but his work in the aerospace industry kept him from regular participation in those days, although "he was enthusiastic about the game, and we would occasionally meet at the Seinan Go Club, behind the barber shop in the Crenshaw area." When the South Bay club organized a sister city go visit to Nagoya, Trilling went along and got special team t-shirts that "contributed much to the spirit of the events." Adds Bob Terry, "I do not think that I have ever met anyone who loved go as much as Tom Trilling.” On a 1995 trip to Nagoya, "we played some VIPs at city hall. I played a member of the Japanese Diet and Tom played the mayor. We all won that day, but the rest of the matches on the trip were much more difficult. We played teams from other countries at various venues in Nagoya. In the end, the Chinese team came in first, but our team was the best of all the Western clubs that participated. At the closing ceremony, Tom Trilling was beaming from ear to ear. And yet he still managed to slip away into the hallway of the building where someone had a go board and he played one game after another there. I was busy enjoying the lavish buffet that had been furnished, eating the best caviar that I have ever tasted, but all that Tom could think of was go!"

In Spain last week on a pleasure trip with my friend Colleen, I stopped by the Madrid go club on Friday evening. I knew the club was in Plaza de España, but didn't remember exactly where in the plaza it was, so I ducked into an internet cafe and looked up the address from the Madrid Club mailing list and found the club on Google Streetview. After locating the place, and listening for stones clicking, I found the room. Minutes later, I was sitting with a couple dozen players on the 3rd floor of what seemed to be a restaurant that was closed for the evening. Since I arrived so late, I didn't get to play, but I met a few people, including a Mr. Mikami, a former insei in Japan. He's been in Spain for 35 years and is very strong. The Madrid club ends at 10pm, just in time for dinner, and we went to a Chinese place. The way the meal worked was that everyone made suggestions, and people voted on what the table wanted. We sat around telling silly jokes, most of which didn't work in English, but a few of the people spoke English very well and translated for me. The club members were generous enough to treat their visitor to the meal and after dinner, around 1 or 2 am, we headed over to a local bar and hung out there pretty late. Madrid bars close at 4am, and clubs close at 6am. I spent the next few days in Madrid, and Tuesday night, we flew to Barcelona. The main Barcelona go club meets on Tuesday nights, so I missed it, but Fridays and Saturdays other members meet informally at a different restaurant and hang out and eat. I went to this club from 10-12 Friday night, and after that, met up with my friends at the beach. The 10-day trip was amazing, and I can't wait to go back.