This December 3rd and 4th, Seattle Go Center is hosting the first Washington AGA State Championship. The tournament is 5 rounds (3 on Saturday and 2 on Sunday), with three pairings brackets (prizes in each bracket):

Top Bracket: Open (no handicap) bracket for top rated players to determine our State Champion.
Upper bracket: McMahon pairing (no handicap) bracket for high-ranked competitors if we have enough players. If not, it will be handicapped..
Lower bracket: Handicap bracket for lower Kyu level players.

The top scoring Washington State player from our top bracket will win with the 2022 Washington State Championship trophy. To qualify for champion, you need to have been a WA resident for the last 6 months and be employable in the US. Prizes for the Championship section will be $500 – $250 – $125, Others will depend on registration. Youth Prizes dependent on registration.

You must have a current AGA membership. Please renew ahead of time to make registration easier for everyone. Go to AGA membership join/update page to check your membership status, or join.

Early Registration: Please fill out the form at https://www.seattlego.org/washington-state-championship-2022 or email Programs@seattlego.org with your name and AGA number and a way to contact you. Early registration will help us more smoothly set up the tournament and have a faster start.

Covid Policy: Because of the increased exposure risk that our game presents, and the expectation of a mild Winter surge, we require masks during tournament games to minimize risk. Please bring your own. We will provide hand sanitizer and masks as needed. We will not be checking vaccination status, but do encourage all to maximize their protection by getting updated.

Registration time: December 3rd, 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM
Saturday First Round Starts: December 3rd, 10:30 AM
Sunday Fourth Round Starts: December 4th,10:30 AM
Entry Free: Open/Upper Section $25, Handicap Section $20, Youth Free (under 18). Spectators are free.

Game Time controls:
Open/Upper Bracket: 45 mins with 5 byo-yomi periods of 30 seconds.
Handicap Bracket: be 30 mins with 5 byo-yomi periods of 30 seconds.

Rules: AGA counting, Komi 7.5, with the passing stones
Tie-Breaker: SOS, SODOS, F2F

For more information please reach out to programs@seattlego.org or call at 701-610-6236

This year, we will be returning to Bellevue College for their “Japan Week” event. This event will be taking place on September 24th from 10am-5pm at Bellevue College (3000 Landerholm Cir SE, Bellevue, WA 98007).

We still are looking for people to help teach attendants the basic rules of the game. If you have the time and would like to help out, please message us at programs@seattlego.org to get more information.

This August 6th, 2022 is the 77th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Our generous benefactor, Mr. Kaoru Iwamoto 9p, was almost killed by this bomb. His Honinbo championship game with Mr. Utaro Hashimoto was moved at the last moment to the outskirts of Hiroshima, about 10 kilometers upwind from the center of the destruction. The blast disrupted the beginning of the last day their three-day game, but nobody in the playing room was badly hurt, so they set up again and finished. Only later, as they walked to their host’s house, did they get the terrible news of what happened as refugees came streaming from the center of Hiroshima.

Iwamoto Sensei’s wartime experiences motivated him to continue to share and teach the game of Go as a pathway for international understanding.