it’s been a while since our last pair go game, so as we slip into this winter season why not enjoy some silly fun with some pair go.
This will be the original form of pair Go without gender requirements, no fees, but also no banquet license or cake or donuts … just the fun and goofiness of pair Go. This is a pure fun event, and it is great to bring life partners, significant others, beginners, etc., to make Go accessible and fun to them.
We would love to see 32 or 40 (or more) folks show up and join in for fun. You can bring a pair partner, ask someone during registration time, or we can make pairs from singletons. Pair Go works best with multiples of 8, so that each table with two boards can have two games, with round 2 being composed of winners playing winners, and there being a winning team for the table who win both games. We can work with multiples of 4 if need be. PLEASE come and play!!!
Event time is 29 NOV, Sat — registration 1-2pm, round 1 is 2-3:30, and round 2 is roughly 3:30-5:00. There will be 40 min of main time with no byo yomi.
I like to thank our volunteers and the Geek Girl Con event organizers. Geek Girl Con is an event we did several years ago and we were able to return and host at table where we were able to teach 70 new people the game of Go. This wouldn’t been possible without the hard work of the event organizers for help setting us up and getting us badges. And even more, the hard work of our volunteers.
Because of you, we have been able to increase the number events that we are hosting this year, and with your support, we aim to find more events to spread the game of Go. So from the bottom of my heart, Thank You to any volunteer that has help us out with any event this year.
We are glad to announce that on Dec 13th and 14th, we will host the fourth annual AGA WA State Championship. There will be an Open Tournament for strong, qualifying attendees (all even games to determine the state champion) and a Handicap Ratings Tournament. There will be 5 rounds — two rounds Saturday and three rounds Sunday. SGC will order pizza for attendees’ lunch convenience, and the cost is $15 per person per day (for 4 slices of a cheese or pepperoni large pie cut into 10 slices).
The top scoring player in the Open Tournament who has lived in Washington state for six months or more will win the 2025 Washington State Championship title and trophy.
The top scoring players in the Open Tournament that are employable in the United States win the championship prize money — $300 for top score, $150 for second top score, and $75 for third top score.
Handicap Tournament cash prizes and youth prizes depend on registrations.
You must have a current AGA membership. Please renew ahead of time to make registration easier and to make starting on time possible. Go to AGA membership join/update page to check your membership status, renew, or join. Parents, you must make sure your kids are valid members. If someone cannot become an AGA member before the first round of pairing, you cannot play because we submit all game records to the AGA.
Tournament Details: * Registration time: December 13th, 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM * Saturday First Round Starts: December 13th, 10:30 AM (second round around 2:00pm) * Sunday Third Round Starts: December 14th, 10:30 AM (fourth around around 1:30pm, fifth round around 3:30pm) * Entry Free: $20 for non-voting members, $10 for voting members, Youth (under 18) are free (the $10 fee is paid by a grant from AGF), and spectators are free. * Time Controls: 45 mins main time with 5 byo-yomi periods of 30 seconds. * Tie-Breaker: SOS (sum of opponent scores), SODOS (sum of defeated opponents’ scores), and lastly a tie-breaking game
This event is sponsored by the AGA State Championship fund, the AGA Tournament Support Program, and the Seattle AGA Chapter. Big thanks to the AGA for their support.
Thanks To all that could make it out and also those who played in our 30th Anniversary Tournament. A special congratulation to our 2 tournament winners, Harrison Dow (Open) and Woody Lai (Handicap).
We would like to thank all our members, both those who could and those who couldn’t show up to this years 30th Anniversary Party.
From new and older members, beginners, kyus and dan level players, you have all help the Seattle Go Center grow and develop into one of the most loving and caring communities that I have the fortune to be a part.
Looking forward, we may not know what will come next but I know with your hardwork and support the Seattle Go Center will continue to thrive and bring people together through the game of Go
We will have a party 04 OCT, Sat, at 6pm and a two-day workshop with a pro from the Nihon Ki-in (Komatsu Daiki Sensei who runs a strong program for kids in Osaka) starting at Sat and Sun 10am-5pm. There won’t be a ratings tournament that weekend due to the Nihon Ki-in sending someone for our anniversary (we’ll have the Anniversary Tournament later in OCT). We’ll cater some food (spring rolls, chicken skewers, stirfry), have a nice birthday cake, Chris may make Japanese shokupan milk bread for us, and we’ll have nihonshu (you can bring your own beverages too).
The pro workshop will be free to voting members (annual or lifetime) and cost $30 for others. That’s $30 for two days or about 12-14 hours of pro teaching and Q&A.
We are glad to announce our upcoming 30th Anniversary Tournament October 12th. We will have both and open (all even games) and handicap tournament. The open tournament is for the 8 strongest players and will have a cash prize of $100 for the player winning 3 games. Our handicap tournament will also have some cash prizes for those who win 3 games (or divided over those who win 2 games if no one wins 3). There is also our usual kids prize of $25 for the person under 18 years old who wins the most games (playing with a higher ranks break ties).
We will also not be having our regular monthly tournament.
Registration:
9:00am-9:45am (an hour earlier than monthly ratings)
The Entrance fees:
$20 for non-voting members
$10 for voting members
$10 for youth under 18 (entrance fees will be paid by the AGF)
PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR AGA MEMBERSHIP IS UP TO DATE AHEAD OF TIME. If you are not an AGA member when we pair the first round, you cannot play.
We will also order pizza if participants want. It costs $15, and we will order 4 slices per person.
This year is Seattle Go Center’s 30th birthday. Seattle was very lucky to be anointed with one of Iwamoto Sensei’s Go Centers. It was a close decision with other cities being considered. We’ve been grateful to him and the Nihon Ki-in for supporting Go in the Seattle area, both at SGC and the remote meetups we’re able to help out.
We will have a party 04 OCT, Sat, at 6pm and a two-day workshop with a pro from the Nihon Ki-in. There won’t be a ratings tournament that weekend due to the Nihon Ki-in sending someone for our anniversary (we’ll have the Anniversary Tournament later in OCT). We’ll cater some food, have a nice birthday cake, Chris may make Japanese shokupan milk bread for us, and we’ll have nihonshu (you can bring your own beverages too).
More details to follow on the pro that will visit and the Anniversary Tournament this year.
This year “From Hiroshima to Hope” is coming up this August 6th at Green Lake Bathhouse Theater.
at 6pm, We will be replaying and remembering the game that Iwamoto Kaoru played and was inspired by to start the Seattle Go Center and spread peace through the game. If you are in the area, please say hi and remember with us too.
These last 2 weekends have been really busy for us at the SGC as we were double booked with event for both. With CID, Japan Fair, North Bend and Bon Odori, we have taught over 550 people the game of Go. This would not be remotely possible without the hard work of our volunteers, our lovely event hosts, and our communities endless support.
