JIE LI WINS N.A. STUDENT OZA: Jie Li swept to victory in this weekend's North American Student Oza online qualifier on KGS, winning all four rounds and the opportunity to represent North America in the upcoming 2009 World Oza in Japan. Yue Zhang (2-2) was the runner-up, losing to Li and Jeffery Fung (1-3) of Canada. And in a nail-biting battle for third place, Kwo-Ping Ho (2-2) forced Xingshuo Liu (1-3) to resign in Sunday's final round. "Many thanks to Phil Waldron, the AGA's new Tournament Coordinator for organizing this event," says online Tournament Director Dennis Wheeler, "and a terrific job by newly-installed Online Tournament Directors Daniel Short, Oren Laskin and Lawrence Ku, as well as our favorite KGS admin, Akane Negishi."
SAUL LAPIDUS TOPS ROCHESTER TOURNEY: Saul Lapidus 1D topped the fourth annual Greg Lefler Memorial Tournament , held October 25-26 in Rochester, NY. Thirty-three players from five states and Canada gathered at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) campus. "Two of the winners were deaf players," notes TD Steve Colburn. Winner's Report: Dan Division: 1st: Saul Lapidus 1D, 2nd: Phil Waldron 6D, 3rd: Dan Short 3D. Single Digit Kyu Division: 1st: Carrie Lapidus 6K, 2nd: Victor Kostyuk, 3rd: Peter Wynn 5K. Double Digit Kyu Division: 1st: Jesy Felecia, 2nd: Kevin King, 3rd: Brandon Chan