An enthusiastic group of 23 Go aficionados convened in Umstead State Park, Raleigh NC on Saturday, September 30th, for a day of games and camaraderie.
Skill levels ranged from beginners to 6 Dans, with almost half rated shodan or higher. Chen Zhang 6d was the only undefeated contestant and was awarded the title of North Carolina Go Champion 2023. Second place in the open section was seized by rising star Huo Sheng. The very competitive Section A had almost all players ending with a 2 win and 2 loss record, so SMS scores were employed to name Josh Guarino first and Brian Wu second. First place in Section B was clearly claimed by Zack Garrett, followed closely by Paul Celmer in second. Ben Parrot's 3 win 1 loss history topped the others in Section C, with Andrew Thieman coming in second. Steadily improving Neal Siekierski's 3-1 performance clearly won section D, with Jeff Martyn in second.
Lunch was provided onsite by Adam Bridges, courtesy of the Triangle Go Group, and Jeff Kuang performed admirably again as Tournament Director. The event marked the 22nd year that the Triangle Go Group sponsored a major Autumn tournament.
- report/photos provided by Bob Bacon.