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Xingke Sun 7D bests Guanyu Song to claim grand prize at ACGA debut event

Chris Garlock | Published on 1/1/2024

Xingke Sun 7D bested Guanyu Song 7D in the American Collegiate Go Association’s debut event, the ACGA Virtual Pilot Tournament. The December 28 online event attracted undergraduates and graduates from over 20 universities across Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

 

Both Song and Sun are recognized as top amateurs in North America. Song, a University of Toronto student, won the three-round single-elimination North American qualifier held last week, Dec. 23 - 24, 2023. Meanwhile, Xingke Sun, a University of Wisconsin Madison student, won with a 5-0 record in the 2023 Chicago Rapid held in November.


In their ACGA Virtual Pilot Tournament final match, a decisive ko fight unfolded in the top right corner. Sun, playing white, resolved the ko to secure a favorable position that solidified his lead. (See the game here).

 

Sun’s flawless 4-0 record earned him the $100 grand prize sponsored by Evanston Go Club.

 

Taylor Shu 6D, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology student, clinched third place by triumphing over opponents Qingyang Tang 6D, Ninghan Duan 7D, and Moxuan Liu 6D.

 

Prizes Across Divisions

 

The Division A champions received $100, $50 and $25 funded by the American Go Association and Evanston Go Club. Division B to E champions received Baduk Club gift cards, redeemable here. Top performing 5-Dan players Yicheng Yang 5D and Quinn Li 5D received $20 Baduk Club gift cards. 5-Dan players will have a separate division in future tournaments. Players in Divisions D and E were randomly selected to receive teaching games offered by Linden Chiu 4D and Hank Guo 5D.

 

Division Champions

 

Division A (5D +)

  • Xingke Sun 7D
  • Guanyu Song 7D
  • Taylor Shu 6D

Division B (1D - 4D)

  • Jerry Ju 3D

Division C (1K - 5K)

  • Alper Balci 1K

Division D (6K - 12K)

  • Luke Wiljanen 7K

Division E (13K - 20K)

  • Andrew Xie 15K

 

Best University Showing

Special recognition goes to Ohio State University for winning two divisions, represented by Alper Balci 1K and Luke Wiljanen 7K. 

 

Post-event Tutoring

ACGA Education Director Hank Guo, a 5-Dan player of nine years, led insightful post-event game reviews for Divisions B to E. “Matches are indeed important, but reviews are even more crucial,” Guo said. “We need to learn from our experiences in each game, identifying what to avoid in future matches. This is how we can improve our skills.”

For more information, visit the ACGA website here and subscribe to their mailing list here.

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