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Byo-Yomi
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    Keywords: Go term

Byo-yomi (秒読み) literally means "counting the seconds" (see discussion). Traditionally, byo-yomi is simply a courtesy extended to a player when she approaches the end of her allotted play time: an attending timekeeper counts aloud her remaining seconds to keep her informed. See [ext] Byoyomi Explained by Richard Hunter for the details on this custom.

However, byo-yomi also refers loosely to a way of handing out time in more or less flexible chunks, or periods. In this sense, it is a time system which can be employed for an entire game, as in the Japanese Title Match Time System, or just for an overtime of a game. On go servers, a game is normally an absolute time part followed by a byo-yomi-style overtime. Not surprisingly, on go servers entering byo-yomi usually means you are starting the overtime part, which has rules similar to (if not exactly like) Canadian Overtime.

In the byo-yomi time system, although players are restricted to, say, 5 hours of play time, real time spent can be longer because a player cannot be charged with time played unless she exceeds one minute for a move. After a minute passes, however, she will be charged for that minute and all the other minutes (rounded down) she consumed during the move. Therefore, a player can complete a game in "no time at all" if she places a stone every 59 seconds. Additionally, a player can have only one game minute left, but play until the end if she's quick enough.

Of course, the required rate does not have to be one move per minute; players may be given, for example, two minutes to complete five moves. In this case, the two minutes are described as a byo-yomi period. For example, players may be given 10 byo-yomi periods, two minutes and five moves each, in which to complete their game. Like the above, only if a player cannot make five moves in two minutes is she charged a period. When she runs out of periods, she will forfeit on time.

An example: you enter a byo-yomi-style overtime and have 5 one-minute periods that you can use however you choose. You can use nearly 5 minutes for just one move, at the cost of having to make every move from that point on within 1 minute. Or you can use less than 1 minute for every move, keeping those 5 periods in reserve in case the game complicates and you need more reading time.

This system intends to create a fair, flexible, but time-limited game that avoids sudden death panic and stubborn play that are common in the absolute time system.


older version follows:


Byo-yomi (秒読み) means "counting the seconds" (see discussion). It is one of several time systems commonly used in professional tournaments.

In American English, the term is sometimes used loosely to refer to other time systems with overtime that do not involve reading out seconds. To avoid confusion, byo-yomi is therefore sometimes called "Japanese byo-yomi".

Byoyomi as used on Go Servers is derived from the time system used in Japanese Title Matches. Perhaps it arose through a misunderstanding of the Japanese Title Match Time System.

can someone elaborate on the history of the time system described here. when it was first used, where, etc.
John F. 1st Old Meijin in 1961 - another Yomiuri? innovation. Byo-yomi, yomi-uri - geddit?

On go servers, byoyomi is time added at the end of regular time allowance. This additional time consists comes in a number of units of a fixed duration. For example a game played at 25 minutes with 5 periods of 1 minute each. Once a player uses all of their regular time allowance they enter byoyomi.

During byoyomi, each time that you make a move in less than 1 minute, your clock is reset to 1 minute of time remaining and the number of periods remains the same. If you always play within 1 minute, you can continue like this forever, always having 1 minute per move and 5 byo-yomi periods remaining. If you play 10 seconds into the 1 minute period, the clock is reset to 1 minute. The remaining 50 seconds are not accumulated, they simply disappear. Playing a move 10 seconds into a byoyomi time period is the same as playing that move 59 seconds into the byoyomi time period.

It gets more interesting when you use more than 1 minute for a single move.

If you use more than 1 minute and less that 2 minutes for a single move, you lose 1 byo-yomi period and the clock is reset to 1 minute of time remaining and 4 byo-yomi periods remaining. If you use more than 2 minutes and less than 3 minutes for a single move, you lose 2 byo-yomi periods and the clock is reset to 1 minute of time remaining and 3 byo-yomi periods remaining.

The above procedure is repeated with each move for the player(s) in byoyomi till either the game is completed or one player uses up their remaining byoyomi periods without moving. For example: if there are 3 byoyomi periods of 1 minute each and the player does not play within 3 minutes, that player loses the game on time.

Therefore, in the example above, once you enter byo-yomi you have 5 one minute periods that you can use how every you choose. You can use nearly 5 minutes for one move, at the cost of having to make every move from that point on within 1 minute. Or you can use less than 1 minute for every move, keeping time in reserve in case the game complicates and more reading time is needed.


Authors: John F., Richard Hunter, Velobici
Editor: Sebastian (mostly moved from [Japanese byo-yomi])


See also



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This is a copy of the living page "Byo-Yomi" at Sensei's Library.
(OC) 2004 the Authors, published under the OpenContent License V1.0.