Choi Jung
Choi Jung (Hangul: 최정, Hanja: 崔精, born 1996-10-07) is also known as Choi Jeong in Revised Romanization. She is a Korean female 9-dan professional player and one of the most dominant female players in history. She has been the highest rated female player in the world since 2017. She has won 8 international women’s titles and 20 Korean women’s titles, far more than any other Korean woman.
She was a pupil of Yoo Chang-hyuk 9p.
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Name
Because Korean Romanization is not always intuitive, her family name Choi is pronounced something like “chweh” (IPA: /t͡ɕʰwe/). It does NOT rhyme with “boy” or “toy” as the spelling might indicate. Her given name Jung/Jeong approximately rhymes with “lung” and “young” pronounced according to General American English (IPA: /d͡ʑʌŋ/).
Dominance of female Go/Baduk
Choi became a professional aged only 13. In 2011-01-01, the ![[ext]](images/extlink.gif)
World Women’s Rating list first listed her, and she was already #3 female in the world aged only 14 (behind only Rui Naiwei and Yu Zhiying). That year she won 8 games in a row in the 5th Auction Cup against male professionals over 45 and reached the final of the 5th Women's Kisung, but lost B+0.5 against Rui Naiwei.
From the 2012-01-01 to the 2016-01-01 rating lists, Choi was #2 woman in the world behind only Rui Naiwei. In 2012, she won the Women's Myeongin, then for the next four years after that until it was discontinued.
Choi was the third Korean female to be promoted to 9 dan, aged 21, after Park Ji-eun and Cho Hye-yeon.
Choi has been the world’s strongest female player since the 2017-01-01 women’s list. In the 2019-01-01, list, she achieved her highest overall world ranking: #68. Yu Zhiying was the second highest woman at #171 in the world overall. Choi was also #1 female and #23 ranked overall in Korea (down to #31 by 4 Jan 2025).
Choi has plus scores against almost all other female players who have played more than one game against her, many of them very dominant. Li He is the only woman with a plus score against Choi over a large number of games: 8–7. Ueno Asami, and Lee Suljoo are the only female players with an even score against Choi.
The veteran Yoshida Mika 8p won the only game they have played back in the 2nd Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup (2012), when Choi was a 2-dan 15-year-old, but still ranked #2 female in the world and outrating Yoshida by over 300 points. Some claimed that Choi lost by 0.5 points because she forgot the point scoring under Chinese rules, but she denies it.
Ueno Risa won the only game she has played against Choi in the 7th Senko Cup final, 2025.
On 11 Nov 2024, Choi became the first female player to win 800 professional games. Her 800th win was against strong male 9p Gu Zihao, ranked #20 in the world (at 9 Nov 2024) in the Samsung Cup. As of 4 Jan 2025, her career record is 1167 games, 803 wins, 364 losses, with a 68.81% win rate, the highest for female pros. Choi achieved her 800th win 14 years and 6 months after her professional debut in May 2010.
On 28 Jan 2023, she beat Kim Changhoon (male 6p) to become the first female Korean player to reach 700 wins, and hopes to be the first to win 1,000 games. She reached 700 wins in 12 years and 9 months since her professional debut.
Choi has won the Female Supreme Player all five times,
At the time, she had a respectable score against male opponents of 230 wins and 211 losses, for a win rate of 52.15%. She had an overwhelming record against female opponents, 470 wins and 94 losses, for a win rate of 83.33%
Best female results in mixed tournaments
She is the only woman to have reached the final of the international Samsung Cup (27th, 2022). On the way, she beat Sada Atsushi 7p, plus such leading players as Ichiriki Ryo 9p, Yang Dingxin 9p, and Byun Sangil 9p. But she lost the final to World #1 Shin Jinseo 0–2.
She is also the only woman to have reached the final of the GS Caltex Cup (28th, 2023). She beat Ryu Minhyung 8p, Kang Dongyun 9p, Shin Minjun 9p, and Park Jinsol 9p. But she lost 0–3 to Byun Sangil 9p.
Because of her successes in mixed tournaments, she was one of two female players invited as a wild card direct entry into the main tournament of the 30th Anniversary edition of the LG Cup. She is also the only female player to have won a round in the main tournament (the 24th in 2019). The other female wild card is Nakamura Sumire 4p, chosen to symbolize the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan. The organizers thought she is a bridge between the two countries, as Japan’s “genius girl” who now plays in Korea.
The only player with arguably better results in mixed competition is Rui Naiwei. She won a major event: 43rd open (mixed gender) Kuksu title in 1999, beating Cho Hunhyeon 2–1. Rui has also reached a higher ranking on the overall rating list (both male and female) of 1998-01-01, she was ranked 17th, and ranked 18th on the 1994-01-01 list. But in an interview in Korean on 6 Sep 2024, Rui expressed her great admiration for Choi Jung:
Choi Jeong is one of my favorite players. We haven’t played a game together since I returned to China. Master Choi Jeong is a player I always cheer for. Master Choi Jeong has no weaknesses. She is strong in everything.
Promotion history
- 1 dan professional in 2010-06-30 / Joined the 37th Women’s Enlistment Competition
- 2 dan in 2012-01-26 / winning the 13th Women's Myeongin
- 3 dan in 2013-01-31 / 14th Women's Myeongin Winner Bonus Points (200 points)
- 4 dan in 2013-11-22 /19th GS Caltex Cup
- 5 dan in 2014-09-03 / Winner of the 5th Gungryung Mountain Soldiers’ Holy Cup — Special Order Promotion by one dan rank
- 6 dan in 2015-07-13 / 17th Nongshim Cup Preliminaries
- 7 dan in 2016-10-15 / 2016 KB Kookmin Bank Baduk League and the #1 Korean female player
- 8 dan in 2017-11-10 / Winner of the 8th Gungryungsan Soldiers’ Holy Cup — Special Order Promotion by one dan rank
- 9 dan in 2018-01-23 / Winner of 22nd Female Kuksu promotion by one dan rank in Limited Edition
Titles and runners-up
2011
- As a 14yo 1 dan, she won the most games of the Female team in the 5th GC Auction Cup, starting with a huge win by W+33.5 against Seo Nungwuk 9p.
- Runner-up of the 5th Women's Kisung (‘Old’).
2012
- Winner of the 13th Women's Myeongin after defeating Kim Miri 2–0 at the challenger decision match (Rui Naiwei had been the Women's Myeongin, but is leaving Korea).
- Winner of 6th Auction Cup, d. Cho Hunhyun
2013
- Winner of the 14th Women's Myeongin, defeating Park Jiyun 2–1
- Winner of the 3rd Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup (won last three games)
- Winner of the 6th Women's Kisung (‘Old’)
2014
- Winner of the 15th Women's Myeongin, defeating Park Jiyun 2–1
- Winner of the 5th Bingsheng cup (d. Rui Naiwei)
2015
- Winner of the 16th Women's Myeongin (d. O Yujin 2–0)
- Winner of the 5th Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup (won last three games)
2016
- Winner of the 17th Women's Myeongin (d. O Yujin 2–0)
- Runner-up of the 1st IMSA Elite Mind Games Women's Individual?.
- Runner-up of the 10th Auction Cup (l. Lee Sanghoon)
2017
- Winner of the 8th Bingsheng cup (d. Wang Chenxing)
2018
- Winner of the 22nd Women's Kuksu (d. Kim Chaeyeong 2–0)
- Winner of the 23rd Women's Kuksu (d. Lee Sula 2–1)
- Winner of the 9th Bingsheng cup (d. O Yujin)
- Runner up of the 8th Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup (l. Yu Zhiying)
- Runner up of the 1st Go Seigen Cup (l. Kim Chaeyeong 0–2)
- Winner of the 2nd Women's Kisung (d. Kim Hyemin 2–0)
2019
- Runner-up of the 2nd SENKO Cup
- Winner of the 10th Bingsheng cup (d. Zhou Hongyu)
- Winner of the 9th Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup (won last two games)
- Winner of the 24th Women's Kuksu (d. O Yujin 2–0)
- Winner of the 2nd Go Seigen Cup (d. Wang Chenxing 2–0)
- Winner of the 3rd Women's Kisung (d. Kim Chaeyeong 2–0)
- Runner-up of the 13th Auction Cup (l. Choi Myeonghoon)
2020
- Winner of the 25th Women's Kuksu (d. Kim Hyemin 2–0)
- Winner of the 4th Women's Kisung (d. Kim Chaeyeong 2–0)
2021
- Winner of the 4th Go Seigen Cup (d. Yu Zhiying 2–1)
- Winner of the 1st IBK Cup (d. O Junga)
- Winner of 15th Auction Cup, d. Lee Changho
- Runner-up of 3rd Senko Cup (l. Yu Zhiying)
- Runner-up of the 26th Women's Kuksu (l. O Yujin 1–2)
2022
- Runner-up of 27th Samsung Cup (l. Shin Jinseo)
- Winner of the 27th Women's Kuksu (d. Kim Hyemin 2–0)
- Runner-up of the 16th Auction Cup (l. Cho Hanseung)
2023
- Winner of the 3rd IBK Cup (d. Kim Eunji)
- Winner of the 6th Wu Qingyuan Cup (d. Fujisawa Rina 2–0)
- Winner of 5th Senko Cup (d. Zhou Hongyu)
- Runner-up of 28th GS Caltex Cup (mixed; l. Byun Sangil 0–3)
- Runner-up of the 7th Women's Kisung (l. Kim Eunji 1–2)
- Runner-up of the 17th Auction Cup (l. Cho Hanseung)
2024
- Winner of 6th Senko Cup (d. Suzuki Ayumi)
- Winner of 4th Supreme Female Player (d. Kim Eunji 2–1)
- Runner-up of the 18th Auction Cup (l. Cho Hanseung)
- Winner of 8th Female Kisung (d. Nakamura Sumire 2–1)
2025
- Runner-up of 7th Senko Cup (l. Ueno Risa 3p)
- Winner of 5th Supreme Female Player (d. Kim Eunji 9p 2–1).
Temporary slump in June 2024 and recovery
Choi has been so dominant in female play that it’s news in the rare case where she is very below par. In the international women’s 10th Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup, June 2024, after beating Heo Seohyun 4p, she lost 6 games in a row: Li He 5p, Zhou Hongyu 7p, Fujisawa Rina 7p, Ueno Asami 5p, Lu Minquan 6p, and Li Xiaoxi 5p. She had not lost so many in a row since she became a pro. She finished the tournament with 1–6, in 8th place out of 8.
As world #1 ranked woman and defending champion, she would have been clear favorite to win. This disastrous result caused her to drop out of the top 100 in the world, although still retaining #1 rank. But in the Korean ranking, she was overtaken by Kim Eunji for #1 female. Many commentators wondered what had gone so wrong for Choi.
Choi might have recovered in time for the 4th Supreme Female Player, which she won quite convincingly: beat runner-up Kim Eunji 9p in the Finals, reaching the Winners’ section final. Then then in the Grand Final between the Winner's Section and Losers’ section winners, Choi beat Kim 2–1.
As of 2024-09-01, Choi is still the top-rated female, back in the top 100 at #90, while the next are outside the top-100: Kim Eunji #113, Zhou Hongyu #152, and Ueno Asami #177. Choi is also back at #1 on the Korean female ranking list after just one month off.
But for only the second time out of seven, Choi didn't reach the semifinals of the 7th Wu Qingyuan Cup, which had won seven times previously. Then she lost in the semifinals of the 29th Women's Kuksu to Kim Chaeyeong, against whom she has a big plus score.
However, Choi won the 8th Women's Kisung, beating prodigy “genius girl” Nakamura Sumire. After losing a tense game in R1, the first time she had lost to Sumire, she won a tense game in R2. In the deciding game 3, Choi won a strong attacking game (B+R, 155 moves), capturing a big group in the top right quarter. After the game, Choi expressed relief at recovery of her old form:
I may have looked tired because my recent performance was not good, but my physical condition is good. Sumire has grown incomparably since she transferred in March. Whether it’s Kim Eun-ji or Sumire, they’re both good, so I don’t feel much pressure playing against them. It’s just that I think I’ve gotten older. My head doesn’t work as well as it used to. I think that’s natural. However, I want to maintain good condition as long as possible.
Out of the three final games, I think today’s game was the best. I was able to play comfortably because the opening was set in my style. I played loosely in the first game and then lost, so I thought I would play fiercely today. Sumire 3-dan seems to have grown tremendously since she first transferred. Since she is still young, it is hard to predict how much she will grow in the future. I feel pressured to compete with my juniors, but I also enjoy it. I am happy to have won the championship for the fifth time, and I thank Haesung Group for making this a great tournament.
At the Kisung awards ceremony, Choi said:
I’m really happy to win. I was really lucky up until the finals, but especially in the finals. I learned a lot from Sumire, and it was fun to be able to play the finals with her. I’ve reached five fingers (the number of wins), and I’ll work harder to reach the remaining five. And I hope that the Haesung Women’s Kisung Championship will continue to be fun for a long time so that not only me but also other players can reach their fingers.
Cho Seong-rae, CEO of Haesung Industries, awarded 50 million won ($US34,500) in prize money and a trophy to the winner, Choi Jung 9p; 20 million won ($US14,000) and a trophy to the runner-up, Sumire 3p; 10 million won ($US7,000) to 3rd place, Kim Hye-min 9p, her best result in years; and 5 million won ($US3,500) to 4th place, Kim Min-seo 4p.
She and fellow 28-year-old female 9-dan, Female Kuksu Kim Chaeyeong, are on the cover of the monthly ''Baduk'' magazine for Jan 2025.
Rivalry with Kim Eunji for #1 ranking
Kim Eunji in 2025 took narrowly took over the #1 female ranking on the Korean ranking list. In the 5th Supreme Female Player, for the first time, Kim relegated Choi to the losers’s group. But the final repeated the previous two editions: Choi lost the first game but won the next, to win the tournament.
In the final game, Choi made an opening novelty by playing a low move in the lower-right corner. This was aimed at sacrificing that and the other corner stones to build thickness on the outside. This thickness won the game, aided by a particularly strong 91th move, described as a divine move. Choi was winning almost the whole game, except for a brief time when she overplayed in time pressure, but Kim failed to take advantage.
Choi expressed her respect for her defeated opponent after the win:
I didn’t know it was a 5-game winning streak, but now that I know, it feels even more meaningful. Someday, Kim Eun-ji will lead the women’s Go world, but I will also try my best to hold on so that other junior players can grow together. Last year was tough, but this year, it seems like it was even harder to get there. It was a season where I was able to grow a lot.
Baek Hong-seok (39, 9p), commenting on Baduk TV, said:
Choi 9 dan’s ability to control the board while taking the initiative was outstanding. … It seems that the generational change to Kim 9 dan, who seems to need reinforcement in partial judgment of the situation, will be delayed a bit more.
In June 2025, Choi was back at #1 female in the Korean ranking and is #3 overall.
Lifetime scores against top players
(Based on Choi Jeong, Go Ratings and game list), as of 15 May 2025.
Notable victories over leading (male) players
Choi has taken games from some of the greatest players in recent history, mainly of older generations, e.g.
- Cho Hun-hyeon, 9p: 2–1
- Cho Chikun, 9p: 2–0
- Yi Ch'ang-ho, 9p: 3–5
- Ichiriki Ryo, 9p: 1–0
- Cho Hanseung, 9p: 4–6
- Gu Zihao, 9p: 2–1
- Go Geuntae 9p: 2–0
- Shin Minjun 9p: 4–4
- Park Junghwan 9p: 1–8
Head-to-head scores against current female rivals
9–2 Cho Hyeyeon 9p · #28 ♀ · #9 ♀ Ko (#2 ♀ world for many years) 7–2 Cho Seunga 7p · #15 ♀ · #6 ♀ Ko 13–5 Fujisawa Rina 7p · #6 ♀ · #2 ♀ Jp 15–2 Hei Jiajia 7p · #39 ♀ · #1 ♀ Tw 7–2 Heo Seo-hyeon 5p · #27 ♀ · #8 ♀ Ko 26–10 O Yujin 9p · #7 ♀ · #3 ♀ Ko 27–7 Kim Chaeyeong 9p · #8 ♀ · #4 ♀ Ko 12–1 Kim Dayoung 5p · #26 ♀ · #8 ♀ Ko 18–7 Kim Eunji 9p · #2 ♀ · #2 ♀ Ko · #1 ♀ teen world 19–1 Kim Hye-min 9p · #19 ♀ · #7 ♀ Ko 10–0 Lee Minjin 8p · #29 ♀ · #10 ♀ Ko 7–8 Li He 6p · #12 ♀ · #6 ♀ Ch 3–1 Lu Minquan 6p · #10 ♀ · #4 ♀ Ch 7–1 Nakamura Sumire 4p · #14 ♀ · #3 ♀ Jp · #5 ♀ Ko · #3 ♀ teen world 8–1 Pak Chi-eun 9p · #68 ♀ · #23 ♀ Ko 4–3 Rui Naiwei 9p · #21 ♀ · (#1 ♀ for many years) 3–3 Ueno Asami 6p · #3 ♀ · #1 ♀ Jp 9–2 Wang Chenxing 5p · #24 ♀ · #14 ♀ Ch 4–1 Xie Yimin 7p · #30 ♀ · #5 ♀ Jp 22–19 Yu Zhiying 8p · #5 ♀ · #2 ♀ Ch 5–1 Zhou Hongyu 7p · #4 ♀ · #1 ♀ Ch 1–0 Tang Jiawen 6p · #5 ♀ · #2 ♀ Ch 7–0 Kim Eunseon 6p 4–1 Jeong Yujin 4p 5–0 Kim Minseo 4p 1–1 Lee Suljoo 3p 6–2 Kim Soojin 6p
Personal life
Choi is a close friend of fellow Korean female 9-dan professional O Yujin. ‘Fantasy combination’ Choi Jeong? and Oh Yu-jin “Thank you to the fans who supported us.” Baduk News, 2019.06.13 (in Korean)
Links
Videos
- A post-game interview after winning the IBK Cup in August 2023.
Video Reviews of Her Games
vs assorted opponents
| Opponent | Year | Reviewer | Video |
|---|---|---|---|
| Byun Sangil | 2023 | Eunkyo Do | video
|
| Byun Sangil | 2023 | Jr4yA | video
|
| Cho Hanseung | 2020 | Evan Cho | video
|
| Cho Hunhyun | 2020 | Evan Cho | video
|
| Kang Dongyoon | 2019 | Yoonyoung | video
|
| Lee Changho | 2021 | Yoonyoung | video
|
| Lee Changseok | 2021 | Yeonwoo | video
|
| Lee Changseok | 2023 | Jr4yA | video
|
| Na Hyun | 2021 | Baduk Lawyer | video
|
| O Yujin | 2019 | Yeonwoo | video
|
| Rui Naiwei | 2014 | Littlelamb | video
|
| Seol Hyunjun | 2019 | Yoonyoung | video
|
| Xie Erhao | 2023 | Jr4yA | video
|
| Yu Zhiying | 2022 | Young Sun Yoon | video
|
| Zhao Chenyu | 2020 | Baduk Doctor | video
|
vs Fujisawa Rina
| Year | Reviewer | Video |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | dwyrin | video
|
| 2023 | Eunkyo Do | video
|
| 2023 | Jr4yA | video
|
| 2023 | Jr4yA | video
|
vs Park Junghwan
| Year | Reviewer | Video |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Cho Yeonwoo | video
|
| 2022 | Cho Yeonwoo | video
|
| 2023 | Eunkyo Do | video
|
vs Nakamura Sumire
| Year | Reviewer | Video |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Lee Hajin (Haylee) and her husband Dan Maas | video
|
| 2023 | Eunkyo Do | video
|
| 2023 | Telegraph Go | video
|
vs Zhou Hongyu
| Year | Reviewer | Video |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Ryan Li | video
|
| 2023 | Eunkyo Do | video
|
Pictures
Choi Jeong on the cover of Monthly Baduk May 2016
.jpg "Inside of Baduk Monthly Jan 2025, with Choi Jung and Kim Chaeyeong as cover story (Image credit: m.baduk.or.kr) (image inlined from mis.baduk.or.kr)"){kind=tracking}
Inside of Baduk Monthly Jan 2025
with Choi Jung and Kim Chaeyeong as cover story
(Image credit: m.baduk.or.kr)
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