Professional tournaments

Table of contents International Tournaments China Japan KOrea encounters Japanese domestic tournaments Chinese domestic tournaments Korean domestic tournaments Taiwanese domestic tournaments Other tournaments allowing professionals Online leagues

This page is dedicated to professional tournaments in general. Pro-amateur tournaments are also included in this section. However, I've tried to indicate the "big titles" in brackets for each country, and the international tournaments. Tournaments which are no longer being held can be found under Obsolete Titles

Information about the current events in professional tournaments may be found at Go News.

Go professionals battle it out in domestic tournaments in Japan, Korea, China or Taiwan (for which only members of the relevant domestic associations can contend), and also in international tournaments which are also usually held in one of these countries. These international tournaments often involve players from only 2 or 3 of these countries, and sometimes all 4. Some international tournaments (particularly pro-amateur tournaments) also have participants from outside these 4 countries.

See Also Professional Tournament Time Limits

International Tournaments

• Ing Cup US$400,000 (The biggest winning money)
• LG Cup ₩250,000,000 (Big Title)
• Samsung Cup ₩300,000,000 (Big Title)
• Chunlan Cup US$150,000 (Big Title)
• Southern Great Wall Cup US$ 30,000 (China-Korea playoff)
• Japan China Agon Cup (Playoff)
• IGS World Rapid Championship ¥3,000,000 (Rapid go, Pro-Am)
• Asian TV Cup (Lightning go)
• Yayi Cup (Team tournament, China-Taiwan)
• Nongshim Cup ~$127,000 (Team tournament)
• All Asia New Star (team tournament)
• Jiyexing Cup (Team tournament)
• Pro Pair-Go Championship? (Pair-go)
• Taiwan-Nihon Kiin Tournament
• Wu Qingyuan Cup (Go Seigen Cup, female)
• SENKO CUP (Female, 2018-)
• Bingsheng Cup (Female)
• China-Korea-Japan Meijin
• Bosai Cup
• Huang Longshi Shuang Deng Cup (Female Team tournament)
• Bailing Cup
• Mlily Cup

(see also International Title Statistics)

China Japan KOrea encounters

• Japan China Agon Cup
• Japan-China Super Go
• China-Korea-Japan Meijin
• ChinaJapanNECCup?? (mentioned in ChinenKaori)
• ChinaJapanSuperGo?? (TesujiFromGames3/Solution)
• ChinaJapanSupermatch?? (SeoPongSu)
• ChinaJapanTengen?? (ChoChikun, KobayashiKoichi)
• ChinaJapanTVChampionship?? (KobayashiKoichi)
• JapanChinaGoExchange?? (ChineseFuseki, LiuXiaoguang, MaXiaochun)
• JapanChinaGoodwillExchanges?? (HuangYongji, LiuDihuai)
• JapanChinaGoodwillMatches?? (LiuXiaoguang)
• JapanChinaMeijinPlayoff?? (TournamentGo1992)

Japanese domestic tournaments

(Prize money info last updated August 2013)

• Kisei 棋聖 ¥45,000,000 (Big Title)
• Meijin 名人 ¥37,000,000 (Big Title)
• Honinbo 本因坊 ¥32,000,000 (Big Title)
• Tengen 天元 ¥14,000,000 (Big Title)
• Oza 王座 ¥14,000,000 (Big Title)
• Agon-Kiriyama Cup ¥10,000,000 (lightning go)
• Gosei 碁聖 ¥7,770,000 (Big Title)
• Judan 十段 ¥7,500,000 (Big Title)
• Ryusei Tournament ¥6,000,000 (lightning go)
• NHK Cup ¥5,000,000
• Shinjin O ¥2,000,000 (pros 7 dan and under, 30 years or younger - 25 years from 2006)
• Kansai Ki In First Place Championship (Kansai Ki-in players only)
• Okan Tournament ¥1,700,000 (Players from Nihon Ki-in Nagoya branch only)
• Senko Cup ¥8,000,000 (2015-, ladies only)
• Female Honinbo ¥5,800,000 (ladies only)
• Female Tachiaoi Cup ¥7,000,000 (ladies only)
• Female Meijin ¥5,100,000 (ladies only)
• Female Kisei ¥5,000,000 (ladies only)
• Ricoh Pair Go Cup ¥5,000,000 (pair go, lightning go)
• Daiwa Shoken Cup
• Okage ¥3,000,000 (for players under 30 and at most 7 dan)
• Hiroshima Arumi Cup (Wakagoi Sen)
• Sankei Pro-Ama (Kansai Ki-in pros + amateurs + invited Western players)
• Igo Masters Cup (senior)
• SGW cup
• Shin Ryusei

For an up to date list of title holders, jump to this web page at the Nihon Ki-in website (seems to be obsolete as of Sept 2010). Here's the schedule for the seven Japanese big titles.

The URLs for the go web pages of the newspapers sponsoring the seven^[1] big Japanese titles can be found at Japanese Go Column URLs

Chinese domestic tournaments

• Luoyang Longmen Qisheng RMB 600,000 (richest Chinese tournament)
• Mingren RMB 50,000 (Big Title)
• Tianyuan RMB 200,000 (Big Title)
• CCTV Cup (Big Title)
• Xinren Wang (new pros)
• Ahan Tongshan Cup (Chinese Agon Cup) (rapid) - about 15,000 Yuan
• Liguang Cup (Ricoh Cup) 80, 000 Yuan - about $10, 000 (mainly invitational)
• Liguang Pair Cup (Ricoh Cup)
• Chang-ki Cup 400,000 Yuan
• Quzhou-Lanke Cup 500,000 Yuan
• Xinan Wang (West-South King)
• China Weiqi League (Jinli Cup. Past results at China Weiqi League Results)
• Female Mingren (ladies only)
• Jiangqiao Cup (aka Xianye Cup) (ladies only) RMB 100,000
• National Go Individual
• National Women Individual
• China National Youth Individual
• Female Xinren Wang
• Xinxiu
• Weifufang (sometimes called Qiwang)
• Longxing
• Huang Longshi (Female Mingren)
• China Female Guoshou
• National Sports Meeting
• Female National Sports Meeting
• National Intelligence Games of Go
• Nuzi Bailing (unofficial female team competition)

Korean domestic tournaments

• GS Caltex?₩ 70,000,000
• KBS Cup Cho HunHyeon and Lee ChangHo won 11 times. Lee ChangHo holds the record of the youngest title winner at 14 years old.
• Myeongin ₩ 100,000,000
• Let's Run PARK? (for both pros and amateurs) ₩80,000,000
• Maxim Cup (9-dans only)₩50,000,000
• Shinin Wang₩8,000,000
• Ch'eonweon Replaced for China Korean Ch'eonweon Tournament
• Daejoo Cup (over 50's)₩10,000,000
• GS Caltex Cup (aka LG Refined Oils Cup, until 2004 Korean LG Cup) ₩70,000,000
• Senior Baduk Classic?
• Auction Cup (Senior vs. Female. ₩100,000,000. Wins 1,000,000 at every winning game.)
• Olleh KT Cup (both pros and amateurs. for the 1st place ₩100,000,000, and for the 2nd place ₩30,000,000).

• Women's Kisung (ladies only)₩10,000,000
• Women's Kuksu (ladies only)₩12,000,000

• Korean Baduk League (team league since 2004. Started Minor League since 2012.)
• Leebong cup

Taiwanese domestic tournaments

• Taiwan Qiwang
• Tianyuan
• Haifeng Cup
• Wangzuo (sometimes also spelled Wangjia?)
• Guoshou
• Taiwan Qisheng
• Taiwan Zhonghuan Cup
• Aixin
• Donggang Cup
• Siyuan
• Ganen (tournament for young players, not a title)
• Youshi Shiduan
• Female Taiwan Mingren
• Zhonghuan-Qisheng

Other tournaments allowing professionals

• US Masters
• Transatlantic Go League

Online leagues

• List of online leagues

[1] Hikaru No Go fans may wonder... shouldn't there be 8 big titles? First, Hikaru no Go is fiction so why would you expect it to agree with the real-world number? And second, there used to be an eighth title called the Kakusei, and similar had a Women's Kakusei as well, but it was discontinued after 2002.