November 1993

Kato Masao won the Oza title by defeating Fujisawa Shuko in three straight games. Fujisawa lost in the style he has made famous, combining flashes of brilliancy with one fatal blunder in every game. Age may have been a factor (Fujisawa is 68, Kato is 46), but at the end of the match, Kato observed that Fujisawa had had his best years after turning 50, and stated his intention to emulate that example.

Another Kato Tomoko is not having quite such an easy time in her Women's Honinbo title. Kato Tomoko won the first game of this best-of-three match, as her opponent Yoshida Mika botched a joseki. Yoshida came back to take a half-point victory in the second game, however, and keep her challenge alive. The outcome will be decided in early December.

The Tengen title match is also tied at 1-1. In the first game Rin Kaiho bested challenger Kataoka Satoshi in the endgame, which is supposed to be Kataoka's forte. In the second game, however, Kataoka launched a blistering attack in the early middle game and wrapped up victory by about the hundredth move. For all his noted perseverance, Rin was eventually forced to resign.

On November 25, Kato Masao and Cho Chikun began a three-game match that will decide which becomes the next Kisei challenger. This match, the first between these two players in over five years, is being played with as much intensity as if the title itself were at stake. Kato won the opener by 6 1/2 points.

In Nagoya, in the one-game Okan title match, Yamashiro Hiroshi beat Hane Yasumasa by half a point to claim this title for the eighth time. Yamashiro's sensei Shimamura Toshihiro also held the Okan title eight times.

Japan is within one game of winning the current China-Japan Supergo Series. Komatsu Hideki breezed to victory over Chen Linxin on November 12 in Tokyo, then defeated Ma Xiaochun, currently regarded as China's strongest pro, on November 14. Next month, Komatsu will travel to China to take on Nie Weiping.

In Korea, the first two rounds of the 5th Tongyang Cup were played in mid-month in Seoul. Michael Redmond did America proud by beating Geert Groenen in round one, then knocking off Seo Bongsoo, winner of the 1993 Ing Cup, in round two. His next opponent will be Cho Hunhyun, in March. One opponent he won't face is Korean ace and two-time Tongyang cup-winner Lee Changho, who was eliminated by Yoda Norimoto of Japan. The full results so far:

     Round 1 (November 16) 
	Yamashiro Hiroshi (Japan)  beat  Kim Chuljung (Korea)
	Michael Redmond (America)  beat  Geert Groenen (Europe)
	Komatsu Hideki (Japan)     beat  Yang Jaeho (Korea)
	Kato Masao (Japan)         beat  Yoon Sunghyun (Korea)
	Yu Bin (China)             beat  Lim Sumkum (Korea)
	Takemiya Masaki (Japan)    beat  Zheng Hong (China)
	Yoda Norimoto (Japan)      beat  Lin Shengshien (Taipei)
	Liu Xiaoguang (China)      beat  Kim Sungjoon (Korea)
     Round 2 (November 18) 
	Cho Hunhyun (Korea)        beat  Yamashiro Hiroshi (Japan)
	Michael Redmond (America)  beat  Seo Bongsoo (Korea)
	Yoo Changhyeok (Korea)     beat  Komatsu Hideki (Japan)
	Ma Xiaochun (China)        beat  Kato Masao (Japan)
	Cho Chikun (Korea)         beat  Yu Bin (China)
	Nie Weiping (China)        beat  Takemiya Masaki (Japan)
	Yoda Norimoto (Japan)      beat  Lee Changho (Korea)
	Rin Kaiho (Taipei)         beat  Liu Xiaoguang (China)