Leon Chen 4p’s Tsumego Challenge
| Location | Online (via Google Forms) |
|---|---|
| Director(s) | Leon Chen (陳禧) 4p, Stephen Hu |
| Eligibility | Open - No signup required |
| Open or Invitational? | Open |
Format:
Leon Chen 4p’s Tsumego Challenge consists of 40 tsumego (life-and-death problems) of varying difficulty, generally ranked from easiest to most difficult. As a new side event of this year’s e-Go Congress, the Tsumego Challenge is designed to encourage all Go players to participate in problem-solving, improve their reading skills, and discover new methods and strategies which may help transform their game to the next level.
The 40 tsumego are divided into five levels: Elementary (20-11 kyu), Normal (10-6 kyu), Intermediate (5-1 kyu), Expert (1-4 dan) and Ultimate (5 dan and above), spanning over the course of eight days - one puzzle of each level will be posted per day. Participants have most of the day to work on the puzzles, submit their answers and (optionally) provide a brief justification of their thought processes. Solutions will be posted every evening during the live broadcasts on the official AGA Twitch channel, and the best challengers will be rewarded with free copies of Leon Chen 4p’s original tsumego collections.
Rules
- This challenge is open and free to all Go players.
- While you may feel free to invite other players to participate in the Challenge, your individual submissions should only consist of your own work. Remember that the purpose of this challenge is to encourage personal growth, which is far more important than the correct answers.
- All tsumego material used in the Challenge are to remain property of the authors, Leon Chen 4p and Stephen Hu, and may not be shared without written permission. It is necessary to credit the authors by name - remember, every tsumego comes from the brilliance of someone’s mind.
- All puzzles are Black to play - additional instructions can be found in the submission form. Please read them carefully before answering the puzzles.
Time and Date
- Day 1: Saturday, July 17 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
- Day 2: Sunday, July 18 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough | Alternative variation for E-2
- Day 3: Monday, July 19 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
- Day 4: Tuesday, July 20 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
- Day 5: Wednesday, July 21 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
- Day 6: Thursday, July 22 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
- Day 7: Friday, July 23 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
- Day 8: Saturday, July 24 - Solutions | Video Walkthrough
Submission
Entries can be submitted via Google Forms (click on each of the days above in “Time and Date” to access the submission form).
Judging
Up to 10 prizes will be given out to the best-performing challengers, according to the following criteria:
- Correctness of answers: Higher-ranked players are expected to solve more puzzles than lower-ranked players, so both groups have equal chances to win prizes. Typically, a perfect solution will include strongest moves from both Black and White, and ultimately leads to an optimal result for Black. An unconditional result might differ from a conditional result; likewise, a simple ko might differ from a multi-step ko (depending on the puzzle’s context).
- Completeness of answers: Please follow the instructions listed on the form; rather than a single correct first move, we are really looking for a full sequence of moves from both sides.
- (Tiebreaker) Optional justifications: Those who successfully demonstrate their thought process and critical reasoning will reap the most benefits from the Challenge. A correct solution might not be reached on the first attempt, but logical thinking can help eliminate unlikely options and reduce the problem to a smaller situation. Even after solving a puzzle correctly, it is still worth taking time to examine the other non-optimal branches and find potential refutations.
Prizes
Each prize-winning challenger will be granted a free copy of Spindrift and Planet, two original tsumego collections (136 puzzles each) by Leon Chen 4p and Stephen Hu. A valid OGS account will be required to access both collections. Further details TBD
