A historical high number of 8 Canadian elite players competed for the sole spot to become the next North American Go Professional, the 9th overall. All four U.S. strong players sadly eliminated after the 5-round 12-player group stage. Many thanks to North American leaders and the Montreal organizers! To name a few that I've spoken with: Jean-Sébastien (tournament director)Antoine (staff)Benjamin (staff)Zhongwei Zheng (staff)Chris Garlock (AGA)James Sedgwick (NAGF and CGA)Thomas Hsiang (the Iwamoto North American Go Foundation) The Final-four players’ records are: Group 1: Bill Lin 5-0, Michael Xu 4-1 Group 2: Sen Zhan 5-1, Guanyu Song 4-1 Prediction (Disclaimer: I spoke with all four players and I like them all. They are decent, down-to-earth, polite and easy to chat with. So my prediction means no "hurt feelings" nor personal -- it's just for reference and perhaps entertaining.) I just played with long and serious games with Bill Lin and Michael Xu in person, and spent sometime to review Shen Zhan’s game together with Guanyu Song. I believe these 3 key factors will decide the semi-final winner: 1. Reading in fights 2. Style (offense/defense/endgame) 3. Fatigue (games are 3-4 hours long) Bill Lin (1) vs Guanyu Song (2) Though Song defeated Bill in the 2023 Canadian Open, Lin (5-0) has performed better than Song (4-1) this week in Montreal. It appears Lin has the upper hand in reading and his attacking-style, though Song is much younger than Lin. There are four quarters in NBA and NFL games. After 3 days of intense competition, the semi-final is like “the 4th quarter”. Song might have a better chance if the game is decided by the endgame, but my prediction is Lin wins the best-of-3 series with 2-0. Sen Zhan (1) vs Michael Xu (2) Zhan edged Eric Yoder with half-point in the Group 2 playoff, but from what I heard and saw, the 10-year-old “dark horse” Xu has the upper hand in reading. Zhan could use a peaceful game to take advantage in the “mismatch” of styles, but Xu perhaps is little effected by fatigue, so my prediction is, Xu wins the series with 2-1. How to watch or follow? Live commentaries (start at 10:30a ET) the AGA’s YouTube channel. Full event information, including standings and game records: here. Photos: AGA’s Facebook and X (@theaga) feeds. Photo by Ms. Na Gu and Edward Some "data analysis" coming up to resolve the Argument of the Week (live from Montreal): Which Group Is Stronger, 1 or 2?
