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Weiqi/Go Club for Young Talent

We Welcome Any Young Talent to Join Our Club

Welcome to SUITS Weiqi Club, a community of passionate Weiqi players who come together to challenge themselves and elevate their skills. We are delighted to offer a platform for players of all levels to connect, learn, and compete in this ancient and beautiful game.

At SUITS Weiqi Club, we pride ourselves on creating a welcoming and supportive environment where players can engage in friendly competition and foster their love of Weiqi. Our regular meetups and events offer a chance to play against fellow enthusiasts, learn new strategies and techniques, and connect with like-minded individuals who share your passion.

Our club is open to players of all skill levels, from beginners to seasoned pros, and we are committed to helping all our members achieve their goals and improve their Weiqi game. Whether you’re looking to learn the basics or hone your advanced techniques, our community is here to support you every step of the way.

We also organize competitions and events, and can even connect players to professional championships, giving members a chance to challenge themselves on a higher level.

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  • Age Requirement8+
  • Language RequirementsEnglish / Chinese
  • Skill RequirementNone
  • Club LocationSouthampton, Salisbury, Portsmouth
  • Time ArrangementsAfter School Time / Weekends
  • FeesFrom £5 / 60 mins

Weiqi/Go Clubs

Whether you’re a casual player or a long-time strategist, we have packs of challenges and people to play them with! We welcome anybody of any experience; there’s always someone to help you learn the game or to join you in playing an old favorite. We also run competitions, and events and connect players to professional championships. 
Why Clubs

The SUITS Weiqi/Go Club is a perfect destination for those interested in the ancient game of Weiqi, also known as Go. This club offers students a fun and supportive environment where they can learn and develop their Weiqi skills while making new friends who share their interests in the game.

At the SUITS Weiqi/Go Club, students can practice the basic rules and strategies of the game, and advance their skills to become better players. The club is open to all skill levels, from beginners to advanced players, and provides a platform for students to engage in friendly competition and group activities centered around Weiqi. Students can also participate in personal progress tracking and group challenges to further enhance their skills and achieve personal goals.

The game of Weiqi is a perfect exercise for the mind, requiring high levels of concentration, patience, and strategic thinking. Through Weiqi gameplay, students can develop valuable skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and strategic planning. These skills can be applied in many areas of life and are essential to personal and academic growth.

In addition to gameplay, the SUITS Weiqi/Go Club also offers leadership and team-building activities that provide opportunities for students to develop their leadership and teamwork skills while having fun. These activities promote personal growth, challenge, and an inclusive community where students can feel supported and valued.

Principles of Our Weiqi/Go Clubs

One of the problems with Online Weiqi/Go games is the attitude of players toward each other. So we decided to adopt the following six principles:

  • The art and practice of Go are something to be enjoyed.
  • Respect and courtesy are essential at all times whether playing or reviewing a game
  • Learning and teaching are more important than winning.
  • Playing games is essential to improve your and your opponent’s skills.
  • A match consists of two parts, playing and reviewing the game.
  • Everybody has ideas that should be listened to.

The clubs reserve the right to remove members from the group and as members of the club if there are repeated breaches of any of the club principles.

How to Improve Your Weiqi / Go Game Skills

Here’s a more detailed explanation of how to find the best games to improve your Weiqi skills:

  1. Study professional games: Professional Weiqi players have spent years honing their skills and developing new strategies, and studying their games can help you learn from their expertise. There are many resources available online where you can find professional game records, including the Go4Go database and the OGS game archive. By studying these games, you can learn new techniques and strategies, and get a better understanding of how to play certain positions.

When studying professional games, pay attention to the players’ moves and the reasons behind them. Try to identify any patterns or principles that they use, and think about how you can apply those to your own games. You can also use a tool like Leela Zero or KataGo to help you analyze the games and find better moves.

  1. Play against stronger opponents: While it’s important to play against opponents at your own level, playing against stronger opponents can help you improve more quickly. You’ll be forced to think more deeply about your moves and to come up with more creative solutions to challenging positions.

To find stronger opponents, consider joining a Weiqi club or online community. Many communities have players of all levels, so you can find someone who is slightly stronger than you to play against. You can also look for online tournaments or competitions where you can challenge yourself against players from around the world.

  1. Analyze your own games: After each game, take some time to analyze your own moves and try to identify any mistakes or missed opportunities. This will help you learn from your mistakes and improve your play in the future.

You can use a tool like Leela Zero or KataGo to help you analyze your games and find better moves. These programs use deep neural networks and machine learning to evaluate the strength of different moves, so you can get feedback on how to improve your play.

  1. Participate in tournaments: Playing in Weiqi tournaments can be a great way to challenge yourself and test your skills against other players. Even if you don’t win, you can learn a lot from the experience and use it to improve your game in the future.

To find tournaments, check with your local Weiqi club or online community. Many communities organize their own tournaments, or you can look for online tournaments or competitions that are open to players of all levels.

  1. Join a Weiqi club or community: Finally, joining a Weiqi club or online community can be a great way to meet other players and get feedback on your games. You can share your own games and get advice from more experienced players, and you can also participate in discussions and learn from others’ experiences.

To find a Weiqi club or community, try searching online for local clubs in your area, or look for online communities that are open to players from around the world. You can also ask for recommendations from other Weiqi players you know.

History of Weiqi / Go

Weiqi, also known as Go, is an ancient board game that originated in China more than 2,500 years ago. The game spread to Korea and Japan in the 5th and 7th centuries, respectively, and has since become popular around the world.

The exact origins of Weiqi are not clear, but the game is believed to have evolved from a divination game played with shells or bones. Weiqi was originally used for military training and was seen as a way to develop strategic thinking and planning skills.

Over time, Weiqi evolved into a popular pastime for scholars and aristocrats, and the game became associated with Confucian values of discipline, self-control, and humility. Weiqi was also used as a way to test and develop one’s character and mental acuity.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, Weiqi became popular among the Japanese aristocracy and was known as “Go” in Japan. The game was further refined and popularized in Japan, leading to the development of a distinct Japanese style of play.

In the 20th century, Weiqi became increasingly popular around the world, with the establishment of national and international Weiqi organizations and the development of a standardized ranking system. Weiqi has also been the subject of scientific study, with researchers exploring the cognitive and psychological benefits of playing the game.

Today, Weiqi is played by millions of people around the world, with professional players competing in high-stakes tournaments and amateurs enjoying the game as a pastime and a way to develop strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.

Development in the UK

The game was first introduced to the UK in the late 19th century, but it was not until the 1950s and 1960s that the game began to gain more widespread popularity.

In 1965, the British Go Association (BGA) was founded to promote the game and organize tournaments and events. The BGA has since played a key role in promoting Weiqi in the UK, and the organization currently has several hundred members.

The BGA hosts a number of tournaments throughout the year, including the British Championship and the London Open. The organization also offers a range of resources for players, including instructional materials, online resources, and a directory of local clubs.

In recent years, Weiqi has also gained more visibility in the UK through cultural exchanges and media coverage. The game was featured in the popular BBC TV series “Sherlock,” and there have been a number of high-profile visits from professional Weiqi players from China and other countries.

Despite its relatively small following, Weiqi has a dedicated community of players in the UK, with many players drawn to the game’s depth and complexity. The BGA continues to work to promote the game and encourage new players to take up the sport.

How to determine the winner of the game in Weiqi

In Weiqi, the winner is determined by who controls more territory on the board at the end of the game. Here’s how to calculate the winner:

  1. Count the territory: At the end of the game, each player counts the number of empty intersections (points) surrounded by their stones. This is their territory.
  2. Subtract captured stones: Each player also counts the number of stones they have captured from their opponent. This number is subtracted from their territory.
  3. Add up the scores: The final score is the total territory plus any captured stones. The player with the higher score is the winner.

It’s important to note that Weiqi is not just about counting territory. Players can also gain points by controlling key intersections or creating strategic imbalances on the board. Additionally, the game has a complex scoring system that takes into account certain types of territory and other factors.

In tournament play, a referee or official scorer typically calculates the final score using a system called the “Area Scoring” method, which takes into account all aspects of the game. However, for casual play, simply counting territory and subtracting captured stones is a simple and effective way to determine the winner.

AlphaGo

AlphaGo is an artificial intelligence program developed by the AI research company DeepMind, which is owned by Google. It was designed to play the board game Weiqi (known as Go in English) at an extremely high level. AlphaGo was developed using a combination of deep neural networks and Monte Carlo tree search algorithms, and it made use of machine learning techniques to analyze and learn from millions of Weiqi games played by humans.

In 2016, AlphaGo made history by defeating one of the world’s top human players, Lee Sedol, in a best-of-five series of games. This was the first time a computer program had defeated a professional human player at Weiqi in a high-profile match. The victory was considered a major breakthrough in the field of artificial intelligence, and it demonstrated the potential of deep learning algorithms to tackle complex problems.

AlphaGo’s success also sparked renewed interest in Weiqi as a subject of study and research in artificial intelligence, as well as a cultural phenomenon. Its impact has been felt not only in the world of AI, but also in the world of Weiqi, where it has inspired new techniques and strategies and raised the bar for human players.

Vocabulary

  • Point 点- an intersection of a vertical line and a horizontal line
  • Star 星- an intersection marked with a black dot; there are 9 of them
  • Stone 子- a white or black game piece
  • Group 块- two or more stones connected horizontally or vertically to each other
  • Liberty 气- an empty point directly vertically or horizontally next to a stone or group
  • Atari/Dachi 打吃- the situation where a stone or group only has 1 liberty left
  • Capture 吃- the action of removing a stone or group, having lost all its liberties, from the board
  • Eye 眼- an empty point surrounded by friendly stones where the opponent cannot directly attack in
  • Alive 活- the situation where a group has two or more eyes
  • The Jie(Ko) Rule 劫- The rule states that in the situation where the players can repeatedly capture a stone from the same place, one player must wait a turn to be able to capture it again
  • Territory 空- An area surrounded by friendly stones and claimed by the player
  • Influence 势- The outside force is composed of friendly stones that can be used to surround territory or envelope enemy pieces.

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