2024 Auckland Go Society Open

Dear Go Players,

Here are the full details of our coming tournament - Auckland Open 2024. Let's spend a weekend with friends enjoying Go. Click here to register online.

Looking forward to seeing everyone again!  

2024 Auckland Go Open  

The 2024 Auckland Open Tournament, will be held on the last weekend in November (30th November & 1st December) 

The tournament will be held in person. The venue will be Southern Alps office, Unit 1, 55 Clyde Road, Browns Bay.. Hopefully most people will be able to go there to play,, so long as they are New Zealand citizens or hold a New Zealand permanent visa.

The tournament will have three divisions if we have sufficient entries

  • Open Even games for strong players, winner will be the New Zealand
    Champion!

  • Division 2 Even games for mid strength players and weaker players who
    want to test themselves
    Limited to players 1 dan and below on the NZGS ranking list 

The tournament is sponsored by New Image Duty Free who have generously given support for our prizes and also for running the tournament. 

Thanks to their help lunch will be supplied on both days, 

Coffee, tea, fruit and other snacks will be available throughout the tournament.  

Divisions

Open: Our premier division.

Open to all, but recommended for strong players. The winner becomes Auckland Champion,  receives the certificate that goes along with the position, a nice little cash prize and, of course, the bragging rights.

Six rounds will be played. Three on Saturday and three on Sunday. May the best player triumph!

Division 2

For players not strong enough to compete in the Open division but who still want to test themselves with even games under the same conditions as the Open division players. The maximum rank for people in Division 2 is 1 dan.

 

Venue

The Southern Alps office, 1/55 Clyde Road Browns Bay. This is the Browns Bay township, just behind the beach reserve, a beautiful location. Again, many thanks to Southern Alps Retirement Living and David Wang. 

 

Parking around the venue mostly has a 2hr limit. Best to park at New World or Woolworths supermarket.

 

Players outside of Auckland

This is an in-person tournament.  If you are outside Auckland then please come!  We can arrange billeting if necessary.

Anyone is allowed to enter the tournament.  To win NZGS points etc then you need to have a New Zealand passport or New Zealand permanent Visa - regardless of whether you are resident.

 

Entry Fee

Wow, this is complicated! Which division? Pre-registered or walked up? Earning or no income?

  • $25 if pre-registered

  • $5 more for people who don’t pre-register and just walk up on the day.

  • $10 less if not earning. 

Please register in advance and pay by bank transfer. (see Registration below for how to pay)

 

Prizes 

Everyone has a chance of winning a prize! 

At the end of the tournament, there will be a prize awarded to the top player, and also to the player that people most enjoyed playing against.

All prize winners will receive a certificate,, some will also receive a cash prize. 

Conditions

The Open Division and Division 2 have 6 rounds, 3 on Saturday and 3 on Sunday. 

  • A Swiss draw will be used. 

  • No two players will meet more than once.

  • Players on the same score will be matched in each round as far as this is possible.

  • Players from different cities will be matched where possible.

Playing conditions

  • New Zealand rules will be used.

  • ‘Fisher’ time control will be used. In the Open division and Division 2 each player will start with 20 minutes and will gain an additional 20 seconds after each move they make. In the handicap division players will start with 5 minutes and gain an additional 5 seconds after each move they make.

    • Most games have about 250 moves, 125 each. So in the Open division and Division 2, each player will have 20 minutes plus 125 x 20 seconds - 62 minutes in total. In the Handicap division players will have 5 minutes plus 125 x 10 seconds - 26 minutes in total.  

  • We are using Fisher time control because:

    • It is more forgiving when you run short of time (you can play a few fast moves and get some time back) 

    • It does not have the abrupt change of conditions that happens now when you go into byo-yomi. 

    • It stops people from taking longer than the time scheduled for a round, which can happen with our traditional time controls. 

 

Accommodation:

People coming from outside of Auckland are invited to stay with local players. Please let us know well in advance if you want to do this.

 

Timetable:  

On Saturday please arrive before 8:45 so we have time to complete registration and make the draw.

Saturday 30th November 

09:00 - 09:45 Registration

09:45 - 12:00 Round 1

12:00 - 13:00 Lunch at a nearby cafe

13:00 - 15:15 Round 2

15:15 - 17:30 Round 3

18:00 - Dinner at a nearby restaurant (optional)

Sunday 1st December

09:00 - 11:15 Round 4

11:15 - 12:00 Auckland Go Society AGM

12:00 - 12:30 Lunch (Provided)

12:30 - 14:45 Round 5

14:45 - 17:00 Round 6

17:15 - 18:00 Prizegiving

 

Dinner on Saturday

This is optional and not included in the entry price. For those who want to join, we will have dinner together at a nearby restaurant on Saturday night.  PLEASE RSVP EITHER WAY.

Contacts and Registration

If you have any questions, or trouble registering, please contact one of the organisers

  • Corrin Lakeland  Ph 021 467784 Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  • Colin Grierson Ph 022 1656413 Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Registration

Please register and pay your entry fee well in advance so we can get as much as possible organised before the tournament starts.

  • If you don’t register in advance you can still come along and register on Saturday morning - but the tournament entry fee will be $5 more.

Click here to register online. If you can’t do this please send details to  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  • Your name

  • Your playing strength/NZGS Number if you have one

  • Which division you want to play in

  • Your contact details - Phone, Email and address

  • If you are coming to the venue can you bring a laptop or tablet that can be used for remote games?

  • If you need accommodation in Auckland

  • If you are a New Zealand citizen or if you hold a permanent New Zealand visa (we need this information for calculating our points table for international tournaments)

  • The t-shirt size you want 

  • Any special requirements that you have

To pay your entry fee please transfer the money to 03-0149-0095693-000 or if you are overseas it might be easier to send it to Paypal account This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Note that this is a different bank account to usual.  We are using Corrin’s personal account as Colin is away.  We expect to go back to using the normal account next tournament.

  • Important! Put your name on the bank transfer reference so we know who has paid. Or in Paypal add your name as a comment.

You can also pay by cash when you arrive, but paying in advance will make registration on the day easier.

That’s it. I hope to see you at the tournament.