Honinbo Shusaku Plays a Star Point

This game was played in 1844, and at the time Shusaku was a 4 dan pro, and Mizutani was 6 dan. Shusaku had Black 2 games of each 3, and this time it was his turn to play with White.

This game is unusual in that both players played a star point, at a time when it was rare in even games. The 3-3 invasion in the top right corner was relevant to modern games and gave me an opportunity to explain some of the more important variations while enjoying a historic game.

Shusaku is known for his undefeated streak of 19 games during the annual castle games; his thirty-game match with Ota Yuzo; the eponymous Shusaku opening; and his posthumous veneration as a "Go sage". At the time of this game, he was not yet the heir of the Honinbo school, so he was called Kuwabara Shusaku.
The best English source of his games is the book "Invincible" edited and translated by John Power. A digital form of the book can be found at SmartGo books.

Mizutani Junsaku was a senior student at the Honinbo school, and at least at first, he was one of Shusaku's teachers. He was a man of many names. For some of his earlier games against Shusaku, he was named Kadono Tadazaemon, and he changed his name when he became the leader of the Mizutani school, which was associated with the Honinbo school. Later his name changed to Inoue Shutetsu after which he was to become the head of the Inoue school. His retirement name was Setsuzan, so now he is called Inoue Setsuzan Inseki to distinguish from the other Inoue leaders. In that era, it was not unusual for a player to change his name according to a change of status in the community.

White: Kuwabara Shusaku
vs
Black: Mizutani Junsaku
1844-5-14

A related video about the 3-3 invasion.
   • How to Deal with the Annoying 3-3 Inv...  

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