The 46th SG Bae Myeongin has entered the winner’s bracket quarterfinals. The winner’s bracket, which will be played by the winners of the round of 16, was formed by the top ranked players and rookies born in the 2000s.
No. 1 Shin Shin-seo 9 dan and 2005-born Park Ji-hyun 5 dan, No. 2 Park Jung-hwan 9 dan and 2005-born Han Woo-jin 9 dan, No. 3 Byun Sang-il 9 dan and 2000-born Park Jong-hoon 7 dan, No. 4 Shin Min-joon 9 dan and 2007-born Kim Eun-ji 6 dan.
In addition, four members of the Asian Games men’s team will be traveling. Shin Shin-seo and Park Jung-hwan, who are also competing in the men’s individual event at the Asian Games, will fly to Hangzhou on the 23rd, while Byun Sang-il and Shin Min-jun, who are only competing in the men’s team event, will fly to Hangzhou on the 27th.
The first match of the winner’s bracket quarterfinals at the K-Baduk Studio on the afternoon of the 18th was an upset. Shin Shin-seo 9-dan, the undisputed top-ranked player who has held the top spot in the rankings for 45 consecutive months, was knocked out by Park Ji-hyun 5-dan.
Park is ranked 67th. The difference in ranking points between him and Shin Shin-seo is 1170 points. He was a nobody until two days ago, when he won the Ha Chan-seok Nationally Wanted Gifted Championship. Park Ji-hyun, 5th dan, won the tilted match in 3 hours, 53 minutes and 157 moves. 굿모닝토토
“I lost a lot of points in the beginning. I thought it was going to be a bad fight at the end, but I thought I had turned it around.” (Park Ji-hyun)
“I think I had a few chances to get better, but I missed them. I should have gotten a reversal in the middle, but it became too weird when I got it.” (Shin Shin-seo)
Shin Shin-seo 9th Dan has lost to a 2000-born knight his age a few times in official matches, but this is the first time he has lost to a younger knight since joining the organization in 2012. Park Ji-hyun is five years younger than Shin Shin-seo.
With Shin’s loss, the tension among the players in the loser’s bracket increased significantly. Shin’s opponent in the second round of the loser’s bracket is 9th dan Heo Young-ho. Shin Shin-seo 9 dan had lost his first game in the 44th edition of the tournament before winning back-to-back games in the loser’s bracket to win the title. Park Ji-hyun, 5th dan, will face the winner of Park Jung-hwan-Han Woo-jin in the semifinals of the winners’ bracket.
Shin Shin-seo 9th dan, who played his last tournament before qualifying for the Asian Games, said afterward, “Regardless of the result, I’ve been feeling pretty bad lately. There is not much time left, but I will prepare well. I think I’ll have to work on my physical fitness, and I’ll also pay attention to my skills.”
The prize money for the 46th SG Bae Myeonginjeon is 70 million won for the winner and 25 million won for the runner-up. After a round of 16 tournament with a loser’s bracket, the winner will be decided in three final rounds. The time limit is 100 minutes, with three second readings per minute.