Go Masters: Ke Jie 1-1 Ahn Kuk-hyun after two rounds

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Top Chinese Go player Ke Jie caught up with Ahn Kuk-hyun of South Korea after losing the first round of the 23rd edition of the World Go Masters in Goyang, South Korea, on Tuesday.

Round 1

In the all-important final, Ke had a tough first encounter against tournament finals debutant Ahn.

The experienced Ke, with black stones, laid a strategic configuration at the start, but his opponent spotted a loophole on the left and dominated that side before changing the course of the game.

The 26-year-old Korean held on for a steady game until the 192nd turn and won the first match.

South Korea's Ahn Kook-hyun (L) and China's Ke Jie attend a press conference at World Masters Baduk in Goyang, west of Seoul, South Korea, December 2, 2018. /VCG Photo

Round 2

Ahn started first with black, but lost the advantage on the 33rd turn. The situation dragged both sides into the mire until the 87th turn, and AI predicted that Ke had an 85 percent chance of winning. Then, Ke's white stones dominated the board and led Ahn to surrender on the 192nd turn.

The final round of the three-match finals will take place on Wednesday. According to the rules of the South Korea Baduk Association (Go is called "baduk" in South Korea), Ahn will level up to the ninth dan professional ranking, regardless of the match's outcome.

About Ke

Ke Jie learned to play Go in 2003 at the age of 5 and notched his first national championship in 2007. Subsequently, he became a pro in 2008 when he was just 10 and was promoted to the ninth dan in 2015.

He grabbed his first world title when he won the 2nd Bailing Cup, edging past compatriot Qiu Jun 3-2 in the finals in January 2015.

Incidentally, as of October 2, 2017, he was ranked number one in the world under the separate ranking systems of the Chinese Weiqi Association, Korea Baduk Association, Japan Go Association and Remi Coulom. He has held the ranking since late 2014.

(With inputs from CGTN's Sports Scene)