WASHINGTON, DC — After two rounds Sunday, Aug. 17, three players set the pace at the North
American Go Federation’s 2025 Pro Qualifier round-robin with perfect 2–0 starts: Guanyu Song 7d, Qiyou Wu 7d, and Daniel Zhou 7d. With three round-robin rounds remaining, the push for semifinal berths is on.
Division 1 (Song, Edward Zhang, Michael Xu, Evan Tan, Jae/Jeremiah Donley):
Song leads at 2–0, with Michael Xu 6d close behind at 1–0 (game in hand after a bye). Edward Zhang 5d is 1–1, while Evan Tan 6d (0–2) and Jae/Jeremiah Donley 5d (0–1) look to rebound. The top two advance to the semis.
Division 2 (Wu, Daniel Zhou, Yuan Zhou, Eric Yoder, Wanqi Zhu, Henry Zhang):
Both Qiyou Wu 7d and Daniel Zhou 7d opened 2–0, staking early claims to the two semifinal spots. Yuan Zhou 6d and Eric Yoder 6d are in the hunt at 1–1; Wanqi Zhu 5d and Henry Zhang 4d are 0–2.
On the air: All games from both rounds were livestreamed on the American Go Association’s
YouTube and
Twitch channels, featuring a completely overhauled graphics package by Daniel Lambert that drew kudos from viewers. Games were recorded on the EJ’s IZIS electronic boards managed by Todd Heidenreich, with Chris Garlock anchoring the broadcast. I-Han Lui is the ProQual Tournament Director. With a Round 1 bye, Jae (Jeremiah) Donley jumped on commentary for the opening games. Michael Chen 1P recapped key morning moments right after Round 1, and James Pinkerton 5D did the same following Round 2. Both return Monday—James at 1:00 p.m. EDT, Michael at 5:30 p.m. EDT—while Michael Redmond 9P launched the first of his incisive and entertaining nightly highlight recaps Sunday night; he'll return Monday night at 8p EDT.
2025 NAGF ProQual (Round Robin, Round 1)
2025 NAGF ProQual (Round Robin, Round 2)
2025 NAGF ProQual: Redmond Recap (Round Robin Round 2)
NAGF Pro Qualifier commentary — a 3-kyu perspective !aga
Monday slate: The Day 2 livestream begins 9:30 a.m. EDT. Observers are welcome to watch live at the National Go Center (4652 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20016). With byes shuffling early records and only three rounds left, every board matters as players jockey for the top two spots in each division and a ticket to the semifinals.
- report/photos by Chris Garlock; photos: Wu (top right); D Zhou (middle left); Song (bottom right); main playing area (top right).