Japanese Chess – Shogi – 将棋
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Shogi 2007 in Review

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By Galo S Mirth

A shogi board with pieces and komadai.
A shogi board with pieces and komadai. Source: Wikimedia Commons, File:Shogi_board_pieces_and_komadai.jpg. Author: Oliver Orschiedt. License: CC BY-SA 3.0.

In the 2007 shogi season (April 2007 to March 2008), the title picture mixed long running dynasties with a few sharp turning points: Toshiyuki Moriuchi kept the Meijin, Akira Watanabe continued his early run as Ryuo, and Koichi Fukaura captured his first major title by taking the Oi from Yoshiharu Habu.

1. Major title matches (2007 season)

  • Meijin (65th): Toshiyuki Moriuchi defended 4-3 against Masataka Goda (Apr to Jun 2007).
  • Kisei (78th): Yasumitsu Sato defended 3-1 against Akira Watanabe (Jun to Jul 2007).
  • Oi (48th): Koichi Fukaura took the title 4-3 from Yoshiharu Habu (Jul to Sep 2007). This was Fukaura’s first major title.
  • Oza (55th): Yoshiharu Habu defended 3-0 against Toshiaki Kubo (Sep to Oct 2007).
  • Ryuo (20th): Akira Watanabe defended 4-2 against Yasumitsu Sato (Oct to Dec 2007).

2. Major tournaments and notable events

  • 25th Asahi Open Shogi Championship: Yoshiharu Habu won, defeating Chikara Akutsu in the final (May 25, 2007).
  • 1st Daiwa Securities Cup Net Shogi Saikyo-sen: the inaugural champion was Masataka Goda (final held July 8, 2007).
  • 15th Ginga-sen: Akira Watanabe won his second Ginga title (final held Sep 27, 2007).
  • 28th JT Shogi Nihon Series: Takashi Morishita won his first JT title (final held Nov 18, 2007).
  • 1st Asahi Cup Shogi Open: the event began in 2007, with the first champion decided the following season (Naoki Namekata, final Feb 9, 2008).

3. New stars and promotions

The professional ranks gained several names who would later become central figures in the 2010s:

  • Masayuki Toyoshima turned professional (4-dan) on April 1, 2007 (40th Shoreikai 3-dan League, 1st place).
  • Kota Kanai turned professional (4-dan) on April 1, 2007 (40th Shoreikai 3-dan League, 2nd place).
  • Shingo Ito turned professional (4-dan) on April 1, 2007 (two “jiten” results in the Shoreikai 3-dan League).

4. Awards and a few statistical highlights

  • 35th Shogi Awards: Yoshiharu Habu was named Most Outstanding Player; Yasumitsu Sato received the Outstanding Player award; Koichi Fukaura received the Fighting Spirit award; and Jiro Murayama received the Newcomer award.
  • Notable game (Meikyoku-sho): Fukaura vs Habu, 48th Oi title match game 7 (Sep 25 to 26, 2007) was selected for the Best Game award.

Sources (Japanese)

  • Wikipedia: 「2007年度の将棋界」 (oldid 102461309) https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2007%E5%B9%B4%E5%BA%A6%E3%81%AE%E5%B0%86%E6%A3%8B%E7%95%8C&oldid=102461309
  • Wikipedia: 「第20期竜王戦」 (oldid 99511034) https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E7%AC%AC20%E6%9C%9F%E7%AB%9C%E7%8E%8B%E6%88%A6&oldid=99511034
  • Wikipedia: 「第48期王位戦」 (oldid 98237173) https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E7%AC%AC48%E6%9C%9F%E7%8E%8B%E4%BD%8D%E6%88%A6&oldid=98237173
  • Wikipedia: 「第55期王座戦 (将棋)」 (oldid 98237482) https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E7%AC%AC55%E6%9C%9F%E7%8E%8B%E5%BA%A7%E6%88%A6_(%E5%B0%86%E6%A3%8B)&oldid=98237482
  • Wikipedia: 「第78期棋聖戦 (将棋)」 (oldid 98238350) https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E7%AC%AC78%E6%9C%9F%E6%A3%8B%E8%81%96%E6%88%A6_(%E5%B0%86%E6%A3%8B)&oldid=98238350
  • Japan Shogi Association: 2007年度 棋士成績一覧 https://www.shogi.or.jp/game/record/archives/2007_result.html

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