Ready, Set, Go

Legend has it that a Chinese emperor developed the board game Go 4,000 years ago to improve the intelligence of his dull-minded son. The game has persisted through the years, developing a following around the world and at Princeton — where members of the Go Club still enjoy the ancient pursuit.

A registered chapter of the American Go Association (AGA), the club — whose membership includes University students, faculty and alumni — convenes in Frist Campus Center every Wednesday to train and to introduce novices to the fundamentals of the game.

The Princeton Go Club also organizes the annual New Jersey Open tournament, in which Go players across the tristate area compete to improve their national standings. The tournament took place last weekend in Frist.

"Go is hugely popular in Japan, China and Korea," said Rick Mott '73, who co-directed this year's New Jersey Open. According to the AGA, top Go players in these countries enjoy celebrity status today.

"There has only recently been interest in Go in the West, but that has included a long tradition at Princeton," said Mott, who also serves as an adviser to the Club.

The Princeton Go Club was founded in 1945 by Ralph Fox, then a professor in the math department. According to Mott, the scene showing mathematician John Nash playing Go in the film "A Beautiful Mind" is historically accurate, since the club was formed shortly before Nash came to Princeton.

"The game was something of a fad in its early years with the math students," Mott said.

Go has since attracted a more diverse group of students.

Owen Fletcher '08 started playing Go at the beginning of the school year and participated in the New Jersey Open.

"I like Go more than other board games because of all the options presented with each turn," Fletcher said in an email. "Not only do you have to think about the immediate effects of your move and the sequence of moves you are setting up for, but you also have to consider how the formation you are creating in that section of the board will affect the rest of the board."

Go involves two players — one with black stones and one with white – whose goal is to claim the greatest portion of a 9x9 or 19x19 grid. Each player tries to surround empty spaces — territory — so that his opponent cannot "capture" his stones.

By completely surrounding their opponents' stones, players can capture and remove those pieces, thereby adding to their territory. The resulting stone configuration is usually more difficult to encircle and capture.

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The game ends when neither side gains an advantage in making an additional offensive move. Players' total scores are calculated by adding the size of their final territories to the number of captured stones, and the player with the higher score emerges victorious.

The AGA speculated that the earliest Go players in the United States were Chinese workers who helped build the intercontinental railroad in the mid-1800s. However, Mott credits World War II with bringing Go into mainstream American culture.

Not only did Japanese-Americans play the game, Mott said, but Americans who occupied Japan post-World War II also brought an appreciation for Go back to the United States.

Since the emergence of Go in the United States in the1940s, the game has not been as successful as other pastimes, such as chess, in attracting a loyal following. AGA estimates that the United States has only 2,000 Go players.

Mott admits that the complexity of Go deters some players.

"Go is more subtle [than chess]; what's important is balance," Mott said. "In chess there is one objective – to take down the king. In Go, the whole thing is pushing and backing away and tipping the balance in this manner."

Chess is also more accessible through computer programs because of its smaller board, whereas even the most advanced Go software can only play at a beginner's level.

The range of expertise among Go players varies greatly due to the game's difficulty. A handicap system is often used, whereby a player with less experience can place a certain number of stones on the board before the game begins.

Joe Preissig '08 picked up Go in high school by playing on graph paper during class and, like Fletcher, expressed an appreciation for the game's intricate nature.

"Go has much more depth than almost any other game," Pressig said. "There are about 30 levels of play where a single level difference is substantial."

The complexity of Go does not prevent Mott, who is hopeful about exposing more people to the game, from teaching the game to local elementary school students.

"We have a little catchup to do," he said.