Masao Kato facts for kids

Masao Kato (加藤 正夫, Katō Masao, March 15, 1947 – December 30, 2004) was a famous Japanese professional Go player. Go is an ancient board game where two players try to surround more territory than their opponent.

Kato was also known as Kato Kensei (加藤剱正 Katō Kensei). He was sometimes called a "late bloomer" because he won many of his big titles later in his career. He won an amazing 46 titles, including the Oza title eight times in a row! He was also the second player ever to reach 1,200 career wins. Only Rin Kaiho had more wins at that time.

Masao Kato also wrote books about Go. Some of his books include The Chinese Opening: The Sure-Win Strategy and Kato's Attack and Kill. These books helped other players learn his strategies.

Becoming a Go Star

Early Days and "Killer Kato"

Masao Kato started learning Go at a special school called the Kitani Minoru Go dojo in 1959. He quickly became good friends with Ishida Yoshio. They practiced together a lot and stayed close friends throughout their lives.

In 1964, when Kato was 17, he passed the professional exam. This meant he could play Go for a living. Kato, Takemiya Masaki, and Ishida were known as the "three crows" of the Kitani dojo because they were all very talented.

Kato started playing in big tournaments early on. In 1968, he joined the Honinbo league as a 4 dan player. This was a big deal for someone so young! The next year, he even challenged the champion, Rin Kaiho, but he didn't win that time.

The "Killer" Style

Kato earned the nickname "The Killer" because of his strong, attacking style of play. He loved to attack his opponent's stones and try to "kill" them (capture them).

In 1970, during a Honinbo league match, Kato played so well that he forced the famous Kaku Takagawa to give up after only 93 moves!

For a while, Kato was known as the "eternal runner-up." This meant he often made it to the final match of a tournament but didn't quite win the title. He was runner-up eight times before finally winning his first major titles in 1976: the Gosei and Judan.

After that, he went on to win 46 titles in total. This makes him one of the top Go players in Japan, behind only Cho Chikun, Sakata Eio, and Kobayashi Koichi. At one point, Kato held four of the seven most important Go titles at the same time: the Meijin, Oza, Judan, and Gosei.

Later Life and Legacy

Leading the Go World

In early 2004, Masao Kato was chosen to be the president of the Nihon Ki-in, which is the main organization for Go players in Japan. He also became the president of the International Go Federation.

As president, he made some important changes to the rules of Go. He changed how players' ranks were decided and increased the "komi" (extra points given to the second player) from 5.5 points to 6.5 points. He also made the thinking time for players shorter in some games.

His Final Years

Later in 2004, Kato became very sick and had to go to the hospital. He had an operation on December 10, which was successful. However, his health got worse a few weeks later. Masao Kato passed away on December 30, 2004. He left behind a great legacy as one of the most exciting and successful Go players of all time.

Masao Kato's Go Ranks

Major Titles and Achievements

Masao Kato ranks fifth in Japan for the total number of titles won. Here are some of his biggest wins and runner-up finishes:

See also

In Spanish: Masao Katō para niños