gowan wrote:
Sakai was professional strength before he finished medical training. He won several amateur national championships in Japan and was considered the strongest amateur in Japan for a period. In 2000 he won the world amateur championship . He became an official pro by defeating pros in even test games, winning two against a pro 5-D and one against a pro 7-D, and entered the pro ranks as a pro 5-D.
Yes, I know. What I am addressing is the argument that kids just have loads of time, and that that is the real reason they get as far as they do. IMO, you don't get a medical degree without spending quite some time on it. Not just in college, but also in school. There is no way Sakai Hideyuki just spent all his time on go.
I agree. My point was that Sakai was probably of professional strength before he began the onerous part of his medical studies. I think he took a break from go to finish his medical qualification but resumed after qualifying as a physician. Undoubtedly he began playing (and studying) at a young age. It's a bit off topic but there are other prominent pros who abandoned promising careers to become pros. One such is Ishikura Noboru who was a graduate of Tokyo University and had embarked on a career at one of the most prestigious banks before deciding that he preferred go. Another point worth mentioning is that in Japan most insei have to go to school and they pursue their go studies after school and on weekends so the young pro-trainees can't be totally devoted to their go studies.
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gowan
