Kisei

Kisei is one of the 'Big Three' titles, and the third of the big seven titles of Japan. In Japanese, Kisei means 'Go Saint'. The Kisei tournament started in 1976.

The Tournament
Like all other titles, first there are preliminary matches, to decide who gets into the league. If one gets into the Kisei league, he has achieved 7 dan. The Kisei league is round robin, meaning all players in the league play each other. When one wins the League, he challenges the current title holder, and achieves 8 dan level. Whoever wins the majority of matches out of seven matches wins the title, and if the challenger wins, he is considered 9 dan.

List of Kisei Title Holders
1977-1982: Hideyuki Fujisawa 1983-1985: Cho Chikun: 1986-1993: Kochi Kabayachi: 1994: Cho Chikun: 1995: Sato Kobayashi; 1996-1999: Cho Chikun; 2000-2002: O Rissei; 2003: Keigo Yamashita; 2004-2005: Hane Naoki; 2006-present: Keigo Yamashita;

Micsellanious
The Kisei is the richest title-the Kisei rewards more money than any other title.