Lee Sedol
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| Asian Games |
Lee Sedol (Template:Langx; born 2 March 1983), or Lee Se-dol, is a South Korean former professional Go player of 9 dan rank.[1] As of February 2016, he ranked second in international titles (18), behind only Lee Chang-ho (21). His nickname is "The Strong Stone" ("Ssen-dol"). In March 2016, he played a notable series of matches against the program AlphaGo that ended in Lee losing 1–4.[2]
Lee announced his retirement from professional play in November 2019, stating he could never be the top overall player of Go due to the increasing dominance of AI, which he called "an entity that cannot be defeated".[3] Lee shared in a 2024 interview, "losing to AI, in a sense, meant my entire world was collapsing. ... I could no longer enjoy the game. So I retired."[4]
Biography
Lee was born in South Korea in 1983. He is known as 'Bigeumdo Boy' because he was born and grew up on Bigeumdo Island.[5] He studied at the Korea Baduk Association. He is the fifth-youngest (12 years 4 months) to become a professional Go player in South Korean history behind Cho Hun-hyun (9 years 7 months), Lee Chang-ho (11 years 1 months), Cho Hye-yeon (11 years 10 months) and Choi Cheol-han (12 years 2 months).
He ranks second in international titles (18), behind only Lee Chang-ho (21). Despite this, he describes his opening play as "very weak".[6] In February 2013, Lee announced that he planned to retire within three years and move to the U.S. to promote Go.[7] He plays on Tygem as "gjopok".[8]
He is married to Kim Hyun-jin, and he has a daughter, Lee Hye-rim.[9] His older brother Template:Interlanguage link is also a 9 dan professional go player.[10]
Lee's Broken Ladder Game
This game was played between Lee Sedol and Hong Chang-sik during the 2003 KAT cup, on 23 April 2003. The game is notable for Lee's use of a broken ladder formation.
Normally playing out a broken ladder is a mistake, associated with beginner play, because the chasing stones are left weak. Between experts it should be decisive, leading to a lost game. Lee, playing black, defied the conventional wisdom, using the broken ladder to capture a large group of Hong's stones in the lower-right side of the board. This brought black's stones in the corner which were previously considered dead back to life. White ultimately resigned.[11]
Match against AlphaGo
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On 9 March, Lee played black and lost the first game by resignation.[18] On 10 March, he played white and lost the second game by resignation.[19] On 12 March, he played black and lost the third game as well.[20] On 13 March, he played white and won the fourth game, following an unexpected move at White 78 described as "a brilliant tesuji", and by Gu Li 9 dan as a "divine move" and completely unforeseen by him. GoGameGuru commented that this game was "a masterpiece for Lee Sedol and will almost certainly become a famous game in the history of Go".[21] Lee commented after the victory that he considered AlphaGo was strongest when playing white (second). For this reason, and because he thought winning a second time with black would be more valuable than winning with white, he requested that he play black in the final fifth game, which is considered more risky when following Chinese Go rules.[22] On 15 March, he played black and lost the fifth game, to lose the Go series 1–4.[23]
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| Game 4, Lee Sedol (white) v. AlphaGo (black). First 78 moves |
After his fourth-match victory, Lee was overjoyed: "I don't think I've ever felt so good after winning just one match. I remember when I said I will win all or lose just one game in the beginning. If this had really happened ― I won 3 rounds and lost this round ― it would have had a great bearing on my reputation. However, since I won after losing 3 games in a row, I am so happy. I will never exchange this win for anything in the world."[24] He added: "I, Lee Se-dol, lost, but mankind did not."[22] After the last match, however, Lee was saddened: "I failed. I feel sorry that the match is over and it ended like this. I wanted it to end well." He also confessed that "As a professional Go player, I never want to play this kind of match again. I endured the match because I accepted it."[25]
Retirement from professional play
On 19 November 2019, Lee Sedol announced his retirement from professional play, stating that "Even if I become the number one, there is an entity that cannot be defeated."[3]
However, in December he agreed to play a three-game match against the HanDol AI system, developed by Korean NHN Entertainment Corporation. Playing with a two-stone handicap (advantage) for the first and third games of the match and no handicap for the second game, Lee Sedol defeated the machine in the first game.[26] HanDol subsequently won the remaining two games of the match, with a final score of two-to-one, winning the overall contest.[27]
Promotion record
Lee Sedol turned pro in 1995 as 1 dan, and reached 9 dan in 2003.[28]
| Rank | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 dan | 2 July 1995 | Promoted to professional dan rank after passing qualifying test. |
| 2 dan | 1 January 1998 | |
| 3 dan | 1 January 2000 | |
| 6 dan | 28 March 2003 | Won the 7th LG Cup against Lee Changho (4 dan and 5 dan were skipped over due to the Hanguk Kiwon promotion rules). |
| 7 dan | 6 May 2003 | Runner up in the KT Cup against Yoo Changhyuk. |
| 9 dan | 7 July 2003 | Won 16th Fujitsu Cup against Song Taekon (8 dan was skipped over due to the Hanguk Kiwon promotion rules). |
Career record
| Year | Won | Lost | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
| 1998 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
| 1999 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2000 | 30 | 12 | 71.4% |
| 2001 | 31 | 17 | 64.6% |
| 2002 | 48 | 25 | 65.8% |
| 2003 | 33 | 18 | 64.7% |
| 2004 | 40 | 18 | 69.0% |
| 2005 | 44 | 21 | 67.7% |
| 2006 | 78 | 28 | 73.6% |
| 2007 | 81 | 23 | 77.9% |
| 2008 | 74 | 26 | 74.0% |
| 2009 | 26 | 15 | 63.4% |
| 2010 | 74 | 14 | 84.1% |
| 2011 | 54 | 21 | 72.0% |
| 2012 | 61 | 25 | 70.9% |
| 2013 | 54 | 39 | 58.1% |
| 2014 | 59 | 25 | 70.2% |
| 2015 | 53 | 27 | 66.2% |
| 2016 | 48 | 27 | 64.0% |
| 2017 | 29 | 13 | 69.0% |
| 2018 | 53 | 36 | 59.6% |
| 2019 | 10 | 5 | 66.7% |
| Total | 980 | 437 | 69.2% |
Titles and runners-up
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Ranks #3 in total number of titles in Korea and #2 in international titles.
| Domestic | ||
|---|---|---|
| Title | Wins | Runners-up |
| Baedalwang | 1 (2000) | |
| Paedal Cup | 1 (2000) | |
| Chunwon | 1 (2000) | 2 (2006, 2008) |
| Wangwi | 2 (2002, 2004) | |
| BC Card Cup | 1 (2002) | |
| KTF Cup | 1 (2002) | |
| New Pro King | 1 (2002) | |
| SK Gas Cup | 1 (2002) | 1 (2000) |
| KT Cup | 1 (2003) | |
| Guksu | 2 (2007, 2009) | 1 (2014) |
| Prices Information Cup | 3 (2006–2007, 2010) | 1 (2008) |
| Siptan | 1 (2011) | |
| Olleh KT Cup | 2 (2010–11) | |
| GS Caltex Cup | 3 (2002, 2006, 2012) | 3 (2007, 2013, 2018) |
| Myungin | 4 (2007–2008, 2012, 2016) | 1 (2013) |
| Maxim Cup | 5 (2005–2007, 2014, 2016) | 1 (2013) |
| KBS Cup | 3 (2006, 2014, 2016) | 4 (2001, 2004, 2009, 2015) |
| Total | 30 | 17 |
| Continental | ||
| Title | Wins | Runners-up |
| China–Korea New Pro Wang | 1 (2002) | |
| China–Korea Tengen | 1 (2001) | |
| World Meijin | 1 (2018) | |
| Total | 2 | 1 |
| International | ||
| Title | Wins | Runners-up |
| Fujitsu Cup | 3 (2002–2003, 2005) | 1 (2010) |
| LG Cup | 2 (2003, 2008) | 2 (2001, 2009) |
| Samsung Cup | 4 (2004, 2007–2008, 2012) | 1 (2013) |
| World Oza | 2 (2004, 2006) | |
| Zhonghuan Cup | 1 (2005) | |
| Asian TV Cup | 4 (2007, 2008, 2014, 2015) | 2 (2009, 2017) |
| BC Card Cup | 2 (2010–2011) | |
| Chunlan Cup | 1 (2011) | 1 (2013) |
| Mlily Cup (梦百合杯) | 1 (2016) | |
| Total | 18 | 9 |
| Career total | ||
| Total | 50 | 27[31] |
Korean Baduk League
| Season | Team | Place | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Team No.1 Fire Insurance (Captain) | 4th place | 9–5[32] |
| 2008 | Team No. 1 Fire Insurance (Captain) | 4th place | 13–3[33] |
| 2010 | Team Shinan Chunil Salt (Captain) | Champion | 16–2[34] |
| 2011 | Team Shinan Chunil Salt (Captain) | 7th place | 1–2[35] |
Chinese A League
| Season | Team | Place | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Team Guizhou (Captain) | 2nd place | 9–3[36] |
| 2008 | Team Guizhou (Captain) | 2nd place | 8–0[37] |
| 2009 | Team Guizhou (Captain) | 8th place | 6–4[38] |
Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | The Devil's Plan | Contestant | Second season[39] |
References
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- ↑ Lee Sedol Interview. justplaygo.com, accessed 22 June 2010. Template:Webarchive
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- ↑ King of Kings (Final): "gjopok" vs. "idontca1", game 3. gosensations.com, accessed 19 February 2012
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- ↑ Sensei's Library: Lee Sedol – Hong Chang Sik – ladder game
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- ↑ a b Lee Se-dol shows AlphaGo beatable, Korea Times
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- ↑ [Q&As] 'I'll never exchange this win for anything in the world', Korea Times
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- ↑ Lee Sedol 9p Template:Webarchive gogameworld.com, accessed 22 June 2010
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External links
On YouTube
- 1st match against AlphaGo
- 2nd match against AlphaGo
- 3rd match against AlphaGo
- 4th match against AlphaGo
- 5th match against AlphaGo
- AlphaGo (documentary featuring Lee)
Template:Footer Asian Games Champions Go Template:Chunwon Template:Siptan Template:Myungin Template:Guksu Template:Authority control
- Pages with script errors
- Pages with reference errors
- Pages with broken file links
- 1983 births
- Living people
- South Korean Go players
- Sportspeople from South Jeolla Province
- People from Sinan County
- Asian Games medalists in go
- Go players at the 2010 Asian Games
- Asian Games gold medalists for South Korea
- Medalists at the 2010 Asian Games