[Stones and Stories]The Time Spent on Each Move in Baduk, and Its Romance

Baduk is a game of finding the best move within a limited time. If a move is not made within the time limit, the game can end. On the 21st of last month, Korean professional player Park Jeonghwan 9-dan won by time in this way. It happened during the quarterfinals of the Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance World Baduk Masters, a major global tournament. China's Ren Shao 9-dan lost as he failed to make a new move before the countdown ended.

Time losses in Baduk occur surprisingly often. The KB Kookmin Bank Baduk League suffered from time loss issues after adopting the 'Fischer system,' a time control rule widely used in chess. The controversial Fischer system is named after Bobby Fischer, the world chess champion of the 1970s.

How does the Fischer system differ from the byo-yomi system? The byo-yomi system is familiar to professional players. For example, if each player has a 1-hour main time with a 1-minute byo-yomi, the pro player delays as much as possible before placing a stone. Since the 1-minute byo-yomi can be used at their discretion, there is no need to rush. They can calculate possible sequences while anticipating future developments and place the stone at the last 58 or 59 seconds. Even when the next move is easy, they use the entire byo-yomi time, which viewers may find boring.

On the other hand, the Fischer system increases the player's available time the faster they make moves. For example, in a game with a 10-minute main time and a 20-second Fischer increment, suppose 30 seconds remain. If the player takes 5 seconds to make a move, 25 seconds remain. Adding the 20-second Fischer increment gives 45 seconds for the next move. The faster the player moves, the more time they can accumulate.

In the Fischer system, the player presses the clock button themselves rather than a timekeeper counting down verbally with numbers like "one, two." Sometimes the player may press the button late due to concentration, and there is also a risk of errors in handling the device. This is one reason why many time losses occurred in the KB Kookmin Bank Baduk League.

The byo-yomi system always imposes a fixed time limit (for example, 1 minute) for each move. Players who prefer to calculate sequences in familiar patterns favor the byo-yomi system. The Fischer system is preferred by fast-paced players because the faster they play, the more time they gain.

Regardless of the time loss controversy, there is a growing preference for the Fischer system among younger players. The biggest advantage of the Fischer system is that it allows predictable game durations and faster game progress. This is a change welcomed by media broadcasting TV matches. Baduk has been changing its systems to be more media-friendly, and the adoption of the Fischer system can be seen as part of that trend.

While this certainly helps popularize the game, it might also be shaking the intrinsic charm of Baduk. Can the past Baduk, where players spent hours contemplating a single move, be simply defined as boring?

During the waiting time, players design countless paths of Baduk in their minds. This thought process is not recorded in the game records (kibo), but it is another profound world of Baduk that should not be taken lightly. Reflecting on the essential meaning of Baduk changes the perspective on system changes.

Although encouraging faster moves is perceived as the right direction for change, it is worth considering whether the philosophical space of Baduk is shrinking as a result.

Because in Baduk, what is visible to the human eye is not everything.