Saikouisen Nihon Pro Mahjong

From Japanese Mahjong Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Saikouisen Nihon Pro Mahjong
Country Japan
Inception 1976
Leader Mr. Kiyoshi Niitsu, Representative
Members 783

The Saikouisen Nihon Pro Mahjong association (「最高位戦日本プロ麻雀協会」 Saikōisen Nihon Puro Mājan Kyōkai, informally called "Saikouisen") is a professional organization of competitive mahjong players.

Overview

As the most ‌historic‌ Mahjong organization in Japan, Saikouisen originated from a title match established in 1976.

In its inaugural year (1976), in order to create a competitive stage for professional mahjong players, the mahjong professional magazine "Kindai Mahjong"(近代麻雀) launched a league, which must featured 10 players competing in 100 matches over a year. Through a year long-term league, the strongest player awarded the title of Saikoui(最高位).

Representative figures in Saikouisen include:

Representative Figures
Player Time of joining in Main achievements
Sakamoto Toshihiko

阪元 俊彦

5th 1980 the organization's oldest player
Masahito Iida

飯田 正人

6th 1981 Most Saikoui titles (10)
Saikoui titles Longest streak (4 consecutive wins, 14th~17th terms)
Masaki Kaneko

金子 正輝

6th 1981 Most appearances in the Saikoui Title Match Final (20)
Longest A1 League tenure (38 term total & consecutively)
4 Saikoui titles
Kota Ozaki

尾崎 公太

22th 1997 Youngest Saikoui title (29th term, aged 26)
Exit in 35th, 2010
Kaori Nemoto (F)

根本 佳織

27th 2002 Most Joryuu Saikoui titles (5)
Joryuu Saikoui titles Longest streak (5 consecutive wins, 5th~9th terms)

among other prominent players.

Over time, Saikouisen expanded its structure and rules. New secondary leagues were introduced, including B (2nd~), B2 (6th~), C (9th~), C2 (20th~), C3 (36th~), D1 (39th~), D2 (42nd~), and D3 (44th~), broadening participation. Saikouisen is open to more players.

Key Milestones
Order Match Year Significant Changes
10th 1985 Transitioned from a title match to a formal organization.
12th 1987 Codified written competition rules, removing ippatsu, hidden dora, and noten penalty points (now known as Saikouisen Classic rules).
15th 1990 Set up Saikouisen Pair Match event.
17th 1992 Set up Ryuuousen title match, the rules in this match retaining ippatsu, hidden dora, and noten penalty points.
22nd 1997 Adopted ippatsu, hidden dora, and noten penalty as standard rules.
26th 2001 Set up Joryuu Saikouisen (Womens' Saikouisen) title match.
31st 2006 Set up Saikouisen Classic title match, using the traditional rules in this match (removing ippatsu, hidden dora, and noten penalty points)
37th 2012 Set up Shinjin'ōsen title match, limited to players with ≤5 years in the organization and aged ≤35 or ≤30.
38th 2013 Renamed to "Saikouisen Nihon Pro Mahjong association under the general legal entity"

Established the Kansai Headquarters.

In order to honor the deceased Masato Iida, Saikouisen Classic renamed as Masahito Iida Cup Saikouisen Classic
39th 2014 Established the Hokkaido Headquarters
41st 2016 Established the Tōkai Branch
42nd 2017 Set up the Saikouisen Dojo
Established the Niigata Branch
Set up Shinkisen title match with adjustable rules in different stage.
45th 2020 Established the Kyūshū Headquarters.
adopted a 10-tier league system (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2, C3, D1, D2, D3).
47th 2022 Established the Tōhoku Branch.
48th 2023 Established the Saikouisen Studio.

Membership

As of May 2024, Saikouisen currently has 783 members.

Game rules

Saikouisen has changed their game rules in 2023. While the core of the rules seems to not have changed much, the treatment of penalties seems to have been significantly altered compared to past editions.

Title matches

The Saikouisen promotes a variety of titles contested under different rulesets.[1] As of February 2025, those titles are:

Title match Est. Current champion
Japanese Romanized Japanese Romanized Edition
Major titles
最高位戦 Saikōisen[2] 1976 石井 一馬 Kazuma Ishii 49th (2024)
飯田正人杯・最高位戦Classic Masahito Iida Cup Saikōisen Classic[3]
Iida Masahito Hai Saikōisen Kurashikku		 2006 18th (2024)
發王戦 Ryūōsen 1992 寿（とし） Toshi 32nd (2024)
新輝戦 Shinkisen 2017 田中 祥平 Shohei Tanaka 8th (2024)
蒼翼戦 Sōyokusen 2025 石井 一馬 Kazuma Ishii 1st (2025)
Women's titles
女流最高位戦 Joryū Saikōisen[4]
 2001 瑞原 明奈 Akina Mizuhara 24th (2024)
女流名人戦 Joryū Meijinsen 1984[5] 谷崎 舞華 Maika Tanizaki 24th (2024)
Other titles
新人王戦 Shinjin'ōsen 2012[6] 高倉 拓馬 Takuma Takakura 49th (2024)
関西王者決定戦 Kansai Championship
Kansai Ōja Ketteisen		 2017 酒井 一興 Kazuoki Sakai 7th (2023)
北海道王者決定戦 Hokkaido Championship
Hokkaidō Ōja Ketteisen		 2019 本間 健滋 Kenji Honma 6th (2024)
アマ最高位戦 Amateur Saikōisen
Ama Saikōisen		 2003 小西 隆之 Takayuki Konishi 19th (2023)

M.League Players

15 (10 current, 5 former) members have been drafted into four out of the nine M.League teams.

M.League Players in Saikouisen
Player Team Seasons
Japanese Romanized
園田賢 Ken Sonoda Akasaka Drivens 2018–present
鈴木たろう Taro Suzuki Akasaka Drivens 2018–present
浅見真紀 Maki Asami Akasaka Drivens 2023–present
渡辺太 Futoshi Watanabe Akasaka Drivens 2023–present
日向藍子 Aiko Hinata Shibuya Abemas 2019–present
茅森早香 Sayaka Kayamori SegaSammy Phoenix 2018–present
醍醐大 Hiroshi Daigo SegaSammy Phoenix 2023–present
竹内元太 Genta Takeuchi SegaSammy Phoenix 2024–present
瑞原明奈 Akina Mizuhara U-Next Pirates 2019–present
鈴木優 Yu Suzuki U-Next Pirates 2022–present
近藤誠一 Seiichi Kondo SegaSammy Phoenix 2018–2022 (player)
2023–present (coach)
村上淳 Jun Murakami Akasaka Drivens 2018–2022
丸山奏子 Kanako Maruyama Akasaka Drivens 2019–2022
朝倉康心 Koushin Asakura U-Next Pirates 2018–2021
石橋伸洋 Nobuhiro Ishibashi U-Next Pirates 2018–2021

History

Title match period (1976 ~ 1984)

Establishment (1st term, 1976)

In 1976, for the 1st Saikouisen , the mahjong magazine Kindai Mahjong (近代麻雀), published by Takeshobō(竹書房), invited ten established "professional/high-ranking" players to form a league. The participants included:

  • Asada Tetsuya(阿佐田哲也, scriptwriter), Kojima Takeo(小島武夫), Furukawa Kaishō(古川凱章), Tamura Mitsuaki(田村光昭), and Aoyagi Kenji(青柳賢治) (all former members of the Mahjong Shinsengumi),
  • Inagaki Masayuki(稻垣真幸) (Japan Mahjong League),
  • Kawada Takashi(川田隆) (Japan Mahjongdō League),
  • Numa Matarō(灘麻太郎) (former Japan Mahjongdō League),
  • Aoki Hiroshi(青木博) (National Mahjong Dan Ranking Committee),
  • Ōkuma Hideo(大隈秀夫) (2nd Meijin title holder).

However, disagreements arose between Kojima Takeo and Furukawa Kaishō regarding the ranking criteria—specifically whether to prioritize average placement or total points. This led to the league splitting into two evaluation standards before commencement.

After 100 games, the results were:

  • Average Placement 1st Numa Matarō (2.305 avg. rank)
  • Total Points 1st Kawada Takashi (+356.5 pts)

Both were recognized as the inaugural Saikoui title holders.

Reformation and Expansion (2nd term,1977)

From the 2nd term, the match adopted a combined scoring system that integrated both total points and placement to determine rankings, culminating in the selection of a single Saikoui champion per term.

Structural reforms were implemented:

  • Match format: The original 100 games schedule was revised to:
    • 40 games preliminary round → 30 games final stage *(After 20 final games, the 5th-place player was eliminated; the remaining 4 players competed in 10 additional games)*
  • New tier system: The B League was introduced as a secondary division.

the result of 2nd Saikouisen were:

Player Total Points
Winner Tamura Mitsuaki

田村 光昭

+297.1 pts
Runner-up Numa Matarō

灘 麻太郎

+102.8 pts
3rd Kawada Takashi

川田 隆

-37.8 pts
4th Takagi Kenji

高木 賢治

-91.7 pts
5th Aoyagi Kenji

青柳 賢治

-280.4 pts

Controversy & Great Split (5th term, 1980)

During the finals of the 5th Saikouisen, an alleged match-fixing erupted that sent shockwaves through Japan's professional mahjong world.

Two players—Numa Matarō(灘麻太郎) and Ara Masayoshi(荒正義)—came under strong suspicion of collusion, resulting in their disqualification.

The 5th Saikouisen was immediately suspended. Tamura Mitsuaki, who held the provisional lead in cumulative points when play was halted, was declared the 5th Saikoui champion by default.

The incident caused an irreparable rift between Kindai Mahjong and several top players including Kojima Takeo(小島武夫), Numa Matarō(灘麻太郎) and Ara Masayoshi(荒正義).

  • It served as a catalyst for the early establishment of JPML (Japan Professional Mahjong League).
  • The Japanese professional mahjong world underwent a significant schism.


Despite the upheaval, the Saikouisen continued its expansion:

  • 1981 (6th Saikouisen): Introduced the B2 League as a new tier
  • 1984 (9th Saikouisen): Added the C League, further broadening the competition structure.

Formal organization period (1985 ~ present)

independence from Kindai Mahjong (10 term, 1985)

Starting with the 10th term in 1985, Kindai Mahjong magazine ceased its sponsorship of the Saikouisen. The match transitioned to player-led management, marking the official establishment of the Saikoui Tournament Nihon Professional Mahjong Association (最高位戦日本プロ麻雀協会).

References

  1. ↑ Saikouisen title matches
  2. ↑ The final is referred to as the Saikōi Ketteisen 「最高位決定戦」
  3. ↑ Simply known as the Saikōisen Classic until 2013, when it was renamed following the death of Masahito Iida, recognized as "Lifetime Champion" (「永世最高位」 Eisei Saikōi)
  4. ↑ The final is referred to as the Joryū Saikōi Ketteisen 「女流最高位決定戦」
  5. ↑ Organized by the Monthly Professional Mahjong magazine; sponsored by the Saikouisen since 2015
  6. ↑ Until 2012, the title was awarded to the winner of the B1 League.

External links

Retrieved from "https://riichi.wiki/index.php?title=Saikouisen_Nihon_Pro_Mahjong&oldid=27635"