[Latest 2026] What Are Go Titles? Explaining the Structure, Ranking, and Prize Money of the Seven Major Titles

A Go title is an honorific awarded to the winner of a tournament, and the highest tier is the Seven Major Titles.

The ranking order is Kisei, Meijin, Oza, Tengen, Honinbo, Gosei, and Judan, and the winner’s prize money also differs.

In this article, we整理 the features of each title, the ranking order, prize money, how challengers are determined, and women’s titles as well.

[toc]

What Is a Go Title? | The Highest Honor for Professional Players

A Go title is an honorific awarded to the player who wins a title tournament.

A player who holds a title is called a “title holder,” and is regarded as standing at the top of the Go world.

In Japan, the most prestigious are the “Seven Major Titles.”

Shogi also has titles like Kisei and Meijin, but Honinbo is a title unique to Go.

These matches draw so much attention that results are reported in major newspapers.

Here, we explain the difference between title matches and other tournaments, and what it means to hold a title.

The Difference Between Title Matches and Regular Tournaments

Go tournaments are broadly divided into title matches and regular tournaments.

In a title match, the title holder and the challenger compete in a multi-game match series (ban-shobu).

Regular tournaments, on the other hand, are mainly knockout-style events that determine a champion through advancement.

Major domestic tournaments include the Kisei, Meijin, Oza, Tengen, Honinbo, Gosei, and Judan. These seven are collectively called the Seven Major Titles.

Another feature is that each is sponsored by a newspaper company or similar organization and offers a winner’s prize.

What It Means to Become a Title Holder

A player who reaches the top of a tournament and wins a title will come to be called by that title name, such as “Kisei” or “Meijin.”

For professional players, winning one of the Seven Major Titles is a great honor and can be considered one of the biggest goals.

A player who wins a title also etches their name into Go’s long history.

What Are the Seven Major Go Titles? | Features of Each Title

The Seven Major Go Titles are Kisei, Meijin, Oza, Tengen, Honinbo, Gosei, and Judan.

Among them, Kisei, Meijin, and Honinbo were once called the “Three Major Titles.”

Each differs in its sponsoring newspaper, founding year, and prize money.

We’ll start with the long-established Kisei, Meijin, and Honinbo, then introduce the remaining four titles.

Kisei

The Kisei is one of the Seven Major Titles, established in 1976.

It is sponsored by the Yomiuri Shimbun and others, and is placed 1st in the Nihon Ki-in’s ranking order.

The winner’s prize is 43 million yen, the highest among the Seven Major Titles.

The challenger is decided by advancing through four league tiers (S, A, B, C), with the final decided by an irregular best-of-three.

The title match against the holder is a best-of-seven, with 8 hours of main time.

The title match is played over two days.

In both name and reality, it can be called the pinnacle title in the Go world.

Meijin

The Meijin is one of the Seven Major Titles, established in 1974.

It is sponsored by the Asahi Shimbun and others, and is ranked 2nd after the Kisei.

The winner’s prize is 30 million yen.

The winner of a 9-player league earns the right to challenge the holder.

The title match is a best-of-seven, the same as the Kisei.

Main time is 8 hours, and the match is played over two days.

“Meijin” has been known since the Edo period as a title indicating the highest rank in the Go world.

It is a prestigious title that carries a long history.

Honinbo

The Honinbo is the oldest of the Seven Major Titles, established in 1939.

It is sponsored by the Mainichi Shimbun and others.

The name “Honinbo” comes from the Honinbo house, a Go head family (iemoto) of the Edo period.

The winner’s prize used to be 28 million yen, but from the 79th term it was reduced to 8.5 million yen.

This downsizing has also affected the ranking order among the Seven Major Titles.

Along with that, the league system was abolished, and the title match—previously played over two days—was changed to be decided in a single day.

Even so, its prestige as the title with the longest history among the Seven Major Titles remains unchanged.

The Other Four Major Titles (Oza, Tengen, Gosei, Judan)

The remaining four are the Oza, Tengen, Gosei, and Judan.

In the ranking order, Oza is 3rd, Tengen is 4th, Gosei is 6th, and Judan is 7th—matching the order of higher winner’s prize money.

The Oza was established in 1952, and among the Seven Major Titles it has the second-longest history after the Honinbo.

It is sponsored by the Nikkei (Nihon Keizai Shimbun) and others, and the winner’s prize is 14 million yen.

The challenger is the player who wins a 16-player knockout tournament.

The Tengen was established in 1974 and is sponsored by a consortium of three newspapers.

The winner’s prize is 12 million yen.

A feature of its tournament is the large field of 28 players plus additional slots.

The Gosei was established in 1975, and the winner’s prize is 8 million yen.

It is sponsored by the Newspaper Go Federation and others, and the title match main time is set at 4 hours—longer than the other three titles.

The Judan was established in 1961 and is sponsored by the Sankei Shimbun and others.

The winner’s prize is the lowest among the Seven Major Titles at 6 million yen, but it is the second-oldest in founding after the Oza.

The Ranking Order of Go Titles

The ranking order as listed by the Nihon Ki-in is: 1st Kisei, 2nd Meijin, 3rd Oza, 4th Tengen, 5th Honinbo, 6th Gosei, 7th Judan.

This order matches the order of higher winner’s prize money.

Honinbo used to be 3rd, but after downsizing reduced the winner’s prize from 28 million yen to 8.5 million yen, its ranking changed to 5th.

Separately from the Seven Major Titles, women’s titles are also run under their own system.

How Go Title Matches Work | How Are They Decided?

Go title matches proceed in two stages: the challenger-deciding stage and the title match.

First, the challenger is determined through a league or knockout tournament.

Next, the challenger plays the title holder in a match series, and the side that wins more games takes the title.

Because the holder enters from the title match stage, they wait while the challenger is decided.

From here, let’s look at how challengers are determined and the match formats.

How the Challenger-Deciding Stage Works

In the Kisei and Meijin, the challenger is decided by league play.

The Kisei uses a four-tier system (S, A, B, C), while the Meijin uses a 9-player league. The other five titles determine the challenger via knockout tournaments.

In a knockout, one loss means elimination, making each game especially weighty.

The number of players is 16 for the Oza and Honinbo, and 20 for the Judan.

The Gosei is contested by 24 players plus additional slots, and the Tengen by 28 players plus additional slots.

The Honinbo originally used an 8-player league, but it changed to a 16-player knockout.

Match Series Format (Multiple-Game System)

**The title match is played as a multi-game match series (ban-shobu). ** The Kisei and Meijin are best-of-seven, and the first to 4 wins takes the title.

The other five titles are best-of-five, and the first to 3 wins is the winner.

Main time is 8 hours for the Kisei and Meijin.

Oza, Tengen, Honinbo, and Judan are set at 3 hours, while the Gosei is set at 4 hours.

Why play multiple games instead of just one?

With only one game, swings in form or luck could overly influence the result.

By playing multiple games, differences in skill are reflected more accurately.

Both “4 wins in a best-of-seven” and “3 wins in a best-of-five” mean taking a majority first.

Prize Money for Go Titles

The winner’s prizes for the Seven Major Titles are as follows.

Kisei: 43 million yen, Meijin: 30 million yen, Oza: 14 million yen, Tengen: 12 million yen, Honinbo: 8.5 million yen, Gosei: 8 million yen, Judan: 6 million yen.

Higher-ranked titles have higher prize money, and the ranking order is linked to prize amounts.

Before downsizing, the Honinbo was 28 million yen—more than three times the current amount.

Prize amounts may be revised.

For the latest figures, check each tournament page on the Nihon Ki-in website.

What Are Women’s Go Titles?

Women’s titles are a separate title system contested by women professional players, and are operated separately from the Seven Major Titles.

The women’s titles that use a title-match system are three: the Women’s Honinbo, Women’s Meijin, and Women’s Kisei.

The Women’s Honinbo is the oldest women’s title, established in 1981.

It is sponsored by Kyodo News and the Nihon Ki-in, and the winner’s prize is 5.5 million yen.

The title match is best-of-five, with 4 hours of main time.

The Women’s Meijin was established in 1988 and is sponsored by the Nihon Ki-in.

The winner’s prize is 6 million yen, and the title match is best-of-three.

The Women’s Kisei was established in 1997, and the winner’s prize is 5 million yen.

It is best-of-three, and is characterized by fast-paced games with no main time and 30 seconds per move.

It was announced that the Women’s Meijin would be suspended at the 37th term in March 2026.

However, a new sponsor was found, and resumption was announced on July 27.

The 38th term became the “Senga–Yanai Cup,” and changed from a league system to a knockout system.

In addition, women’s tournaments include the Senko Cup Women’s Strongest Tournament and the Japan Women’s Go League, which is played as a team competition.

Summary

The Seven Major Go Titles are Kisei, Meijin, Oza, Tengen, Honinbo, Gosei, and Judan.

The ranking order follows prize money amounts, and the Honinbo dropped to 5th due to downsizing.

Once you understand the system, watching title matches becomes much more enjoyable.

Once you understand how titles work, next try playing yourself.

With PlayGo.gg, you can enjoy online games, lessons, and tsumego in your browser or app.

Give it a try.