is one of the eight titles in Japanese professional

shogi , also known as Japanese chess, is a strategy board game for two players. It is one of the most popular board games in Japan and is in the same family of games as Western chess, '' chaturanga, Xiangqi'', Indian chess, and '' janggi''. ''Shōg ...

. The word means "the king's rank" (王 ''ō'' 'king' + 位 ''i'' 'rank, position'). The annual tournament started in 1960 sponsored by a group of local newspapers which has consisted of Shimbun Sansha Rengō (Three-Newspaper Association). With the addition of Ōi, there were four major shogi titles along with Meijin,

Ninth Dan In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second. Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...

( Ryūō), and Ōshō. The challenger for the title is determined by three-step preliminary round that comprises 1st heat, league competition and final playoff. Top eight players in 1st heat and top four players of previous year are divided into two six-player leagues. Top one of each league advances to final playoff, and the winner of one-game match becomes the challenger. The player that wins four games out of seven first in the championship will become the new Ōi title holder. Each championship games assign players a six-hour playtime during two days.

Lifetime Ōi

is the title awarded to a player who won the championship five times in a row or ten times in total. Active players may qualify for this title, but it is only officially awarded upon their retirement or death. Only three professionals have qualified for the Lifetime Oi. They are as follows: *

Yasuharu Oyama Yasuharu is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yasuharu can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *康治, "healthy, to manage" *康春, "healthy, spring" *康晴, "healthy, clear ...

(deceased) * Makoto Nakahara (retired) *

Yoshiharu Habu is a professional shogi player and a chess FIDE Master. His master is Tatsuya Futakami. He is the only person to simultaneously hold seven major professional shogi titles at the same time and is also the only person to qualify as a lifetime tit ...

(active)

Winners

Records

* Most titles overall: Yoshiharu Habu, 18 * Most consecutive titles: Yasuharu Oyama, 12 in a row (1960-1971)

Notes

References

External links