Thursday (January 30)

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Game 1

Aki Again

January 30, Game 1, E3-0

In E3-0, Aki is in 3rd place, 8,400 behind 2nd place dealer Takizawa and 10,700 behind 1st place Mizuhara.

Aki starts out the hand 3-shanten with a loosely-connected red 5m and a bunch of middle waits. Across from her, Sugawara is at 2-shanten with three ryanmens. In the first row, Aki creates a three-sided wait and a ryanmen for 2-shanten, while Sugawara makes a 5s triplet with the red 5s to get to a ryanmen-ryanmen iishanten.

Near the start of the second row, Sugawara is the first to tenpai and calls riichi on a 14p ryanmen.

Having drawn a dora 6p at the start of the second row, Aki has the value to fight the riichi. During Sugawara’s ippatsu round, Aki gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 36s ryanmen, guaranteed at least a mangan if she wins. On Sugawara’s turn, she draws and discards the 6s and deals into Aki. Hitting the uradora, Aki wins the hand with Riichi/Ippatsu/Pinfu/Dora 1/Aka 1/Ura 1 for 12,000 plus a riichi stick, moving into 1st.

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Mizuhara Moment

January 30, Game 1, E4-0
Video: https://abema.tv/video/episode/444-1_s5_p5607

In E4-0, Mizuhara is in 2nd place and 2,300 behind 1st place Aki.

Mizuhara starts out the hand 4-shanten with tanyao a possibility, though it will take some time. To her right, Aki is 2-shanten with two ryanmens. In the first row, Mizuhara pushes her hand to a more secure tanyao, getting to 2-shanten by the end of the row. For Aki, she gets to iishanten and is looking for a pair. In the middle of the second row, Aki gets to tenpai and waits dama on a 58s ryanmen.

At this point, Mizuhara is iishanten with two middle waits and Takizawa is iishanten with two ryanmens.

In the middle of the third row, Takizawa gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 36p ryanmen.

During the ippatsu round, Mizuhara gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 25m ryanmen with only two more draws for herself. On Mizuhara’s last draw, the very last tile in the wall, Mizuhara draws the 5m and wins the hand. Mizuhara wins with Riichi/Tsumo/Tanyao/Haitei for 8,000 plus one riichi stick.

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Takizawa Time

January 30, Game 1

In S3-0, Takizawa is in 2nd place and 5,000 behind 1st place Mizuhara.

Takizawa starts out the hand 3-shanten with pairs of green dragon, red dragon and the dora 9m. On turn 2, Takizawa creates a 369s three-sided wait. When the 9m dora comes out, Takizawa instantly calls pon for iishanten. WIth a green dragon pon a few turns later, Takizawa gets to tenpai on the three-sided wait.

In the second row, Sugawara discards the 9s and deals into Takizawa. Takizawa wins with Green Dragon/Dora 3 for 12,000.

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In S3-1, Takizawa starts out with a 2-shanten hand with a pair of souths, a secured red 5m and a connected dora 7p. In the first row, Takizawa creates a 789p sequence to secure the dora and get to iishanten. At the start of the second row, Takizawa gets to a perfect iishanten. Soon after, Takizawa gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 36s ryanmen.

With Takizawa’s discarded 5s, Sugawara calls a 567s chii and gets to iishanten. As Sugawara tries waits for iishanten, Aki gets to tenpai on a 47s ryanmen. In the middle of the row, Sugawara gets to tenpai on a 58p ryanmen for 3 han.

As the turns go on, Aki folds when she draws a dangerous 4m.

In the third row, Sugawara discards the 6s and deals into Takizawa. Takizawa wins the hand with Riichi/Dora 1/Aka 1 for 7,700+300, pushing Takizawa above 50,000.

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50k

January 30, Game 1, S3-2
Video: https://abema.tv/video/episode/444-1_s5_p5608

In S3-2, Mizuhara is in 2nd place and 15,000 behind 1st place dealer Takizawa.

Mizuhara starts out the hand 3-shanten for both a standard and pairs hand, holding pairs of 3p, 5p (including the red 5p) and 9p. In the first row, Mizuhara pairs up the 8s and hones in on seven pairs. She also holds onto a single 5s dora, hoping to pair it up.

In the second row, Mizuhara pairs up the white dragon and 9s, getting her to iishanten. Staying dama, she waits on the 5s tanki, mangan on ron and haneman on tsumo.

In the middle of the third row, Mizuhara draws the dora 5s and wins the hand. Mizuhara wins with Tsumo/Chiitoi/Dora 2/Aka 1 for 3,000+200/6,000+200.

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Takizawa Triumph

January 30, Game 1, S4-0
Video: https://abema.tv/video/episode/444-1_s5_p3608

In S4-0, Takizawa is in 2nd place and 3,800 behind 1st place Mizuhara. To finish the game in 1st, Takizawa needs a 2/30 direct hit, a 2/50 or 3/25 tsumo, or a 3/30 ron.

Takizawa starts out the hand 4-shanten with no sense of value or a good way to get it. To his left, Aki is 2-shanten. By turn 5, Aki gets to tenpai on a 4s kanchan, but she stays dama with no yaku. In the middle of the second row, Aki improves to a 69s ryanmen, staying dama with pinu and can get a mangan with the 6s.

Back to Takizawa, he sits iishanten and just an 8s away from a 678s sanshoku. At the start of the third row, Takizawa gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 58s ryanmen. If Takizawa wins on the 5s, he will have to hope for one more han. If he wins on the 8s, he will have enough.

During the ippatsu round, Sugawara draws the 8s, but doesn’t throw it. On Aki’s turn, she draws the 8s and tries to call riichi (seeing that Takizawa is vulnerable and can deal in) and deals into Takizawa. Takizawa wins the hand with Riichi/Ippatsu/Pinfu/Sanshoku for 8,000, winning the game.

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Results

Game 149

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Game 2

Takamiya Tanyao

January 30, Game 2, S1-1

In S1-1, Takamiya is the dealer in 2nd place in a fairly quiet game, sitting 6,900 behind 1st place Katsumata. A riichi stick and a honba sit in the pot.

Takamiya starts out the hand 3-shanten with a pair of 2m dora and a route to tanyao. With a 14s ryanmen in hand, the 4s is imperative for the open route. In the first row, Takamiya makes a triplet of 8p and gets to iishanten by the end of the row, giving her a chance at an closed hand as well.

In the second row, Takamiya calls pon on the 2m for a wider iishanten. However, danger comes near the end of the row when Yu gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 2s kanchan.

During the ippatsu round, Takamiya draws the 4s to get to tenpai and waits on a 25p ryanmen, ready with a mangan. Two turns later, Takamiya draws the 5p and wins the hand. Takamiya wins with Tanyao/Dora 3 for 2,000+100/4,000+100 plus two riichi sticks, moving into 1st.

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Yu Rule The World

January 30, Game 2

In S1-2, Yu is in 4th place, 1,900 behind 3rd place Nakada and 10,300 behind 2nd place Katsumata.

Yustarts off with a 4-shanten hand with a pair of green dragons. In the first row, he makes the red dragon in his hand into a pair, createws a ryanmen in pinzu and gets to 2-shanten.

At the start of the second row, Yu draws a third red dragon to get to iishanten. Filling in the pinzu ryanmen a turn later, Yu gets to tenpai and calls riichi on a 25m ryanmen. Near the end of the row, Yu draws the red 5m and wins the hnd. Yu wins with Riichi/Tsumo/Red Dragon/Aka 1 for 2,000+200/4,000+200, moving up to 2nd place.

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Video: https://abema.tv/video/episode/444-1_s5_p5609

After winning two hands to start his dealership, Yu is now is 1st place in S2-2, 1,000 ahead of 2nd place Takamiya.

Yu starts out the hand at 3-shanten with not much in terms of value. His first three turns are spent getting rid of honours, Managing to push him to 2-shanten with pinfu guarnateed. After getting rid of a penchan block, Yu gets to tenpai at the end of the first row and calls riichi on a 14s ryanmen. On his very next draw, Yu gets the 1s and wins the hand. Yu wins with Riichi/Ippatsu/Tsumo/Pinfu/Aka 1 for 4,000+200 all.

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After winning a 3-han hand, Yu is now at 55,600 going into S2-4, more than double the score of 2nd place.

From the start, Yu has pairs of east, south, 5p (including the red 5p) and 9p, pushing him towards a flush hand. As soon as the east comes out, Yu calls pon. Through the rest of the first row, he builds on his pinzu blocks, creating a 456p sequence. With a 9p pon at the end of the row, Yu gets to iishanten.

At the start of the second row, Yu makes a south pon and waits on a west tanki, guaranteed a mangan if he wins. Right after, Nakada discards the west and deals into Yu. Yu wins the hand with Honitsu/East/South/Aka 1 for 12,000+12,00, moving Yu up to 68,800.

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Above Water

January 30, Game 2, S2-5

In S2-5, Nakada is in the negatives with -10,300. With the team already in dire straits, Nakada wants to recover as best as possible.

Nakada starts out the hand at 3-shanten with a secured red 5p and a floating white dragon dora. On turn 2, Nakada pairs up the white dragon to give her value and a potential yaku. At the end of the first row, Nakada calls pon on the white dragon and gets to iishanten.

In the middle of the second row, Nakada calls a 345p chii and waits on a 25s ryanmen. Only the red 5s remains in the wall, a tile that will give her a haneman.

Around the table everyone tries to push while trying to avoid the big hand. For Katsumata, he moves away from a 58m tenpai after a 1m and ends up on a yakuless 3m penchan. For Yu, a 9p draw forces him to switch to an ittsuu route, even breaking apart a green dragon pair and rejecting tenpai to not throw the 9p. In the third row, Yu manages to get there.

However, as Katsumata draws the 6p, he is forced to fold. The same thing happens to Yu with his own 6p draw.

Then, on the very last tile in the wall, Nakada draws the red 5s and wins the hand. Nakada wins with Haitei/White Dragon/Dora 3/Aka 2 for 3,000+500/6,000+500, moving back into the positives.

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Rising Water

January 30, Game 2, S3-0

In S3-0, Yu is still loking for even more points. From the start, Yu is 2-shanten with a pair of dora 9p, a secured red 5p and a pair of souths. The first row doesn’t provide much for Yu, but the time allows Takamiya to push her manzu honitsu. With a west pon, Takamiya gets to iishanten before Yu.

In the second row, Yu calls a 678s chii to get to iishanten, still needing the south to be resolved. Near the middle of the row, Takamiya calls pon on the red dragon, discards the south and waits on a 2m kanchan.

With Takamiya’s discarded south, Yu calls pon and gets to tenpai on a 36m ryanmen. Right after, Nakada discards the 3m and deals into Yu. Yu wins the hand with South/Dora 2/Aka 1 for 8,000, pushing Yu above 70,000 and Nakada back into the negatives.

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Results

Game 150

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