Yoshikazu Minami (shogi)


Yoshikazu Minami is a Japanese professional shogi player ranked 9-dan. He is a former Kisei, Kiō, and Ōshō title holder.

Early life

Minami was born in Kishiwada, Osaka on June 8, 1963. He entered the Japan Shogi Association's apprentice school at the rank of 5-kyū in 1975 as a protegee of shogi professional. He obtained full professional status and the rank of 4-dan in January 1981.

Shogi professional

Minami is a member of the so-called Shōwa 55 group, a group of eight strong players that become professional in 1980–1981 and won numerous shogi tournaments. Others in the group include Osamu Nakamura, Michio Takahashi, Akira Shima, Yasuaki Tsukada, Hiroshi Kamiya, Masaki Izumi, and.
In January 2018, Minami became the 20th shogi professional to win 800 official games and be awarded Shogi Honor Fighting-spirit Award by the JSA.

Playing style

Minami is known for his steady style of starting games slowly as for his quiet manner and strict seiza posture during games. For these reasons, his style is often referred to as the Jizō-style after the Jizō statues common to Japanese Buddhism.

Promotion history

The promotion history for Minami is as follows:
Minami has appeared in major title matches a total of sixteen times, and has won seven major titles. In addition to major titles, Minami has won six non-title championships during his career.

Major titles

Other championships

Note: Tournaments marked with an asterisk are no longer held.

Awards and honors

Minami has received a number of awards and honors throughout his career for his accomplishments both on an off the shogi board. These include awards given out annually by the JSA for performance in official games as well as other JSA awards for career accomplishments, and awards received from governmental organizations, etc. for contributions made to Japanese society.

Annual shogi awards