On Saturday 8th of December the Dutch Pair Go Championship 2018 took place in the European Go Cultural Centre in Amstelveen. A total of eleven pairs fought for the title of Dutch pair go champions over four rounds of play. Each team had 45 minutes, no overtime.

As is almost customary for pair go, excitement and chaos were guaranteed. 
Many matches were decided with just a few seconds left on the clock and even a half-point result occurred. 
That minimal difference of a split point turned out to be crucial for the championship: in round three, the experienced pair of Yvonne Roelofs (4 kyu) and Michiel Eijkhout (5 dan) from Vleuten, a town in the direct vicinity of Utrecht, faced young dogs Justyna Klęczar (1 kyu) and Kim Ouweleen (4 dan) from the capital city of Amsterdam. Roelofs and Eijkhout were slightly jetlagged, as they returned from a trip to Japan the day before, where they represented the Netherlands at the International Amateur Pair Go Championships and claimed 19th place. A trip they earned by winning the Dutch Pair Go Championships of 2017.
Seemingly untroubled by their many hours of traveling by plane, the defending champions Roelofs and Eijkhout won their first two encounters in the Dutch Pair Go Championships of 2018, defeating one of their main rivals - Karen Pleit (2 kyu) and Willem-Koen Pomstra (5 dan). Klęczar and Ouweleen also had two points after two games, effectively making this third round a final of sorts.
The match was very close from start to finish and a minor endgame mistake by the opponents gave Roelofs and Eijkhout the edge. When counting took place, both teams knew it would be a close call and were nevertheless amazed when it turned out that just a half point made the difference.  

Boosted with confidence, Roelofs and Eijkhout went on to win their last match and defended their title gloriously. They were Dutch pair go champions for the third time!
Karen Pleit and Willem-Koen Pomstra took second place, followed by Justyna Klęczar and Kim Ouweleen on third place.

2019, a special year for Pair Go in the Netherlands

2019 will be a special year for Pair Go in the Netherlands, because the European Pair Go Championships will take place in Groningen, during the weekend of 25-26 May.
The EPGC will be held four days before the Amsterdam International Go Tournament starts (a 4-day tournament from Thursday 30 May until Sunday 2 June, keep an eye on the website for updates). There will be special discounts for players that combine the two events and play in both the European Pair Go Championships and the Amsterdam International Go Tournament.