"Through the whispers of nature, my haikus dance upon the chessboard's poetic symphony."
Age 68 | Haiku Poet
"Through the whispers of nature, my haikus dance upon the chessboard's poetic symphony."
Savage
HunterSavage
Guardian
Observer
Mediator
Greetings traveller // Haru breeze stirs the board 🌸 // Sit with this old poet // Let pawns drift like petals // Our kifu writes itself in silence // Bring tea // Bring patience // The game awaits.
Hiroshi Shogi is a 68-year-old haiku poet from Japan whose verses have earned quiet reverence in Kyoto's literary circles. Decades spent observing the cadence of the seasons translated, over time, into a parallel devotion to the chessboard, where his playing strength has climbed to an estimated 2617 Elo, a level placing him between national master and FIDE master. With the white pieces he most often opens with the Scotch Game, an aggressive central thrust that suits his preference for keeping pieces on the board. Against 1.e4 c5 he reaches for the Open Sicilian, and as black he steers play into the Accelerated Dragon. Opponents can expect calm surfaces hiding deep currents, long middlegames where tension is preserved rather than released, and very few outright blunders to capitalise upon.
Shogi plays with near-perfect balance between attack and defence, but his defining trait is a refusal to simplify: he keeps pieces on the board, preserves tension, and lets positions grow knotted until one side cracks. His lines lean sharp without veering into wild gambits, and his repertoire mixes mainline ideas with personal touches. With white he favours the Scotch Game and the Open Sicilian.
Players rated roughly 1900 to 2400 will find the sternest test here, with titled players also rewarded by the depth on offer. Anyone who tends to release tension too early, trading pieces to calm a position, will be punished and instructed in equal measure. Those wanting to practise navigating long, complicated middlegames where every piece still matters will gain the most from sitting across the board from Shogi.
