Masataka SugimotoChoose better, not best: The pride of a shogi master

Part 3: Time and effort will never let you down

Reading ahead is about knowing your opponent and knowing yourself. These words are sure to have struck a chord with everyone in business. Here, we hear more from Masataka Sugimoto about his apprentice, the young prodigy Sōta Fujii, who continues to rewrite the record books in the world of shogi.

── How did you develop this exceptional talent in a stress-free way?

In those days, I had four or five apprentices who were senior to Fujii. His incredible talent was immediately obvious to everyone. The other apprentices were still children too, so naturally they did not like it when a younger player was better than them. That’s why, if anything, I made an effort to focus on the older apprentices, rather than Fujii. I hoped that by maintaining a good relationship with the others, he would be able to develop his talent without stress.

I don’t know whether that was the right thing to do but creating that kind of environment was probably foremost in my mind as his mentor. As I have already said, Fujii was a child who would develop by himself even if I left him alone.

── Your shogi research institute, where Fujii trained, is a magnet for shogi fans. Can you tell us about the real Sōta Fujii – the side of him that only you as his mentor got to know?

He is usually a calm, smiling young man, but he gets animated when talking about computers or AI. He can even build his own computer. His dexterity is incredible in that way, too.

Sugimoto at his own shogi research institute teaching Sōta Fujii (in the 4th grade of elementary school at the time), who had just entered the JSA apprentice school.
Photo: Japan Shogi Association

── Aside from considering your apprentices’ mental welfare, did you keep anything else in mind as a mentor?

In the world of shogi, your fifties are seen as the age when you head downhill and start looking towards retirement. When I was a teenager, it never occurred to me that my teachers in their fifties would still study shogi. But now that I have reached this age, one thing I have realized is that however old I get, I still enjoy shogi, and I still want to keep improving.

Physical strength and concentration start to wane as you get older, so it’s bound to get harder. But I believe I need to keep showing my apprentices that I have not lost my passion as a shogi player. I believe this is linked to guiding and advising them.

── Thanks to that constant devotion, you regained B2 class in 2019 at the age of fifty, becoming the fourth oldest player in history to do so.

In shogi, when you slip down a class in the tournament ranking, it’s extremely difficult to go back up. Going down means you are getting weaker, so it’s very hard to claw your way into the higher ranks once more. But on that occasion, I was motivated by one thing – an off-hand comment from my child.

He enjoys shogi too, and one day he innocently said to me: “Dad, you used to be in the B1 class, didn’t you?” I was in C class at the time, so it came as a bit of a shock to me. Of course I didn’t hold it against him, but as a father, that made me want to do my best. The success of Fujii and my other apprentices was also a huge incentive to me.

── This was right around the time that Fujii started to conquer the world of shogi, right?

Because I am his mentor, we were frequently compared by the fans and media. Right around that time, I played against Fujii in a ranking game and was placed in the same class. Oddly enough, I didn’t feel any sense of panic; rather, I remember being excited. I knew that he would catch up with me a few years after his debut and overtake me one day, but playing him in the same class that day, I felt I had to show off a bit in front of my student. It gave me back the competitive spirit that I was starting to forget. I think that was another factor leading to my promotion.

Sugimoto playing against his own protégé Fujii for the second time at the 33rd Ryūō Tournament (2020). Sugimoto says he is motivated by his students’ success.
Photo: Japan Shogi Association

── You are still studying shogi today. What do you think about the importance of perseverance?

There will always be a loser in a game of shogi, so however much you study, it may not necessarily lead to victory. But I believe that study and effort will never let you down.

The time that you have spent gives you unwavering confidence in yourself, and the experience of dedicating yourself to your studies and honing your knowledge is sure to be an irreplaceable asset. Of course, achieving results is the best outcome of all, but I think being able to say “I’ve done all I can, and I have no regrets” is another reason to never stop studying.