Gauteng Open 2025
The Gauteng Open was held on 29 November 2025 at the Smuts House Museum in Centurion, with ten players taking part. It was run as a handicap tournament over three rounds, McMahon style, with the bar set at 10 kyu. Fred Strauss acted as tournament director.
The field ranged from 1 dan to 20 kyu — one of the widest spreads we have had at a Gauteng Open, and a good showing from players new to the game.
Ben Bredenkamp won the tournament with a clean 3–0, beating Paul Edwards, Adru van Niekerk and Fred Strauss in turn. His first-round win over Paul was played even, without handicap stones.
Final standings
| Player | Rank | McMahon | SOS | SOSOS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ben Bredenkamp | 1k | 4.0 | 6.0 | 25.0 |
| 2 | Pico Geyer | 10k | 3.0 | 6.0 | 24.0 |
| 3 | Adru van Niekerk | 5k | 2.0 | 9.0 | 19.0 |
| 4 | Paul Edwards | 1d | 2.0 | 9.0 | 18.0 |
| 5 | Fred Strauss | 7k | 2.0 | 7.0 | 20.0 |
| 6 | Anitra Nettleton | 11k | 2.0 | 6.0 | 20.0 |
| 7 | Ahmad Moharram | 20k | 2.0 | 3.0 | 14.0 |
| 8 | Carli Smit | 20k | 1.0 | 5.0 | 14.0 |
| 9 | Kara Bredenkamp | 20k | 1.0 | 5.0 | 13.0 |
| 10 | Zynodeen Temm | 20k | 1.0 | 4.0 | 13.0 |
Placings are on McMahon score, then SOS (sum of opponents’ scores), then SOSOS (sum of opponents’ SOS). Because the tournament used a McMahon bar, players seeded into the upper group start with a point in hand.
Results by round
Round 1 — Ben bt Paul · Adru bt Fred · Pico bt Anitra · Carli bt Ahmad · Kara bt Zynodeen
Round 2 — Ben bt Adru · Paul bt Pico · Fred bt Carli · Anitra bt Kara · Ahmad bt Zynodeen
Round 3 — Ben bt Fred · Pico bt Adru · Anitra bt Paul · Ahmad bt Kara · Zynodeen bt Carli
Anitra Nettleton’s third-round win over Paul Edwards, taking nine stones, was the biggest upset on rank of the day.
Welcome to our new players
Four of the ten players came into this tournament at 20 kyu, all of them playing in their first tournament. Every one of them won at least one game on the day, and every one of them finished stronger than they started — all four earned a promotion on the ratings ladder from these games:
- Ahmad Moharram — 20 kyu to 18 kyu, gaining a rank with each of his two wins
- Carli Smit — 20 kyu to 19 kyu
- Kara Bredenkamp — 20 kyu to 19 kyu
- Zynodeen Temm — 20 kyu to 19 kyu
Congratulations to all four. Getting through a full three-round tournament in your first months of playing is no small thing, and it is exactly the kind of turnout SAGA wants to build on.
Anitra Nettleton held her 11 kyu but gained a good deal of ground on the ladder, most of it from that third-round win.
Our thanks to everyone who played, and to those who helped organise the day.
Photographs from the day are in the photo archive.