From: Sam Sloan <sloan <at> ISHIPRESS <dot> COM>
Date: 14 dec 2002
Subject: Re: My last comment on the grades issue

The Shinjuku Shogi Center will give you whatever rank you say that you are
when you first come there, but will knock you down if you do not perform.

I have seen players come in, say that they are shodan, but after being
paired against a few shodan opponents, if they lost, were demoted to one or
two kyu.

Obviously, if a person claims to be 5-dan that is a different matter
altogether. I doubt that they would recognize a five-dan ranking of anyone
that they do not know who has not won a major reported tournament.

Sam Sloan