Great Lakes Riichi Open 2026

Southeast Michigan Riichi is proud to announce the third Great Lakes Riichi Open, a tournament for the riichi community of the midwest (and beyond). Come join us for a fun weekend of mahjong! Currently awaiting ARA Ceritification.

Event Information

Dates: November 14-15, 2025

Venue Location: R U Game, 1345 E Michigan Ave, Saline, MI (near Ann Arbor). If you plan to fly in, please note that the location is approximately 25 miles from the DTW airport.

Hosts:

  • Judges: Steve Augustin (Head), Hannah Zhou, Vikram P
  • Tournament Organizer: Dylan Boyd
  • Event Staff: Zach W, Sky J, Mike S

Registration

Entry fee: $50 (via Venmo, with alternate options available upon request)

Attendance cap: 76 players

Instructions: We have reached cap, please use this Google Form to register for the waitlist!. The Venmo tag for entry fee payment is included in the form. Waitlist information will be added here if the need arises.

Discord server: Join the event server for links to pairings and standings and to coordinate with fellow players!

Rules

Ruleset: The GLRO will use the 2025 WRC rules with the following optional modifications:

  • Red Fives (Mod 2.1)
  • 30/10 Uma (Mod 4.1)
  • Modified penalties as follows:
    • Shohai/Tahai dead hand with a -10 sho-chombo
    • Kuikae dead hand with a -10 sho-chombo

Time allotted per game: 75 min + 0

Food and Lodging

Food: Water, coffee, and snacks will be provided. This event will not be catered, but there are a number of lunch options nearby the venue.

Lodging: There are several affordable hotel options around the venue and in Ann Arbor. We recommend comparing rates before making a decision – noting that rideshare in this area isn’t too expensive.

Prizes

Cash prize: If we hit the 64 entrant cap, we plan to offer $500 in cash prizes, split 200/150/100/50 for 1st through 4th place. If we end up under the cap, this amount will be adjusted accordingly.

Awards: Trophies for 1st through 4th place, and conditionally (50+ players) medals for 5th through 8th place. Additional swag is planned.

Tournament Format and Schedule

Format: 7 hanchan scramble followed by a top 4 cut. Top 4 will play a two hanchan final bracket, while all other players continue with two additional games of scramble to determine final placements of 5th and lower.

Schedule

Day 1 (Nov 14) Day 2 (Nov 15)
8:30 am - Check in opens 8:30 am - Check in opens
9:00 am - Announcements 9:00 am - Announcements
9:30 am - Hanchan 1 9:30 am - Hanchan 6
11:15 am - Hanchan 2 11:15 am - Hanchan 7
12:45 pm - Lunch 12:45 pm - Lunch
2:00 pm - Hanchan 3 2:00 pm - Finals 1 / Hanchan 8
3:45 pm - Hanchan 4 3:45 pm - Finals 2 / Hanchan 9
5:30 pm - Hanchan 5 5:30 pm - Awards
Until 10pm - Free play Until 10pm - Free play

Participant List

List will be periodically updated after registration opens

No. Name ARA ID Club Affiliation Confirmed
1 Jerry ER76N World Riichi Professional Mahjong x
2 Conor   Chicago Area Mahjong x
3 djq ERJ67 Chicago Area Mahjong x
4 Misha   Chicago Area Mahjong x
5 Ashley Cameron N66PN Chicago Area Mahjong x
6 Kaden Chou NWMRN Riichi Mahjong Club, Wisconsin x
7 Carl Tang E8AKJ The Yakumen - Chicago Chapter x
8 Wells Guan E9WDQ    
9 Peter EQAJE Queen City Riichi x
10 Adrienne S EJWBR Queen City Riichi x
11 Aaron EJQG8 Southeast Michigan Riichi x
12 Frederic EG9B6 Atlanta Riichi Club x
13 Ean T. EGRLM Riichi Mahjong Columbus x
14 Takahiro Sakurai EQ9AE Chicago Area Mahjong x
15 Aslan Feng   UChicago Mahjong Club x
16 Max Suddendorf NDP7N Riichi Nomi NYC x
17 Allen Yang N6MM8   x
18 Kai     x
19 Caleb Gonzalez NDRRP Oklahoma Mahjong x
20 Michael Kriz NLDPA Riichi Mahjong Columbus x
21 Justin G EQP9P Oklahoma Mahjong x
22 John Clements EJWMD Little Rock Riichi Mahjong x
23 Nathanael Kozinski EJWRN Northern Illinois Riichi Mahjong  
24 Claire Hernandez EGR6N Riichi Nomi NYC  
25 Oliver Krekeler NDMLE Queen City Riichi x
26 Edward Zeng N6W9E Philly Mah-Jawn x
27 Mohan Richter-Addo EB6AM Riichi Mahjong Club, Wisconsin x
28 syoro E8JPE Philly Mah-Jawn x
29 Maya B NWJDM Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities x
30 Henry EG886 Atlanta Riichi Club  
31 Afif   Riichi Mahjong Club, Wisconsin x
32 Joel Baek NLDBA Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities x
33 Adam R NK77Q Milwaukee Area Riichi Mahjong x
34 Quincy Huang NPR7N Riichi Nomi NYC x
35 Mirby NL77E Philly Mah-Jawn x
36 Adán Villanueva NPKM6 Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities x
37 Brian Tseng E8ALJ Southeast Michigan Riichi x
38 Allen Z   Philly Mah-Jawn x
39 Nick NKWWD Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities x
40 Beatrice Lewis E9RR7 Central Iowa Riichi Club x
41 Michael Xu E7A8G Riichi Mahjong Club, Wisconsin x
42 John Boucher E96MN Riichi Mahjong Columbus x
43 Carter EBRAE Southeast Michigan Riichi x
44 Ryan B. E9RRQ Southeast Michigan Riichi x
45 Fiona Pao     x
46 Andrew W   UChicago Mahjong x
47 Stefan Hanosh EBLKM   x
48 Eric Nguyen EGPMN Lone Star Riichi x
49 Ryan Calkins   Southeast Michigan Riichi x
50 Doc NW76G Southeast Michigan Riichi  
51 Jesse Li EQ9KP UChicago Mahjong x
52 Simi N6W8B UChicago Mahjong x
53 Pio yoon ERGKN Riichi Nomi NYC x
54 Charlie EJL9E   x
55 Sinventus NAG8N Southeast Michigan Riichi x
56 Benjamin   Southeast Michigan Riichi  
57 Eian Damaris NW7WG Southeast Michigan Riichi x
58 Kaz Nakao   Case Western Reserve University  
59 Sanzhar Zhusupbekov   Case Western Reserve University  
60 Bren Nakata   Case Western Reserve University  
61 Andrew EJBRE Southeast Michigan Riichi x
62 Derek Chen      
63 Sam Lin   Case Western Reserve University  
64 Zach NAJDD Queen City Riichi x
65 Rafay   Southeast Michigan Riichi x
66 Ray     x
67 Takahiro Sato NPW7E Riichi Mahjong Columbus x
68 Yuchen E7MLP    
69 Gastón   UChicago Mahjong Club x
70 Omar NDKLE Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities x
71 Tom   Milwaukee Area Riichi Mahjong x
72 Rina Tamura ERB76 Queen City Riichi  
73 Farrah Cavus NWM9G Massachusetts Riichi Society  
74 Hanwen Zhang   Riichi Mahjong Club, Wisconsin  
75 Luna Medlock NARR8 Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities  
76 Sean E9MKM Mahjong Club at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities  

Waitlist

No. Name ARA ID Club Affiliation
1 Chris Yung EQBMA Toronto Riichi
2 Hanling EQBBA 4100 Riichi
3 Terra Longendelpher   Riichi Mahjong Columbus
4 Justin Chao NAM7W Riichi Nomi NYC
5 Cooper West   Case Western Reserve University
6 Sangamithra Nataraj NL869 East Lansing Mahjong Club