| Ōi | |
| Native Name: | 王位戦 |
| Type: | Title |
| Sponsor: | Ito En |
| Title Name: | Ōi |
| Last Winner: | Sōta Fujii |
| No Times: | 63 |
| First Held: | 1960 |
| Last Held: | 2022 |
| Most Wins: | Yoshiharu Habu (18) |
| Longest Streak: | Yasuharu Ōyama (12) |
| Url: | https://www.shogi.or.jp/match/oui/index.html |
| Other Site: | http://live.shogi.or.jp/oui/ |
is one of the eight major titles in professional shogi. The word means "the king's rank" (王 ō 'king' + 位 i 'rank, position').
The annual tournament started in 1960 sponsored by a group of local newspapers which has consisted of Shimbun Sansha Rengō (Three-Newspaper Association).[1] With the addition of Ōi, there were four major shogi titles along with Meijin, Ninth Dan (Ryūō), and Ōshō.
The challenger for the title is determined by three-step preliminary round that comprises 1st heat, league competition and final playoff. Top eight players in 1st heat and top four players of previous year are divided into two six-player leagues. Top one of each league advances to final playoff, and the winner of one-game match becomes the challenger.
The player that wins four games out of seven first in the championship will become the new Ōi title holder. Each championship games assign players a six-hour playtime during two days.
is the title awarded to a player who won the championship five times in a row or ten times in total. Active players may qualify for this title, but it is only officially awarded upon their retirement or death.[2]
Only three professionals have qualified for the Lifetime Oi. They are as follows:
| No. | Year | Winner | Score | Opponent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1960 | Yasuharu Ōyama | 41 | Masao Tsukada | |
| 2 | 1961 | Yasuharu Ōyama (2) | 41 | Yuzō Maruta | |
| 3 | 1962 | Yasuharu Ōyama (3) | 40 | Motoji Hanamura | |
| 4 | 1963 | Yasuharu Ōyama (4) | 42 | Hifumi Katō | |
| 5 | 1964 | Yasuharu Ōyama (5) | 42 | Tatsuya Futakami | |
| 6 | 1965 | Yasuharu Ōyama (6) | 40 | Daigoroh Satō | |
| 7 | 1966 | Yasuharu Oyama (7) | 41 | Michio Ariyoshi | |
| 8 | 1967 | Yasuharu Ōyama (8) | 41 | Nobuyuki Ōuchi | |
| 9 | 1968 | Yasuharu Ōyama (9) | 42 | Michio Ariyoshi | |
| 10 | 1969 | Yasuharu Ōyama (10) | 42 | Kazuyoshi Nishimura | |
| 11 | 1970 | Yasuharu Ōyama (11) | 41 | Kunio Yonenaga | |
| 12 | 1971 | Yasuharu Ōyama (12) | 43 | Makoto Nakahara | |
| 13 | 1972 | Kunio Naitō | 41 | Yasuharu Ōyama | |
| 14 | 1973 | Makoto Nakahara | 40 | Kunio Naitō | |
| 15 | 1974 | Makoto Nakahara (2) | 42 | Kunio Yonenaga | |
| 16 | 1975 | Makoto Nakahara (3) | 42 | Kunio Naitō | |
| 17 | 1976 | Makoto Nakahara (4) | 42 | Osamu Katsuura | |
| 18 | 1977 | Makoto Nakahara (5) | 42 | Kunio Yonenaga | |
| 19 | 1978 | Makoto Nakahara (6) | 41 | Yasuharu Ōyama | |
| 20 | 1979 | Kunio Yonenaga | 43 | Makoto Nakahara | |
| 21 | 1980 | Makoto Nakahara (7) | 40 | Kunio Yonenaga | |
| 22 | 1981 | Makoto Nakahara (8) | 43 | Yasuharu Ōyama | |
| 23 | 1982 | Kunio Naitō (2) | 42 | Makoto Nakahara | |
| 24 | 1983 | 42 | Kunio Naitō | ||
| 25 | 1984 | Hifumi Katō | 43 | Michio Takahashi | |
| 26 | 1985 | Michio Takahashi (2) | 40 | Hifumi Katō | |
| 27 | 1986 | Michio Takahashi (3) | 40 | Kunio Yonenaga | |
| 28 | 1987 | Koji Tanigawa | 41 | Michio Takahashi | |
| 29 | 1988 | Keiji Mori | 43 | Koji Tanigawa | |
| 30 | 1989 | Koji Tanigawa (2) | 41 | Keiji Mori | |
| 31 | 1990 | Koji Tanigawa (3) | 43 | Yasumitsu Satō | |
| 32 | 1991 | Koji Tanigawa (4) | 42 | Hiroki Nakata | |
| 33 | 1992 | Masataka Goda | 42 | Koji Tanigawa | |
| 34 | 1993 | Yoshiharu Habu | 40 | Masataka Goda | |
| 35 | 1994 | Yoshiharu Habu (2) | 43 | Masataka Goda | |
| 36 | 1995 | Yoshiharu Habu (3) | 42 | Masataka Goda | |
| 37 | 1996 | Yoshiharu Habu (4) | 41 | Koichi Fukaura | |
| 38 | 1997 | Yoshiharu Habu (5) | 41 | Yasumitsu Satō | |
| 39 | 1998 | Yoshiharu Habu (6) | 42 | Yasumitsu Satō | |
| 40 | 1999 | Yoshiharu Habu (7) | 40 | Koji Tanigawa | |
| 41 | 2000 | Yoshiharu Habu (8) | 43 | Koji Tanigawa | |
| 42 | 2001 | Yoshiharu Habu (9) | 40 | Nobuyuki Yashiki | |
| 43 | 2002 | Koji Tanigawa (5) | 41 | Yoshiharu Habu | |
| 44 | 2003 | Koji Tanigawa (6) | 41 | Yoshiharu Habu | |
| 45 | 2004 | Yoshiharu Habu (10) | 41 | Koji Tanigawa | |
| 46 | 2005 | Yoshiharu Habu (11) | 43 | Yasumitsu Satō | |
| 47 | 2006 | Yoshiharu Habu (12) | 42 | Yasumitsu Satō | |
| 48 | 2007 | Koichi Fukaura | 43 | Yoshiharu Habu | |
| 49 | 2008 | Koichi Fukaura (2) | 43 | Yoshiharu Habu | |
| 50 | 2009 | Koichi Fukaura (3) | 43 | Kazuki Kimura | |
| 51 | 2010 | Akihito Hirose | 42 | Koichi Fukaura | |
| 52 | 2011 | Yoshiharu Habu (13) | 43 | Akihito Hirose | |
| 53 | 2012 | Yoshiharu Habu (14) | 41[6] | Takeshi Fujii | |
| 54 | 2013 | Yoshiharu Habu (15) | 41[7] | ||
| 55 | 2014 | Yoshiharu Habu (16) | 421[8] | Kazuki Kimura | |
| 56 | 2015 | Yoshiharu Habu (17) | 41[9] | Akihito Hirose | |
| 57 | 2016 | Yoshiharu Habu (18) | 43[10] | Kazuki Kimura | |
| 58 | 2017 | Tatsuya Sugai | 41[11] | Yoshiharu Habu | |
| 59 | 2018 | Masayuki Toyoshima | 43[12] | Tatsuya Sugai | |
| 60 | 2019 | Kazuki Kimura | 43[13] | Masayuki Toyoshima | |
| 61 | 2020 | Sōta Fujii | 40[14] | Kazuki Kimura | |
| 62 | 2021 | Sōta Fujii (2) | 41[15] | Masayuki Toyoshima | |
| 63 | 2022 | Sōta Fujii (3) | 41[16] | Masayuki Toyoshima | |
| 64 | 2023 | Sōta Fujii (4) | 41[17] | Daichi Sasaki |