Oda's successor, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, established the post of Godokoro (" Minister of Go "), and the game's popularity rose to unprecedented heights under the ensuing Tokugawa shogunate. Leading players competed before the emperor or the warlord, and it was during this period that the renowned" four Go houses "were established.
德川幕府時代更是圍棋的鼎盛期，不但出現以在天皇或將軍面前對奕為業的「御城棋」，並陸續成立「本因坊」、「安井」、「井上」、「林」等 4 大圍棋世家。