Editing Go ranks and ratings (section)

===Professional ranks===
{{Main article|Go professional}}
The professional dan ranking system is similar to that of amateurs in that it awards dan ranks that increase numerically with skill. The difference between these grades is much smaller than with amateurs however, and is not based on the number of handicap stones required. Professional dan ranks go up to 9th dan, but the strength difference between a 1st dan and a 9th dan professional is generally no more than 2–3 handicap stones.

To distinguish between professional ''dan'' and amateur ''dan'' ranks, the former is often abbreviated to "p" (sometimes called ''ping'') and the latter to "d". There was no such abbreviation in the past, and this is not generally used as an abbreviation beyond the Internet, where it is common, but not universal.