Liked this better than S7, Q5, or P2, all of which left what I feel leave a large weakness at S6. Plus, I can see good follow-up moves for black after white plays move 20. Assuming, of course, that I can somewhat accurately predict his response. Which I've been less than stellar at so far.

Thank-you move. The - exchange is good for W:
is on the inside, not very useful, but is on the outside, useful.

Later, for example, after - , becomes double atari:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W
$$ . . . , . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . O O . . |
$$ . . . O X X . |
$$ . . O X . . . |
$$ . . O 3 X . . |
$$ . . O X . . . |
$$ . . . 1 2 . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$----------------[/go]

Sometimes bad things happen when I take 3 minutes to think about a move instead of 30.

I played here specifically so that white couldn't later on. It would protect my corner in the following fashion

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W
$$ . . . , . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . O O . . |
$$ . . . O X X . |
$$ . . O X . . . |
$$ . . O 2 X . . |
$$ . . O X . . . |
$$ . . 1 X . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$----------------[/go]

or

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W
$$ . . . , . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . O O . . |
$$ . . . O X X . |
$$ . . O X 2 . . |
$$ . . O 1 X . . |
$$ . . O X 3 4 . |
$$ . . . X . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$----------------[/go]

or

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W
$$ . . . , . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . O O . . |
$$ . . . O X X . |
$$ . . O X 2 . . |
$$ . . O 1 X . . |
$$ . . O X . 4 . |
$$ . . 3 X . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . |
$$----------------[/go]

It wasn't so much that I forsaw these being played out. I just wanted to cover my bases and protect my group. Much the same as move 13. But if nothing else, this clearly identifies an area I need to improve. All three scenarios give white sente and allow him to make a big move elsewhere.

(For beginners.) Seems is too slow. After connected in gote, B already could've tenuki with .
For example, it would've made a big difference if B had approached the UL corner with (or ).

Direction of : because of the stones, there is less development on the bottom or the right side:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wm24
$$ -----------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O O . . . . . . . . . . . O O . . |
$$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . O X B . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . , . . . . O , X . . |
$$ | . . X X . B . . . . . . . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ -----------------------------------------[/go]

I considered backing off at R14, but it seems to me that I'd either end up with a weak group in the corner or white would have an easy time creating a large framework on the top. Considering how much influence white's built up so far, neither of those possibilities are appealing.

miai

Was torn between playing this and P18, but since I've been trying to protect my groups (something a number of people have been telling me I need to focus on), I decided on jumping out. Concerned about white responding with R17, however.

First feeling:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W
$$ -----------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . O . . X . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . X . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O O . . . . . . . . . . . O O . . |
$$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . O X X . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . , . . . . O , X . . |
$$ | . . X X . X . . . . . . . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ -----------------------------------------[/go]

If B knows the vital point of , he is playing like no 18k I've ever met.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$B
$$ -----------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . O . . X . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . X . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |[/go]

Considered P18 & R13, but felt that this was more solid than either. Still concerned about losing the upper right corner and white's potential framework and/or moyo on the left. My hope is to use my group on the top (which is not alive yet) to eventually reduce the left side. More immediately, I want to try and connect my five stones on the top and keep the O17 & O15 stones separate from the R12 stone.

When I look at my group in the upper right corner, all I can hear in my head is the words, "How is this going to live?" And while I'd like to focus on keeping white's two groups separated, that's not going to do me much good if my group doesn't have any eyes. I thought about playing 3-3, that's too passive even for me.

Hmm, missed an important point: usually, in a contact fight like - , one cannot tenuki.
Variations:

Seems a shared local vital point (see previous var.), in sente (i.e. double sente):

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$B tenuki
$$ -----------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . O . . X . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . X . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O 4 X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . O X 2 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |[/go]