We are 7 stones apart on KGS, but I think the weaker player can make up a little bit of the difference in a slower, turn-based format. I've also been floating around the 3-4k boundary for a while, so I think I have a chance in this game. Magicwand is ruthless though...

I will look to make the most of the opening lead I get with my handicap, and will try not to be intimidated.

i have a feeling that this is going to be the taughest game of all games i played in here.
he has shown me that his reading is solid form other game.
i will try my best to win and ....this game i will take time.
i hope observers dont mind me making less moves per day for this game.

I, for one, appreciate however many moves you feel you are comfortable making in a day. I enjoy following your games because I feel they teach me something. Take your time, and show us all what it is we need to learn.

I know what you mean, I think Fwiffo's particularly solid in Malkovich games, as he has enough time to read deeply, which he's good at. In this way he's kind of similar to Topazg, who also seemed to do well. They're both particularly good at using time to come up with better options. I'm sure you'll do fine, but you should definitely take all the time you need. Good luck!

Playing low here is more my style, as I like territory and hate getting undercut, but it's too soft. I want to show that I will not back down and display a tough attitude. Also, AFAIK, the high move is the standard response to in handicap games.

If you encounter a grizzly bear, it's a bad idea to turn your back and run - that will just prompt them to chase you down and maul your ass.

This is one of the best descriptions of playing against Magicwand that I've ever seen.

I already do not like the first white move. It contests a cramped area instead of a more open part of the board.

It can only "work" if the black player decides "I do not want the open area, I want this side where you played."

The high response to the high approach is normal, but I don't really like it here. I'm not crazy about leaving open both M3 and M17. So, I think the low response gives white fewer options. Now I just have to consider how to deal with the upcoming cap on my Q10 stone.

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[go]$$Wcm1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . 5 . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . X . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

I'm not sure yet if this is the best plan, but I think I should try to come out on this side. It's the smaller gap in White's formation, and the smaller the gap, the better it is to push through it. It also makes my previous two moves make the most sense.

When hiking in bear country, it's a good idea to wear small bells and make noise as you walk so that bears hear you coming. Bears may attack if startled.

...stop me if you've heard this one before...

i bet nobody guessed this move coming

Magicwand plays fast, but I will not get sucked in to that game.

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[go]$$Bcm1 Guzumi, gesundheit
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . O . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 3 . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 1 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . X . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

I recognize this shape, and remember this sequence for moving out. It's an example of a "good" empty triangle. but maybe not good in this context. I think it's more appropriate if I was really pinned in. And I think it might fall down tactically here. But it does split white and those two white stones are in some trouble.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm1 Respond to the cap with a knight's move...
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . O . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 3 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . X . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Attaching was my initial thought, but I don't like black's position after . Do I then attach at a to push through?

Maybe I should just use the open space to the north. Perhaps pushing through here is trying to do too much. I don't want to psyche myself out though. How would I play if Magicwand were a 5 kyu?

I don't want to mention sector lines and all, but if it helps, here's my sealed move:

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[go]$$Wcm1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . 5 . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . X . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

I narrowed it down to this or P12. Against a weaker player, I would look for the most forceful way to cut, and I think this gesundheit method is the best. I also think it's the right direction. It's consistent with the position of O4. The merits of the other direction is that it's a bigger, more open area of the board. But I like the more forceful direction.

The good thing is that I'm going to learn something from this move.

"It's also a good idea to carry pepper spray with you on the trail. If a bear charges, a blast to the face might be enough to make it think twice."

any ddk can play that move...but can he handle this?

Alright, here are the moves I considered.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wcm1
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . O . X . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . X . . . . |
$$ . . . . a O . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . b d . . |
$$ . . . X . X 7 . . |
$$ . . . . . c e . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ------------------[/go]

As a rule, you don't want to just go ignoring contact/shoulder moves. But white just ignored my shoulder hit. Pressing at a was what I was threatening to do with my last move. It has the potential to shut white in, which is excellent. But white would get some fourth line territory, and I don't know if my compensation is good enough. He also gets another move in the corner, which makes me uneasy.

With a move like this, white is trying to create complications, and it's to black's advantage to keep things simple. That's the idea behind b and c. But in this case, b just doesn't really do that much, and c is pretty passive.

White's last move seems like a bit of an overreach, so I'd like to cut with d. But that leads to the most complications. But if you let white get away with little overplays, over the course of the game, that will make up the handicap. On the other hand, it's usually a mistake, to quote Sol.ch, to look for "super severe move of great justice." So, I'm pretty conflicted about that.

So, that leaves e, which is simple enough.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$B
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . O . X . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . X . . . . |
$$ . . . . . O . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . 2 . . |
$$ . . . X . X O . . |
$$ . a . . . . 1 3 . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ------------------[/go]

My stones on the outside have a couple different ways to settle or run, and they're still light, so I'm not worried about them at all. But they're not so strong that I can really attack like crazy. And with this sequence, I get some nice territory in the corner. The annoying move at a is still open, but I can deal. White is undercut and doesn't get much here. He's still just gotta live or escape.

Most of all, it keeps things simple, which is good for black.

ok...he played as i expected..now i have to play as below and split the group.
only way for me to win is ...to kill a group. i already know..how strong his endgame is...

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wcm9 Prisoners - W: 0, B: 0
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . O . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . X . X O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X 2 . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

As planned... I did again consider shutting white in, but I think I'd rather have the corner. Plus it removes the aji of that peep there.

This is one of those middle-game, direction of play questions what I don't really understand.

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[go]$$Wc I have no idea...
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . c c . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . O . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . b . X . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . a . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . a . X . X O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X X . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

I'd very much like to get a, which is some nice profit, and prevents the annoying white move at M3. But I think it's a bit slow and I think my right side stones need more attention before they get TOO weak.

I'd like to get b, which lets me continue to attack and gain profit on the bottom side. But I'm concerned that I'm not strong enough, and my knight's move has weaknesses. I guess I'll strengthen myself first with c. I want to play P12, because that cleanly divides white's stones, but the shape seems pretty iffy. Way up on the fifth line like that, my stones would be really, really floating. It also doesn't confront the Q14 stone that strongly. Q12 feels stronger.

I think I'm doing OK and not getting heavy; I can easily give up, e.g. P8.

"It's helpful to be able to recognize the difference between the droppings of black bear and grizzly bear. Black bear scat is smaller and contains berries and squirrel fur. Grizzly bear scat contains small bells and smells like peppers."