Thanks Bill! do you recommend avoiding the pincer because it is a handicap game? To keep things simple?



Also loss #6, another DGS game.

More or less.

First, it is not exactly a recommendation. I like the one space high approach, myself, and it may even be theoretically better. I also like to vary my play. So it's more something to consider and maybe try out.

Second, it is more to make the opening easy for Black than simple. It is White's job to make the opening difficult for Black. Why help him do that?

Third, in a handicap game Black should control the play as much as possible. Since White is a better player, that's the main way that Black can give White problems. For one thing, that means not following White around, something that is not a problem at your level, of course. But the negative advice of not following White around doesn't say what to do. Controlling the play is positive advice. One thing that it means is to form plans. Let White thwart them if he can. Another thing that it means is to reduce the options for White. After the large knight's approach White has only one sensible pincer, and it is not very appetizing.

A few years ago I was surprised to read Go Seigen recommend a play because it would make the opening easy for Black. My first thought was that he was an old man hearkening back to pre-komi days. But gradually I came to appreciate the idea. Now I think that it has more to do with the fact that Black starts out with the initiative, and an easy opening for Black means that he keeps it longer. It is very practical advice. And it applies even more to handicap games.

_________________
The Adkins Principle:
At some point, doesn't thinking have to go on?
— Winona Adkins

Visualize whirled peas.

Everything with love. Stay safe.

A few comments on game #6.

_________________
The Adkins Principle:
At some point, doesn't thinking have to go on?
— Winona Adkins

Visualize whirled peas.

Everything with love. Stay safe.

It's great getting so much advice on my games, I feel like maybe I am learning something

#7, I tried the fuseki from Wang Chenxing (viewtopic.php?f=13&t=10684), it was a lot of fun even though I lost badly:

I'd be inclined to try and build the moyo with the small knight's move press instead of the outside attachment, because your opponent can explicitly choose to take the side as they did here. The approach to the bottom that you mentioned instead of the top right enclosure seems playable as well.

I'd play F17 here: the line you choose is nothing much in this game.

Goes around D6.

D4 please.

Black's central stones don't mean much in this game. White did well.

I got sucked into league of legends and haven't played hardly at all, this is my first KGS game since October. I was losing pretty badly, but my opponent resigned in the endgame. Maybe he was annoyed with me for playing slowly and not resigning? Anyway i have notes in the sgf, any suggestions on how to play better would be most appreciated.




My reading seems very rusty, I will have to find some tsumego to do.

Big point, but you should hold back one line, because the enclosure is already stretched out.

I think I'd play at P5, trying to get sente here. The M3 stone can't be completely killed in one more play. F13 is where you want to start a fight.

This sort of sequence almost always gives up too much.

At P7 would set up more attacking chances, and give White the problem of how to cut across in good shape. But Black has become thin on the whole right side.

This play hardly coordinates at all with the previous one.

This is the area where White is strongest, so postpone fighting here.

Come out at L5 and you can at least challenge White. Don't defend kikashi stones, exploit them indirectly.

Comments end. Work on middlegame direction.

Thanks Charles, the middle game is definitely hard for me. I like attacking, but I need to work on direction.


My rank floated up to [1d?] so I took two stones from ZenBot, which has a steady 3d account! For about 3 years I was stronger than any bot, but they've surpassed me and it seems I'm unlikely to catch up...

On the contrary, it is inefficient with it, better would be to kick, likewise 24 is growing a flat moyo.

By move 44 have you decided to give white the entire upper side? That's too big and efficient. You had invasion points at n17, j17, h16, or k16 reduction, you can't let white turn what should be 2 groups of perhaps a dozen points each into a 90 point territory like the game. Your 44 makes white's moyo turn into territory for little in return. Probably you need to try k16 or something but by now it's pretty dangerous. So q17 was probably wrong (n17?). And h3 is usually g3 as the followup to g5 (h3 directly instead of g5 is often a better move than g5 though) and then you get sente instead of gote.

The plays 14, 24, 26, 30 and 32 all seem questionable to me. A two stone handicap is about 15 points, say. This is not enough so that you can play tightly for territory from the start. Invade the top side three-space extension, at least.

You lost the game because you let White develop the top side -- and how!

But your play was also thin. You left serious weaknesses behind, which White took advantage of. So my general advice is to play more thickly.

_________________
The Adkins Principle:
At some point, doesn't thinking have to go on?
— Winona Adkins

Visualize whirled peas.

Everything with love. Stay safe.

Indeed this position (very nearly) is discussed as a diagram in one of my articles:

http://gobase.org/studying/articles/matthews/fuseki/01/

I had a player resign immediately against me in automatch, which set my rank as solid 1d. So then I played this game giving two stones to a player I should probably play even against:



and I won! KGS thinks I am 2d now, there's no way that's true, but I'm looking forward to playing against stronger players than I usually do, I hope to play my best and fight to death, maybe I can keep the rank for a while. Who knows, maybe I can use it to pull myself up!

For move 111, I think it should still be seki. O16 is sente, so you can play that first and then come back to connect at K15.

RE move 8, breakfast did that against me in our OGS game (viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7840). His r6 push was a bit unusual (slide more common), but you absolutely must extend, you can't let him hane there. His o5 is a bit much, and you shouldn't be so obedient to defend the cut but take the key point at q7. You seem rather confused in that corner, for example in the variation for 39 (yes better than solid connect) why did you think black would play 40 at p5? It takes away his own liberties and gives your 3 stones more, for example now if q7 and you p7 then p6 cut no longer threatens a snapback (and is shorter of liberties).

@amatterof
thanks, that was a huge move that we both missed, I fought a ko I didn't have to fight...

@uberdude

So how should white play if black cuts? A running fight like this?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm36 cut?
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O O . . . . . . . . 9 . 2 . . . |
$$ | . O X X X O . . . . . . 8 7 . O X . . |
$$ | . O O O X . . . . . . . 6 1 5 O X . . |
$$ | . O X X O O . . . , . 0 . 4 3 O X . . |
$$ | . X . . X O . X . . . . . O O X . . . |
$$ | . . . . X X . . . . . . . . X X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Seems like you defended 1d quite well. You really did seem the stronger player in this game.

Good luck defending 2d!

Both players fighters. But before White 215 both apparently missed F17. Beware the "shunt".

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm36 cut?
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O O . . . . . . . . . . 2 6 . . |
$$ | . O X X X O . . . . . . . 4 . O X . . |
$$ | . O O O X . . . . . . . 5 1 . O X . . |
$$ | . O X X O O . . . , . . . . 3 O X . . |
$$ | . X . . X O . X . . . . . O O X . . . |
$$ | . . . . X X . . . . . . . . X X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Like this, when the two white stones in the lower right are Black's headache, not yours? You have gained hugely on the left.