The Story of a Loser - The Great Pitfall of Studying Go!

[Bill Spight]

A few comments.



Main focus: Both players were too polite.

[Ian Butler]

Thanks for your comments. I guess I was alive earlier than I thought at the bottom.

Main focus: Both players were too polite.

That's definitely so. I've spend a lot of my study-time in the opening, also because it's probably my favorite part of the game. But it's about time I catch up in the middle game. I'm usually too timid to invade or to play a stone inside enemy territory, always quickly thinking: this won't end well, it'll get caught...
On the other hand, I have had some trouble defending against invasions and even when I have plenty of support, I'm too easily thrown off my game by an invasion that shouldn't work.

So I should probably really focus on the middle game now for a while. I have 'Get strong at invading', which should help with it.

Thanks again!


(That's the only problem I have with replaying Pro games. The moves that get punished are way above my head anyway. They don't do impossible invasions and then get punished. I'd probably have to replay/review other games to see examples of how to deal with those things.)

[Bill Spight]

Main focus: Both players were too polite.

That's definitely so. I've spend a lot of my study-time in the opening, also because it's probably my favorite part of the game. But it's about time I catch up in the middle game. I'm usually too timid to invade or to play a stone inside enemy territory, always quickly thinking: this won't end well, it'll get caught...

You both were too timid in the opening. Letting White play F-07 ( ) lost the opening.

[Ian Butler]

9kyu game

Today I had an absolute top day! I had a sort of a breakthrough mentally in my Go-playing. I am now better able to detach my emotions from the game and I played a live game really calmly.

Part of my realization was accepting that I was going to play my next games with the idea in my head: do what feels right and learn. If I end up losing 50 matches in a row, but I learn, it's okay. Because when you get stronger, who cares if you're losing?

So I was lucky enough to encounter a 9 kyu on OGS, I'm about 16 kyu there.
I played a bit and after about 50 moves I already knew what lesson I was to learn here: ask for more. I was very focused on keeping my groups alive and got behind quite a bit. But I wanted to play the game out with a mini-objective of keeping all my groups strong and try to reduce white as much as possible. I would review the game later and try to see where I fell behind and how.

My opponent made a mistake he really shouldn't have and I seperated a 13 stone group and basically killed it. My opponent resigned. Even with this group dead I'm not certain he's losing, but I'll see in the post-mortem
Even though it felt good, it also felt like a victory that shouldn't have been, so I still consider my opponent the better player throughout the game and my mistakes aren't any less because I simply happened to win.

But very locally, very temporarily, this is one of the reasons I play go. You give it your all, and one move can change the game entirely. You never know going into a game what's gonna happen.

I'm self-reviewing this game myself later, than I'll throw it in the Game Analyse subforum!

Books
Even if I'm convinced that, yes, playing games is the most efficient way to improve in Go, I enjoy studying too much not to. I study Go (books, replay pro games) at least 1-2 hours a day. I should up my tsumego a bit, though, only a few exercised a day, that's probably not enough...

Anyway, I got those books I wrote about last week.

- Road to One Dan is not so much my style, so I'll probably read it and move on.
- In the Beginning was a good refreshment course.
- Treasure Chest Enigma is awesome! Go stories, I love it.

Pretty soon, though, I'm gonna crack open the 1971 Honinbo Tournament. So looking forward to replaying those games with the commentary!

[dfan]

My opponent made a mistake he really shouldn't have and I seperated a 13 stone group and basically killed it. My opponent resigned. Even with this group dead I'm not certain he's losing, but I'll see in the post-mortem

Congrats!

Even though it felt good, it also felt like a victory that shouldn't have been, so I still consider my opponent the better player throughout the game and my mistakes aren't any less because I simply happened to win.

As the great chess master Siegbert Tarrasch famously said, "Es genügt nicht ein guter Spieler zu sein, man muss auch gut spielen." (It is not enough to be a good player; one must also play well.) Go strength is just as much about not making mistakes, and taking advantage of your opponent's mistakes, as it is about understanding the finer points of the game.

[Bill Spight]

As the great chess master Siegbert Tarrasch famously said, "Es genügt nicht ein guter Spieler zu sein, man muss auch gut spielen." (It is not enough to be a good player; one must also play well.)

Well worth repeating.

[Ian Butler]

Great saying, thanks

I have 2 weeks off-work and I plan to play at least 10 serious games AND self review them move-by-move. I will post each of those reviews in the game analysis subforum, where you can look them over / comment.

I also played this game today, where my opponent resigned. I'll review it (not for the series, though) a bit later, but I wanted to post it here as an update. On OGS my ranking is now 15 kyu. Whatever the hell that means

[Knotwilg]

Strategic advice at 9
Tactical issue: 39 - look at White's possible alternatives 40, 44, 46. What was your idea to answer those?

[Bill Spight]

A couple of top of the head comments.

1) Another gentlemanly game. After you. No, after you.

2) That looks familiar. Have you played this guy before?

3) Much too close. In addition to Knotwilg's suggestions, you can also approach at C-06, C-07, or D-07.

4) Much too close. My thinking is the reduction at K-05, aiming at the jump attachment at K-03. Possible follow-ups include invading the bottom right corner or attaching at D-04.

5) Ditto.

[Ian Butler]

Thanks both for your suggestions. My opening continues to be too nice. I avoid conflict on too large a scale.
I have the next two weeks off so I'll definitely play games. I'll try to play the games with a more assertive mind. I might get kicked around but at least I'll learn.

@knotwilg, yes that move was kind of brainless. I had already played and reviewed a serious game (see game analysis subforum) and I think my concentration after about three hours isn't sufficient to play my best game

[Bill Spight]

I had already played and reviewed a serious game (see game analysis subforum) and I think my concentration after about three hours isn't sufficient to play my best game

One summer on college vacation I lived on the outskirts of Tokyo, at the end of the subway line plus a 15 min. bus ride. About three or four days a week I would take the bus and subway into downtown Tokyo, eat lunch, and then go to the Kiin and play three games of go at about one hour each, go back home, and then spend about one hour reviewing each game. That's three hours of go playing, one hour off (although I often did tsumego on the subway), followed by three hours of review. It's a lot of go, but the pace felt pretty relaxed.

[Ian Butler]

I had already played and reviewed a serious game (see game analysis subforum) and I think my concentration after about three hours isn't sufficient to play my best game

One summer on college vacation I lived on the outskirts of Tokyo, at the end of the subway line plus a 15 min. bus ride. About three or four days a week I would take the bus and subway into downtown Tokyo, eat lunch, and then go to the Kiin and play three games of go at about one hour each, go back home, and then spend about one hour reviewing each game. That's three hours of go playing, one hour off (although I often did tsumego on the subway), followed by three hours of review. It's a lot of go, but the pace felt pretty relaxed.

That sounds pretty awesome.
I'd love to do that even though it'd be pretty tough in the beginning.
What doesn't help my concentration in my situation is the fact that I played en reviewed on a computer. Put me in front of a goban and my concentration is vastly improved!
You know, I can actually understand how that pace would feel relaxed. I think it's all about clearing your head of distractions. Being at home offers many distractions of family, work... But maybe I should actually take a trip just to play go with a more relaxed mind

Thanks for sharing that story! I love these little stories about Go. Have you read The Treasure Chest Enigma?

[Bill Spight]

You know, I can actually understand how that pace would feel relaxed. I think it's all about clearing your head of distractions. Being at home offers many distractions of family, work... But maybe I should actually take a trip just to play go with a more relaxed mind

A Carefree and Innocent Pastime, as John Fairbairn styles it. Yeah, being a college student on summer vacation is a pretty carefree existence.

Go vs. family? You gotta get your priorities straight.

Thanks for sharing that story! I love these little stories about Go. Have you read The Treasure Chest Enigma?

No, I don't have many go books in English. But I have looked at a friend's copy. It looks like a good book.

[Ian Butler]

Okay I feel like a total idiot. (mostly because I am )
Two games in a short time period I fell into the same trap twice. Note, though, that these were games where my concentration was far from optimal and I was just looking for another game before lunch or ...

But still, it's no excuse. Twice in a row I play a weaker player and fall into the trap of having a group chased around the board. This real ugly looking style of Go where I just cringe while playing it.

How do you not fall into that trap?

Just tenuki? If so, at what point would you tenuki in these games?
I'd say after move 15 in game 1.
In game 2 I think move 8 was a big mistake and I just keep running. Probably better to tenuki and either find aji in these two stones later, jump in corner or give them up?

Probably the two ugliest games I've played and - even though I know I can play much better and these are just two weird things - I really don't ever want to play a game like that again!

[Bill Spight]

Game 1

. Play the ladder.

Black at R-18 first, then play T-18.