Life In 19x19

Some points to ponder about from one of my last games on OGS (comments with the help of Go Review Partner/LZ #208 fast):

Congratulations. I have added couple of comments.

Urgent before big... yes, I remember that one ^^ Thank you for your comments!

Correct! LZ prefers - of course - to connect the cutting point in the lower left. But if he would play an extension on the left it would have been a two-point-extension on the fourth line to D8.

Instead of extending LZ prefers to hane at S17 and then cut at P18. This one of the situations where recommended move and move with the highest win-rate don't match. Highest win-rate would be playing the cut in the lower left.

SoDesuNe wrote: Instead of extending LZ prefers to hane at S17 and then cut at P18.

Yeah, that's a good choice on this board, isn't it? Thanks.

Played another round of games and - luck being on my side - won more than I should have. 2-kyu on OGS now.

On the one hand nice to have somewhat maintained my playing strength after my four year hiatus (at least in fast online play). On the other hand I still utterly suck.

Still don't really focus in my online games. Still don't read properly (or at all). Still don't think enough about direction of play and follow-ups for my moves. Still don't count. Still kill aji too early (the opponent could misplay, you know, and then I kill his whole corner!) and settle shapes too soon. Still overplay.

Then again... could I draw some consolation from the fact that those points really itch me? That I (believe to) know that certain moves are bad? That I see areas of improvement?

One thing I try to tackle in the near future is solving harder go problems. I think now that my old plan of overlearning easy problems (solving books until I managed to get at least 95% right) had the severe drawback of hardwiring my brain to spotting instead thinking/reading. I have the same sensation right now after solving easy problems on goproblems.com (18-kyu to 1-dan), GGPfB vol. 1 and 2 and this japanese 9-kyu to 1-kyu problem book. In an unfamiliar situation I plop down a stone and hope my opponent plays something I recognise. By solving harder problems I hope to achieve more focus and a mental state that it is normal to think about moves instead of #BirdBoxChallenge my way around.

Still... I'd probably tackle both Yi Ch'ang-Ho series from the beginning. I'll also go through GGPfB vol. 4. Maybe I'll have a go at Rescure and Capture and Maeda's Intermediate Level Problems. Get Strong at Tesuji interests me very much too. This just leaves out 1001-Life-and-Death-Problems, so not much learned here : D

I'm also re-reading Attack and Defend. Still undervalue capping plays in general and and overvalue capping plays when I should play to make a base by taking away the base for my opponent's stones. Still, I fared okay in the attacking problems.

I try to draw some strategic conclusions from my games in the next posts - LZ is huffing and puffing as I write.

Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4

Keep your opponent's stones separated.
Make a base.
Defend cuts (especially if you have read the cut and instead of responding to your opponent's move you immediately play a shape point you threatend with your move before - too bad, you just lost your group).

Could have won me a game just now.

SoDesuNe wrote:Game 1

$$Bc Can B play at 'a' or does he need to defend?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X . . O X X X X . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . X . O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X O X O O X . O X , X . . |
$$ | . . X . O . X O X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . X O O O X X . . . . . . . . a . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . Y Y Y O O . O . . , X X . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y Y O . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y . Y O . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . Y O . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc Can B play at 'a' or does he need to defend?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X . . O X X X X . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . X . O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X O X O O X . O X , X . . |
$$ | . . X . O . X O X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . X O O O X X . . . . . . . . a . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . Y Y Y O O . O . . , X X . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y Y O . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y . Y O . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . Y O . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

I'm pretty sure black can tenuki if he's ready to sacrifice the M1/M2 2 stones.

Like in these kind of sequences :

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X . . O X X X X . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . X . O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X O X O O X . O X , X . . |
$$ | . . X . O . X O X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . X O O O X X . . . . . . . . Y . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . X X X O O . O . . , X X . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . 4 X X O . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . X O . . . 2 1 X 5 X O . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . 6 3 . X O . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X . . O X X X X . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . X . O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X O X O O X . O X , X . . |
$$ | . . X . O . X O X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . X O O O X X . . . . . . . . Y . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . X X X O O . O . . , X X . |
$$ | . . X O . . . 0 8 X X O . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . X O . . 2 1 3 X 9 X O . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . 6 5 4 7 . X O . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

This said, there's multiple sequences, so I may have missed a way for white to kill black

Gratulations to Tryss - Black should live and can tenuki ; )

Solutions:

SoDesuNe wrote:Game 1

$$Bc Urgent before big?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . O . 1 . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . . . . , . . . . . , X X . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc Urgent before big?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . O . 1 . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . . . . , . . . . . , X X . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

$$Bc How to attack?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . . . O . . X . O . 1 . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . . . . , . . . . . , X X . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc How to attack?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . . . O . . X . O . 1 . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . . . . , . . . . . , X X . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

$$Bc Can B play at 'a' or does he need to defend?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X . . O X X X X . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . X . O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X O X O O X . O X , X . . |
$$ | . . X . O . X O X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . X O O O X X . . . . . . . . 1 . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . Y Y Y O O . O . . , X X . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y Y O . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y . Y O . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . Y O . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc Can B play at 'a' or does he need to defend?
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X . . O X X X X . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X O . X . O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X O X O O X . O X , X . . |
$$ | . . X . O . X O X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . , . . . . . O . . . |
$$ | . . X O O O X X . . . . . . . . 1 . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , O . Y Y Y O O . O . . , X X . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y Y O . . X X O O . |
$$ | . . X O . . . . . Y . Y O . X O . O . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . Y O . . . O . . |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

$$Bc Black to luck his way into a win
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . X X 1 O X . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X O O O X X X X . . . O . |
$$ | . . X X O . X X O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X . X O O X . O X , X X . |
$$ | . . X . O . X . X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X X O . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . X X O O O O O . . . |
$$ | X X X O O O X X X O X X X X X O . . . |
$$ | X O O . . O . . O O O . X . X O O . O |
$$ | O O . O . O X X O . X X X O O O O O X |
$$ | X O O . O O X X O O O O X X X X X X X |
$$ | X X X O . . O O O . . . O . O X . . . |
$$ | . . X X O O X X X O O . O . O X X X . |
$$ | . . X O O O X . . X X O O X X X O O . |
$$ | X . X O . X . . . X . X O . X O . O . |
$$ | . X O O . X . . . . . X O . X O O . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc Black to luck his way into a win
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . X X 1 O X . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . O X O O O X X X X . . . O . |
$$ | . . X X O . X X O . O X . O O O O X . |
$$ | . . X O . . X . X O O X . O X , X X . |
$$ | . . X . O . X . X X O X . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . X O . . X . X O . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X O O X . X X O . O . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X O X . . X X O . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X X X O X . X X O O O O O . . . |
$$ | X X X O O O X X X O X X X X X O . . . |
$$ | X O O . . O . . O O O . X . X O O . O |
$$ | O O . O . O X X O . X X X O O O O O X |
$$ | X O O . O O X X O O O O X X X X X X X |
$$ | X X X O . . O O O . . . O . O X . . . |
$$ | . . X X O O X X X O O . O . O X X X . |
$$ | . . X O O O X . . X X O O X X X O O . |
$$ | X . X O . X . . . X . X O . X O . O . |
$$ | . X O O . X . . . . . X O . X O O . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Game 2

$$Bc Can B break the connection on the left?
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X . O , X O . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | X X O O . O . . . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc Can B break the connection on the left?
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X . O , X O . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | X X O O . O . . . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Yes.

$$Wc White to defend in sente
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X a X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X . O , X O . O . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | X X O O 1 O . X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . X O . . Y . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc White to defend in sente
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X a X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X . O , X O . O . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | X X O O 1 O . X . . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . X O . . Y . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

$$Wc White to find a tesuji to salvage his bad play in the lower right
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X . O , X O . O . , . . . . 1 X . . . |
$$ | X X O O . O . X . . X . a X X O X . . |
$$ | O . X O . O X . . . . . . . O O . . . |
$$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc White to find a tesuji to salvage his bad play in the lower right
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . X X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X . O , X O . O . , . . . . 1 X . . . |
$$ | X X O O . O . X . . X . a X X O X . . |
$$ | O . X O . O X . . . . . . . O O . . . |
$$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

$$Wc White to end the game
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O O O O . |
$$ | . . . O . . . O O . . . . O X X O . O |
$$ | . . O X O O O X X O O O O . . X X O . |
$$ | . . O X X O X . . X X O X X . . . X . |
$$ | . . O X X X X X X O X X . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . O O X . . O X O X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O . X X X X X O O . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O . . O O O O X X X . . . X X . . |
$$ | . O X X X O O X X X X . . . X O X X . |
$$ | . . . . X X O O O X . . . X O O O O X |
$$ | . O O O X O . . O X . X . X . . O X X |
$$ | . O X X O O O . O O O O O O X . O . O |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . X X X X . O . O . |
$$ | . X X . X O O O X X . . . . . O O O O |
$$ | X . O X X O X O . , O O . . X X O X . |
$$ | X X O O O O X X X X X O . X X O X . X |
$$ | O 1 X O . O X O O X . X . X O O X X . |
$$ | . X . O . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc White to end the game
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O O O O . |
$$ | . . . O . . . O O . . . . O X X O . O |
$$ | . . O X O O O X X O O O O . . X X O . |
$$ | . . O X X O X . . X X O X X . . . X . |
$$ | . . O X X X X X X O X X . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . O O X . . O X O X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O . X X X X X O O . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O . . O O O O X X X . . . X X . . |
$$ | . O X X X O O X X X X . . . X O X X . |
$$ | . . . . X X O O O X . . . X O O O O X |
$$ | . O O O X O . . O X . X . X . . O X X |
$$ | . O X X O O O . O O O O O O X . O . O |
$$ | X O X . X X O . . . X X X X . O . O . |
$$ | . X X . X O O O X X . . . . . O O O O |
$$ | X . O X X O X O . , O O . . X X O X . |
$$ | X X O O O O X X X X X O . X X O X . X |
$$ | O 1 X O . O X O O X . X . X O O X X . |
$$ | . X . O . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Game 3

$$Bc B is looking for a strategy
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . b . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X . . O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc B is looking for a strategy
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . b . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X . . O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

'a' and 'b' among others.

$$Bc B is still looking for a strategy
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . X O . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc B is still looking for a strategy
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . X O . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Building while reducing.

$$Bc B is tired of looking for a strategy and hopes it'll work out tactically
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . X O . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc B is tired of looking for a strategy and hopes it'll work out tactically
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . X O . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Computer prefers 'a'.

$$Bc B to find the needed tactical shots
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O X X . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . X X O O X . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . X O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X . O X O . 1 . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . X O . X . . . . . . . O . O . X . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc B to find the needed tactical shots
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O X X . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . X X O O X . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . X O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X . O X O . 1 . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . X O . X . . . . . . . O . O . X . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

$$Bc B still needs to find the needed tactical shots
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O X X O . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . O X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O X X X . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . X X O O X . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . X O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X 1 O X O . X . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . X O . X O . . . . . . O . O . X . . |
$$ | . O O . X O . O . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O X . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc B still needs to find the needed tactical shots
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O X . . . . . . . X O O X . . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . . . X . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | O . O X X O . . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . O X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O X X X . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . X X O O X . . . . . . . . . O . . |
$$ | . . X O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X 1 O X O . X . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . X O . X O . . . . . . O . O . X . . |
$$ | . O O . X O . O . . . . O O X X . . . |
$$ | . . . O X . . . . X X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . X O X O . . O X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . X O X O X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Game 4

$$Bc B to play - how well do you know your Shusaku?
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O a . . |
$$ | . . X , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc B to play - how well do you know your Shusaku?
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O a . . |
$$ | . . X , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Computer prefers 'a'.

So, I played in our yearly tournament. One closely contested game, which I deservedly lost because I neglected to defend my groups and four won games of which I screwed up two and lost.

Two themes kept reoccuring:

1) I totally miss urgent points. Like really totally, I don't even think about playing there.
2) After roughly ten years of Go I still overvalue "moyos". Quotation marks imply that I even feel the need to invade/reduce the tiniest and fragile hint of a moyo.

To battle 2) I plan (for real this time) to make rough counts. Better be on the wrong side of a count than to never count in the first place. As of now I have no idea how to engrain playing/seeing urgent points in my games. Maybe experience, maybe reviews of my games, maybe more problems, maybe replaying pro games.

This is the closely contested game, at least up to a certain point. Last moves omitted due to byo-yomi.



Other games and comments will follow.

Mainly playing on Fox now since seeking an opponent takes ages on OGS and KGS. Registered as a 2-kyu because I didn't know they had such a different ranking. Have been double-promoted to 1-dan today. We'll see how it goes now : D

Still solving GGPfB vol. 4 (finnished Rescue and Capture a long the way): Although I get most of them right, it does need quite a bite of time... Afterwards possible Get Strong at Tesuji. Or Maeda's Intermediate Tsumego Problems. Or the Yi Ch'ang-Ho Tsumego and Tesuji series.

I'm again suprised how difficult the last ~100 problems in GGPfB vol. 4 are. I get them right eventually but it sure requires some work.

I'm playing more Rengo-games with a dan-friend than normal games right now. Quite interesting to see which moves he choses and what his plan were.

As far as normal games are concerned: I play horribly, lost all my latest games - hard. Direction of play really bites me.

SoDesuNe wrote: On the one hand nice to have somewhat maintained my playing strength after my four year hiatus (at least in fast online play). On the other hand I still utterly suck.

Still don't really focus in my online games. Still don't read properly (or at all). Still don't think enough about direction of play and follow-ups for my moves. Still don't count. Still kill aji too early (the opponent could misplay, you know, and then I kill his whole corner!) and settle shapes too soon. Still overplay.

Hey this sounds exactly like me right now. Welcome back as well.

SoDesuNe wrote:I'm again suprised how difficult the last ~100 problems in GGPfB vol. 4 are. I get them right eventually but it sure requires some work.

How did you do? I scored roughly 70% on the entire run-through.

hl782 wrote:

SoDesuNe wrote:I'm again suprised how difficult the last ~100 problems in GGPfB vol. 4 are. I get them right eventually but it sure requires some work.

How did you do? I scored roughly 70% on the entire run-through.

I didn't track it but I guess it was somewhere around 85%. I could solve most of the later problems but I was surprised how long they took me. I had already solved GGPfB vol. 4 once (maybe even twice).

hl782 wrote:

SoDesuNe wrote: On the one hand nice to have somewhat maintained my playing strength after my four year hiatus (at least in fast online play). On the other hand I still utterly suck.

Still don't really focus in my online games. Still don't read properly (or at all). Still don't think enough about direction of play and follow-ups for my moves. Still don't count. Still kill aji too early (the opponent could misplay, you know, and then I kill his whole corner!) and settle shapes too soon. Still overplay.

Hey this sounds exactly like me right now. Welcome back as well.

Ha ha ha, thanks but I'm already stepping back (again) ^^ Time and mental energy is otherwise needed (more grown up, more hassle :p)