Life In 19x19

Update 20150714: (4k on KGS)

Current Book:
Kageyama - Lessons of the Fundamentals:
After a few pages I learned something: simply capturing a cutting stone is not enough, try to make it in a efficient and safe manner. From now on I will always check if there is a better way to capture.
Current Tsumego set:
WBaduk app Pre-inter(Easy): 99/365


Summary:
2014:
- Did not play enough or practise but at least didnt quit go completely as so often before.
January 2015:
- Did not get any better but due to inactive playing my rank got a ? and i had the chance to play "even" games with 4kyu, 3kyu and 2kyu. I won all three, really weird. 2kyu game will be posted below.
July 2015:
- I did it again. Didn't play for about 4 months and lose about 2-3 stones strength. Now I'am 4kyu on kgs and will start studying harder in August, stay tuned.


Hi,

I started playing Go in 11/2008 and excactly there is my problem.

In the beginning (pun intended) it was fun, my overall strength grew at a reasonable speed and steadily. Reaching SDK (all Ranks are based on KGS if not stated otherwise) in 06/2009 and even going to 6k until 05/2010. Suddenly I stopped playing for the first time and for 7 consecutive months. I came back in 01/2011 and my strength was about 8k. A few games were played occasionally, maybe one or two a month then a break for a month or two. My strength oscillated between 8k and 6k. Always when I got my 2 stones back i quit several times for 4 or more months.

After each quit it was harder to come back because it looked as a fight against the same wind mills every time, not getting stronger but pursuing the strength I called mine so many times already.
This time things will change once and forever.

-Xylol

Recently I played a ranked KGS game and went from 6k back to 5k, even with a lot of luck and still a few questions.
Maybe someone has ideas how to improve?

Some "feelings" about the opening.

Tips for improving after the first 18 moves: Tesuji, Tesuji, Tesuji ; )

Thank you for your comments. Later I realized, that indeed I could play calm and big as there was no komi and I'am not "behind" (this feeling somehow haunts me in all my games.).
I think reading Tesuji from Davies would help me to improve alot, but I lack the time these days.

This was the last game I played in the #ASR Gamma 1 League in July. I'am playing white and facing some unfamiliar fueseki.

how about fixing your shape directly with one move, K4 ?

just connect at S18 seems big: it has to do
with the statuses of the two groups there.

B ignored your — maybe you can punish him immediately.

Correct local reply is C5.

Thank you for your comment.

I thought my jump at M5 would put some pressure on the black stones and create a good relation (3 spaces) to the H3 stone.
Are the w stones to heavy surrounded to think this is a good choice?

Connection at S18, is a nice Idea I didn't have in mind, I thought of it to be to small so early but the status of groups of course is interesting.

I do not like the idea of letting J16 standing there alone whilst i go to G16 as black would play K16. I think playing K16 on my own is important, could be wrong of course.

oh yes 62 at C15 would have been good.

Hi xyol, you're welcome. I thought both W groups
are not settled, so I want to fix my weakness as soon as possible.
Then, I have miai attacks, as my options.

Your does not fix your shape: B still has L4 peep, etc.
Just my impressions, I could be wrong.

There wasn't an updated for quite a while so lets get back to it with a game I played against a 2kyu due to rankshifts:

This gets even weirder... Somehow I won another game, this time as 2kyu? against a 3kyu not giving Komi. Imagine this, I played at 5kyu level and somehow my ? rank is pushing me higher and higher... meanwhile I still feel like 5kyu...

Hi,

did you consider M3 hane instead ?
The result of the o3 wedge is you reduced your own libs
and you fixed all of B's local weakness.
If you hane M3 instead, B cannot allow you to atari at o3.