Life In 19x19

What were the biggest eureka moments in your Go education?

1) Lerning from my own mistakes helps. [Sudden jump from 14 to 10 kyu.]

2) Reading books helps. [From stuck at 10 kyu to fast improvement to 3 dan.]

3) The fundamentals are important. [Great part of my study since 5 kyu.]

4) Becoming aware of strategic fighting concepts. [Since 5 kyu.]

5) Reducing blunders helps. [Relevant for my improvement since ca. 2 kyu.]

6) Increasing levels of appreciating influence. [At 5 kyu, 1 kyu, from 3 to 4 dan, from (relatively) low knowledge 5 dan to high knowledge 5 dan.]

7) Replacing alternating phases of "knowing all" / "knowing nothing" [from 5 kyu 3 dan] by realistic perception of the scope of my knowledge [as 5 dan].

8) Understanding basic go theory on the rules level and afterwards applying this to exploring intermediate and advanced go theory systematically. [4 to 5 dan.] [Most important eureka moments: defining life for Japanese style rules and defining ko in general. The research process enabled me to explore intermediate and advanced go theory systematically but, meanwhile, more and more important results just keep coming without additional eureka moments. Not the earlier eureka moments in themselves have enabled this but the most diligent study during the process before and afterwards.]

9) From not knowing most of my main types of mistakes because I could not find out and nobody could tell me [as low knowledge 5 dan] to knowing them by discovering parts of go theory previously hidden in strong players' verbal or subconscious knowledge, thereby completing my scope of knowledge and eventually enabling myself to perceive more types of my own mistakes [as high knowledge 5 dan]. [The eureka moments occurred at seemingly random moments and can only be explained toegther with my persistent study of go theory since 3 dan with the ongoing aim of eventually achieving a new level of insight beyond eureka moments.]

Eureka moments are more important for weak or intermediate players. Advanced players rather need persistent effort in knowledge and skill acquisition.

Looking at the whole board.

Realising I don't *have* to answer each of my opponent's moves.

Just a few:

- Realizing that Tenuki is always an option
- Realizing the value of endgame
- Realizing that even Top Pros play slow moves and still win
- Most important: Realizing that Go is the most beautiful game in the world!

The very first time I played, after resisting for 3 years, when I realized it wasn't just another game like chess after all.

Check my opponent's last move didn't put stones in atari...

I was watching beginner's games on Sunday, and I forgot just how important that moment was.

The first eureka moment for me was realizing how much fun it is to kill a group.

Joaz Banbeck wrote:The first eureka moment for me was realizing how much fun it is to kill a group.

...but then you get the second eureka moment when you realise how much fun it is to attack a group and let it only just live, very small and within thick walls.....

1) One instant improvement was to be told to play farther away from my opponent. I even felt it during the first game that everything became easier.

2) One opponent mentioned during review that I might have better played the peep. I simply didn't consider this as a concept before.

3) In my opinion, most improvements are about perception, and there comes a moment when I realize that now, I actually see which stones are in atari, connected, have weaknesses, etc. I could count liberties from my first game, but only much later did I start to see where it was needed to count liberties.

Nyanjilla wrote:

Joaz Banbeck wrote:The first eureka moment for me was realizing how much fun it is to kill a group.

...but then you get the second eureka moment when you realise how much fun it is to attack a group and let it only just live, very small and within thick walls.....

I enjoy it most to chase a group all over the board. I start only now to pay attention if it is a good idea to do so. There is a reason so many people play aji-keshi. Playing sente move is just fun.

I think I’ve had a few … (currently oscillating 10k~9k [OGS, and only correspondence]; 13k [EGF, over three years ago IIRC])

• when I consciously experienced how an atari backfired
  
  
• first time I didn't atari when I could have
  
  
• first sacrifice of …
  • … a single stone
  • … more than one stone
  • … more than a few stones
  • …
  
  
• first Ko fight (I will NEVER forget, it was my first tournament, and before I had only read about Ko fights, in my mind that was something waaay above my own abilities … and when I suddenly saw this opportunity, I just HAD TO try it—it helped me win an already lost game )
  
  
• (at my current strength I guess it can be only) a glimpse of “the whole board”
  
  
• realizing that destroying/reducing the opponent’s claimed territory can sometimes be worth more than trying to make more own territory (under certain circumstances, e.g. when I’m behind)
  • and consequently: realizing that very small life within the opponent’s claimed territory can mean a LOT less territory for them
  
  
• watching my opponent’s eyes (Ah, a ladder? Oh, you’re thinking about THERE …)
  • and consequently: realizing that my opponent is watching my eyes, and changing my looking behaviour:
    • walking seemingly random paths over the board, just enough for me to look at my “hot spots
    • blinking more often, half-closed eyes
    • moving my face to this place on the board while looking at that place

… and I surely need a lot more (and of course a lot more back on the board, not the psycho stuff )

I had a Eureka moment in a game I'm still playing on DGS. The sequence below had me (as White) trying to kill a Black group, not certain if I could kill it:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W Moves 90 to 99
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X O . O . . . . . . . . O X . . . . |
$$ | . 2 X O . O X . X O . O . O X . . . . |
$$ | 5 0 X , . O . X . O . . . O . X . . . |
$$ | 4 3 . X . . . . . . . . X O . . . . . |
$$ | 8 X X . . O . X . . X . . O . X . . . |
$$ | 6 O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . |
$$ | 7 . . . . O . . . . . . . X . . X O . |
$$ | . 9 X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . |
$$ | . . X X . . . . . . . X . . X O O O . |
$$ | . . . O O . . . . . . . . X . X O . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . . . . O . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O O O O . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . O O O X X X X . |
$$ | . . . O X . . . . . X O . X O O . O . |
$$ | . . . O X . . . . . . X X . X . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Unfortunately it didn't work. But suddenly, trying to figure out what to do next, I realized:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X O . O . . . . . . . . O X . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . O X . X O . O . O X . . . . |
$$ | O X X , . O . X . O . . . O . X . . . |
$$ | X O . X . . . . . . . . X O . . . . . |
$$ | X X X . . O . X . . X . . O . X . . . |
$$ | X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . |
$$ | O . . . . O . . . . . . . X . . X O . |
$$ | . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . |
$$ | . . . , 1 . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . |
$$ | . . X X . . . . . . . X . . X O O O . |
$$ | . . . O O . . . . . . . . X . X O . . |
$$ | . . O . . X . . . . . O . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . X O O O O . |
$$ | . . . O . X . . . X . O O O X X X X . |
$$ | . . . O X . . . . . X O . X O O . O . |
$$ | . . . O X . . . . . . X X . X . O . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Attack the group below! Unfortunately, it wasn't the plan to attack one group with the idea that I'd build up strength I could use to attack elsewhere, but I was pleased with myself for suddenly realizing I had built up the strength to do just this.

The game eventually developed into a similar situation of attacking first one group and then switching the attack to another, and I think I should be able to win comfortably as long as I handle my opponent's aji.

You never have too much of a lead to self atari

That you should really make sure your groups are safe before anything else.

Playing until a group is safe and as soon as it is play somewhere else made the game so much easier. In the end your opponent has to manage twice as much group has you and you can bully him around to make profit.