Embarassing Go moments?

Solomon · #1

Let's hear them

. I'll start:

So suppose you reach the end of the game and the board looks something like this:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$c $$ ----------------------------------------- $$ | . O O O B . O X X . . . . . X X O . . | $$ | B O O B B . O O X X X X X X X O O . . | $$ | B B B B O . O O O O X O X O O X O . . | $$ | O O O O O . O X X X O O O O X X O . . | $$ | O O . . . O X . X O O O . O X O O O . | $$ | X X O O O O X X . X X O X O X O O O O | $$ | . X X X O X . . . X O O X O X X O X O | $$ | . . . . X . . . O X . O X X X X X X X | $$ | . . X . . . X X X . X O O X X O . . . | $$ | . . . , X X O O X , X . O O O X X . . | $$ | . . X . X O O O X X O O O X X O . . . | $$ | . . . X O O . X O O O O O O X X . . . | $$ | . X X O . O X X O X O O O X X . . . . | $$ | X X O . O . O X O X O . O O X . . . . | $$ | X O O . . . O X X X O O O X X . . . . | $$ | O O . , . O X X . X X X O O X X X . . | $$ | . . . O . . O O X . X X O O X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . O . . O X X O . O O X X . . | $$ | . . . . . . O O . . . O . . O O X . . | $$ -----------------------------------------[/go]

The marked Black stones are clearly dead. For the longest time, I used to think that if I was Black, capturing the five White stones and forcing White to play in C19 was worth points because of the prisoners

. For how long exactly? Let's just say it was beyond 1d :oops:

. It only hit me like lightning that I'd been wrong the whole time after an off-hand KGS kibitz. Pretty sad that I never did grasp such a 25k concept for so long.

Kirby · #2

So I was playing this guy named Magicwand on the forums, and I thought I was doing well until I... Oh wait, you guys know that game. :-p

Magicwand · #3

Kirby wrote:

So I was playing this guy named Magicwand on the forums, and I thought I was doing well until I... Oh wait, you guys know that game. :-p

good one.

on that same game i said
"i think i am stronger than you. if you dont believe try a game with me"
and he was one of the strongest amature in this forum. :oops:

now our game's rating will go through the roof.

simpkin · #4

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$c Is my face red? $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | O O O . . . . . . O . . O O X . . X . | $$ | X X X O . . O . . , . . . X . X X O . | $$ | X O O O . . . . . . . . . . . . O O . | $$ | X X X X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X O O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . | $$ | X O O X X O . . . . . . . . . O . . . | $$ | O O O O O X X W . , . . . . X O X O . | $$ | O X X X X O O X O . O . . . . X O O . | $$ | O X . . X O X B X O . . X . X . X X . | $$ | O X . . X O . X . X O . . . . . . . . | $$ | X X X O X O . X . X . O X . . . . . . | $$ | O O O . O O . . . . . O X . . . X . . | $$ | O X O O O X X . . , . . O X . , . . . | $$ | . X X X O O X . . X X O O . . X . . . | $$ | X O . X X O X . . X O . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

My opponent played the marked white stone; I responded with the marked black stone. Did I die of embarrassment? Why no; I was under the impression I was sacrificing two unimportant stones. I was quite pleased with myself for not trying to rescue tiny unimportant stones. Oops.

It was almost another twenty moves before I realised the vital nature of the stones I'd sacrificed. (My opponent captured them at once.) Admittedly, my opponent and I were playing at blitz speed - but since it was a 60 minute time-limit game, we shouldn't have been ...! (I was, nominally, 8k - I lost a stone in ratings at that tournament - and my opponent nominally 10k. It was all horrifically embarrassing.)

Violence · #5

With a record of 0-6 in the 4d section at Congress, and a 1-5 in the ING cup, along with 1-3 in the Die Hard, I had my fair share of embarassing moments.

I think the one that sticks out to me the most was my game against Gan Jianing 7d.

This was game 4 of the ING cup. I had, up to then, prided myself on leaving my morning losses at the door and coming in fresh with a mentality to play the best Go I could.

Game 1 was against Koh Juyong, and according to his review at the end, I didn't play too poorly, he didn't think I was behind by very much until the early endgame started, which is the place where he usually shines in games. I was thoroughly beaten, but I didn't feel too bad about it.

Game 2 was against Kwon Young, and it's a game that I was definitely proud of at the time. Managed a 7.5 point win, and thought that it was due mostly to luck, but upon review of the game by Nakano 9p, I had a small lead, not when I thought he had messed up, but actually slightly before that. His mistake in the endgame simply made the margin too big to make up for. During the game, I tenuki'd a very severe attack and demanded that he kill me, and managed to barely live. That was the point in the game where I count myself lucky. With a win under my belt, I was feeling pretty good about myself.

Game 3 was against Cathy Li, who in this tournament would get the unusual achievement of having beaten two Eric L.'s. In our game, I missed some chances to severely attack her, but managed to surround a group that I thought required a response. She tenuki'd, and I proceeded to try and kill her. I poured over 45 minutes of thinking time into one life and death problem, and at the end of it, I was faced with two choices: sente seki by surrounding it, or keeping it down to one eye and pushing it out into the center to try and kill it, an option that I couldn't read clearly to the end. Letting my bloodthirstiness get the better of me, I pushed her out into the center, where she immediately used a series of forcing moves to connect to another group, sealing me off in sente, and getting points. I clearly had the wrong idea. Her endgame rev'd up and she not only reduced me in several places, but killed me too. I resigned and felt pretty bad about how I'd played. Very impulsive, very bad.

After that day was the Die Hard tournament, I wanted to enter to try and get some wins, and to hopefully refresh myself on how to play Go, but after going 1-3 in the tournament, I really wasn't feeling well with myself. Top it off with a loss in the 4th round of the Open, and I was completely on tilt.

It was with that mentality that I went on to play Gan Jianing, the monster kid from Canada who never says anything, especially when he's beating your face in.

I think... I'll let the game speak for itself. I was white.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$Bc A pretty normal start. $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . 3 . . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . | $$ | . . 9 , . . . . . 7 . . . . . 2 . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . 0 . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . 1 , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$Bc I now know that a is honte here. $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . | $$ | . . X , . . 5 . . X . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O 4 2 . . . . . . . . . . . O . . | $$ | . . . 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . a . O . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X , 6 . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . 9 8 0 . . . . . . . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$Bc With 4, I should've responded at 5, to keep myself from getting my face beaten in. $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . | $$ | . . X , . . X . . X . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . . O . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 9 0 . 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 8 3 5 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . 4 O . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . 2 . . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$Bc I remember not thinking that he would cut at 7 for some stupid reason, and that somehow, I would be able to connect in gote, and somehow salvage the fact that he had a boatload of points. Without thinking, I tried to make something happen by attaching, my last try. $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . | $$ | . . X , . . X 0 . X . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . . O . . | $$ | . . 2 X 8 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O 1 X 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 5 9 X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 3 O O . 6 . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . O . . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$Bc Face: beaten. I res'd. $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . 7 6 . . 4 5 . . X . . . . . | $$ | . . X , . . X O 2 X . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . 1 3 . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O O O . . . . . . . . . . . O . . | $$ | . . O X O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O O . O . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . O . . . . . . O . . . | $$ | . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Kirby · #6

Magicwand wrote:

Kirby wrote:

So I was playing this guy named Magicwand on the forums, and I thought I was doing well until I... Oh wait, you guys know that game. :-p

good one.

on that same game i said
"i think i am stronger than you. if you dont believe try a game with me"
and he was one of the strongest amature in this forum. :oops:

now our game's rating will go through the roof.

Ah, I don't think you need to be embarrassed about that, Magicwand. I think that everyone enjoys your comments and style

Stable · #7

My most embarrassing moment - reading Araban's post and having to sit here for 5 minutes until I figured out why it wasn't worth points... :oops:

Phelan · #8

I played a 2 dan (a japanese visitor) in a simultaneous game recently,with me taking 6 stones. In the beginning of the game, about 20-30 moves in, he got a group of mine down to one eye and one false eye. It was a 10 stone group at least. I didn't notice the false eye until I got almost to dame plays...

I thought I was winning the whole game, and couldn't understand why... :oops:

tj86430 · #9

I played a game where I was some 10-20 points behind, mostly because my corner group died while I allowed opponents group to live inside it. Then I made a last desperate attempt to kill opponents inside group, for some reason the opponent responded incorrectly to my first move and played tenuki after the second - after which I could in fact have killed him (winning with some 60-70 points); instead of which I made a really stupid mistake, let him live after all and finally lost by 17,5 points.

topazg · **#10**

Most embarrassing recent one: From a game at the weekend

mohsart · **#11**

In London Open a couple of years ago, I was maybe 6 kyu.
I don't recall all the details, but I think I was a little ahead in the late endgame, I had this huge lump of stones without eyes but with the possibility of capturing something to live.
Well, my opponent took away one liberty after another and when I was down to one I reasoned that I still had one liberty so I could tenuki. And he captured 20-30 stones.
My move happened to be almost as big, but I was so taken by my blunder so I think that I didn't do the best out of it and lost the game.

/Mats

HKA · **#12**

I guess we go back to the first Lancaster Congress (I know, I know, some of you are screaming "You lost to Martin Lebl in the ING!). I was a young and fast player, and had very good success in the Congress Lightning tournament. I invariably won my table and advanced fairly well in the subsequent Dan playoffs, though I never won it.

So I was paired with good friend and pretty slow and very bad at blitz Phil Straus. And typically he was way behind on the 10 minute sudden death clock. Not typically, but as a result, he had an almost mortal lock on the game, and this did not go unnoticed by the room, and a final game of the INGMasters crowd began to gather around the board - with none of the enforced silence of a serious game.

I had better than 3 minutes on the clock with Phil down to 30 some seconds and there was still plenty of non result changing one and two point plays and dame to be played, and maybe a pretty giant squeeze to be negotiated.

I was in my element, Phil was frantic, alternating between responding and insta passing. It was pretty shameful, but there were legit moves to me made, and I was transfixed by his disappearing time as I played to the audience - getting laughs with my remarks and head faking my plays beneath my baseball cap to gain every advantage.

It seemed impossible that he could finish his won game in the time allowed, as I searched for tricks that would require him to lose some of his precious seconds of which he had no more than 5.

Perhaps the loudest roar of laughter I have ever heard in the Congress main playing room occurred when

my

flag

fell.

freegame · **#13**

I can't "beat" HKA's post

, but thought it would be fun to share non the less.

It was my second or third Go tournament (I think I was 7kyu) and I drove over there with a couple of friends to play. I had an absolutely great tournament winning all my games beeing really proud I managed to beat a 5kyu by 1.5 points. Because I won all my games I won €50 which was realy nice, until I got back to the car to find out I got a parking ticket of €49,50... :evil:

(I hadn't seen It wasn't a free parking)

HKA · **#14**

Since my last embarrassment was fairly well received, I will share another.

It is the 10th Congress in Washington D.C. (ok Northern Virginia) I am....gosh 3 dan I suppose and paired with Marvin Wolftal. They game was rather typical for me, hoarding territory like there is no tomorrow and ignoring whatever central thickness I am giving up. I launch an invasion that is sure to succeed, but reaches a point where I know it is alive if I add a stone, but am not sure I can tenuki.

The game is clearly won if I tenuki and reduce his moyo, if I add a stone and let him complete the moyo, I think I was ahead, but it would be close and long game.

I was a fast player in those days, but here I submerged myself into the tank. I mean deep. I mean I stared at the position for 40 minutes. I looked and looked. But it was there, a 14 move sequence that appeared to lead to doom, but is saved by a somewhat subtle snapback.

And so I tenukid.

Marvin had, of course, plenty of time to stare at the position and his hand flew to the bowl and the stones clashed - 3...7...11 moves in confident succession - all according to plan. A move before the seen by only one snapback - Marvin's hand faltered...and after a minute he resigned.

Well, I was beyond happy and profoundly proud. I had worked it out, so carefully and calmly and ended the game with a beautiful one way street of a sequence that led to a dead end for him.

There was only one way to celebrate this triumph. And that was to ride my chariot of victory to my teacher, Mr. Yang, and show my prowess - not to gloat, you understand, but rather to allow Mr. Yang to see that his labors with me were well justified, and that the seeds of his wisdom were bearing deadly fruit.

I recall he generally approved of the game, and certainly of the invasion and we reached the moment of the tenuki. I explained that I read carefully and decided I could tenuki.

He smiled at me and said - "Of course!" And I smiled. "Yes, he can play here but I can still live" Mr. Yang "Easy life yes - just play here".

However obviously alive it was, and it was obviously alive, it was not where I played. I sputtered, "Well, I missed that, but this works too, because of the snapback", I added, as if he would not see it, and shifted the stone.

Mr. Yang frowned - "No, that dies" Sure and deadly, Mr. Yang laid out the never imagined, yet not particularly difficult, sequence.

Somehow, as often happens on the Go Board, my brain and Marvin's linked in a marvelous, for me, hallucination. Establishing such a link with Mr. Yang still eludes me.

MountainGo · **#15**

HKA, I would love to see that kifu if you have it.

Bill Spight · **#16**

When I was 4 or 5 kyu, in a position like this one:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$B Oops! $$ -------------------------- $$ . O X X . O O O 1 X X O . . $$ . O O X X X X X X X O . O . $$ . . . O O . . . O X O . . . $$ . , . O X X X X O O O . . , $$ . . O . O O O O . . . . . . $$ . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[/go]

Also, when I was about 7 kyu, I ataried a stone on the second line, and then tried to remove it from the board. I had thought a long time over the move, and I knew that I had "captured" it. I just hadn't removed its last liberty.

xDragon · **#17**

i had captured a stone at a club game, and i picked up my own stone instead. it took me a bit to realize what i did...

other than that i havent really had embarrassing moments. havent been playing long enough

Kirby · **#18**

Bill Spight wrote:

When I was 4 or 5 kyu, in a position like this one:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$B Oops! $$ -------------------------- $$ . O X X . O O O 1 X X O . . $$ . O O X X X X X X X O . O . $$ . . . O O . . . O X O . . . $$ . , . O X X X X O O O . . , $$ . . O . O O O O . . . . . . $$ . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[/go]

Also, when I was about 7 kyu, I ataried a stone on the second line, and then tried to remove it from the board. I had thought a long time over the move, and I knew that I had "captured" it. I just hadn't removed its last liberty.

Bill Spight was 7k at one time? ;-)

ChradH · **#19**

Kirby wrote:

Bill Spight was 7k at one time? ;-)

Obviously 7ks then were much better than 7ks today

fwiffo · **#20**

I entered my first tournament as a 5 kyu. I was facing a 3 kyu I think, and was in a completely won position. There was part of the board that looked something like this.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code: [go]$$W $$ . . . . . . . . . . $$ . . . . . X . X . . $$ . . X . X X O . . . $$ X X . . X O X X 1 . $$ X O O O O O X O . . $$ X O X X X X X O . . $$ . X O O . O O . . . $$ . X . . . . . . . .[/go]

That's not the exact position, but it was something like this. The dragons involved were actually much bigger. The important part is the net, the number of liberties and :w1:

there. Of course, I was in a completely won position (lots of dead white stones, 40-50 points ahead at least), all I had to do was connect. :w1:

was just played as sente endgame. The problem was, at that point in my go career I'd played maybe half a dozen serious games on a real board. I hadn't had anyone to play in meatspace until recently, so all my games were online. I wasn't used to the somewhat crooked stones that happen on a real board. I thought I was connected. I played tenuki, big endgame elsewhere on the board. My heart sank with white's next move.

Embarassing Go moments?

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