:white:

Giving handicap feels hard. I play somewhere between calmly and passively, so I often find no room for complications.

Yet oddly, KGS analytics says I win the majority of my handicap games as white. I must not be terrible.

Keep it simple and safe (relatively)

All I know about four stone openings, I got from The Endgame (no typo). Ever since reading that, I respond to with the middle star point on top. If my opponent plays a knight's move, I'll take it as White. I don't think alternate plays are wrong, but I'm a creature of habit.

The first thought is to still keep it simple:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm4
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . O . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |[/go]

I don't feel like tenuki since I don't like double approaches. I watched several games in which black here tries to separate white. So other options I consider are hasamis.

As for nikentakabasami,

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm4
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . 4 . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 5 . . O . . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . 1 , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |[/go]

the hasami stone feels lonely.

I have never played ikkentakabasami yet. It seems to give me a wall in gote. I can imagine something like this:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm6
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O 2 4 O 6 . . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . 1 X 3 5 7 X . , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . a . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

and I don't see a clear way to use the wall. Maybe its influence should be transferred to the bottom with k4? Then why not to take it directly and not worry about the wall having no eyes

So, I turn my attention to usual hasami. I'd like to try this:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wcm5
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 7 5 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 1 2 8 O . X . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . 3 4 . . . . . , . 0 . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |[/go]

but it is too optimistic, because I've bumped into this joseki:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm4
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . 5 O . 1 . . . . . O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . 4 , . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |[/go]

Here feels uncomfortable, so I don't like it. Thus, I'll go for c14 and I don't mind to give white the top.

I'm predictable, but the board is really asking to put a stone here. No other spot gives such feeling of harmony

I looked at a few old handicap games of mine, trying to find the right "feel" for how to play. I also looked at Bill's post on Go Seigen and sanrensai. I'm not sure if any of it applies here--the plays are really geared towards the white star points. Still, the play shown there is incredibly inspiring.

Dreaming of moyo... I haven't decided yet whether it'll be tsuke-nobi or tsuke-osae, but both joseki start with tsuke

I think that

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm10
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . 1 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . . . . . X . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

will be inconsistent with my intention to try to make a moyo.

Easy enough. I played the last two moves on autopilot, and I'll have to think about what to do soon enough.

I wonder if this is too slow.

I think I may tenuki here. Though maybe I should play f4 for safety...

I think it's pretty standard

My gut says there's nothing I want to play that justifies not responding here. But I will have to find a place to be more aggressive soon or the board will be too settled and I'll be too far behind.

Too many stones on the fourth line?

Time to be a little looney. Because his corner isn't finished on the left, I have at least one forcing move that gives me a (very small) base.

Keep white separated.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm20 seems good for white
$$ | . . O X X . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X X . 1 . O . X 4 . . O . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . 2 3 . . O X . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]