I think this game record is a good indicator of pitfalls in my Go. I've fallen to 4d on Tygem. I'm black.

I've posted my comments in the SGF. I'm looking for new perspective and general feedback. Please don't ignore the basic fundamentals.



edit: 157 at E9 can kill white, can't it? Or 159 at H9?

13 hane under as you have the ladder?

It hadn't crossed my mind. Why is that choice better?

In my experience and looking at it now, I don't notice anything special about it. The ladder breaker in the top right seems to offer adequate compensation for white. And the variation where black ataris at c8 is complicated and unclear that it's an improvement over the simpler joseki.

Also, do you have a chance to look at the rest of the game?

Even if has its weakness, is almost wasting a move in this crucial fight. Playing at the elephant's eye looks much more effective. Next Black will turn or cut.

Instead of 75 the cut below seems like the only reasonable play.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . X . . . X X . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . 5 . X X O . . |
$$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . . 2 . O O . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . 3 O X 4 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 O . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . X . . . O . . |
$$ | . O . O X . X X X X X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X . X O O O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . O . . . . O O . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . O X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X . . O X . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X O O O O X . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X X X X X . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . X . O . O O X . O . . O . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . O . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

With the alternative for 73 at 1 below, what happens after 4?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

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

_________________
Dave Sigaty
"Short-lived are both the praiser and the praised, and rememberer and the remembered..."
- Marcus Aurelius; Meditations, VIII 21

Thanks Knotwig, I didn't give that move enough consideration. I should have at least identified 75 as being slack in my review though.


Wow, that looks so reasonable and satisfying for black. It isn't consistent with my greedy goal of cutting and being bloodthirsty so I didn't give it enough consideration. I wonder how to fix that?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . X . . . X X . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . X X O . . |
$$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . . . . O O . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . O . 1 . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3 . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . X 4 . . O . . |
$$ | . O . O X . X X X X X . . b . 5 6 . . |
$$ | . . O X . X O O O O X O . . . 7 . a . |
$$ | . . . X . O . . . . O O . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . O X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X . . O X . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X O O O O X . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X X X X X . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . X . O . O O X . O . . O . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . O . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

I could imagine black swallowing the right 4 stones, but the aji would be really bad and maybe white could even play 'a' and live inside the top?

Your solution is so much more reasonable. I gotta think about how to identify compromises like that.

My understanding is that normally white should have the ladder to play that outside attachment as the joseki where you ladder 2 stones is somewhat nice for you. Yes a double high approach against top right is nice for a ladder breaker, but it's not devastating like a broken shape through a shimari one.

IMO 33 is the losing move. It should have been played H5 instead, because then White has to connect his lower stones and that gives Black a chance to develop his three stones in the middle by pushing White's four stones which again would deny White to get easy territory on the right side (which effectively happened).

This looks like trouble too. How can Black both protect the corner and prevent White from pushing through at 'a' and living on the top side?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . X 7 . . X X . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . a 5 X X O . . |
$$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . 6 2 1 O O . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . O 3 X . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . |
$$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . X . . . O . . |
$$ | . O . O X . X X X X X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X . X O O O O X O . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . X . O . . . . O O . . . . X . . |
$$ | . . O X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . O X . . O X . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . O X O O O O X . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X X X X X . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . X . O . O O X . O . . O . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O . . . O . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

_________________
Dave Sigaty
"Short-lived are both the praiser and the praised, and rememberer and the remembered..."
- Marcus Aurelius; Meditations, VIII 21