Reading this out I am not sure I can actually do it...maybe this(below)? I think that continuation is my only possibility, but as I said, I am either misreading or being outplayed at this point, boo. I am wondering what Aphelion is saying, I imagine it's something along the lines of 'you misread fool', haha.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm99 robinz vs DIV - Move 99; prisoners: Black 0 White 1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . X . . X . . X . . X . . . . |
$$ | X . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . O . . . . O . . O . . . . . . . |
$$ | O X O . . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . . O . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O X . . . . . . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . X O O . . . X . O . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | 7 X . . X X . X . . . . X . . O X . . |
$$ | 6 O 5 X . O . X O O . . O O . . O . . |
$$ | 3 4 O X O . O O . . . . . . O . O . . |
$$ | 2 O X X . . . . . . . . . . . X X . . |
$$ | 1 X O . X X X X . . O . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . . O O O O X O X , . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X O O . . O O X O . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . O . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

If this stuff doesn't work, I can still try to set up a position to kill the full triangle, though I don't think I can at all. I need to play through and try and connect I think, or this big group is out and I am out.

I can't quite tenuki, or the peep at A7 destroys me. But after this move of mine it is absolutely clear that nothing works for black. (Not even the throw-in at B7, since black can't play A6 afterwards without putting himself in atari.) I wonder what he thinks he's seen (or perhaps has actually seen, which will leave me feeling like an idiot)?

I also note from his unhidden comment above that he isn't planning on resigning the game at any point soon. I'm pretty sure that if this group dies (and it really does look very much like a "when" rather than "if" to me now) I'm ahead by a very comfortable margin. Black can probably get some decent reductions in sente by threatening to connect or live, but then I have plenty of reductions of my own still open to me.

Of course, if I have missed some clever tesuji (or indeed something really simple which my brain is refusing to see), I will look back on this comment and be embarassed. But I can only play the game as I see it.

Bleh, capturing those seems impossible at this point, haha. I overlook obvious plays. We'll see what I can do in the future, if anything. for now, move in here I guess.

Well, that tenuki I assume is an admission that the bottom-left is a lost cause...

I realise this move of mine is just meekly giving up my sente and probably a good handful of points with it - but I want to play things safe and make as sure as I can that black's group can't get out anywhere. My most conservative count now gives me about 120 points (in territory + dead black stones), while the most optimistic ones for black come to a bit less than 100, so all I really have to do to win is make sure it stays dead and make sure the rest of the endgame isn't all 1-way traffic in black's direction. And I'm sure the latter won't happen when I have plenty of interesting things to be doing. My priorities for the rest of the endgame (other than of course keeping the lower-left well and truly dead) include (in rough order of importance):

1) Some big reduction of black's upper side - there seems to be so much aji there that I'm really not sure where's est to start! I expect black to shore up his defences here somewhat with his next move, but I should still have something left.

2) Rescuing my M15 stone - the difference between a best-case and worst-case scenario for me in this region of the board looks like perhaps 15-20 points - so actually this could well be the biggest thing left.

3) Some moves against black's lower-right group (R2 looks like the best start here - it's certainly at least moderately big).

I kinda feel like I'm on my last legs here, I don't know if I can get this black group life, but have to to be in this game still. I am going to try to use some fancy cuts and whatnot in the future to get it alive but...bleh. I assume most people have stopped commenting because I should have resigned already.

i wanted to write to black "head up, fight like a man!", but in the end it felt like too much influencing the game, so i will continue rooting for him silently

i've already thought that the 101-102 exchange just hammered another nail into black's coffin (not sure if this phrase is used in english), however, his last move looks actually surprisingly promising. as i see it, b J11 could have been a bit better, using the same weaknesses as H13 and preventing white from playing the J11 himself - w J11 looks like the best resistance now. yet, even then, white will have to watch out to finish it safely

PS: more often i say "die like a man", but i doubt it would really cheer black

Drat, I've taken my eye off the ball here - this cut, which I spoke about briefly when I played G12 a while back, and which didn't work then, does now. I've only just got in and am a bit tired now, so won't think right now what the best way to combat it is - but this move is the only one for now, otherwise the dead group connects to some probably living black stones. Even after the black cut, at the very worst I can give up the 3 stones in the upper middle - which is a very big endgame gain for black, but still keeps me ahead in the game. And I'm not convinced I'll have to do that - black has enough vulnerable stones that I may be able to do something; it's going to take some more careful reading than I have time for right now. But there's no point delaying making this move, which I have no sensible alternative to.

OK, have done the required reading this morning, and have found things to be a bit tricky (by my admittedly low standards). First, I read the following line, concluding that the cut doesn't, in fact, work:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc robinz vs DIV - Move 104; prisoners: Black 0 White 1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . X . . X . . X . . X . . . . |
$$ | X . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . O . . X . O . . O . . . . . . . |
$$ | O X O . . 6 4 2 . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . O O . 7 5 3 X O . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O 8 O O 1 . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O X . . . . . . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . X O O . . . X . O . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . . X X . X . . . . X . . O X . . |
$$ | . O . X . O . X O O . . O O . . O . . |
$$ | . . O X O . O O . . . . . . O . O . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . . . . . . . X X . . |
$$ | X X O . X X X X . . O . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O O O X O X , . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X O O . . O O X O . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . O . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

- black runs out of liberties. However, looking at the final position here (or one a few moves before it), black at J11 I think manages to connect out with the dead group - the aji of my weak J13 stone prevents me from blocking the escape routes effectively. So I can't really afford to play this way.

But, there's nothing to stop me atariing at J11 first of all:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bc robinz vs DIV - Move 104; prisoners: Black 0 White 1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . X . . X . . X . . X . . . . |
$$ | X . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . O . . X . O . . O . . . . . . . |
$$ | O X O . . 8 6 4 . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . O O . 9 7 5 X O . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O 0 O O 1 3 . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O X . . . 2 . . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . X O O . . . X . O . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . . X X . X . . . . X . . O X . . |
$$ | . O . X . O . X O O . . O O . . O . . |
$$ | . . O X O . O O . . . . . . O . O . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . . . . . . . X X . . |
$$ | X X O . X X X X . . O . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O O O X O X , . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X O O . . O O X O . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . O . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

- this does seem to do the job. I'd like to say that I'm glad for this reading practice, but must admit that I hadn't seen the danger here until I'd actually begun typing this post and looked at the above diagram - in a real game I'd probably have just played it out and thereby ended up in trouble. So I'm not sure how good this is as practice for a real-time game (I'm still trying not to "cheat", doing the actual reading in my head rather than actually putting stones on my board, but simply being able to see the diagrams I've posted makes things a lot clearer than trying to hold positions in my head).

This gives me a few cuts I think that could be beneficial. Though I just noticed robinz is up to 9k on KGS, snap, that explains a lot. I'll fight until I know my large group to the low left is really really dead. Though I think it is already.

what did i miss?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wcm1 Diagram 1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . X . . X . . X . . X . . . . |
$$ | X . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . O . . X . O . . O . . . . . . . |
$$ | O X O . . . a . 5 . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . 6 X O 4 X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . O O 2 3 . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O X . . . B 1 . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . X O O . . . X . O . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . . X X . X . . . . X . . O X . . |
$$ | . O . X . O . X O O . . O O . . O . . |
$$ | . . O X O . O O . . . . . . O . O . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . . . . . . . X X . . |
$$ | X X O . X X X X . . O . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O O O X O X , . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X O O . . O O X O . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . O . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

ok, it seems white a next makes black's escape fail but still it would give me more hope (and neither of the players showed it does'nt work). if white next just once and for good shut the black group in, then it is all over - and maybe it is the same even if he connects at J14. too bad black didn't take care of his group when he could

I have to give credit to DIV for the way he's fought over the past few moves - including this one. I had been beginning to think he would resign soon, but now I assume he's going to push through at J14, and my two fifth-line stones look like they're goners This seems to put me perhaps only 10 ahead (again by a very rough count, perhaps one which is a bit pessimistic to me), which is certainly worth continuing over, in a game at our level. [EDIT: I keep forgetting to include komi in these score estimates, so it's actually a bit more comfortable for me than these figures indicate ]

I think I have to endure this for now, though, otherwise the cut at J12 would have been severe. The solid connection feels obviously best to me, leaving no more aji there for black to exploit. At least after he pushes (and then cuts if I decide to block - I suspect I won't, but haven't made a final decision yet) then I will finally have sente, and who knows, I may even be able to do something with the aji those two stones of mine have. I'm looking at a few sequences, but haven't read them properly yet - I will of course try to do so when the time comes. I feel sure there must be some weaknesses in black's shape up there which I can exploit - as indeed he has recently been exploiting my weaknesses to make gains for himself (I'd appreciate if stronger players could point out where I went wrong earlier in giving black these opportunities - although perhaps this has already been done for all I know )

A bit late, but that phrase is indeed used in English Laman.

He protected that cut, But I can take those stones or give this group life I think, depending on his play. This game could be over in I predict five moves but that's including his potential mistakes, which he won't make I assume. So this game is probably over, but I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try. So here we go, last ditch efforts. In reality I've probably been beaten for 10-20 moves...he's now 9k, I am no longer twelve and certainly am not in the direction of elven. THE LAST MAD DASH.

I must confess, I worried for a while here. I thought the automatic response to a move such as this one would be A4, or perhaps A6, but I only now realise that they lead to real difficulties and potential disaster after black's B7 throw-in:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wc robinz vs DIV - Move 108; prisoners: Black 0 White 1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . X . . X . . X . . X . . . . |
$$ | X . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . O . . X . O . . O . . . . . . . |
$$ | O X O . . . . X . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . X O . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O X . . . . . . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . X O O . . . X . O . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | 5 X . . X X . X . . . . X . . O X . . |
$$ | X O 4 X . O . X O O . . O O . . O . . |
$$ | 3 2 O X O . O O . . . . . . O . O . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . . . . . . . X X . . |
$$ | X X O . X X X X . . O . . X . . . . . |
$$ | 1 O O O O O X O X , . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X O O . . O O X O . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . O . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

- 6 at 2, which is all a big mess and looks like at least a ko for black (eg. after 7 at A6, capturing, and 8 at A8), which I can't afford.

So I panicked for a while and cursed myself for somehow missing obvious things, when I suddenly spotted this calm move. It looks counter-intuitive to me, but once seen is clearly right - I have 3 liberties and black has only 2, and black A6 fails to white A4 which is a connect-and-die.

Hmm, I seem to now be having recurring tactical nightmares about this position. I had just typed the above when it occurred to me that even though black loses his 2 stones, he can try to recapture me under the stones and live that way (something I've never seen except in problems). Thankfully, on closer look, he can't, because playing B5 in such a situation would be self-atari (no snapback, due to my A6 liberty). So I still can't see a refutation to this move I've just made, but I certainly can't be confident any more that I haven't missed anything. Amazing what possibilities lurk in a seemingly kind-of-routine position. Go is a fascinating game, but hard for the same reasons

Well, not many chances left, but if he responds to this peep i might have a chance for this group...we'll see. 4 moves maybe by my uneducated count.

I'm not completely sure this is 100% necessary, but I like to stay solidly connected and minimise the bad aji I'm not sure quite what DIV is playing at here - there's surely no space for more than one eye around G10? (And no space anywhere else.) Indeed, I don't even think black has any sente moves there to make 2 eyes (although of course he has ko threats elsewhere to live, notably C8 or A6). I wonder if he's now going to finally push through the gap at J14, or will he find some other forcing moves first?

It's fascinating how differently the two players are seeing this game.

...although I presume that observers have noticed, and perhaps even said, much of this already. But here goes anyway. I still think black's group is dead, but I had a detailed look last night (yes, I know, I should have done this a long time before, rather than just responding to DIV on a move-by-move basis...) and found that he can easily make a fight of this yet.

After the last exchange, there is a potential eye around G10. If black plays at G10 next then there is certainly one (E10 and G8 being miai). But if I get the move I think I can prevent one there, if I have to, by pushing in at either E10 or G8.

Of more interest is what is happening on the left of the board. Black can play A9 in sente - I must play A3, or black plays A5 and my 4 stones there will die, and the game is probably up. Then black can, if he chooses, make an eye on the side by playing A11. But I can then play C9 to cut those stones on the side off from the rest of the group. If black plays C9 to connect instead, then I can play B11 and destroy all hopes of an eye there (as well as connecting my stones up rather nicely). Black C9, fortunately, isn't sente against my 4 stones - C8 would be, but then after I respond black still needs to play C9 to connect.

A11 probably isn't black's best move in this scenario though. B12 looks better - not only providing a bit of eyespace, but preparing to try to connect to his live group in the top-left; both the peep at A12 and the throw-in at A13 clearly need to be responded to. If black can manage to make an eye here in sente by threatening things like this, then there could be problems for me (and it will be just as well that I think I can destroy the potential eye around G10).

Finally, black might still try some things in the J5 area. Black J3 is sente against my 4 stones there - but it doesn't seem to really help him in building an eye. The thing I do have to watch over there is that he can't cut through my one-point jump and kill some of those stones of mine, and/or connect to his N3 group. I'm pretty sure he can't do anything, but it's an area to keep an eye on.

Thus ends this overview of the life and death - no sorry, I just mean death - of black's group. The conclusion seems to be that for now I can happily tenuki any black attempt to live, other than the direct threats against my stones such as A9. But I reserve the right to choose not to believe that, in the interest of an easier life

Are you sure that G10 makes a guaranteed Black eye?

An eye is only "real" in normal cases if the opponent can make all 4 horizontal and vertical points and 3 of the 4 diagonal points around a single point occupied by his stone. If Black plays G10, then he needs E10 and either G11 or G9 to make F10 real. Therefore, you must play E10 to interfere, as he has miai of the other two. However, after you have played E10 he needs both F10 and G8 to make G9 real, which means you can play the one he doesn't. In short, there's no eye there even if Black gets G10 now (see below)

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wcm110 robinz vs DIV - Move 110; prisoners: Black 0 White 1
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . X X O . X . . X . . X . . X . . . . |
$$ | X . X O . . . . . , . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . O . . X . O . . O . . . . . . . |
$$ | O X O . . . . X . . . . . . . X . . . |
$$ | . O O . . . . X O . X . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O 1 O O O . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . X O X X . . . . . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . X O O 3 5 2 X . O . . . . . , X . . |
$$ | . X . . X X . X . . . . X . . O X . . |
$$ | X O . X . O 4 X O O . . O O . . O . . |
$$ | . O O X O . O O . . . . . . O . O . . |
$$ | . O X X . . . . . . . . . . . X X . . |
$$ | X X O . X X X X . . O . . X . . . . . |
$$ | . O O O O O X O X , . . X . . X . . . |
$$ | . . . . . X O O . . O O X O . . X . . |
$$ | . . . . . . O . . . . . O . . O . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

Hmm, good point - no it doesn't, as after I play E10 then F10 and G8 become miai . I'm not sure you should have pointed that out though (EDIT: although G10 doesn't work, G11 looks to me like it does ensure an eye, making miai of the pairs E10/F10 and G8/G9.)

I am worried about your reference to "juicy stuff" though. I was rather hoping you'd agree (in hidden text, of course) that black was just straightforwardly dead