Shaddy wrote:
So I just won my first game as a 3d, but I really should have lost. My opponent mishandled the fighting and I got a big kill where I shouldn't have.
You played better that your opponent. You earned it. You don't have to play perfect go, just better than the other guy.
Shaddy wrote:
I had no idea where to play in the opening- after my 2-space pincer on his approach.
I disagree. You had two ideas about where to play. Unfortunately, you tried to play both of them.
The general strategic concept guiding the Chinese is that black stakes out more territory than he can reasonably expect to get, and white is left with the choice of invasion or reduction. If white invades, black attacks the invaders and tries to make profit while chasing. If White does not invade, black attemps to secure his large territory while white reduces from the outside.
You can try invading directly with Q5, in which case an attack on the pincer stone looks better when done with a counter-pincer around O4 or N3 because it will also support the invasion.
Or you can try to reduce from the outside with L6 followed by a hane and moves like P8.
But L6 and Q5 seem to be parts of different strategies, as if you can't decide whether to reduce or invade, and his M6 reply to L6 endangers your Q5 stone.
BTW, congrats on becoming 3D.
EDIT: I'm amazed that he did not hane at L8.
