[go]$$Wcm70 Move 70 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X 1 X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Strategy and Thoughts
Hmmmm, looks like he's just dead to me now - and here was me wondering how best to set up a double ko on the left to guarantee a non-ko life... anyone interested in that analysis post, and I'll put it up
Hmmmm, looks like he's just dead to me now - and here was me wondering how best to set up a double ko on the left to guarantee a non-ko life... anyone interested in that analysis post, and I'll put it up
For topazg:
Please do post it. I'd like to see what you were thinking of.
Arg, so I did not see that white could just not defend and instead force me to lose some liberties. White is ahead in the capture race. And I don't see a way to force ko. Still, the sequence only cost me ko threats and essentially a wasted move. Not the end of the world.
Though the black group on the edge is now in a bit of trouble. Losing it, too, would really dent that 70 point reverse komi. I need to escape or things start looking grim.
Posts: 4511 Location: Chatteris, UK Liked others: 1589 Was liked: 656
Rank: Nebulous
GD Posts: 918
KGS: topazg
For Marcus and other observers that want to see my overthinking craziness:
The top left
Ok, well, I assumed he'd connect to make his eye, leaving me with a ko I must capture. If he did, I wanted to take the time to remove a lot of the bad aji from the left group by sealing it in completely. Sadly, this gets awkward. If I don't, I can create a permanent seki due to shortage of liberties, which I can then use to attack that middle group - provided the aji isn't too severe, as follows:
[go]$$Bcm79 2 move approach ko II $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | b O 3 O 1 X 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X O O X X X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | a O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | O O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
This may initially look favourable, but Black's virtually ko monster, because all he has to do is keep running with that group on the left, and he's got at least 10 ko threats. I simply don't have many, and if he ignores one he turns it into about a 60 point direct ko in the corner with "a" or "b". Which means I'm in a lot of trouble - he's going to escape. What's worse, he has a liberty trick up his sleeve too, playable pretty early on:
[go]$$Bcm79 Actually a direct ko II $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O . O . X a O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X O O X X X O O X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 1 O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | O O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O O O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Here, he manages to prevent me from getting "a" because of a shortage of liberties, which forces me to capture the laddered stones first, allowing him to play 79 inside, turning the whole thing into a horrible horrible direct ko. So, my response is to capture with 74 instead:
[go]$$Bcm79 Double Ko II $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O . O 1 X a O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | X O O X X X O O X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | O O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | 3 O X O 4 O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | O X X O . O 2 . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | X . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Here, if he fills the ko, I can play at "a" and return it to the two move approach ko, and it looks like the best I can do. However, more and more it looks like I can't kill outright, which is really annoying. Originally, I thought this double ko worked, but the shortage of liberties issue at the top means all it does is prevent the even more icky direct ko, but still doesn't fix things completely.
However, now I have an easier time of things - now, there's no real liberty race any more:
[go]$$Bcm71 White wins $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X 8 2 . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 9 O O X 1 X O O 1 . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 7 O X X 5 X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 3 O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O 4 O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | a X X O . O 6 . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . b O , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Even with the shortage of liberties play at the top, I'm still one ahead. I also don't have to worry about "a" creating the two stage ko on the left, because I can respond to it with "b" as it doesn't take away any of my liberties. So, what's the bad middle aji left? (see next hide tag)
[go]$$Bcm71 Sacrifice $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X . X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 8 6 4 O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 0 1 O 3 . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . 2 5 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 7 a O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
If Black can't get out, this is the sensible way to sacrifice for thickness I think, and is some compensation for the loss. However, if Black tries to save everything, it's complicated:
[go]$$Bcm81 Running away II $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O c O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O d . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O b 3 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O 4 a . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X O O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O 1 . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . O O . 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
"a" is now a working ladder for Black, and White can't play "b" without "c" causing a shortage of liberties. White wants to play "d", but again that doesn't affect the ladder. This just looks like an impossible task. What else can White do?
[go]$$Wcm86 Running away III $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O a d . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O b X X 1 . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O O c . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X O O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O X . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . O O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
I think the hane here for White works. If Black "a", White "b", if Black "b", White "a". If Black "d", White "b", if Black "c", White can extend without dying. Something like:
[go]$$Wcm86 Running away IV $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O 9 6 . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O 7 X X 1 8 . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O O 2 . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X O O X 3 4 . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O X 5 . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . O O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Even here it hasn't finished though, as if Black connects and White tenukis:
[go]$$Bcm97 Running away V $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O 5 . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O 3 O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O 1 O 4 O 7 . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O 2 O O X . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O O X X X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O O X . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X O O X O X . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O X O . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . O O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
That thickness is intolerable, and may give Black a really good top right. So instead I must respond, and we still have a funny double ladder thingy going on that I can't completely ignore (a-g):
[go]$$Wcm96 Running away VI $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O 6 . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . 0 . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O 4 O . 9 8 . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O 2 O 5 O . 1 . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O 3 O O X . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O O X X X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O O X . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X O O X O X . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O X O d e , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . O O . O a c f . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . b g . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
There's just so many reasons I wanted to kill that aji on the left firmly! Maybe I should actually connect at E12 instead thinking about it. Bleh. Let's see how the game goes first
Thanks topazg ... it's interesting to see how you think about the position. I have to admit, in situations like this I'm more likely to play like Magicwand (whatever feels best), only I don't quite have his intuition.
Posts: 4511 Location: Chatteris, UK Liked others: 1589 Was liked: 656
Rank: Nebulous
GD Posts: 918
KGS: topazg
Marcus wrote:
Thanks topazg ... it's interesting to see how you think about the position. I have to admit, in situations like this I'm more likely to play like Magicwand (whatever feels best), only I don't quite have his intuition.
Me too on places like DGS and OGS, but real time and Malkovich I try to train my reading. Generally, in my experience, the harder you try to read, and read, and read, the better your intuition comes - from a combination of finding flaws in your own intuition when reading and watching the reading of stronger players
Also, my problem is getting the reading actually correct. I'm now panicking about the following:
[go]$$Wcm86 Running away III variation $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O 2 O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . X X 1 . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O O . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X O O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O X . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . O O . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
[go]$$Bcm71 Move 71 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . c . . | $$ | . . O , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . d . . . . . b . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
'a' is an attempt to keep the now rather strong white group in the center from attaching to the corner stones. If I don't go 'a', white can go 'a' and connect easily.
'b' is a forcing exchange that burns the aji of the laddered stones to get an extra move. After the forcing exchange:
'c' approaches white's strong position on the right and tries to cramp it a bit. If white extends towards 'c' to protect his base, he's over concentrated.
'd' just takes the spot white needs to make shape. It also threatens to cut (see tactics below).
Tactics and Variations
So here's one continuation. Black's group on the left has 1 eye still. But black can successfully cut white (Black 81 at E10). But most of the moves feel like they strengthen white more than necessary.
[go]$$Wcm74 Move 74 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O , 1 . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Strategy and Thoughts
Wow, that was unexpected!! I'll just make sure the group dies without leaving the ability for Black to create thickness on this left edge, and eye up how to handle Black's two loose isolated group/stones in the middle area.
[go]$$Bcm75 Move 75 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 1 . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Tactics and Variations
So that wasn't a move I was expecting, but seeing it on the board it works well for white, since it also guards against that cut I was planning. So that's a bit aggravating. Good for him
Here's literally a stream-of-consciousness of my reading (because I'm too lazy to edit it to remove bad sequences )
[go]$$Bcm75 Move 75 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 5 . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 3 O , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 1 . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . 4 2 . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Something like this feels okay. If white responds differently, so he threatens to kill the black group, I can just expand out from the corner, and sacrifice it for territory.
[go]$$Bcm75 Move 75 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O b . . . . . . d . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . c . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . e . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . f . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . . a . . . . . . . | $$ | . 1 h O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . g . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
"a" breaks the ladder, so it's Black's sente, and I don't want to have my right group attacked. So, I really want to take "a" first, which Black would probably give me in sente. Similarly "b" is sente against the top, so it helps Black get thicker at no cost - useful if he wants to develop the top right. However, it's quite slow really, and even though It helps me pick up another two stones, I can't believe it's big enough for me to play. Instead, I'm tempted to try and eat them on a bigger scale with "c" or "d". "c" is looking at following up with either "d" or "e" depending on Black's response, and "d" has good chances of living in the corner. That side, living in the corner and giving Black a big wall seems to strategically go against what I've been playing, so I'm probably going to go with "c". "a" in sente followed by "c" feels like a nice flow if I can get it. "f" on the edge feels like a big stretch, but I'm happy enough playing this way while I'm still behind, it's just so clearly gote and the top side of that corner is more urgent than the right side of that corner. Finally, on the other side, "g" is something I've been wanting to play for a while now. Originally I wanted the 2-4 point as a kind of probe, because if I had a territorial position on the left I figured bC3 wC5 as a response was reasonable enough - especially if I could overconcentrate Black in the corner. Now I have some form of thickness on both sides, I want to either live in the corner or cut Black in half and go attacking again, so I've switched to D3.
Finally, my move, "h". It's solid, thick, pressing down on Black's position, either sente or big gote profit, and fixes almost all of my remaining bad aji. What's more, Black may not even have a followup that can threaten to save his left group, which means I should take sente from this sequence. If I do, I'm after "a", "c", and "g" in that order, and then a proper scorecount when the dust settles.
Tactics and Variations
So, do I really need to play this passive looking move? Probably not, but the aji fixing nature of it is really nice for me, especially as I want to carry on attacking - removing your own bad aji before attacking is very important. Its shape is nice, Black now has to worry about whether he accepts silly crawling second line territory nonsense, or gives up yet another stone for a 6+ point profit to me. Also, I have concerns about this weird looking wedge:
[go]$$Bcm77 Move 77 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . 2 O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O 1 O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . a 3 b X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X . O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Regardless of which way around 2 and 3 are, "a" and "b" have become miai for Black. The fact that means I simply cannot stop Black either living on the edge or cutting me in half seems intolerable, and I can't seem to easily dodge. If I respond to 1 with "a" or "b" myself, it fixes nothing, it just gives him an easier job of it. If I'm cut in two and have a not yet settled group, how do I intend on attacking in the middle? I can't. My alternative is giving up that Black group I just killed, and I can't afford to give away 15 points so carelessly. So I want a move that fixes all this quite urgently, keeps Black's group dead, threatens to develop, increases my thickness, makes good shape, and is sente.
Bizarrely and unlikely enough, my move seems to do all these things with the possible exception of the sente bit - and as bumping a 2nd line stone on the head when it appears under a 4th line stone is a normal response when White doesn't really want to look after territory on either side, everything feels right about it. My shape having played it makes me very happy too, it's all table-y and efficient and elegant looking. So, it's my move.
What might happen next? I assume Black will extend either upwards or downwards. If he extends down, I definitely tenuki. If he extends up, I either block because it's likely to be very sente, or I block on the lower side and try to kill everything. I'll see how I feel and post the lines when I see what he's going to play
Score and Counting
Funny counting with letters and pairs to demonstrate how cool and easy it is to do when there are dead things on the board:
[go]$$Wcm76 Move 76 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | w O k l O c . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | w O O j O b O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | x O h i l a O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | x O O g f O d O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | v O t O m O e O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | y u s O m O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | y z r O n n . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | z a q p o O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . a b b O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O , O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . a a e | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O a O O . X b b e | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O b c . O X c c f | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . c . . . . d d f | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
for the time being, I'm marking that out. Where a letter is on its own, it's a captured stone, else it's a pair of territory. Each letter is worth two points. So a-z + a + b in the top right = 28 letters = 56 points. 6 points lower right against 12 black. I make that a 50 point lead. I think Black can get more points than me in the top right and bottom left, so throwing a random number of 15 more points than I get out there means I'm 35 points ahead at least right now - so half the deficit has gone. I was hoping for 10 points every 30 moves, which makes me as far as I had planned on move 105. I'm happy, let's see what happens next
[go]$$Wcm78 Move 78 $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . . O X O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | . . . . 1 X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
Strategy and Thoughts
I want thickness in the middle, and I want to be connected. This gives me both. As long as the clamp at B10 doesn't work for him (and I'm about 95% sure I can play B9 and keep his group dead) then the last exchange just fixes some aji and strengthens my influence in the middle.
[go]$$Wcm82 Miai of A and B $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | b X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . a X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 4 . X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . 2 . . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 5 X O X O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | X O 1 . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . 3 . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
[go]$$Wcm82 Miai of A and B $$ --------------------------------------- $$ | . O X . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X O X O O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O X X . X O X X . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . O O X X O X O . , . . . . . X . . . | $$ | X O X O . O X O . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X X O . O . . . . . . . . . . X . . | $$ | . . X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | b 5 X X X O . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | 4 3 2 . O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O X O . . . . , . . . . . , . . . | $$ | X O 1 . O X . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ | . X O O . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . | $$ | . a . . . . . . . . . X . . . . . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . O . O O . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . X O . . . X X . | $$ | . . X , . . . . . . O O X X X . . . . | $$ | . . . . . X . . . . O X O O . X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . O X . . O X . . . | $$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | $$ ---------------------------------------[/go]
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