How to give stones

[kwhyte]

The thing I was worst at back when I played was giving handicaps, and based on the results of some recent IGS and KGS matches, that hasn't changed magically while I wasn't playing. How does one get better at this? My immediate reaction is to just do it more and learn from experience, but that seems like a good way to learn what hamete that works against players near my level - something that probably hurts my overall game more than it helps. All the pro commentaries on handicap games I've seen are focused on explaining how black can win easily if they just play decent moves, not on what white should be doing. Any suggestions?

[snorri]

The book How to Play Handicap Go by Yuan Zhou gives many commentaries of the author's own games playing white against weaker players. It's one of the better sources I've seen on how to think as white (although you can learn a lot from the black side, too.)

I think the main thing is to be patient. You can't expect to overcome the handicap right away. Also, in order for white to win with larger handicaps, black has to help white. White should therefore play moves that cause black to get uneasy and play damaging defensive moves that help white.

But I suppose like everything, it's just practice. Specific trick moves may not help in general, but leading the opponent into unfamiliar territory where there are no josekis might.

The player "MagicWand" on this forum seems to have a psychological approach to the game that works well for giving handicap, so you may check out his Malkovich games. I rarely see a player who plays the opponent so much and the board so little.

[daniel_the_smith]

The most recent thing I've learned about handicap go: don't be afraid to take gote to play thick shapes. The other guy doesn't know what to do with sente.

[Mef]

The most recent thing I've learned about handicap go: don't be afraid to take gote to play thick shapes. The other guy doesn't know what to do with sente.

Indeed, you should be able to play a handicap game like a "normal" game. Don't leave a weakness for your opponent to exploit, and wait for them to make slack moves you can capitalize on. The whole purpose of the handicap is the assumption that B will make mistakes, and white will capitalize on them. If they never make said slack moves and you are unable to capitalize -- you're supposed to lose -- and there's no shame in that, because your opponent played well and earned their win.

It may be that some players have a style that is better at inducing mistakes in their opponents, which helps them do better in handicap games, but I've never been convinced it's a requirement. If you keep a cool head and try not to think about how in an even game you are behind, etc, etc, you may surprise yourself at how slowly that deficit melts away (especially in endgame!) and ultimately the game comes out close.