Life In 19x19

Wow Bill, thanks a bunch! That was very enlightening:)

Phelan wrote:I usually play the following:

(;GM[1]FF[4]CA[UTF-8]AP[CGoban:3]ST[2]
RU[Japanese]SZ[19]KM[0.00]

;B[pd]
;W[pp]
;B[dd]
;W[dp]
;B[jd]
;W[qf]
;B[qh]
;W[of]
;B[nd]
;W[pi]
;B[pg]
;W[og]
;B[pf]
;W[oe])

It usually plays very similar to black playing Q12.
Why is this wrong?

This variation makes me kinda hurt inside... Just the look of it, imagining that awkward white shape with nowhere to go and black with serious cash. Sure I could probably still take the corner, but my initial investment is now just waiting to be swallowed.

Having something facing the center isn't enough, and in the usual variation when you press them down, they aren't in a position to surround your stones, also if you DO play the joseki with the press as white, you should know that not only does white get real outer thickness, but he can still invade the corner later.

Look at that variation until it begins to hit you viscerally, that is the kind of shape you shouldn't need to think about. You should feel it.

[sl=EvenAMoronConnectsAgainstAPeep]Even a moron connects against a peep![/sl]

Imho this is a common case of repressing your instinct because someone told you once you shouldn't follow your opponent around.

Thank you all for your replies! I guess I need to stop playing that variation...

that peep looks so wrong...
if you connect and fight you will come out ahead (assuming you played everything else correctly).

it is my feeling saying telling me this so you should verify yourself.

In this position I can only say: Even a moron connects against a peep.
This is a go proverb and you don't really have a choice here, but it is undeniable that the fight will be complicated for both sides.

I was recently asked this very same question in a KGS review recently. As others have said you absolutely must connect and fight. However, the key move my reviewee missed was the hane of below. If White simply extends to a this is slack and may be a bigger mistake than black's peep. The hane forces black into bad shape of the empty triangle (if he overplays with the hane of b then you cut). Note how the hane plus marked stone form the eye stealing tesuji shape.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$
$$--------------------
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . X . X . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |
$$ . . . a O 2 O . . |
$$ . . . 4 3 1 . . . |
$$ . . . b 5 . X . . |
$$ . . . . . W c . . |
$$ . . . . . , . . . |
$$ . . . . . . . . . |[/go]

Edit: in fact in the review I mentioned black had pushed along the third line from c three times as in the joseki and then played the peep and pushed out. In your case white could also consider blocking at c instead of the hane as this makes black's shape awful and threatens to connect. But the point remains the hane is the strong move in the centre and extend is slack.