Life In 19x19

I have my own system of counting, and I only count in tournament games, whenever I need to make a tough decision. I've found, however, that many times, my rough 2 second estimate of the game is fine, and I can usually feel who's winning or losing in a game as long as it's by a margin of around half komi or more. I guess that comes from watching lots of KGS games.

I also tend to count more in games I'm observing. Maybe it's easier when you're not in time pressure.

I count in extremely serious games, but I say, "sorry, counting"
Unfortunately, I don't count after fuseki. I probably count right before yose.
I forgot how to use math to do the counting, so I just followed the Dr's orders in his first lesson.

runaway wrote:I count in extremely serious games, but I say, "sorry, counting"
Unfortunately, I don't count after fuseki. I probably count right before yose.
I forgot how to use math to do the counting, so I just followed the Dr's orders in his first lesson.

Why do you say "Sorry"? There is no need to apologize. It is part of the game.

Like some other posters, I have difficulty figuring out what's going to end up as territory and what isn't.

So, I've taken to trying half-counting, figuring that each side needs to get to 181 points on a 19x19 board, and counting whether I or my opponent has a good path to 181. I don't know if it's helped me be that much more accurate, however. Just yesterday I had a game where I counted I was behind by a good 40 points, and my opponent seemed surprised when I resigned.

DrStraw wrote:

runaway wrote:I count in extremely serious games, but I say, "sorry, counting"
Unfortunately, I don't count after fuseki. I probably count right before yose.
I forgot how to use math to do the counting, so I just followed the Dr's orders in his first lesson.

Why do you say "Sorry"? There is no need to apologize. It is part of the game.

I say sorry because I used up my own time to count. You're right, it's very dumb. I should change that.

runaway wrote:I say sorry because I used up my own time to count. You're right, it's very dumb. I should change that.

Actually, it is better to both think and count on your opponent's time.

I've heard or read someone say that the best thing to do is think on your time, count on your opponent's. I haven't really tried it, though.

Phelan wrote:I've heard or read someone say that the best thing to do is think on your time, count on your opponent's. I haven't really tried it, though.

Don't try it. Thinking is overrated.

I try to count as often as possible and I usually count during my opponents turn whenever possible. I would estimate that I count at least 15 times a game, more if the game is closer and less if the winner is already clear.

Counting is extremely important imo, you really need to know the overall position before you make an accurate plan. If you are ahead by ten points, why enter the insanely complex fight? But if the situation is reversed, then you should welcome all fights and try to make it as complicated as possible.

Counting is part of positional judgment, which is one of the most important skills for a go player. So, you all should really encourage yourself to count more =)

When I visually estimate, I commonly make the mistake of seeing my territory as smaller than it ought to be, and seeing my opponent's territory as larger than it ought to be. This is why I count as much as I can.

Every time I visually estimate, I can hear Cho Chikun's quote from Positional Judgment – "Let's actually count the game and stop letting fancy rule our heads."

When the game goes territorially, I try to count, with mistakes. I try too to evaluate how many points a short sequence gives (approximately) to me, or coasts to me. In the last case, I try to find another elsewhere that keeps the balance.

But most of the time, in my serious games (at my local club), my opponents play territorially and I find myself with walls everywhere and no territory, so I go for the fight, and I count only if we reach the endgame, then resign

I can't count when my dog will born, so counting a go game is impossible for me

I cant count my mobile phone number, but in go it goes suprisingly well...