Life In 19x19

Seems the simplest and best way to stay connected. The alternative was N11, but then I'd have to play here next move anyway after white protects - so it's better for me to play M11 straight away, just in case I later get the opportunity to play at N13 myself.

this is good shape

Hmm, 1-point gote eh? But, looking around, I guess that's really what we're down to? *sigh* So this is a 1-point gote of my own. Well, reverse sente actually As would have been J10 or H8.

I'm too lazy to do a proper count myself now, but CGoban score estimate says white is ahead 10.5, and it's late enough in the game that it's not going to be out by more than a few points (it's still marking a few points as being worth points when they're clearly going to be dame, but roughly the same number for each side, and certainly not a discrepancy of 11 in white's favour). We're close enough to the end that I'll play out the game anyway, but it's a shame for such an exciting game to end in this fashion

(Actually, I only just remembered the half-point kos - there's no way I'm actually playing those out unless somehow the game depends on them, but at least there are two so we can pass over them quickly.)

establishing solid connections

Meh. Let's just play a few dull endgame moves to end this (while silently praying for a miracle)...

(Side note: one of my first instincts was to play H12, but on closer reflection it looks to be worth pretty much zero points...)

Just to prove how bad my counting is ... I did a quick pass at counting this board from here, and got:

W+6.5 (B - 93, W - 99.5)

I'll wait until the end to see how close that is to the actual score ...

My rough count for on-board points Black ~94, White ~100 + 6.5. So, white wins by around 12.

im blocking off territory and establishing a more solid connection

Initially I was deciding between the 1-point reverse sente move at J8, and the 2-point gote at F5. (Theoretically I believe these should be worth the same, but I decided the gote was better here as it was actually one point better for me, and at this very late stage of the game I can't believe sente is worth more than one point.) But then I saw some moves in this area that could also be in the running for "best move" now. This move I've played is actually "double sente", in a rather perverse very-very-late-endgame kind of way If white plays a gote move elsewhere, I can gain another point with K9 (and be threatening to gain a further point still), and if white got this point, he'd be "threatening" the 1-point move at J11. So I suspect this is the right move to play, and therefore have played it.

Although my heart's not really in it - if I can somehow play the rest of this endgame absolutely perfectly, and my opponent messes up a little, I'll still probably lose by 4 points or so At least I can aim to lose by less than komi, to claim that I won on the board

keeping it simple here no need for fancy moves

OK, he responded. I think I'll take that 2-point gote now.

So I think that move is 1.5 points, or 3 points gote. First, if black plays first, it's gote, but with a sente followup push (actually I think Bill would say the 3-4 exchange is "ambiguous", but it counts the same as sente I think):

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Bcm1 Black first
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . O X . X . X X O . . O . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . X O X . X O X X X O . . . |
$$ | . . O . O X . O X . X X O O O O O O O |
$$ | . . . O . X . X . X X O O X X X X O X |
$$ | . . . O X . X O . X O . . O . . X X X |
$$ | . . O . O X . X X O O O O . O X . . X |
$$ | . . O X O . . . . . X . . O . X X X . |
$$ | . O X O O O O . . . . X O . X . X . X |
$$ | . O X X . X X X . O . X . X . X . . . |
$$ | . O X , X . . . X O O . X X X X X . X |
$$ | . . X X X . . X 1 3 4 O X . . . X . X |
$$ | . X X O . . . . O O . O O X X . . . . |
$$ | X X . X X X X X O X . . . O X . X . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O . . . . O X X X X . |
$$ | X X . X . . . O X X . . O . O X . X . |
$$ | X . X O O O . O O , . . . O O X O X X |
$$ | X X X O . O . . . . O . . O . O X X . |
$$ | X O O . . O . . . . . . . . . O X O X |
$$ | O . O O O . . . . . . . . . . O O O O |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

Similarly, if white plays first it's gote with a sente followup:

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$Wcm1 White first
$$ +---------------------------------------+
$$ | . . . . O X . X . X X O . . O . . . . |
$$ | . . . . O . X O X . X O X X X O . . . |
$$ | . . O . O X . O X . X X O O O O O O O |
$$ | . . . O . X . X . X X O O X X X X O X |
$$ | . . . O X . X O . X O . . O . . X X X |
$$ | . . O . O X . X X O O O O . O X . . X |
$$ | . . O X O . . . . . X . . O . X X X . |
$$ | . O X O O O O . . . . X O . X . X . X |
$$ | . O X X . X X X 3 O . X . X . X . . . |
$$ | . O X , X . . 4 X O O . X X X X X . X |
$$ | . . X X X . . X 1 . . O X . . . X . X |
$$ | . X X O . . . . O O . O O X X . . . . |
$$ | X X . X X X X X O X . . . O X . X . . |
$$ | . . . X X O O X O . . . . O X X X X . |
$$ | X X . X . . . O X X . . O . O X . X . |
$$ | X . X O O O . O O , . . . O O X O X X |
$$ | X X X O . O . . . . O . . O . O X X . |
$$ | X O O . . O . . . . . . . . . O X O X |
$$ | O . O O O . . . . . . . . . . O O O O |
$$ +---------------------------------------+[/go]

there's a 3 point swing between these two, so it's 1.5 miai counting, slightly larger than the 2 point gote.

now we are entering the last little bit of endgame, again im keeping everything simple just blocking off the last little bit of territory

Not really much point in saying anything here - or, I guess, from here until the end of the game (which can't be long away).

solid connection