Life In 19x19

Well, MISTER Fwiffo, how many problems have you solved today? Is it 50? Then keep going!

OK! Tonight after chores will be tsumego night.

Next up: How have your non-Malkovich correspondence games been going? Needless to say, I've followed your Malkovich game with... some interest.

Since the game against Marcus which I posted here, I've completed 7 more games and gone 5-2 on DGS. This 0.5 point win I think was the most interesting:

[sgf-full]http://www.dragongoserver.net/sgf.php?gid=581246[/sgf-full]

Also, this loss probably needs review the most; I need to make time for a detailed self-review:

[sgf-full]http://www.dragongoserver.net/sgf.php?gid=581987[/sgf-full]

I seem to be struggling with two different, paradoxical problems. One is getting overly focused on local results without looking at the broader strategy. The other is being unfocused and changing direction too easily. For example, in the second game; I played a shoulder-hit thinking to reduce the left side, but then changed my mind and decided to pull out and make life with the F17 stone. That gave my opponent the whole left side basically for free and I got no real territory out of the deal. I dodged a bullet too; I'm sure was wrong, allowing me a tesuji with .

Also, I must report that I never got around to tsumego last night. I went to bed early instead.

top game comment:
40: Break bamboo joint @ O8 then game would've been over. it is a loose ladder.

edit: i guess you need more practice on reading

edit: second game: move 65 was wrong choice.. you gave him penuki for nothing. that was a fatal mistake.

In fact, I had wanted to play O8, but I misread it as not quite working. Of course, I have no excuse. It's a turn based game, I could have taken a week to sit down and read it if I had the patience.

It seems like that tesuji comes up in every game I play nowadays.

fwiffo wrote:It seems like that tesuji comes up in every game I play nowadays.

Thanks to Mic, I hope to not miss that one again...

Magicwand wrote:edit: second game: move 65 was wrong choice.. you gave him penuki for nothing. that was a fatal mistake.

I picked that line because it connected my groups and I was jealously guarding my "territory" and didn't see a better route. I was concerned about the four-stone group becoming a burden. But I don't disagree with your comment. That ponnuki was stone in my shoe the whole game.

Starting with the peep at G4, how would you have played?

fwiffo wrote:

Magicwand wrote:edit: second game: move 65 was wrong choice.. you gave him penuki for nothing. that was a fatal mistake.

I picked that line because it connected my groups and I was jealously guarding my "territory" and didn't see a better route. I was concerned about the four-stone group becoming a burden. But I don't disagree with your comment. That ponnuki was stone in my shoe the whole game.

Starting with the peep at G4, how would you have played?

how about 65 @G6 -H6 -G8
as long as you keep him from having 2 eye ...i dont see any problem.

And then I can use my center thickness... Yes, indeed, that makes a lot more sense than what I did.

OK, I have been both playing and studying, even though I haven't been keeping the journal up to date. I've been doing at least a page or two of problems out of Making Good Shape every day, though I've stopped trying to keep track of which I'm getting right and wrong. The problems are just too mystifying for me; I feel lucky to get half of them right. I imagine that I'll just through this book over and over until it finally sinks in.

I've played a few casual games against stronger players. It's easier for me to enjoy those kinds of games because I don't feel as much pressure to win. When I play someone around my strength I feel a lot of pressure to win to prove that I'm improving and that I deserve my rank, which makes it stressful.

Hey, how've you been? Getting any good games in, or are you on a break?

I seem to be improving again, though I haven't been studying in any structured way. I'm winning a lot of games on DGS, and my rank is shooting up.