The
Enclave
A PREMIUM ENGLISH LANGUAGE GO MAGAZINE
圍棋
囲碁
碁
바둑
A Letter from Our Founder The first issue of the Enclave went over incredibly well. We had many compliments and everybody seemed pleased with what we’d given out. I’m very glad we could provide this service to all of you, it’s been a pleasure from the get-go. I hope you will all choose to continue downloading every issue! And if anybody sees an error, or something that they would like to comment on, anything, drop us a line:
[email protected] [email protected] We’d e’d love to hear from you all! al l! On a different note, when we first began the Enclave, I had grandoise visions of spreading Go among everyone everyone I knew and helping the entire Go community grow larger and beer. I played as o�en as I could and dreamed of one day being a truly impressive player pla yer.. Even with everything changing, my grandoise visions haven’t le� me. I still want the entire world to know about this game. I still want to make a difference to the Go community. Go is something that helps the player, player, it develops our thoughtful side and makes us look at life in a different way. When we begin to understand that Go is about seeing something in a way nobody else does, that it is about balancing our ideas with our opponent’s, we begin to see that Go is a lot like life. And as we make the connection, maybe we can see that life is different than we first thought it was. Thank you everybody who has shown me that Go is not what I thought. Your teaching and your thoughtful words have really opened up something for me personally, and not just in my game. I hope that you all will help me continue to grow, both as a player and as a person. p erson. And I hope that I can do the same for you. Come with me and let’s learn a thing or two on the way. I’d be pleased to pass what I’ve learned on to you. ~Eric Dunham
Index Features 2 A Letter From Our Founder 7 Beginner Lessons — Why We Start in the Corner 9 Go Around the World 26 Beginner Life and Death 27 Amateur Life and Death 28 From Heights Above — Lee Kibong, 7d 35 Go: A Matter of Life and Death 38 Insights — king8egg [7d] vs. Artem92 [7d] 54 A History of Go — Go In Europe 63 Stones and Gems 64 A Picture Picture Worth a Thousand Moves Mov es 65 Marketplace
Articles 5 Upgrade 1.1 6 A Step to The World Stage: The North American Fujitsu 15 A Few Good Moves: A Joeski Study 36 Hamete or o r Tennozan? Tennozan? 58 Playing Against a Diagonal Fuseki
Misplay! In the spirit of “I missed the throw-in!” throw-in!” A few mistakes that we made in our first issue have come to our aention, so to keep things straight we’ll correct them here.
You Got the Linux Right...
I’ll Call That Wrong!
In a true display of the value of fact-checking, in the article “Go in a Land of Ice and Snow” we incorrectly stated that the author, Alexander Rødseth, currently attends the Norwegian University University of Science & Technology, and that he lived with his family. Turns out both of those ‘facts’ were wrong! So, for a correction, Alexander currently works as a freelance 3D graphics artist and lives by himself in Oslo, Norway. But... we got the Linux part right!
It was noted on the forum at www.godiscussions.com that computers are still far away from beating top poker plays. We did a lile research and found that the comment had some ground to it. But, computers are far beer than the average poker player, something they cannot claim to be in Go. We do have to admit however that the post had merit; computers still cannot beat top poker players consistently.
Do you Do you have any questions or comments? Let us know at:
[email protected]
Ar Y A Wtr? Would you like to write for the finest English-language Go publication in the world? The Enclave is actively seeking talented writers to cover Go subjects of all kinds! This is an excellent way to get your work work seen! If interested, just send a completed article or short story (200-600 words) to:
[email protected] Further information will be provided upon contact.
Upgrade 1.1 Timeline of the future: The Enclave will publish a magazine
Accomplished!
We’d e’d like to follow the above line with the words, “and improve it constantly.” constantly.” Nice thought, but kind of o f a hard thing to do when you are run entirely by volunteers, and the entire enti re project is personally overseen in ever aspect by just a single person. But that’s that’s no excuse to not try! t ry! And try we did, so here are a few things t hings you can look for in this th is issue: 1. Clickable hyperlinks—See a hyperlink? Click it and follow the path out to the worldwide web. This also includes pictures and e-mails; if you see a link in a picture, go ahead and click it. 2. Colored, scalable diagrams—A lot of our readers complained last issue that our diagrams weren’t too prey. prey. Even those that didn’t notice the low quality compained compain ed that they didn’t really add much to the appearance of the page. So, now they are vector-based art (which is infinitely scalable) and they have colored boards underneath! 3. More non-feature articles—A lot of our content in the last issue was made up of what is called a ‘feature,’ that is, it is featured in every issue. While we like features, we think it’s it’s good to keep different things coming in for every issue. So, over half of our o ur content this issue is made up of this type of content. If you have any suggestions for future issues, or comments on the current one, feel free to send an e-mail to:
[email protected] Note that the e-mail is clickable!
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A A SStep tep to Stage age to the the World St The Th T he e North North A A merican merican Fujitsu Fujitsu The North American Fujitsu has been around since 1990, the year that the Fujitsu Cup became an international tournament. Each year the Fujitsu includes 16 players from all around the world, but only one from North America. So for the players from North America, there is only one chance to perform on the world stage—The Fujitsu Cup in Japan. This year was no exception. And so sixteen of the top players in North America matched up against each other for the honor and privelege of performing among the best players in the entire world. For the past five years the manner of competing has changed from a physical match to a competition in cyberspace, due to the Nihon Kiin’ Kiin’ss cutback of sponsorship for the event. This year the games were played on the KGS Go Server, rather than the usual International Go server, in a gathering of 9d cyberteurs rarely seen on a western Go server. The event begins on November 22, at 5 PM GMT. Preparations for this tournament began immediately a�er labor day, and two months of work is coming to a close. The games start well, and all around the server people began sending messages to friends telling them to watch the games. Article continued on page 23
Beginner Lessons Why We Start in the Corner
by Lamar Bishop
When we first begin playing Go, many of us are unsure of what is a good move, or even a decent move. Most of us will begin by playing random moves all over the board. Where do we move? What comes first? What’s the best strategy? Why? If you are new to the game and find yourself asking these things, don’t feel bad, everybody has the same question when they first start playing. Corners first, then sides, then center
A good rule of thumb is the old proverb, “Corners first, then sides, and then center.” It’s one of the first things that Go players learn, because it’s so very important. For those who don’t quite understand why this rule is so important, have a look at Diagrams 1-3. The stones in each diagram surround exactly nine points, but look how much easier it is to capture those nine points in the corner. The corner takes only seven stones to surround the nine points, on the sides it takes eleven stones to surround the same amount, and in the center it takes a whole sixteen stones to surround just those nine points! That’s over twice the amount of stones to surround the exact same amount of points! Not only that, but as you play your game, you will find that it is incredibly easier to capture those nine points in the corner than in the center, even if you don’t consider all of the extra moves.
Diagram 1
Diagram 2
Diagram 3
The 32-36 Rule
Something I was taught when I first started playing was the “32-36 Rule,” which can be seen in Diagram 4 on the next page. This is an excellent example of why we take the corners and the sides first. If we were to count, we would 7
see that the result of this peculiar setup is black with 121 points and white with 136 points (even without any komi). That’s where the name for the rule comes from: black gets 32 percent of the board, and white gets 36 percent of it. Not a completely decisive win by any means, but definitely a clear win.
Diagram 4: The 32-36 Rule
As we can see, even if you capture all but two lines of territory along the edge of the goban, the center is still not large enough to compensate for the outside of the board. Wrapping Up
As you can see, the sides and corners are just way too vital to give up without a fight, as they have more points than the center. center. Sure, the center is important, but if you have to make a choice between the two, the sides are easier to capture and bigger in the end. So, “Corners first, then sides, then center.” center.” Playing in this order guarantees a good start to the game for beginning players. There are a lot of options for fuseki, but none as simple and straightforward as the one we just showed. 8
Go Around the the World Introducing the New President of the Irish Go Association
Go Around the World Ian Davis 1 dan BGA, President, Irish Go Association Go Around the World is a new feature. Every issue we will interview a major Go figure and ask them questions about their Go background and what they currently do in the Go world. We will also be asking them where they think Go is headed and how to make the future of Go brighter than it has been since Confucius came along and messed it all up. Ian Davis, President of the Irish Go Association
The President E: How did you get into Go?
I: Bizarrely, it was due to being aracted to the opposite sex. That was the only reason I went when I first went along to a Go club. Of course, that didn’t work out, but many years later I found myself living in the city with the biggest Go club in the United Kingdom. So I decided I would learn to play the game properly. Being able to play four nights a week it was easy to get hooked. What’s your rank? E: What’s
I: I have a 1 dan certificate from the British Go Association, for a while I was close to 2 dan, but slipped back. Hopefully I can get my European rating back up again though, because I’d really like to make 2 dan.
E: Do any of your family members or close friends play Go? I: None of my family play Go actually, but I do have a few friends from the university who play the game. I’ve met most of my Go friends through the game.
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E: Describe some of your Go experiences. What tournaments have you played in? What Go events have you aended or helped with? Have you ever taught Go? Anything interesting you’d like to share? Have you ever studied under a professional player?
I: Big question! I have represented Ireland internationally twice. I took part in the first Korean Prime Minister ’s Cup, and the World Amateur Amateur Go Championship this year. My performance in both those was a lile disappointing for me, but they are obviously both tough competitions. My favourite favourite tournaments would probably be either the European Go Congress in Leksand, Rabbity Six in Finland, or one of the London Open tournaments I’ve aended. Ian playing at a tournament in Belfast The reason is because they all have a great social atmosphere. Aending an event with a sauna party simply rocks compared to some of the tournaments I’ve been too. I’ve organised quite a few tournaments online and two tournaments in my home city. city. I find organising quite stressful, I much prefer playing in tournaments! At the moment I study with Guo Juan 5p, I take part in her group classes. She is one of the best teacher’s I know, so flexible at being able to teach for any level. GuoJuan teaches online, her school can be found at: h�p://www.guojuangoschool.com
E: How long have you been a part of the Irish Go Association (IGA)? What positions have you held in the IGA?
I: I think I’ve been in the IGA ever since I moved back to Ireland, maybe four or five years. For two year’s I was on the Commiee until I became President.
E: When did you become the president of the IGA? What does the IGA consider when looking to find a new president?
I: (Laughs) Actually the Presidency isn’t a very popular position. Anyone who 11
will stand is probably what they are looking for. for. The previous President had held the position for 13 years.
E: What has been your biggest hurdle while playing Go? I: Resisting the urge to be greedy or naughty is my biggest obstacle. Honte can be so hard for me.
The Organization E: How long has the IGA been around? I: Officially since 1989, one of the newer Go organizations.
E: How many members does the IGA have? I: We have almost 50 official members taken to popularize E: What steps has the IGA taken Go? What has been the most successful popularization effort?
Deep in concentration at the Irish Open 2008
I: As such a small organisation it’s difficult to make effective promotions. Our main efforts are usually localised. We have found universities universities and schools to be the biggest returners for advertising investments. investments.
E: How well does the IGA traditionally perform in international tournaments? I: Our highest score is 4/8 in the WAGC, the field is geing tougher all the time, so we will wait a long time to beer that I think.
E: What are your plans for the IGA while you are president? Are there anymajor renovations or improvements you’d like to make? Any new programs or objectives you’d like to make?
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don’t actually have a grand plan laid out. My main aim is to increase memI: I don’t bership amongst students. If we could get a university club up and running that would be wonderful. For us the critical thing really is to get enough mem bers so we can start making available beer services and more events. Once we breach a number I believe we can start to really increase awareness of Go in this country. Just five years ago there was only really one club in Ireland, now we have four active clubs. I appreciate that this is still a small number n umber,, but for us this has been a really a big increase.
E: What is the most exciting event the IGA organizes? What makes it such a great event?
I: Our biggest event is the Irish Open. It’s played in a Teachers’ Social Club in Dublin. I think it has a good atmosphere, due to the availability of Guinness and trips to nearby restaurants. We We are aracting increasingly large crowds to the event every year. For event info, check: h�p://www.irish-go.org/clubs-tournaments/irish-open/2009-irish-go-congress/
E: Does the IGA have any grants like the Ing Foundation or the AGA? How do you help new chapters start up?
I: We are lucky to be able to get equipment grants from the European Go Federation. It is certainly possible for members to apply directly to the IGA for for assistance though.
The Plan E: What is the biggest issue facing the Go world today? What plans do you have to rectify it in Ireland?
I: In the age of the credit crunch I think finanical concerns might be the biggest worry. Unfortunately, the Niihon-Kiin ( 日本棋院 [the Japanese Go Association]) is still in a poor financial position, and as a big sponsor in Go across the world, that has to be a worry for us all. Hopefully we can see some extra assistance from Korea and China . Overall I think Go is still world remains healthy, healthy, and the numbers are growing in the West. West.
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E: What would you consider the best method for popularizing Go among the general population?
I: No idea! E: Do you think Go players in Europe will be able to raise their skill level to that of players in Asia? If so, how would it happen?
I: Until European players have the opportunity to aend a Go School from age 5 I really can’t can’t see us geing to that level. Certainly though, our level is increasing. The internet and greater availability of Go literature has started to power up our Go. Players like Catalin Taranu have reached the level of 5 dan professional, so we can do this, but we need to start younger, and we need to have the level of competition more readily available. To achieve this would probably take a massive financial seachange in the West—Go would have to be hugely more popular than it is today. today.
E: To wrap it up... is there anything you’d like to say to the international Go community?
I: Don’t flood. (Ian is a Senior Admin on the KGS Go Server) Many thanks to Ian Davis for the interview and the Irish Go Association for their help in writing this article!
Upcoming IGA Events: January 17th: University College Cork Open Go Tournament March 20th-22nd: Irish Go Congress For further information on the Irish Go Association or their events, visit: h�p://www.irish-go.org
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The top games gather literally hundreds of observers as the games wear on, everybody crowding in to see some of the strongest players they know of playing against other players their own rank. The first round goes well with no real surprises or problems. The tournament is so normal that in all but one game, the higher rated player won the game, there wasn’t a single upset or surprise. And so the games progress into the second round, where the first real surprise of the tournament happens. Mingjiu Jiang, rated at 9.57 dan, a 7 dan professional, and seeded first for the event, is matched against Gan Sheng Shi, rated at 7.77 dan, seeded ninth, a Canadian player. player. Shi is fourteen years old and becoming known in Go circles as a Canadian phenomenon. He seems to be unstoppable, but even a fantastically skilled fourteen year old is no match for the wise playing of a professional player, player, and the game tips continuously in Gan Sheng Shi, a Canadian, is Mingjiu’s favor as each second ticks by. becoming a top Go player During the game Gan Sheng Shi plays very well against Mingjiu, especially considering the difference in strength. Gan Sheng Shi later estimates that as the game drew to an end that Mingjiu had a 70% chance of winning the game. But the goban is sometimes more friendly than the clock, and as the seconds ticked down, observers began to wonder how long it would be before Mingjiu was forced to resign on time. And then... the clock stops ticking. Many players express their dissapointment, or comment that Gan Sheng Shi should have already resigned before the game got to this point. The general sentiment is that Mingjiu should not have lost, but as Jie Li, 7d AGA, later comments, “It is common knowledge that in tournaments, ‘Time is territory, time is blood.’ “ The next round of games progresses prey much as expected, except for Gan Sheng Shi’s, again. His third round opponent is Huiren Yang, seeded in fourth at 8.87 dan, and Chinese 1 dan professional. Amidst complaints about his last game and predictions that Yang Yang would destroy him this round, Gan Sheng Shi plays an excellent game that more than makes up for any doubts about his ability. Five hundred people watch unbelievingly as Shi matches 23
in the earlier matches. But even before the comments can be given any credit, technical difficulties start to impede the game and at move 55 Li disconnects and is not able to reconnect to the server to finish the game. When Jie Li cannot reconnect, the game has to be reschduled for another time. The observers leave slowly, waiting hopefully for word from Li, until the tournament director finally announces that the game will be rescheduled to a later date. When the later date comes on November 30th, all those predictions do indeed come true, with Jie Li crushing Shi by 13.5 points. Shi is not discouraged however, saying, “I felt that I performed very, very well, because last year I lost in the second round. It was hard for me to believe that I came so far into the tournament as to defeat two pros. I think I am very satisfied with my results and I would like to perform the same next year.” As for Jie Li, he’s happy to be able to aend the World Fujitsu again, saying, “I’ve been to the World Fujitsu and the World Oza, and they are really fascinating events. I am happy that I have the chance to participate in another world class championship again.” As for how well he thinks he will perform in the upcoming Fujitsu, he says, “Realistically, I just want to have the opportunity to play with the world’s top pros.” For him, the difficult part is yet to come. In North America, America, he is on familiar ground and is quite confident of his ability to win. In the World Fujitsu, Li’s position as a player might best be summed up by Philip Waldron’s (the tournament Director) quote: “I would be thrilled if the North American representative won his first game. The Fujitsu field is composed of the top players in the world, and North America just still doesn’t doesn’t compete at that level.” Congratulations are in order to Li for his fine performance at the North American Fujitsu, and well-wishes for his performance at the World World Fujitsu.
Li will be performing at the Fujitsu Cup in Japan sometime in either July or August. Anybody wanting to keep track of the date or to see the results from previous years can visit: hp://www.nihonkiin.or.jp/match/fujitsu/index-e.html 25
Beginner Life and Death Life and death is a vital element of improving one’s game. Every problem requires the player to kill or save a group of stones. In each problem there is a vital point. The vital point is a brilliant play that will either save or kill the group. Take Take a look at these problems and see if you can solve them!
White to kill
Wh i t e t o k i l l
White to kill
Wh i t e t o k i l l
White to kill
Wh i t e t o k i l l 26
Amateur Life and Death Tsumego for amateur players. These tsumego are not as easy as the beginner life and death problems, and some will present a challenge even for fairly good amateurs. Some are relatively easy, and some are much more difficult. Either way, we hope your game gets beer!
White to kill
Black to kill
White to kill
Wh i t e t o k i l l
White to kill
White to kill 27
Frm Higts Abv
Lee Kibong, Korean 7d
Lee is an incredibly talented 7 dan Korean amateur with decades of Go experience under his belt. Though not a professional, don’t let his rank fool you! Lee is very, very strong, and probably would have made pro at some point if he had studied Go with the goal of becoming a pro. He began teaching Go in the 90s, something he continues to do to this day at his own Go institute, the groundbreaking International Baduk Academy in Seoul. Between his performances at tournaments, his lessons, organizing his school, and trying to keep his own Go up to par, Lee’s lucky he has time to breath, so we were very lucky we got a chance to interview him. Enjoy!
The Enclave: How did you get interested in Baduk? Obviously you are a good player, player, since you have the highest amateur rank you can get in Korea. Why have you dedicated so much to Baduk without ever becoming a professional player?
Lee: When I was seven my father showed showed me Baduk, and I got interested in the game. When I was in school, I was not able to spend as much time on baduk as was required to become a professional. Later when I was around 30 and got 7d I tried to get professional, but that was not possible anymore.
E: What have you done in your Baduk career? Where did you study, and what tournaments have you played? I’ve heard you won some tournaments back in the 1990’s, but not much else.
L: When I was young there were no facilities like public dojangs (baduk schools) here in Korea and I also did not want to become a professional. So I studied Baduk by myself mostly. In the 1990’s I won a national tournament and started to study seriously to try to become a professional. I won the Korean national championship three times in the 90’s. In Korea there are usually about ten national championships a year, and back then I participated in nearly every one of them. I also particiapted in the European Go Championship four times and in several other European tournaments.
E: When was your most active involvement with Baduk? L: As I said, in the 1990’s as a tournament player, and of course now, leading the International Baduk Academy in Seoul as a teacher. To learn more about Lee’s Go school, visit h�p://www.baduk-academy.com
E: Who was the most difficult opponent you have ever faced? L: In Korea there are lots of strong players so that question is prey much
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impossible to answer.
E: You took 2nd in the main tournament and 1st place in the weekend tournament of the 50th European Go Championship in 2006. What was your impression of European players at that time? Would you say that Asian players are stronger than Europeans? Are the style between continents very different?
“Considering the circumstances, I was surprised at
how strong
the European players were, but... I think Asia is still ahead. L: Considering the circumstances (referring to the infrastructure of Go schools and teachers) I was surprised at how strong the European players were. But there are lots of top level amateurs in Asia that could beat the top European players, so I think that Asia is still ahead. I don’t think that style is a very important point, but usually european players tend to overplay. Here in Korea you have a lot of very strong opponents so you quickly learn what type of overplay can be punished and what type is okay. okay. I think that European players o�en miss that experience, so they don’t even recognize that they are overplaying. Also, many westerners play very theoretically, while in Asia, especially in Korea, reading and fighting is more important than pure knowledge about theoretical concepts.
E: Tell us a bit about your school, the International Baduk Academy. What does it cost, where do you live while aending, how do you study?
L: The International Baduk Academy Academy in Seoul is my Go school. It is designed to address foreigners who want to come to study Baduk here in Korea. Our 30
students live in shared appartments, close to the Academy Acad emy.. Usually in the morning, I give a lecture or the students can selfstudy by doing things like Life and Death, stufying professional games, and so on. Then in the a�ernoon students play in our internal league or play and review teaching games with our teachers. The facilities at the IBA are comfortable and pleasant At the moment, the basic cost per month if you include an apartment here is 500€*, but there are a lot of possibilities for discounts such as prepayment, or youth discounts, and there are also scholarships. *Roughly $700
E: You’ve said that your travels to Europe inspired you to start the International Baduk Academy, were the European Go Championships that you aended part of this inspiration, or was there something else that inspired you?
L: Yeah, you guessed that right, it was mainly my experiences when traveling to Europe (not only the EGC, but also the other tournaments I aended there). There was nothing like a Go school for Europeans, but I met a lot of people who told me that they would like to experience something like that, but they were afraid of language problems or things like that. So I thought to myself that this kind of academy might be a good solution for that problem.
E: Baduk academies used to be more common, but I’ve heard that they are less common in Korea now, now, and smaller than before. Why did you choose to start an academy when it seems interest in Baduk is waning?
L: Actually, the academies you are talking about are dojangs, the traditional Korean version. They only teach in Korean and are mostly for players who want to become professionals. Also, Also, the minimum level is prey high. The goals of the IBA are very different. The official language of the IBA is English,
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so it is much easier for foreigners to communicate here, and we also address weakerplayers who just want to study for a shorter time and improve for some stones. Of course, I also try to help those, who want to become professional here.
E: Did you build the IBA by yourself, or did you have business partners? L: I built it mainly buy myself, but some friends helped me with it. E: Sounds like you had some drive! Even today, you are one of the professors at the IBA, so you keep going. Who are some of the other teachers, and how are they involved with Baduk?
L: Our teachers here are mostly top level Korean amateurs and former yeonguseng*. At the moment there are four Korean 7d teachers here at the IBA, including Kim Jung Hyeop, Lee teaching at a morning lesson at the IBA who won last year’s lightning tournament at the EGC and scored eight wins in the main tournament (also beating AlexanAlexander Dinerchteinn, 3p) Oh ChiMin, who won two big tournaments now in Berlin in the past weeks, is also a former teacher of the IBA. *Students trying to become professionals, the equivalent of a Japanese insei.
E: As a teacher, what do you stress most for students? What is the most important thing when learning Baduk? theory, I think that Life and Death problems are L: From the standpoint of go theory, the main thing to study, to improve the student’s reading ability. But I also think that the student’s aitude and endurance is a very important factor. You need some kind of talent to do well in Baduk, but if you are studying hard and constantly, you can also overcome a lack of such talent.
Q: Do you have a teaching background from before the IBA? I’ve heard 32
rumors you used to teach for the Myojing University University in Seoul, but as I said before, it’s hard to look you up.
A: Yeah, I was teaching Baduk for about 15 years before opening the IBA. I first started to teach kids in the 90’s and later, when Myeongji opened, they asked me to teach there, and I accepted the offer, teaching there for eleven years.
E: What has been the most challenging part of establishing the IBA? L: It was a very risky decision to open the IBA. No one had ever tried something like it before us, so no one was able to share experiences from previous experience and we had to start everything from nothing. We had some troublesin the beginning and a lot of unexpected things happened, but with some help we managed it mostly. But even now, there are still new surprises happening all the time.
E: What do you think makes the IBA beer than other Baduk academies? d ifference between the IBA and the normal dojangs earlier. I L: I explained the difference think we are adressing different kinds of people, so there is no real rivalry.
E: What has inspired you to make the IBA so accessible? Many people praise you for your willingness to work with them to allow them to come. Why have you done this, even at a cost to yourself?
L: Well, at the moment, Baduk is well known in only 3 countries. Everywhere else it is just a niche game. Also, as I mentioned that there aren’t any Baduk facilities outside of the Asian countries, but I wanted to give everyone everyone a chance to experience what it’s like to study Baduk more seriously. But I know of course that money is always an issue for most people, so I always try to find a solution for my students that does not harm either of us.
E: Who has been your most successful student to date?
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L: (Smiling) How do you define successful? My strongest student at the moment is Simon from Germany.
E: Many of our readers will be familiar with you as LeeKibong on KGS, do you play o�en on the internet? What is your favorite server for playing Baduk? IGS? KGS? Cyberoro?
L: I mostly play on KGS at the moment. I like the friendly atmosphere there, even though finding opponents is o�en difficult. For watching professional games and tournaments I usually use CyberOro.
E: Would you explain for us a lile bit about the Korean Professional System? Many of our readers do not know about pro systems other than the Japan. Also, what is it like to be an amateur player in Korea?
L: There are several ways to become a professional in Korea, with some extra rules and exceptions for foreigners. Some are only for yeonguseng, and have a maximum age limit, some are open to everyone. As for professional tournaments, there are some important Korean tournaments likse the Kuksu, but usually the aention lies on international tournaments. This is one of the major differences if you compare Korea to Japan. There are two reasons for that in my opinion. First is, that the prize money in Korean tournaments (and also international ones) is much lower than in the Japanese titles, and the second one is that in the last few years, Japanese players haven’t haven’t been able to compete internationally, internationally, so it is quite natural that they would focus on national titles. Lee Kibong In the past few years, Lee has become one of the most influential Korean players in the western world, world, performing well in multiple European tournaments. He is now a top amateur and teaches Go at his school designed for westerners. westerners. 34
G o: A M A M a a tter of L f Li f fe a n n d D d Dea th Because Go players are the only ones who learn by dying You might want to be careful where and what you play!
NoKnott: tell me something, if a duck gets convicted of being a badduk, does he go to a duckslammr? :)
HugeDoug: playing with dead stones? Isn’t that called necrophilia? o.O
Sibahi: i guess i will never be Shusaku elefunt: it would be very tough to become someone who is dead
Arawn:Myopponenthasn’treturned. runtt21:givehimamintologbackin Arawn:Slowlystrugglingtocount,Ithink hemightnotbeeager maproom:Arawn,youropponentisabot
Reviewer: Asking how to get out of this situation is like asking how to get out of a shark tank. Reviewer: The correct answer is: “WHY ARE YOU IN A SHARK TANK!?!?!?!?”
I was gonna, but...
BigDoug: I was thinking about booting them, but they stopped DangoMouse: i booted them DangoMouse: that’s why they stopped
CyberPunk: i think i played with a 1d CyberPunk: i was winning CyberPunk: >-<
Ubiquity: there’s something you really need to understand about go Ubiquity: when retarded stones are sitting around Ubiquity: and you own the center Ubiquity: you have to murder them
CyberPunk: i was pwning him ketchup: good for you CyberPunk: then i died all over CyberPunk: >...< CyberPunk: unbelievable BigDoug: I doubt that you were owning him if all your groups died
Have a funny Go-related story that you would like to share? A favorite Go joke? Another lame Life and Death pun that we could pretend we didn’t base this section’s name off of? Maybe you think you can outdo our bad sense of humor? If you do, send your joke to us, and if we like it, we’ll stick it in the next issue! Send all jokes to:
[email protected] Please be tasteful, all jokes can and will be viewed by children. 35
Hamete...... or Tennozan?
wri�en by Alexander Dinerchtein
8 7
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Diagram 1
Diagram 2
Diagram 3
Is it a trick move, or a good idea ? All Go players stronger than 10 kyu should know that the hane at 7 in Diagram 1 is wrong. Black has to extend instead. You You may know how to punish it. Of course, it’s bad to cut directly — it’s a very common mistake. White must start with the hane at 2 in Diagram 2. The aachment at 6 is a brilliant tesuji a�er that. The result in Diagram 2 is very similar to classic joseki, but there is a useless exchange. Black lost a ko threat by pushing, he also lost his own liberty and the possibility of aacking at 8. Black may try to fight actively with something like the playing in Diagram 3, but his shape a�er white plays 16 is terrible. So, playing the hane is a bad move. This play is a very famous and common trick play. It’s hard to trick anyone by using it, with the exception of double digit kyu players. Li Zhe in 2005, a year before making history as But, just a few days ago, it was used in a real pro the youngest title holder in China game! Li Zhe (Chinese: 李喆 , pictured right), 5p decided 36
White’s approach at 6 in Diagram 2 prevent Black from obtaining two shimaris, which is generally considered too much territory in the fuseki. The most common responses are at A and B. Since this is such a common fuseki, 8 9 let’s take some 10 time to examine possibilties. Diagram 3, above, branches Diagram 3 off into the nadare variations, which are too many and too complicated to explain well in this review, so we’ll skip over them In Diagram 4 there are, again,
19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12
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Diagram 2
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Diagram 4
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Diagram 5
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many options. In the Diagram 5 formation the result is very clear cut: White has a sta ble group on the side and Black obtains corner territory. With this exact fuseki 39
Back to the game, white 12 is a new trend of joseki that began to see play around 2005-2006. The old fashioned way is at A, seen in Diagram 18. Of the two options in Diagram 18, A is the clasical move and B was invented in 2005 by Lee Changho. We’ll start by having a look at A.
19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8
Diagram 19 is the first option for A. This is a simple result. Black makes a formation on the boom side while White gets a thick corner. There is also another variation of this result using a ladder, but we’ll ignore it here. (To see this specific variation, check out the joseki the joseki article on page 13) 13 )
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Diagram 19
1
Diagram 21 shows the normal end of the new joseki, as playing as in Diagram 22 gives B white a cor14 ner that’ th at’ss just too big.
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Diagram 18
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Diagram 20 shows the new joseki. In this one, A and B are miai points.
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Diagram 17
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Diagram 20
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Diagram 21
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Diagram 22
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Following the game in Diagram 23, Black 15 is the calm way. There is also a fighting variation variation at A, in Diagram 24. Artem prob27 ably wouldn’t like 28 24 21 20 26 to fight this varia23 25 22 tion early, these 16 types of games 18 turn out to be very complicated.
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Diagram 23
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Diagram 24
Back in the game, Al makes an interesting choice here in Diagram 25. Usually we we would would see White finishing the joseki shown in Diagram 26.
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Al probably did not like Black forming a moyo on the boom, so he rejected this and chose to reduce the influence of the marked wall immediately.
Diagram 25 19 18 17
A
16 15
22
14 13
However, I feel that this variation is beer than the game. White most likely takes sente to play at A next and obtain the good extension from his shimari. He also has more territory than Black. Finally Black cannot enclose the right nor the boom in one move, there is plenty of aji for invasion.
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Diagram 26
42
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Diagram 27
White 24 in Diagram 28 is a move to take pains over. over. A move move at A or B would be overconcentrated, whereas in the game White is rather thin on the boom.
9 8 7 6 5 4
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3
Diagram 27 is interesting again! Usually we see Black approach the shimari here. Perhaps Artem was afraid of a pincer. We can see that in this game, both players are reluctant to fight and are choosing very simple strageties.
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Diagram 28 19
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Diagram 29
F
To me, it’s strange that Artem chooses D10 over C9 (Diagram 29). The result, shown in Diagram 30, is about the same as the game, however Black is thicker.
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Diagram 30
43
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Now there is some aji at A in Diagram 31. It can be exploited as in Diagram 32.
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Diagram 31
Diagram 32
3 2
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A
Diagram 34
16 15
37
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39
14
The key to this game will be White’s invasion of Black’s right side moyo, Diagram 34. White chooses to come in puing pressure on K16 with move 36. A would be too so�, as Black would be connected and White would be the only one that would have to fear for his group.
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Diagram 34 19 18 17 16
Over in Diagram 34, Black 37 prevents the connection underneath, White 38 is the vital point for shape and Black 39 is aempting to prevent White A.
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Diagram 35
44
Black’s shape in Diagram 35 is not good, but it is the only move.
If black tries anything else, White will connect as shown in Diagram 36. R14 in Diagram 37 is big, but isn’t urgent. It seems more important to help the two marked stones. with a move like A. Because he does not, White splits strongly with move 38 in Diagram 38. The same move also gives White the potential of connecting back.
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Diagram 36 19 18 17
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Diagram 38
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Diagram 37
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Diagram 39 19 18 17
It’s not easy to straightaway move out the two stones, so Black chose to probe. Territorially however, this is a bit damaging. Perhaps it is beer to jump out at A. I am not sure how it would develope, but the aji of B remains that way.
16 15
In the game, Black aempts to make move 51, shown in Diagram 40, in sente.
51
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Diagram 40
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Diagram 42 A
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Diagram 41
His plan is to play pl ay like Diagram 41 and have the cut at A later on in the game. But White chooses to simply connect and spoil his plans; Diagram 42.
A
The aachment in Diagram 43 is a misread. Black should conserve the aji here and jump away at A.
19 18 17
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Diagram 43
By Diagram 44, Black has lost a lot of territory. He ends up being behind in territory so he has to play actively. Black 67 in Diagram 45 is a nice move, enclosing White and helping his weak group. White’s R13 in the same diagram is an overplay. He should be 19
19 18
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Diagram 44
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Diagram 45
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Diagram 46
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Diagram 47
fixing his aji in the center. If white plays at 68 in Diagrams 46 and 47 and black connects with 69, he’ll find that white can split him as shown in the diagrams. 19
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A
Diagram 48
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Diagram 49
S14 in Diagram 48 seems like a weak move, Black should take advantage advantage at A. But that’s okay because S13 is really greedy, White should take this chance to strengthen the center since S14 let him off easy. Black’s N15 is an odd move, it’s gote.
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Diagram 50
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Diagram 51 19
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5 4
Diagram 52
3 2
White 80 in Diagram 50 is a big mistake. If white followed Diagram 53 through the end of Diagram 51, Black would not be able to cut through. As it is, Black 81 in Diagram 52 is very painful for white. And then white makes a severe mistake with 92 and black gets the vital point with 93. White has no choice but to play 94 to try to save his group, black plays 95 to cut off the dragon from connecting and now white is in huge trouble. 1
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Diagram 54 19
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125 124
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Diagram 55
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119
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Diagram 56
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Diagram 57
Black securely captures the big dragon by move 113, shown in Diagram 54, and the game looks lost for white. However... it’s not just yet. Black’s L8 in Diagram 55 is really slow. White’s group only has 4 liberties, so there should be nothing to fear here. Black is allowing his earlier earlier thinness to come back to haunt him, Diagram Diagram 56. In Diagram 57 some territory is exchanged, a good reduction for White. Then Black makes a big mistake with move 127. 49
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Diagram 58
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Diagram 59
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Diagram 60
139
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Diagram 61
If black were to play 127 at F8 as in Diagram 58, instead of F9 as he actually did, there doesn’t seem to be any way for white to survive in Black’s moyo. A much beer result than the game. Diagram 59 shows how Black loses a lot of territory thanks to the F9 mistake. The game is geing much closer. Both black 135 and 137 would do beer if they were placed at A in Diagram 60, it’s it’s thicker. thi cker. Black 139, Diagram 61, is a mistake, A is urgent. 50
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Diagram 62
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Diagram 63
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Diagram 64
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Diagram 65
Even a�er the big blow to his moyo, black would still win if he were to play 139 at J8 instead of L5. Diagram 62 shows a hypothetical game if black were to change his move. Black 147 (Diagram 63) is a mistake, A is the biggest move. Diagram 64 shows the outcome if black were to play A, there is a big difference from what was actually played in the game. In Diagram 65, black should hane at A instead of playing the extension, it would save him quite a few points. 51
T
19
154
18
A
19 155
156
18
17
158
157 155159
17
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15
M
N
O
P
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14 13
153 152
12
151
Diagram 67
The yose defense at 155 in Diagram 66 would be beer at A.
11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 A
B
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F
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J
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Diagram 67 shows the move at A played out; the result is two points beer for black than what was played in the game, and either variation is gote for black, so that is of no concern.
Diagram 66 19
19
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18
17
17
16
16
15
15
14
14
13
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11
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160 161
8
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162 163
2
A
1
A
1 A
B
C
D
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A
Diagram 68
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
J
K
L
M
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Diagram 69
Again, in Diagram 68, the move at K2 is bigger than White’s 160. Black’s 161 is not urgent, K2 is the biggest move for him, too. And yet again , in Diagram 69, A is bigger!
52
S
T
A Hstr Hstryy G:
G Eurp Eurp
Go has been played for millenia; we have a rich history of Go games from China stretching back further than the common era. But it is only in the past two hundred years that Go has begun to t o spread to countries outside of Asia. The first continent Go spread to was Europe. In this issue issu e we’ll take an in-depth look at how Go first came here and how it has spread since its arrival.
Fr Mnins Go was so common in Asia that the first European traders to visit China brought back descriptions of the game. The American Go Association has archived books going back as far as 1575 that reference Go. The British Go Association has located English descriptions of Go as far back as 1617, and But just like many people today read interesting descriptions of strange customs and traditions without ever practicing them, nobody seems to have picked up the game and actually played it.
Ds Si G It wasn’t until over three hundred years later, in 1884, that Oskar Korschelt wrote the first extensive European language book concerning Go, titled Das Japanisch-Chinesische Spiel ‘Go’ , , which roughly translates as The Japanese and Chinese Game ‘Go’ . The book was loosely based on Hoen Shinpo , a Japanese Go book wrien in 1882. Korchelt was a German chemist and engineer who had traveled to Japan to teach at the Tokyo Medical School (now part of the Tokyo University). He learned to play Go from Murase Shuho (who later became the 18th Honinbo) Honinbo ) before returning to Germany. Germany. He wrote his book in 1884 a�er he returned to Germany. A�er Oskar wrote his book, a few Germans and Yugoslavians took a passing interest in the game and began to play.
Fr G Aciins Aciins Even with the first real interest in the game, it still took a long time for the game to spread through Europe. In fact, the American Go Association, which was established in 1934, was founded long before most European Go organization. The first three to be founded were the German Go Association, the British Go Association, and finally the French Association of Go. The European Go Federation was also founded early on to enable the first European Go Congress in 1957. Go traveled slowly to Britain, but was not widely played until the early
1900s. In 1911 the first substantial English language Go book, Goh or Wei-chi , , was published a by Horace Cheshire, a well-known chess author from Hastings. Though Go steadily gained some popularity, especially among chess players and a few scientists at Cambridge, and was even sold by large game stores as early as 1929, it was not until 1953 that the British Go Association was was founded by John Barrs. Over the next ten years, the BGA experienced slow and steady growth up to 50 members in the early 1960s. In 1965 an article by Dr. Good of Oxford University in the magazine “New Scientist” gave a decent description of the rules of Go, propelling new membership for the BGA, so that it had over 500 members in the early 1970s. In France, Go arrived by 1969, when a few players began meeting at the Impensé Radical, a bookshop in Paris. Within a year the French Association of Go (l’Association Française de Go) formed. Around the same time the first French Go books began to appear, and Go Go clubs began forming in secondary schools around the country. country. Membership and player strength slowly increased, and France even won the European Go Championship in 1974, a feat they would never repeat. Four year later in 1978 the FGA reformed reformed into the French Federation of Go (Fédération Française de Go). A�er this, Go activites in France slowed down for the next two decades, with nothing amazing happening until the early 1990s. Even in Germany, where Oskar had first spread Go, it wasn’t until 1937, over 50 years later, that the German Go Association was founded.
A Shr-ve Shr -ve Exli Exli Then something happened. In the 1970s, chess made a blazing resurgence worldwide, and suddenly Go clubs and associations were exploding right along with them. The best accurately recorded example would be the British Go Association, which had just 516 members in 1972 (the earliest year that statistics are available for) managed to over double its numbers to 1048 by 1975.
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G I Eurp Today Today, Go in Europe is growing by leaps and bounds. In the past few years Go associations across the continent have seen record numbers of mem bers such as the FFG, which reached 1650 members in 2006, only 8 years a�er reaching 1000 members. Various tournaments have also seen record and increased aendance in the past few years, such as the European Pair Go Championship, the European Go Congress, the Norwegian Go Championship and more. Go associations are also seeing increases in the number of clubs, mostly from two or three additions such as the Irish Go Association has seen in recent years. The European Go Federation has grown from just a few member countries when it was founded, to 36 member countries in 2008, with 44 Fan Hui, Chinese 2p, is the new official members in total. teacher of the FFG New Go activites are also springing up, from new Go variants, to Go camps for youth, to the FFG hiring Fan Hui [2p] as their official teacher. teacher. It’s been a long and slow road, but it’s beginning to look like the history of Go that Europe has made up to this day will be nothing compared to the history being that is being made today.
A Game of Elements
Go uses the most elemental materials and concepts—line and circle, wood and stone, black and white—combining them with simple rules to generate subtle strategies and complex tactics that stagger the imagination. —Iwamoto —Iwamoto Kaoru, 9-dan professional Go player and former Honinbo title holder 57
Playing Against a
7 8
5
9 C
6
D 10
A B
11
10
12
7 9
5
6
8
Diagram 2
Diagram 3
The moves which seem most natural for many players are shown 13 12 14 in Diagram 2 2. 15 However, I feel this result is ter16 rible for black. Pressing Pressing down em11 phasizes influence, which fits in with the two 4-4 stones black has already placed. But because white gets a large corner and sente, all she has to do now is carefully blunt the potential of black’s black’s stones. ston es. The result seems to highlight the weakness of a diagonal fuseki. Diagram 4 Both the approach move given and the suggested marked point will make it difficult for black to make a moyo, and will allow white to steadily preserve her advantage. 17
Diagram 3 shows a more constructive approach for black. The steady development here should at least give equal chances, but there are many pitfalls black must be wary of. Let’s consider the pincer at A first. Diagram 4, above, shows a simple 59
error in direction, but it can’t can’t hurt to go over the basics. 20 14 12 1 2 18 18 15 13 16 A�er this sequence, black makes 1917 a wall and might think he has a moyo forming. But white has sente, and will 11 then play the marked point. Black’s chances will be spoiled by the devastating reduction. It’s no good to leave such a wonderful move for your opponent! 22 In Diagram 5 we see the result of blocking the other way. White gets an21 other nice corner territory, but this time black has sente. Diagram 5, Yu Bin 9p vs. Li Chuanhua 3p In this pro game we see that black Result: Yu Bin+Resign got to develop his corner stones reasonably well, but you can’t envy him going up against those 3 large corners and komi. 23
The two space high pincer is shown in Diagram 6. At least with low 20 14 12 1 2 18 18 15 13 16 dan amateurs it seems to be a popular 19 17 move just to add variation to the game. 21 As before, blocking the 3-3 invasion the other way will leave white 11 with an excellent reduction, so this would have to be the sequence played. If black forgoes 21 to aempt to take sente elsewhere, his position in top right will be very weak. As it is, the steady development of 22 can be compared to white’s development in Diagram 5, except black Diagram 6 does not have a position on the boom side. It is clear that B should be discarded as a choice for black. 22
Diagram 7 on the next page shows the natural development a�er black 60
makes the one space jump to C. The position is very plain, and white seems to be outpacing black here. Black’s formation on top is quite solid, but white still has two and a half corners, komi, and sente. Moves B and C have never been played in a professional game.
13 11
12
10
14
We are le� with move D. Diagram 8 shows a pro game where this move is used. We can see that black has managed to make an interesting fight in Diagram 8, Wang Yuhui [6p] vs. Liu Xiaoguang [9p] what has been shaping up to be a very Result: Liu Xiaoguang+Resign straightforward straightforward position in the other variations we’ve examined. Diagram 9 helps illustrate what I think is the key idea for black. By playing the aachment of 11 and then blocking the corner with 13, the tables are turned on white. White is forced to take influence facing her 3-3 stone, which is a challenging point to develop a framework from. The sequence helps black stay competitive competitive territorially and for the first time in the opening leaves white wondering how to plan further development. 17
1513 14 11 1612
Diagram 9
I’ll wrap things up by showing a pair of pro games illustrating other plans for black. In Diagram 10, next page, black steadily extends with 5 instead of playing an approach move. This is a careful method which emphasizes balance, and black consistently sticks to this plan with the reduction on the boom & the completion of the corner with 21. Black has good territorial prospects at the end of the diagram, 61
and the low position of 10 in combination with the forcing moves black played from 13 to 19 leave white poor prospects for development on the right. Finally, black could consider playing tengen as in Diagram 11. I feel that white 6 is a good, steady way to oppose black’s influence oriented strategy. A�er this, any big point black might take can be matched by a big point taken by white, and I think white will have no trouble reducing or invading any moyo black builds. In the actual game, play continued with the marked point and erupted into a large fight.
5
9 8
7
6
10
11
19 17 15 13 12
21
20 18 18 16 1 6 14 14
Diagram 10, Yu Bin [9p] vs. Wang Yuan [6p] Result: Wang Yuan+Resign
A note from the author: 5
6
I would like to emphasize that all the judgements in this article are based on my opinions from testing the openings in play and database research! If you would like to discuss any of these, feel free to mail me at
[email protected] Diagram 11,Kataoka Satoshi [9p] vs. O Meien [9p] Result: Kataoka Satoshi+4.5
By Sebastian Hubbard Sebastian is a 3d amateur player who enjoys analyzing fuseki positions through comparison with professional games and rationalization. His Go blog, blogofblog, blogofgo.blogspot.com aracts many readers for its interesting content and style. 62
Stones and Gems Travel Magnetic Go Set from Yellow Mountain Imports
Whenever you purchase a travel goban, you need to go in with the expectation that it’s made cheaply enough that you won’t regret losing it or destroying it. That’s That’s the upside and the downside d ownside of the Travel Magnetic Go Set from Yellow Mountain Imports. The Travel Travel Set is very nice for traveling, with fully magnetic pieces that are very difficult to accidentally move; a very nice feature if playing in a busy place or on the road. The stones come with bowls for black and white that conveniently fit into the center of the closed goban, nice if you have limited space. We would have nothing but compliments for this set except that it is cheaply made, ma de, and it’s it’s evident. The lines do not perfectly intersect in the middle, which is i s slightly obnoxious, especially if the game lasts a long time. The stones also have a bad tendency to lose their magnets, annoying to say the least. All in all, definitely a great goban if traveling, not so much for anywhere else.
Master Play: The Style of Lee Changho from Slate and Shell Master Play: The Style of Lee Changho consists of two game analyses by Yuan Zhou. Written as a conversation between two students and Yuan, the book makes you feel as if you are Yuan’s student. Throughout the book Yuan asks the reader, “Where would you play next?” It is easy to read and very detailed in the reasoning behind moves and what is happening during the game. Yuan focuses on single digit kyus and stronger, but this is a great read for any player to get a better understanding of pro thinking. An enjoyable book, recommended for anyone wanting to understand the way professional Go players think, regardless of their skill level.
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s e v o M d n a s u o h T a h t r o W e r u t c i P A This issue’s photo was submi�ed by Vance Dunham Would you like to be featured here? Send a picture to: newlse�
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Te Marketplace Lessons Battousai, AGA 5d
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Offers online teaching on both KGS and IGS for a small, negotiable fee. Baousai has been teaching for five years, and is the Enclave’s premier teacher. Highly recommended by Enclave staff and students! ‘Ba�ousai is our o ur oldest teacher, and I have never been displeased with him. His sharp tongue and fun sense of humor lend a memorability to his lessons not paralleled by any other teacher I know. know. He is also very affordable and extremely reasonable in dealing with students.’ —Eric Dunham, Owner and Founder, Founder, the KGS Enclave
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64
Te Marketplace
Products Slate and Shell Publisher and Distributor of English Language Go Books See our books and sample pages at www.slateandshell.com To see the Enclave’s opinion o pinion of one of Slate and Shell’s products, see page 63
Wanted Te Enclave Would you like to write for the finest English-language English-l anguage Go publication in the world? The Enclave is actively seeking talented writers to cover Go subjects of all kinds! This is an excellent way to get your work seen! If interested, just send a completed article article or short story (200-600 words) to:
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