A Go Player

Reading

2007-04-09T08:20:00.000-07:00

No, not reading... reading, like using the eyes to process symbols of a language which are then turned into meaning in our brain. Still sounds like Go.

Hmmm. Must be because its Monday.

In any case, I just found this offering on The Go Consultants from the GoGoD guys. It looks like a good read. GAH! I need to stop using that word; I'm confusing myself!

heading backwards

2007-03-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

Over the past month, I have been reading Kagemaya's Fundamentals of Go, Breakthrough to Shodan, and my new copy of Graded Go Problems for Beginners, Vol. 4.

What is interesting (and frustrating) is that as I attempt to make sense of the material, and to integrate it into my play, my ability is suffering greatly.

Recently I felt I had a breakthrough, and was winning game after game. But now I find that my play has deteriorated. I lose capturing races, misplay fuseki and joseki, and generally muck up.

I played my first game of Rengo last night, and I absolutely ruined my team's play. I feel like my sense of direction has been completely upset.

So I'm playing a lot of free games until the world stops spinning.

Some fun games

2007-03-06T20:50:00.000-08:00

Tonight I actually managed to go to the local go club meeting down at ASU. It was great to be able to actually play a couple of games with the stones in hand instead of on the computer. There's a different feeling about it. More personable, I suppose.

Which makes sense.

In any case, I was pleasantly surprised. Although you wouldn't know it by my steady KGS rating of 11kyu, apparently all the reading and playing I have been doing has been helping. I played two games, and won them both.

In the first game, I played a 5kyu at four stones, and won. It was a bloody game with groups dying off left and right. We used practically every stone he had in his set, and at the end black had won. I built a beautiful moyo and he had no choice but to invade. And I killed the invasion. Quite proud am I.

The second game was against an 8kyu with two stones, and we played very quickly. The game was over in less than half an hour. White resigned - again, due to a huge unassailable moyo.

Something about Wilcox's Sector Fights must be clicking.

Of course, as soon as I play my next two games, I'll be brought down to earth. But for now, I'm happy!

Revisiting Sector Lines

2007-02-23T07:23:00.000-08:00

One of the very first purchases I ever made in terms of Go learning materials was Bruce Wilcox's Sector Lines and Contact Fights. I remember going through these two products and thinking it was all so easy.

So why couldn't I seem to integrate the material.

Well, I hadn't looked at them since I hit 15kyu over a year ago, and I pulled out sector lines last night and began to reread through it. I went through just the Elementary material, and it was amazing. There were concepts in there that I had completely failed to see or to understand the first time through. And this was just the elementary material. There are still the novice, adept, and advanced sections, or whatever the heck he calls them.

There was a recent thread on godiscussions to which I was pointed by chiyodad in a roundabout way. And though I did not chime in there, it was what motivated me to revisit this material. And I find that his style of teaching through his dojo software is very clear and understandable.

Recommended.

A tesuji? No, really?

2007-02-18T23:08:00.000-08:00

I was very proud of seeing this tesuji tonight. Granted, I think it may have depended on my opponent's unthinking response to a typical yose move, but still...

I'm playing Black. The tesuji is in the upper right hand corner, where that white group looks suspiciously ... something...

B K19, W L 19, B N18

I've been losing a lot otherwise, but I hear that's the key to greatness.

At long last

2007-02-15T13:22:00.000-08:00

It's been a long series of losses.

In the past, this is the type of activity that would have caused me to keep playing just one more game, shooting for that win that I knew lay just over the horizon (but which invariably - in fact - didn't).

However, thanks to NannyOgg's last post, and her repeated tutelage, I have been able to simply continue to play, seeking only the best (bad) move I can make, without care of winning or losing.

And in a very calm game last night, I beat a 7K by 40+ points.

Do you know how I did it?

He was greedy and went for just that little extra bit too much that overextends one.

How do I know this?

I did the same thing in my last 12 games. And lost.

Funny Go Videos?

2007-02-08T12:24:00.000-08:00

Okay, this may not exactly be your speed, but I found these Go Lessons 1, 2, and 3 to be amusing.

Especially Lesson 1.

Seriously. That is the strongest shape around.

Back in the thick of it...

2007-02-07T23:02:00.000-08:00

Well, I guess I really am back now.

I went to the meeting of the phoenix go club tonight, and it was such great fun. I played the president - who is a 1kyu - at 9 stones, and I actually won: 36 to 35.5. Was he trying for a draw like a pro? Was his mind not totally on the game?

Who knows. But it was superfun (tm) and I can't wait to go back on Saturday.

Then, I logged into KGS, and said hi to an old friend, and then was given a teaching game by a 6k who soundly trounced me. However, despite the rust, I can see some interesting moves sometimes, and I look forward to playing more.

The big lessons I take away from my games today are twofold:

Ina handicap game, simply strengthen your weak stones, and your opponent's weaknesses will become apparent.

My reading is rusty as all get-out!

In both games, I was able to focus, and create some furious battles, which invariably ended like a stuck balloon when I suddenly would forget things like, "two stones surrounded by an enemy's stones will be captured", or, "you need two eyes to live - TWO I tell you".

I love this game!

Back?

2007-02-06T10:44:00.000-08:00

NannyOgg wrote me today to say that chiyodad had mentioned me on his blog.

Wow.

Anyway, I haven't touched a stone in over a year-and-a-half.

But I played my first game this week past, and actually won. Goes to show you that I'm just as good as I ever was. (Which is not very, given my previous 15k rank).

However, I simply forgot how much I loved this game.

I've been playing magic a lot, which I used to play all the time. But while it is a great game, it lacks the majesty of Go.

See ya.

15kyu!

2005-04-09T00:12:00.000-07:00

Well, who knows how long it will last, but tonight I made 15kyu on KGS. I thought I would be stuck at 16kyu for the longest time, but I think my lessons are helping me. I am trying to think more, and to play more "gooder".

That means thinking about my plays, trying to make good shape, making sabaki, making tradeoffs, etc.

I am also reading a fantastic book: A Dictionary of Modern Fuseki: The Korean Style. I cannot tell you how much I am enjoying this book. It is written in the same style as Cho HunHyun's Lectures on Go Techniques, Vol. I, which is a great style for me. It is clear, expository, lots of examples, and scientific, as opposed to what seems to be an intuitive approach I find in many other books I have read. Not that they aren't great in themselves, but there is something about these two books that really appeals to me.

This book looks good for my next purchase. Although I am kind of interested in getting the rest of the series which has the Davies' Tesuji book and then all the "Get Strong At X" books, where X is something to do with Go.

Slate and Shell books didn't look very interesting to me earlier on, but lately I have come across some sample pages and some recommendations that make me want to try a couple of their products. Pretty much I think I wasn't ready to appreciate what they have to offer.

As far as lessons go, I think that I want - now - to get some private lessons just for me. Of course I relish my lessons with Karen, but I think that playing teaching games with review might provide another aspect to my study that could help me out even more.

Two months ago, I despaired of reaching my goal of SDK by June. Today, though, it looks a little brighter. Yes, I need to study more, and play more, but I feel like I have had a breakthrough in my last few games. I am beginning to develop a style, and to not depend on my fighting to carry me through the game (which is a good thing, given my reading skills ;-).

My weakest point seemed to me to be my fuseki. I had a huge tendency to create multiple weak groups and then attack from them, driving the opponent into yet more weak groups. I am starting to have glimmerings of what sente is, as opposed to forcing moves, and to have a very small sense for how certain patterns can develop. I'm still far far away from being good, but I think there are possibilities for me...

As always, more later - Go now :)

Go Winds Online

2005-04-07T22:47:00.000-07:00

Go Winds Online has some sample editions of Go Winds from Yutopian press. I particularly like Lee Chang Ho's endgame play columns, and in GW7:1/2 and 7:3, there are some very interesting articles about Go Shape by Craig R Hutchinson. Worth taking a look, seriously.

Ing Goe Lesson Torrents

2005-03-28T21:38:00.000-08:00

Free for the taking... join the swarm.

Oh, and I'm taking lessons. With sendol, and sharing them with Karen.

And I'm studying Tesuji. It seems to be helping. I'm no longer dying quite so frequently.

But still frequently enough to be embarrassed :)

KGS statistics

2005-03-10T22:02:00.000-08:00

NannyOgg turned me on to a cool page where you can view your statistics on KGS. Turns out I'm about 55% wins since January 1 no matter whether I include free games or not. Pretty cool.

I made 16K!

2005-03-09T23:09:00.000-08:00

It may only be a passing fancy, but I finally made 16kyu ranking on KGS.

As I wrote previously, I am beginning to realize that I have to learn some sequences. Not necessarily "joseki", but what is likely to happen if I play in "this" spot as opposed to "that" spot.

It's called reading, I believe, but the problem with just trying to read out a sequence is that I can only read at my level. Does that make sense? I can read several moves ahead, but only at a 16kyu level. Thus I am entirely unaware of what move a 10kyu or 5ky player would be likely to make. Not that I'm playing them very frequently. :)

The other thing is that I am beginning to sense what it means to actually sketch out territory. This last game, the one that put me over the top, was extremely close - I won by 3.5 moku. And due to my ineptness at sketching out territory, what I had to do was invade, then sacrifice a few stones to cover my retreat.

Of course, that's a valid method of play, one of any number of styles I have seen. I'm not sure what my style is yet, but I'm beginning to gain one.

I also think I need to take lessons. It would be very beneficial to my game to have an expert helping me understand the why and what-for of the moves.

And one last nice thing about this game? Well, I have been playing in a very center-moyo-oriented style lately, so I was very proud of myself for taking three corners. :)

2005-03-03T20:54:00.000-08:00

They published something I wrote in the AMERICAN GO E-JOURNAL MEMBER'S EDITION of March 3, 2005. It was only a teeny little review of a program for reviewing .sgf files on your cell phone, but how very exciting nonetheless. I feel like a part of the go community :)

Yet another tool

2005-02-26T09:54:00.000-08:00

Drago looks like a cool .sgf viewer and printer. I currently use MultiGo for my viewing, but I am going to download and try Drago for the next few days.

What I really like is a couple of links on the Drago page which I had not seen before: ByHeart's game collections, and Arno's fuseki database.

Doing better, but just barely :)

2005-02-23T21:52:00.000-08:00

Okay, I had to take a break on DGS. It's not actually the Go that's getting to me, but a bunch of things in my life that I have to manage. Until I get some free time, I just put myself on vacation. C'est la vie.

Damn it.

But I did manage to log on to KGS to play my first two games in the Western Go Ladder. I won the first one, which was a nice surprise, and then I lost me second.

But I shouldn't have!

See, we were battling. Battling all over, sprawling all over the board. He was winning, and then I saw a tesuji which would allow me to squeeze his corner group down to one eye and then come out one liberty ahead in the capturing race, and really, it would have been the end of the game.

So what did I do? Well, I played the tesuji, squeezed him down to where I had a choice of allowing him to make one false eye or one real eye. In the heat of battle, under pressure, what do you think I did?

Yep. That's right. I played the move that gave him one REAL eye, and ended up one liberty short and lost the game. Although I'm disappointed, of course, that I made the wrong move, the mere fact that I saw the tesuji and that it would have worked has I played correctly is deeply satisfying. It tells me that no matter what my ranking shows, I know I am improving, because I could never have read something like that out, or even have seen it, a few months ago.

Death Patterns

2005-02-16T23:09:00.000-08:00

Just thinking about this... I played a game on DGS a few months ago, and I am going to have to go back and look at it, because it brings an interesting subject to mind.

See, I caught my opponent in a pattern at the edge where he kept trying to escape by moving out on the 2nd or 3rd line, and I would press him down again. I was squeezing with my moves as well, so he couldn't make eyes. After the second repetition, he resigned, but it made me think:

Besides a ladder, what are other dead patterns? I obviously found one, but couldn't repeat it. And it wasn't an atari-able pattern like the ladder, where you drive your opponent with repeated ataris. Instead it was a pattern where the only possible escape move led to a repetition of the same pattern of stones, only moved over about 3 lines.

Anyone know anything about this subject?

Another Baduk Blog

2005-02-16T23:04:00.000-08:00

At Sensei's Library I found nachtrabe's Baduk Blog, written by someone who obviously thinks quite a bit about their game, as I am just beginning to do. Some very interesting reading for your pleasure...

As a side note, I could read about Go forever it seems like, unless it's a really-over-my-head book like the Direction Of Play, which I can only read a few pages at a time if I want to understand what I am reading.

This brings me to The Girl Who Played Go. A friend gave this to me for Christmas, and while it was a good book, there wasn't enough actual Go in it for me. The same with First Kyu, which was good, though short, and reads very interestingly, being translated by the foreign (to America) author. The book I want next is The Master Of Go. I think that's what it's called. It sounds like it has a lot of really meaty Go chunks in it.

Anyway, go read Nachtrabe's blog and learn something.

New Understandings

2005-02-15T19:54:00.000-08:00

Okay, so my ranks are beginning to even out again. I'm 15K (weak) on DGS, and 17K (weak again) on KGS.

But I think I am starting to see some things that I hope will take me to the next level in my play. First of all, there's some things I need to study. I still have a serious problem creating strong bases from which my stones can move out into the center. As a result, I find myself consistently being split apart on the edge by my opponents. Also, I haven't been keeping up with my tsumego studies, and I need to work on that some more.

However, there are some things that I have seen which I am trying to incorporate into my play now.

First of all, playing to the left in order to attack right. I have been incorporating this idea into my play on local levels and it has been working more often than not. However, I have recently realized that it works on a global scale as well, and I am trying to put this into play in my game.

Second, I have been reviewing professional games, and I now think that I should not be afraid to make bad shape when it helps the local situation. As a rule of course, don't make an empty triangle or overconcentrate your stones, but when the local situation requires it, don't let shape rule your moves.

Third, and I have no idea if this will actually help my game or if it is even true, but I think that there is a distinct possibility that good shape is good shape in a global sense. To illustrate, imagine a table shape except that the stones are in the four corner areas. It seems to me that this has some benefit, but I wonder if I am fooling myself. Anyway, it's something to explore as I move onward.

Finally, in a game with an 8kyu player, he made an off-hand comment which really gave me pause for thought. As I watched him connect his stones against my invasions, and they all ended up in basically the right places, he mentioned that he likes to connect the dots in the midgame. I felt stunned. Suddenly I realized that I need to stop playing so heavily and begin sketching more lightly.

But there is a problem with that. In order to sketch more lightly, one must be familiar with the ways that the stones interact. I need to figure out a way to predict what sequences of stones will occur in a given position. I think joseki may help me with this, but it reminds me of something I read that Milton Bradley wrote - that one must think in terms of sequences instead of single-move-and-response.

So. I'm trying to stretch my play. And I also need to start playing stronger players again. I noticed that on KGS many of my recent games have been with weaker players. I didn't want to get the "~" mark, but I'm way ahead on credit, and I think I'll take on some higher handicap games coming up soon here.

I wish I knew exactly what to do. I think that it may be true; something I heard once, that having a very strong teacher is probably the fastest and easiest way to become strong onesself.

Okay, teacher. I'm ready!

(Do I have to pay you?)

2005 Cotsen GoTournamet

2005-02-15T19:16:00.000-08:00

Oh man! I would SO like to go to the 2005 Cotsen GoTournamet... It's a possibility at this point, after all, LA is only 6 hours away!

And the price is definitely right. After I looked at the 2005 go congress pricing, I realized I might not be able to make that one at all. Which is terribly sad, I must say.

As if I needed more activities...

2005-02-14T20:43:00.000-08:00

So I am the organizer for the Phoenix Go Meetup. We had a meeting Saturday night. It worked well, since I am not able to attend the Phoenix Go Club regularly.

We only had one other member show up, but hey! It's a start.

And I just signed up for the Western Go Ladder. Maybe one day I can make it to one of the top tiers :)

Go i Bergen

2005-02-12T10:51:00.000-08:00

My friend Kjersti from Norway has a go club in Bergen she has been attending, and in fact is one of the founding members I believe. I can't read a word of the web page, but knowing people far away like this is another reason I love the internet.

SunXI Screen Saver

2005-02-09T20:22:00.000-08:00

This is kind of cool. It's a screen saver for your windows machine that replays .sgf files in 3D. There doesn't seem to be any spyware included, and my anti-virus hasn't kicked up it's heels, so it appears to be safe for your use.

Dirty Harry Go

2005-02-09T20:14:00.000-08:00

There's a pretty amusing thread on rec.games.go about what Dirty Harry would be saying if he were a go player. Enjoy.

Phoenix Tournament

2005-02-09T20:03:00.000-08:00

Now, I don't know if this is actually the "1st Annual Phoenix Go Open" or not, but there is a tournament tomorrow at the Chinese Center at 44th St. and Van Buren St. in Phoenix. It is in room 121 and starts at 12:00PM. There ought to be some strong players there, and if you're in the area, why not stop by? I hope to make it, but prior engagements may prevent it.

Hikaru No Go

2005-02-08T16:32:00.000-08:00

Okay, I know I shouldn't be pointing to this, but scans of the first 34 books of Hikaru No Go are available on sourceforge. A misuse of everything - of sourceforge, of intellectual property, and other things I am sure.

However, for those of us who only have the first few books out in the US, this is a boon. And I know it won't keep me from buying the rest of the books. It's just nice to see more of the story.

Go Shodan Challenge: Progress

2005-01-27T13:11:00.000-08:00

A new blog documents Karen Plomp's journey toward 1 Dan in this year's Shodan Challenge.

Gotta hand it to her; that's a big challenge. As you know, my goal is much more modest, to break Single Digit Kyu (SDK) by next summer. I think I'm on track to do it too - 17K at KGS and 15K at DGS. If I could just convince myself to start doing life and death again, I think I could jump another couple kyu in the next month.

But we'll see...

Making Life

2005-01-17T17:20:00.000-08:00

Making Life is an amusing Go comic strip. Did I blog it before? Heck, I don't know. Anyway, enjoy it.

More Tsumego

2005-01-06T22:15:00.000-08:00

Someone on KGS last night threw out this link for consumption: HITACHI : Tsumego. It's Minoru Harada's tsumego page, and there are a ton.

So when you get tired of working your way through goproblems.com and gobase.org, check this out. I plan to.

Fight, fight, fight!

A SGF Repository

2005-01-06T21:10:00.000-08:00

Michael's SGF Repository has not only a number of .sgf files that Michael found of interest, but also several links to other repositories - both free and pay.

15kyu

2005-01-05T15:57:00.000-08:00

Though I imagine it won't be more than a temporary fluke, I hit 15kyu for the first time today.

This is on DGS. On KGS, I am still tooling along at 21kyu. I haven't been going there much, and last night I went to play, but a new player approached me and I ended up playing teaching games with him all night. Which is fine, but I keep losing on KGS, and I would really like to win a rated game for a change.

:)

Decent Basic Go Article

2005-01-05T06:21:00.000-08:00

The Economist has a decent article about Go. Not much content, but if your family and/or friends wonder why you are suddenly so addicted, this may give them an easy-to-understand starting point.

16kyu?

2004-12-21T06:15:00.000-08:00

I just hit 16kyu on DGS. Sure, I'll lose some games here coming up, and probably a little rank here and there, but I can't believe it. It's a mark that I am improving.
You know what gave me the last jump? Believe it or not, it was Hikaru No Go. In episodes 25-26, Fujiwara-no-Sai, the ancient Go master, tells Hikaru not to be scared of the tip of his sword and back down, but to fight back.

I've been applying that lately, and it seems to help. Push instead of pulling back.

Single-digit-kyu? I've got 6 months to make you mine!!!

The 1st Phoenix Go Cup

2004-12-13T06:30:00.000-08:00

Forgot to mention. The first annual Phoenix Go Cup will be held in February. Apparently we've amassed enough players to be able to host an event like this. I look forward to attending and watching some serious Go playing. I probably won't be competing, though... it's even games only. LOL. Yea, like I have a chance there :)

KGS Rating

2004-12-12T09:05:00.000-08:00

KGS just revamped its rating system. And it sure wasn't good for me. I've been on a losing streak there lately (as opposed to DGS) and went from a 19k to a 21k - almost 22k. I was discussing this with one of my online Go-playing friends, and he suggested that I have the same problem as him: KGS games move too damn fast. He and I require more time to think about moves, and in a 15-minute 5/0:30 byoyomi game, you just don't have that luxury.

The question that puts into my mind is- are KGS players then stronger than DGS players? Are they able to read more deeply more quickly? Or do they play by intuition more than reading, depending on trained patterns and instinct?

Influence

2004-12-12T09:01:00.000-08:00

I had an interesting moment in one of my games a few days ago.

Now everyone is always talking about influence, right? "Oh, those stones have great influence", and "this wall has great influence on the center", and the like. But noone has ever been able to explain to me what exactly it is. And now I have the glimmerings of why.

So I'm defending a wall on the third line. Black pushes between two white stones to create cutting points on the 2nd line, and I block with a nose play. Black defends against the capture, and then I have to defend against black pushing in on one side, then the other, because black can create a snapback using the capture of the blocking stone as a lever.

So after several minutes of reading, it turns out that the play that best helps the situation isn't near the cutting point at all. It's several lines away and has the additional benefit of sealing the other end of the wall against black. My interpretation is that one stone radiated influence all the way back down to the cutting point. You couldn't see it, but it was there.

Very interesting.

A learning game

2004-12-12T08:51:00.000-08:00

Well, yesterday was the Go club meeting. My daughter came and she played me a game of 9x9 and crushed me (with 4 HC stones). She then proceeded to promptly fall asleep on my lap, and there she remained while I played a game against the person who gave me my first Go book. I played him with a 7stone handicap, and while he wasn't concentrating fully on the game, he never has when he plays me, and therefore my winning is a measure of my improving ability. I won by about 8 points. It is very exciting to actually play face to face and to be able to do better than you have in the past.

I then played the 5-dan I invited, with my daughter still sleeping on my lap.

Although he really didn't use much of his strength, he did compliment me and say that he thought I was stronger than 19kyu. I also saw exactly how really strong players can move the stones to create patterns that they see "miles" before someone of my strength will. We had a great discussion about a cut that turned on it's dwindling importance as stones were placed around it during the course of the game, and then he showed me how one final placement of a stone by white suddenly negated the cut as useful at all. I also had a great lesson in direction of play, and learned exactly how to handle a specific kind of corner invasion against 4-4. I made the wrong choice, and lost the entire side as a result.

In short, a great afternoon, and very instructive.

Go4Go.net Game Collection -- View by Tournament

2004-12-06T19:24:00.000-08:00

Hey, if you want to see some AMAZING fighting, check out the final three games of the 2004 Korean Chunwon.

Choi Cheolhan is amazing. I've never seen anything like it, except for Cho Hunhyun, who's the only person who actually forced Choi to play the game out to the end instead of resigning. Seriously, this is amazing stuff. Look at game one and see how much territory white has so fast!

I want to be able to fight like that one day...

Go Lessons

2004-12-06T18:36:00.000-08:00

A fellow named Kaz has a large amount of Go material and lessons available for download from his website. Some low-level, some high-level.

Will I be able to learn?

2004-12-03T17:37:00.000-08:00

I made contact with a local 5dan and asked him for a teaching game - live, face-to-face. And he agreed!

How very exciting!

So next weekend, I am thrilled to be meeting him at the local Go club and playing a game. He will be so far above me, that I hope it isn't too boring.

I really look forward to seeing him play the strong players at the club - the 1-5kyu players and the occasional dan players who stop by. I would love to see a dan-level game live.

Where are all the Go players?

2004-12-03T17:35:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd point out that this world map pinpoints the locations of all KGS players who have signed up for the service. There's over 1350 now.

And yes, that's me right there in Arizona, USA.

One last thing

2004-12-03T07:01:00.000-08:00

The AGA has a section on sandbagging in their ratings FAQ.

The AGA does not allow sandbagging — the practice of playing below one's rated strength (presumably looking for easy wins, and/or tournament prizes). Even if sandbaggers win all their games, their ratings improve only slowly, so they do themselves no favor from the point of view of maximizing their ratings.
Losing to them won't hurt other players' ratings much, but it is disconcerting to run into "ringers", and it makes the competition for tournament prizes unfair. One of the practical uses of the rating system is to provide a "lower bound" on the rank at which players are allowed to enter tournaments.
Occasionally, a player feels that he or she has been "overrated", and wants to
play below their rated strength, because they honestly feel they would only lose
at their rated level. However, if too high, such players' ratings will rapidly adjust
downward (within one or at most two tournaments) if in fact they lose most of
their games. The grief suffered by such players is probably far outweighed by
the benefits of preventing sandbagging.

Seems reasonable to me. An interesting point is that because all ratings are known beforehand, sandbagging is the act of playing below your level, instead of disguising your level, as it is online. However, I am sure that the initial "set-your-own-rank" feature of the AGA holds just as many problems as a new online account can.

However, you cannot simply start a new AGA membership as easily as you can an online one, due to the vested cost of membership. Thus, I think that in the face-to-face community, sandbagging - to a fair extent - is already lessened just due to the environment.

More on Sandbagging

2004-12-02T22:02:00.000-08:00

Okay,

I was inspecting several games today on DGS, and I came across the other end of the spectrum - people who had rated themselves as 1kyu or 2kyu players and obviously were not even close to that level of skill.

This is just as bad for a rating system as the other type of sandbagger, and having seen these people set themselves up with that rank, I can see two possibilities:

1. They don't have an idea of what rank to set for themselves, and therefore arbitrarily pick either absolute beginner or a rank that is much to high, or

2. They intentionally pick a rank that is incorrect.

Now in the first case, it's an honest mistake. Hard to argue against that. In the second, well, in an online system, there is no way to ensure that anyone's strength is correct from the get-go. So what can you do? *shrugs*

Now I begin to understand why so many people have problems with rating systems. I guess I do appreciate the KGS beginning somewhat more than DGS. In DGS, you self-select a rank, and then begin from there. In KGS, you are given the rank of the person you play, one or or one down based on win or loss, but it is not stable until you have won and lost two games with already rated players. This, I think, to some degree ameliorates the problems of #1 above.

However, in the case of #2, again, there's nothing you can do. If someone really wants to game a system, they can do it. It's been a problem for slashdot and many other self-moderating communities, and it's obviously a problem in the online go community.

So, with that said, I intend to relax a lot regarding sandbagging and not let it get to me. After all, there is nothing to be done but try your best. Eventually, as with all perturbations in a large system, the effect will settle down due to the dampening induced by games with other players. The only way to make a lasting effect would be to continually reopen accounts for the purpose of sandbagging. And my god, what a bore that would be.

Excitement

2004-12-01T13:29:00.000-08:00

I have been foregoing the vicarious pleasures of KGS lately for the more measured and relaxed pace of DGS. It seems that I don't work as well under the pressure of a 15-minute game as I do when I can think about my move for a while. In addition, I can download the .sgf and play with moves to try to understand their effect on the local and global situations.

So I'm down to about 20kyu, and I am about to win a series of games that would normally probably bump me up to about 18kyu. Very, very exciting. The best one by far is a game against a 3kyu player. I took 9 stones and am going to win by about 5 points. Very, very cool and - as I said - very, very exciting.

But unfortunately, I also have a couple games coming up that I will lose. No big deal, normally, except that these people are experienced players who chose to enter their rank as 30kyu. And I am about to lose one, maybe two of them. So what?

Well, this is what is known over all the go servers I've been on as "sandbagging". What it does is artifically drive the loser's rank down, assuming the loser is - like me - much higher than 30kyu. Now it's not so much that I care about rank per se. I mean, it's irritating that if I win, I get credit for beating a 30kyu player - i.e. a rank raise of about 2%-3% of a kyu - for a hard-fought game. And it's also more than irritating that if I lose, I go up several ranks. But that isn't the real reason it's such a problem.

Okay, so if I lose, I become underrated, and if I win, I become overrated. This means that when I play properly handicapped games against other players, I - in effect - become an unwilling sandbagger myself.

Now, it's true that I could give those players less strong than myself a handicap that would be appropriate for what I consider to be my true rank, but then my rank would increase very slowly, meaning that I would have to play many more games in order to get a reasonably stable rank again. The same goes for asking for a handicap less than my rank says I should get.

So who cares about rank, right? Just play and have fun! Right?

Well rank is the only way we have to measure our improvement. My personal goal is to become good at this game, and to do that, I need a yardstick by which to measure my improvement. So people who choose to fuck with my yardstick are not appreciated. Not to mention that their ripple effect sucks, as their single act of jerkiness spreads throughout the pool of players, artificially causing rank churn.

So, sandbaggers... bleah. Piss on 'em.

A mark of strength

2004-11-29T06:46:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I've been stuck at 19kyu forever... I never feel like I'm improving any more.

However, last night I finally got to the 4kyu level on Igowin. For the first time, playing as white on a 9x9 I faced a 2-stone black handicap. I lost, of course, but just to get to that level was very inspiring. I remember back when I first started, months ago, I couldn't even beat my way down to the even levels, like 9kyu.

So I guess I am getting a bit stronger. I think I will hit 19kyu on DGS soon. And I am so close to 18kyu on KGS that I can taste it.

Also, I joined the AGA. And I bought myself a traveling Go board. Both for my birthday. I think I'm into this go thing.

Go Teacher

2004-11-16T07:38:00.000-08:00

I have joined the Go Teacher account at dragonserver. I am teaching beginners from 27kyu-30kyu. That's about my speed. It's good for me though; you never really understand something until you try to explain it to someone else.

In rank news, I'm still stuck at 19kyu. Can't seem to make it past that barrier. Ah well, perhaps something will happen here soon and I will begin to understand again.

I downloaded EDA GoReader for my Motorola T721. It's really cool; I can review pro games anywhere. The search facility doesn't work yet, but that's okay; the next version ought to be really cool.

It's been a while

2004-11-02T06:24:00.000-08:00

But hey, I've been busy playing games. What can I say?

After studying so much a few weeks ago, I decided I would simply play a bunch of games and try to integrate what I have learned. Well, maybe it's integrating, and maybe it's not. I sometimes feel vey strong. I can see the correct moves while watching high-level games. However, I can't seem to make those moves in my own game.

In a lesson last night on KGS, A 2kyu told me that you must have correct foundations, or you will have a rough and error-prone middle game onward. This may be why I can see the moves in dan-level games sometimes; their shape and formation is so clear that the moves almost "must" be made. Then, by extension, due to my bad opening form, by my middle game my shape is so poor that there are no natural or solid moves that just come to mind.

I also feel very weak sometimes. But apparently my rating has me right where I should be. And when I feel frustrated, I remind myself that I have only been playing for four months, and that I am already more than halfway to my goal of single-digit kyu by next June.

British Go Journal Archive

2004-10-20T06:46:00.000-07:00

Hunting around on the web, I came across this archive of old British Go Journal issues. Lots of meat in there. Enjoy.

Live in Phoenix?

2004-10-19T22:00:00.000-07:00

If you live in the Phoenix metro area and play Go, let's try and have a go meetup. I think it would be fun to meet in a coffeehouse-type atmosphere :)

Feeling Better

2004-10-19T18:02:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been feeling a lot better about my playing. Not that my rank has improved any... I'm still not only bouncy but not that great. But I'm starting to see a lot more. Not that I can play it, but I can sense it is out there waiting for me to come upon it.

I haven't read much, other than some shape stuff and some basic techniques. Instead I'm playing. And guess what? It's helping.

More later.

Go Magazine Online

2004-10-15T06:47:00.000-07:00

There's some interesting articles at the Interactive European Go Magazine, including an article on driving your opponent's stones by Charles Matthews and some interactive flash commentaries. Good stuff, maynard.

I'm hopping mad!

2004-10-13T07:24:00.000-07:00

I have been planning to go to the Tempe Go Club for the first time in many weeks, as my daughter is out of town. However, I forgot completely that the presidential debates are in Tempe - tonight - the same night as the Go Club meeting.

Sigh.

It figures. Ah well, I guess I'll have to play online, or do work or something like that. What a shame. Despite the fun of playing online, there is nothing like playing an opponent face-to-face with real stones in your hand.

As far as progress goes, I sure don't feel like a 19kyu. But I played a 26kyu and lost by 0.5 points (i.e. with a 7-stone handicap) and I played a 17kyu with a 2-stone handicap and won (immediately followed by losing to a 15kyu) so I guess I am right around the level KGS says. I just don't understand what I'm doing...

The big reason I'm upset about not being able to go to the club is that I had some serious tactical questions, and now I'll have to hold off on them. Maybe I'll have a chance to go Saturday. My fingers are crossed.

Almost Sente

2004-10-06T13:40:00.000-07:00

Almost Sente is a comic strip about go that will probably not be funny to non-go players.

Dragon Go Server Redux

2004-10-06T07:33:00.000-07:00

The more I play on Dragon Go Server, the more I enjoy it. The pacing is perfect for me; I can't always play a whole game, but I can sure squeak in a few moves here and there. My rating is slowly climbing again. I took quite a beating recently as I tried to assimilate the Wilcox material I have been studying.

I am now not joining any new games until I finish my current crop and my rating has stabilized somewhat. I recently played a game against someone who is about my level, but due to my inflated rating, they had a 4-stone handicap against me. That was a hard game!

I taught my friend Michael to play this past weekend. Somehow it seems like a game he might appreciate as much as, if not more than, chess, which he currently is completely enthralled with. If you check out his site, you'll see why I think so. Heh.

In any case, I think I need about 30-40 more games before I will be ready to go on to the intermediate material in Contact and Sector Fights. I understand it intellectually, but not completely, and it surely isn't integrated with my game yet. So, here's to more games of Go!

Go Boot CD

2004-09-29T07:13:00.000-07:00

Hikarunix is an amusing and cool idea for us Go lovers. A Linux boot CD that has all the internet Go tools built in.

Hilarious. Nerdy. And Cool.

Wilcox Review

2004-09-24T16:13:00.000-07:00

Okay.

I've been reading and rereading Bruce Wilcox's Sector Fights and Contact Fights. And I have some thoughts. First off, the presentation isn't necessarily "juvenile" - it comes from a different school/methodology of thought. Wilcox uses words like "sucks" and "toasted" and the like, because that is how he is. He is also a computer programmer, and the book reads like a reference manual at times. Which is very useful to me.

I'm learning a lot, because instead of arcane proverbs, like "the touch of a single stone is as a darting swallow," or whatever, he puts it in english terms and principles.

I can see why this can be disconcerting. It demystifies the game, and by using non-standard terminology, it removes much of the aura and flavor and the mysterious oriental inscrutability of it all.

I feel stronger. My play isn't necessarily better, but at least I am not simply trying for the same old thing all over, my play inproving incremently, but without any fundamental sense of what I am trying to do. That at least has changed. And I'm enjoying playing again.

I have come to the conclusion...

2004-09-20T17:01:00.000-07:00

...that I need a teacher - an instructor - a mentor - a sensei. I will continue to improve incrementally; this I can tell. But I think that I need a much better player to help me out to push me quickly through the teens.

Now to figure out how, in the desert, I can accomplish this... especially when I'll never be able to afford lessons, so I am simply looking for someone who wants to teach.

It'll never happen, right? Ah, who knows. Life is funny that way.

I have come to the conclusion...

2004-09-20T17:00:00.000-07:00

GoGrinder

2004-09-19T18:01:00.000-07:00

At some point, I think I will download GoGrinder. It looks like a great tool for organizing all the different problem sets that I like to visit and try.

Go Humor

2004-09-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it took me a while to understand that the link that pointed to ritchie press as a publisher of excellent books on go was one of wry and subtle humor.

Oh. I made 19kyu.

KGS Tournament Results - First Day

2004-09-18T00:11:00.000-07:00

Well, much to my surprise, I'm, doing pretty well in the KGS September Handicap Tournament, Asia/11k to 30k Division Players. I'm tied for 2nd after the first two games in the swiss tournament. And I proved to myself, that if I take my time, I can actually play a reasonable game of Go. Also, Wilcox's Dojo is actually helping me. Because he takes time to explain things in plain english (in an almost pedantic lecture style occasionally), I can actually understand the technical reasoning that lies behind the proverbs that I have been studying for two months now.

Learning From Wilcox

2004-09-16T06:57:00.000-07:00

Okay. Being my normal meticulous self - at least when it comes to learning new material... I began by reading the rules of the game. And I have to say that Wilcox's description of a false eye is quite probably the best I have ever read - clear and understandable, and most important of all: immediately usable.

Trying to learn from Wilcox

2004-09-16T06:28:00.000-07:00

I went ahead and ordered Bruce Wilcox's go material. I've heard a lot of both good and bad about his material. Most of the bad has to do with his cockiness, refusal to use traditional terminology, and the (what has been termed sophomoric) presentation. However, people whose playing strength I respect have assured me that the content is very valuable, and definitely worth the low price. I started working through sector fights already, and I think I am learning useful material already even though I am just scratching the surface.

I'll let you know how I feel about this material down the line.

And in playing... haven't felt confident enough to play anyone on KGS in days. But I am playing several simultaneous games at Dragon Go Server. It's not as much pressure - which is what is stressing me out the most right now.

Understanding Not, I Am

2004-09-09T07:03:00.000-07:00

I went up to 20kyu without playing a game these last few days.

I don't feel any stronger. Do I look stronger to you? [flexes muscles]

I feel like I understand less and less. Every day I play a couple games against the computer, either WinHonte or GnuGo, and it seems like I do worse and worse. I think that I will study some fuseki here over the next several days. My fuseki used to seem great, but now I get so involved in fighting that I forget to form moyos or to invade my opponent's.

I also haven't been to the Go club lately for two reasons: I haven't had the time now that the school year has started, and I feel bad about only taking my daughter; it becomes very boring for her if she doesn't have friends with her, and due to the school year, her friends don't have the time to come.

I still like the game. But I am so very frustrated!

Rank(ed) Amateur?

2004-09-07T13:20:00.000-07:00

Well, I keep going up in rank on KGS even though I keep losing game after game.

I'm now 20kyu. I thought that perhaps buying that great Go equipment would suddenly enable me to make that leap to where I understood everything, but it still isn't happening. I still feel lost. I can't play fuseki anymore, though my fighting is getting a little better. But I'd love to be able to not have to fight so much.

I have noticed that all the studying on tesuji and all that I had been doing had led me to an interesting pass... in almost every game I would focus almost exclusively on cutting off and killing one huge group - to the detriment of the rest of the game. I would succeed, but I would lose all four corners.

Granted, I have been playing almost exclusing 4-stone handicap games against GnuGo, but I still am losing by more than 4 stones' worth of territory. Ah well, with time comes experience. I still like the game, I just get frustrated easier these days.

Starting to get it

2004-08-25T06:58:00.000-07:00

Okay. I think I really am finally integrating whatever it was that was holding me back...

Last night I played two games. In the first, I played a 23k player, and I finally made my first - um - "invasion bubble" - at least that's what I'm calling it. I was able to jump in and by hopping all around the edges of his territory and pushing, I was able to knock out about 50 points of territory. However, I then made a completely stupid mistake, let a group of mine be captured, and subsequently lost the game. S'okay.

The second game, I focused more, and played a 22k player. I was able to make two strategic captures early on, and then he resigned. I am starting to feel a little more confident.

Go Equipment Arrives

2004-08-24T06:27:00.000-07:00

Okay.

After a week of interminable waiting, the equipment I ordered is finally here. It's beautiful. The stones are nice and thick, the board is mellow and clean, and the bowls are a great dark red. I had to immediately open it all up and play a game against myself (having no one in the area to play with, you see).

One thing about the shin-kaya board. The color is great and so is the feel, but it doesn't "click" like some of the other boards I have tried. Instead there is sort of a muted "thwack". Which I think - in time - I will come to like just as much.

Problem is, I've been reading Hikaru No Go with my daughter, and I'm now WAY too used to the loud comic-style klikking and klakking that goes on inside. ^_^

Feeling it

2004-08-18T07:17:00.000-07:00

Okay.

Last night I played a couple games, and I think whatever I needed to process is starting to become understood. I was actually able to win one game, and then beat GnuGo as well. A few more games, some more subconscious processing, and I might be able to actually start improving again ;-)

Worse and worse

2004-08-17T07:24:00.000-07:00

It's so strange.

I can't read anything anymore. It's all so foreign. I flounder and founder when I attempt to play. What happened? I just can't seem to even get back to where I was before. I feel like I'm 28kyu all over again. It's so frustrating.

I played a 19kyu player last night with a 3-stone handicap and lost by a huge margin. I just don't see how to move anymore. My strongest thing was my fuseki, and I can't even figure out how to do that anymore. Ah well... I'll keep playing and maybe it will come to me. That's what I keep saying anyway.

Go Equipment

2004-08-16T07:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, here's what I ordered:

I wanted big stones, so I got the 10mm Glass Stones. I thought about getting the 8mm ones, but after trying both a couple times, I really like the heft and feel of the thick 10mm stones.

I had a really hard time deciding on the board to get. The Agathis table board has a beautiful red color to it on the sides, but it has a finish on the board itself, one that makes it light enough to play on. Since traditional Go boards are - to the Western eye - unfinished, consisting of just a light wax, I decided to go with the more expensive, but unfinished 2-inch Japanese Shin-kaya Table Board. The bowls I wanted would match very well with the Agathis board, due to their rich red color, but I also felt they would go well with the Shin-Kaya board. In addition, I really like the Go Seigen style bowls over the Kitani style bowls, so I ended up choosing the Dark Red Ash Bowls over the Shin-Kaya bowls.

I looked through most of the stores online:

Kiseido,

Yutopian,

Masters Games,

Ibuki Press,

Slate and Shell,

KurokiGoishi, and

Ishi Press

I decided on samarkand for a couple reasons. The stone price was inexpensive, the boards were reasonable, and the conversational style of the site was SO very similar to some catalog I used to read in the past that it really sucked me in. Yes, I know that's a wierd reason, but as the Cluetrain pointed out, a transaction is a conversation with your customers, and Janice Kim's site really puts themselves out there. I liked it. Liked it enough to order from the.

No Go

2004-08-11T08:13:00.000-07:00

No go last night. I did study a little. But instead I was working. See, I'm consoling myself with the plan that what will happen is that I will not play for a few days, and then my subconscious will assimilate all the learning I've been doing, and I'll start playing again in a few days, and I will be so much stronger! Yea! That's it!

Ahem.

Okay, maybe it's wishful thinking. But I gotta do something since I don't have the time to play...

A Night Off

2004-08-10T07:05:00.000-07:00

I didn't play Go last night. Wow. I feel so relieved ;-)

The Wall Pt. 2

2004-08-09T07:08:00.000-07:00

Okay.

I have definitely run into a wall. My rating graph on KGS has flatlined. I'm reading the book Tesuji by Davies, and it's the strangest thing. When I looked at it a couple weeks ago, the moves seemed so simple and clear, and by putting a few principles from the simpler tesuji into play, I went up at least 2kyu in strength. (Not that that really means anything at my level of play, but...)

Yet now, when I look at the problems, I can't seem to figure them out. I can't seem to win a single game online. I'm wondering if this is the effect I have heard much stronger players talking about: you read something, and then you lose 2 stones in strength until you actually understand it. In any case, it's damn frustrating.

So, I'll keep practicing, and keep reading. Let's see what happens.

Saturday I played a 7-stone game against one of the good players at the club. Although he beat me handily, I was very pleased with my play in one portion of the board: I successfully kept him out of my center enclosure.

Afterwards, it was mentioned that I need to work harder on separating white stones and using the influence of the handicap stones. So I went online and played a game. I gave up all four corners, and then lost the center too. I think I went a wee bit too far toward the corner-giving up idea.

Learning From The Stones

2004-08-06T18:45:00.000-07:00

There is a very interesting article on understanding Chinese strategic concepts available from the Strategic Studies Institute of the US Army War College. It attempts to demonstrate the underpinnings of shi by an explanation of a game of Go. Good stuff.

Hitting the wall

2004-08-06T07:20:00.000-07:00

I seem to hit the wall a lot.

I'll be playing at what I think is a great level (for me) and then I'll start to make a couple poor moves, and suddenly I can't do a thing and the game is lost and I am staring at the wreckage of a once beautiful framework.

I play lightly when I should press, and I play defensively when I should be aggressive. I am easily threatened, and yet at the same time much too bold.

I read a quote that said that playing Go well is the art of playing a decent move over and over and over again without messing up. Not inspired fits of brilliance, but the ability to just not screw up. I can see the logic of that.

I did play a great teaching game last night and learned a lot.

I also think I need to stop playing the Hoshi points. Against someone my level, I can usually make a large center enclosure, but I play that same style in high handicap games, and in those I just can't afford to give up the center.

Anyway, I'm approaching 22 kyu. The hardest thing is to find rated opponents who are willing to play. At my level, most of my opponents still tend to be ? players.

But I still like the game :)

And I taught someone how to play last night. That's me - go evangelist.

Not much of a meeting

2004-08-04T22:47:00.000-07:00

So there were only three people today. Apparently the president is at the US Go Congress. I missed that tidbit of information lats week as I was out of town picking up my daughter. I don't know why no one else was there, but as I said, there were but three.

I played K. who is quite good. It was a 9-stone handicap game, and I did reasonably well. I made some good plays, and then of course, followed them up with some bad ones when it got too complicated for me to read.

The third person was a visiting 3d, J. He gave K. an educational 5-stone game, which he handled with deft ease. The really cool thing was that at the end of the game, he went through a review, replaying the game from memory. K. could remember about 20 moves. I could only remember about 10. Then, he demonstrated the difference between dan level players and even low-kyu players like K. by showing how a very loose framework that developed at about the 24th move could have been developed into a huge black moyo by hitting the vital points one after another. It was amazing.

And then, on the last example, he showed the response that someone of my level would have played, then he showed K. the response that a low kyu would have played, then he showed us how he would have handled it. I couldn't even understand why he played where he did. But K. did. So I have hope that some day I will be at that level too.

Anyway, though it wasn't much of a meeting, I learned a lot.

Oh, and apparently there's several go blogs out there. I've been reading Doug's Go Blog recently.

The Monkey Jump

2004-08-04T07:17:00.000-07:00

Last night, while playing a game in which the battle was very close, I played the monkey jump for the first time. Now, not only was it a deep intrusion into my opponent's territory, on the next play I was able to force a connection with an isolated group of three stones. And what did that do? It forced a capturing race with about 5 free liberties on both sides that would result in my capturing enough stones to change the course of the game.

So what happened? Well, what seems to happen at times on the internet servers with new players who are not yet ranked: my opponent simpley ran away, cravenly seeking to deny me my rightful victory. It's only a small thing, really. It's funny, while the internet brings communities of game players together in a way that they cannot accomplish in the real world, the virtuality of it allows people to game the system in just such a manner (among others).

The beautiful thing was (a) seeing that the monkey jump was possible, and (b) forcing a game-changing capture. Man, that was sweet. I really, really like this game.

I beat GnuGo!

2004-08-03T07:06:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's true. Last night, after playing a couple games online, I logged off and started up GnuGo and played a game. I actually won! Amazing! But I don't feel any stronger. And my rank at KGS went back up to a 24kyu. So what does it all mean? Relax and stop worrying, I guess.

Oh, and I beat a 12kyu? - with a nine-stone handicap, though. However, that's still not bad.

I made 23kyu!

2004-08-02T10:24:00.000-07:00

In a lengthy battle last night, I defeated a 22kyu by 0.5 points to finally break into the rarified atmosphere of the 23kyu players. And of course, I promptly followed this by losing a 4-stone handicap game to a 19kyu player by OVER 20 POINTS! Good god!

That's what happens when it gets real late, and you stop thinking. Note to self: stop playing rated games when you are tired. Goofball!

I also had a great lesson from a 7kyu player. At times we had up to seven people in the game room watching and learning along with me. The main lesson I brought back from that one was the use of sente in the endgame. Of course, sente is important throughout the game, but it's harder for me to see where it is in the opening or even the middle game. But in the endgame, how much better it is to be able to make four territory-expanding moves as opposed to only one...

I'm also reading a tesuji book. What's really amazing is that I tried to read it a few weeks ago, and thought it would be easy going. But now, as I lower myself into the game, what seemed simple become deep and mysterious, like murky river water. The half-hidden currents that push and pull on the stones are becoming clearer, but with that, the motivations for any play become more complex.

I love this game. So far, it's like peeling a never-ending onion.

A Very Small Measure of Revenge

2004-07-31T04:32:00.000-07:00

At the club today, I didn't get to play the person who beat me on Wednesday. But I did play his friend. (Please note, both of them are very nice people. My revenge is desired more against myself. I don't care if I am beaten, but let me play my best game. A weak game is no good for either side.)

So anyway, I played his friend, who normally gets a 2-stone handicap against him. I won by a very large margin. So I feel better, that the next time we meet we can have a more even contest. This, to me, is very satisfactory.

So. This wednesday perhaps, I will be able to play a stronger game against him.

Roller-blading? Or Go?

2004-07-29T07:47:00.000-07:00

I did what used to be my modus operandi last night. I double-booked myself. I made plans to go rollerblading with a friend at the same time as my Go club meeting. The rollerblading was fun, and she was nice enough to go with me to the club so I could play one game.

However, that turned out to be its own bad idea. I was tired and hot from blading, and my concentration was horrible. I was embarrassed that I played so poorly. So, after going home, in a fit of post-mortem irritation, I logged onto KGS and played several games. I won most of them, too. One natable exception was the third game of 9x9 that I played against a 17kyu. Note: that was the one in which he concentrated ;-) The other two I rocked!

I am ranked... 24 Kyu. I have good opening skills, i.e. my fuseki are strong, but my fighting and eye shape creation leaves something to be desired. I need to play more; that seems to be most necessary. I have been doing lots of life and death problems, and I actually read several capturing races successfully last night.

I want to play more. NOW!

The First Meeting

2004-07-08T06:50:00.000-07:00

So I bit the bullet.

I went to the Tempe Go Club meeting. Bill, the president/contact, wasn't there. At first I wasn't sure that I had come to the right place. My daughter, her friend, and I all walked from a very distant parking lot to the student union building at ASU. We got there with about five minutes to spare, and there was no one there.

From my last post, you know that I didn't want to go immediately. Well, that fell by the wayside. Following the Fourth of July (coincidentally also in Tempe), I found myself playing against igowin with a zest and fervor that was truly frightening to contemplate (so I didn't).

For those of you who know nothing about Go, it has a ranking system that is very similar to those used in the martial arts. Which makes sense, seeing as how the two systems developed in the same culture. An absolute novice is given the rank 30 kyu (pronounced "Q"), and with experience decreases down to the rank of 1 kyu. Apparently somewhere around 18-15 kyu, one becomes a serious beginner. Past 1 kyu are the dans, which go from 1 dan (lowest) to 7 dan (highest). Again, similar to the dans which a black-belt in karate might receive.

Please note, all these rankings are amateur-only. There is a whole other set of dan rankings for professional Go players. And while there is much less difference between the dans of professional-level players (the ranking being based more on seniority than ability), a 1 dan professional should be able to beat a 7 dan amateur - even giving the amateur a handicap. That's what I've heard, anyway. Feel free to enlighten me if I am incorrect on this point.

In any case, after settling my daughter and her friend at the table with their fast-food dinner, I approached a long-haired college-age man who sat reading a book. As I got closer, I was able to see that it was a book on Go, and I knew I was in the right place. I introduced myself, and Wes (for that turned out to be his name), slowly looked up, as if from meditation, and said "hi" before returning to his study.

Eventually, a couple other people arrived: Kenny, who seems to be about my age or a little younger, and Wes, a silver-haired gentleman with a home-made board and stones that show the wear of great use.

It turned out that Wes seems to be the principal instructor for the group, and we played a few 9x9 games. I lost of course, but the experience of actually playing across from another human turned out to be so enjoyable, I know that I'll be back again on Saturday.

Afterwards, I let my daughter and her friend play in the five interconnected fountains that are centered in the plaza outside the student union. It was a perfect evening.

Should I Join a Go Club?

2004-07-03T18:28:00.000-07:00

Within a few days, I find myself thinking that there has to be a better way to learn this game - there must be a more understandable approach than struggling through games with the rules half understood.

I do a web search, and soon I find myself at the Arizona chapter list of the American Go Association. And lo and behold, I am lucky enough to have not one, but two chapters in the Phoenix metro area. I decide that I will go to the Tempe club. But not yet.

I will not go to the go club until I can at least understand the game well enough to be able to understand what the better players are talking about.

I do another web search, and soon arrive at a list of computer software - hosted oddly enough at the same site. I download igowin.

After a few frustrating hours, I begin to understand the rules of Go at a more fundamental level. I can understand what is happening on the board, and why I am losing. I like this program. Perhaps I will buy the full program sometime down the line.

Go Newbie

2004-07-01T15:18:00.000-07:00

I've learned something new. Something that has captivated me.

I've been playing Yahoo Chess online, and I've become frustrated by it. For some reason, my interest in Chess has never been strong enough to take me to "the next level". I've still got a few books at home, and I know a couple openings, but overall, the game just feels empty to me.

I'll admit it's still fun to play someone in person, but I no longer had any desire to improve. And when you feel that way about one of your hobbies, it's probably time to hang it up for at least a little while.

So a couple days ago, I looked through the Yahoo Games directory, and I saw the game Go listed. For a lark, I clicked on the link (I'd send you there, but it asks you to login with your yahoo ID, and thus is a frustrating result, so if you must, imagine that you have clicked on alink and are now looking at the Yahoo Games - Go area. Really, it was only worth it for the rules, and you can find better elsewhere.

I read the rules, and I decided that I could play this game. And it might even be fun.

Well, so far, my first couple of games have been very frustrating. The people I played had no desire to help me to understand the game, and no desire to explain their moves. My positions went from vaguely understood to completely bewildering in the blink of an eye. I was not happy.

My third game was much more interesting. I played another new person, and over the course of an hour or so, we managed to stumble through a game, and arrived at a very basic understanding of the rules.

I think I'm going to like this game.