:: Igo Hatsuyôron 120 (2021)

Variations of Our Solution (Ib)

KataGo's 2021 Solution

VAR

: ( 58eh)
White captures in the lower left corner, but this move is too greedy and was played too hasty.

:
Black throws-in at the top, in order to spoil White's eye shape in this area.

:
White has to capture - sooner or later.

:
Black gives another atari at White's five stones.

:
White captures Black's single stone in the lower left corner.

:
Black must defend his corner by blocking at .

Capturing White's five stones in the upper left might be tempting, but is smaller than it looks like. White will be able to overcompensate for her loss by devasting Black's lower left corner, e.g. with .

Most important, White would not have taken her centre group an own liberty (by connecting at ). This implies that Black's option for entering the Central Semeai would have been erased by himself.

:
White's wedge in the left centre starts a well-known sequence there.

:
Eventually, White will have to connect her five stone in the upper left.

:
Now, Black takes the opportunity to initiate the Central Semeai. His throw-in at creates a false eye for White's centre group, which will benefit him in the forthcoming semeai.

:
Black reduces White's group to only one eye.

:
White's hane at the upper edge creates an approach-move liberty for her group.

:
The outcome of the Central Semeai is already decided, so White takes profit at the left by connecting her two stones in the lower left.

:
Black follows White with the endgame at the left side of the board.

:
Please note that White is forced to occupy a liberty of Black's nakade stones.


Ko: ; ;

:
There is no need to fill the nakade at the left edge, so Black captures the ko in the lower left.

:
In-between, White triggers a move pair of the Central Semeai.

:
Black takes the last valuable point on the rest of the board.

:
White connects the ko.


:
Black stops White from getting another point of territory in this area.

:
Black reduces the liberty count of White's centre group to five (), while his right-hand group has six liberties () left that are not shared.
White will have to capture the tail with her next move at .

Otherwise, Black would connect there, and capture White's centre group thereafter, so winning the game by a large margin.

Capture Variation:

Compared to the superordinate variation, ...

  • White's cumulated gain in the left centre is one point.
  • Black's cumulated gain in the nakade area is six points.
  • White's cumulated gain in the lower left corner is five points.
  • White captured an additional Black stone in the right centre.
  • Black destroyed two points of White's territory at the top.
  • Black got an additional point of territory in the right centre.
  • Black did not capture White's two stones in the lower left, so losing four points.
  • White did not capture Black's stone in the lower right, so losing two points.

In total, gains and losses compensate for each other.

White + 1 => White + 1

Copyright © 2021 Thomas Redecker.

Design by Jan van Rongen, modified by Thomas Redecker.

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