The Heavenly 100 - Games 46-51

 

Game 46

This was versus a 14ku. July started this year with 185 games under their belt. Steady progress post the start drop with most play in July/August this year. So doesn't look particularly committed.

The game was fairly stress free as I was happy letting them take stuff and took mine in return. What I wanted to run over in AI post game though was bad moves I avoided suffering for (as ever) and if I could have a) killed his bottom right invasion and b) killed his top left group with my own invasion.

Mistakes first, beyond the usual 'too slow' I made one dangerous move here

Which resulted in nothing but my opponent should have cut then at K16 forcing me to join at L16 (otherwise losing 8 bottom stones) but that would then allow black to eat into the top and possibly kill the left side (or at worst make this a 1 or 2 point territory). The recommendation was instead of playing 102 to play down the bottom where there was plenty of center space. If Black took the bate of 2 stones for capture then fine. Now the AI suggestion was as follows (note it does not think Black should take the 2 stones and black would be expected to respond down bottom)

The difference was an increase in whites winning points from 24 a=head to 44 ahead.

On the variations bottom right first there was an early variation I would not have considered (and probably wont remember or risk). If we followed more closely ddk play then

Looks like it would have worked

Or taking my rather rubbish O2 as a starter I could have monkey jumped in and soaked up space 

Top left there was no chance against anyone who knew what they were doing but as we are DDKs there was a chance and at the end of game my opponent passed instead of playing B19 which actually means Seki was possible. 

Not much but another 8 points there.

This may seem pedantic but if you take away the weakness of not being able to kill groups that should be easily killed (I am not talking about killing groups that have a 50-50 or better chance at life but those that a SDK would just kill) then the strategic play elsewhere would have made this a +34.7 points game (with the bottom right invasion correctly dealt with and AI considered the group dead 

And with the seki mistake at the top a +43.4 game though that is relying on an actual mistake whereas the bottom invasion only lived due to misplay from me.

Game 47

A loss versus a steady improver since January this year, briefly, recently hit the heady heights of 11kyu. Aggressive player and I thought I had this lost early but it was closer than expected. One early mistake was forcing a 3-3 invasion towards my 'strength' cause that’s what you are supposed to do. Unfortunately I suck at using strength so just forced my oppo to eat into my own territory. He then invaded the easier side as well and lived though I was suspicious the shape could be killed (and when I tried to attack I hit the correct kill point) . Unfortunately I went for a straight 3 when a the following was the correct kill shape

This would have put me 8.2 points ahead and won the game (as not many more points elsewhere to take). As it was my straight 3 meant seki.. That was really close (not much of a leap to get to that killing point and the fact I recognised the weakness was good  - this means my general strategy wasn't that bad though naturally lots of improvements could be made.

Game 48

I do appear to hitting levels of suck unreached for before now....

This game was against a 13kyu of 'just since April' as ever lineage with 382 games in 9 months or so. Steady progress but never above 12kyu. I retained a steady lead from the start and was protecting my groups well right up until I didn't and I let an invasion that should have died for points each up a huge side costing me loads is the mistake point and how it should have been defended

I also (earlier) missed extending a kill by focusing on a smaller target

I had my eye on the 4 on the left and didn't realise IO could catch those 4 as well

But, according to AI - when I failed to pick up that invasion I was already 2-3 points behind which meant that even without that I would likely have lost.

Post game I deservedly dropped to 14kyu which looks like it is where I currently belong. It's strange how all the study doesn't seem to help particularly. 

I'm not sure of the best approach to improve weaknesses as the games seem a matter of luck (most of the time) and my luck seems to degenerate the more I study from books. I might re-try the go magic servers as I liked their approach.

Game 49

Well I have moved out of the realm of solid DDK play and started to exist in the realm of the crazy again. It's interesting how just a small drop from 13 brings forward play that is 'almost' logical but still recognisably unsafe. My oppo here has had 1100 games in a year and 2 months but never breached 14kyu.If anything their biggest weakness seems to be that old favourite (that I also succumb to) of a total fixation

On killing regardless as to the possibilities of said death. Unfortunately for him their play was slow enough I could see the punched coming so was able to protect.

There is not much to run over though the AI thought more aggression I should live small bottom right to take a much bigger territory in the top left, much as so

Whereas I was already comfortable points wise so was happy to sit back and defend. 

Looking at it the position suggested bottom right was much the same but the top left does look freer so it was probably right…

Game 50

Against one of my repeat opponents who I have apparently played and lost twice game 38 by 8 points and game 44 by 38.5 points

I wasn't expecting to win but I think that my oppo was 'trying something' out as his beginning was unusual with a massive concentration against my first 4-4 stone allowing me to take 2 of the other corners with reinforced 3-4s and was so strange that the AI had me at 5.3 points ahead as black by move 14

I was not upset by this situation with 6 white stones all piling into the top left corner. I then managed to force the left corner stone into a smallish corner and held 2 invasions to the bottom right to wasting lots of stones to live small. I did miss an apparent kill move (though that is probably too many stones for my tiny brain to cope with working out how to kill) and would have pushed my around 50 points ahead.

Now white is a better player and fought back to a level pegging score before, in a new first, I pulled 10 points ahead in end game mainly by keeping sente (and 3 stones unaccountably wasted by white killing an already dead invasion)

So the half century in the hundred games has been reached and I think 13kyu is correct for my skill level. Which means brain deterioration from my earlier 11kyu rank which I'm not sure I am capable of playing too..

What has improved over these 50 games? I think I have improved my containing play but my points and weakness/threat sense is still incredibly weak.

Game 51

An unranked player who lost to a 3 kyu? For their only game, not sure how that works as don’t ogs beginners start with a 15kyu rank?? Even their name of 'TesujiGo' kind of gives away an experience level.

Anyway rapidly proved themselves such a stronger player I resigned. Nothing of note to gain or see when a player probably around 6-7 levels higher than you beats you