Blighting

  Difficulty: Beginner   Keywords: Tactics, Go term

Spoiling a stone of the opponent's, by leaving it too close to a strong position of yours at the end of a tactical sequence.

(Literally blight is a kind of fungus or rot that affects farmers' crops such as grain or vegetables.)[1]


This position from BQM64 explains a common technique combining the dropping back and blighting concepts.

[Diagram]

Black's ugly play

B1 here is no good as a way to cut. After W2 Black shouldn't continue.

[Diagram]

White's first option

If Black persists, this sequence already leaves black+circle blighted. Black has caused problems for himself.

Charles Matthews

[Diagram]

A common joseki

In this common joskei, white+circle is left next to strong black stones, and so is blighted. Losing this stone is the price white pays for making territory on the top side. In this case, white+circle is not a mistake. This is joseki.

More information at 44PointOneSpaceLowPincerInvasionInterception


/discussion


See also:


[1] If you blight an opponent's stone, are you a blighter? ;-)


This is a copy of the living page "Blighting" at Sensei's Library.
(OC) 2016 the Authors, published under the OpenContent License V1.0.
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