Ongoing Game 2 / Moves 1 To 10

Ongoing game 2 moves 1 to 10  

HolIgor : This cannot be too bad.

BillSpight: Miai.

HolIgor : Please, comment and criticize moves. If we talk while we play we can learn something. At the bottom everything is miai, so the big moves are elsewhere. The biggest points are: approach in the upper left corner; and a, setting up one more pair of miai. I think that the approach is more important.

BillSpight: OK. is kikasare. White has gotten pushed around. is a good play, preventing a double enclosure.

JamesA 1k: I played . What is kikasare? I don't know the term! I thought was an interesting move as it prevents Black from attacking at the top and unsettles Black's top right stone. I'm happy to learn different though!

BillSpight: "Kikasare" is the passive form of "kikashi". Literally, it means made ineffective. I like to say, "got pushed around".

was a thoughtful play, but compare the result with this position, which is roughly equitable.

1  

White is around 4 points better off in this position.

JamesA: Thanks Bill! I see what you mean. OK then, how about playing a similar move in the lower left corner for Black 11. Wouldn't that give Black the option of good moves at a and b below? I think it might be a good way to retain the initiative.

Inefficient?  

HolIgor: If Black had played san-san first and White approached at wouldn't Black want to play at a?

JamesA: That looks convincing. However, doesn't that mean that was a move without promise? What can Black do with that is effective and useful? I think that Black 11 is playable because it is very solid, even though it may be a little inefficient. Doesn't there have to be a broad strategic point to every move in the opening?

BillSpight: And here I thought that was the game-winning play. ;-)

Is Black 9 a good move?  

JamesA: In this diagram, I would have thought that Black would rather play the sequence Black c, White a than the sequence Black b, White d, certainly in terms of territory at least. However, if White a, Black would need to make another move in the lower left corner, perhaps e to get security in the corner.

On the other hand, if White gets to play at e, Black would need to answer at somewhere like b, which White would follow with d.

Therefore, why doesn't Black play e now, while it threatens the stone? Black could then look forward to playing the Black c, White a sequence in sente.

However, as HolIgor pointed out, if a black stone at e was approached by , Black would probably answer at f rather than at .

Bearing in mind these factors, doesn't that mean that was an unpromising move?

Ongoing game 2 moves 1 to 10  

DieterVerhofstadt (1k)'s opinion on the opening:

The first move I found somewhat strange was indeed . With and , White has declared a slight preference for influence towards upper and left sides. I would have played the taisha joseki.

After , indeed seems called for to prevent the natural extension from the black lower right enclosure. However, as Bill pointed out, , and preventing the enclosure in the lower left corner, are miai. Therefore, I would have turned into a good move by pressing at b. If Black makes a second enclosure then with (or to the left of ), White can extend to c.

Still, Black comes better out of the opening than if White had played the taisha joseki. For one thing, he can exchange for d , and then make a double wing formation at a, meanwhile threatening to draw out .

Bill, can you explain ? I think a lot of players would rather have played at d or the 3-3 point.