Spot the Atari / Solutions

Exercise 1  

Exercise 2

Exercise 2  

Exercise 3

Exercise 3  

Exercise 4

Exercise 4  

Exercise 5

Exercise 5  

Remark: Stronger players will note that White can also play elsewhere, since the Black stones are already dead.

Exercise 6  

Exercise 7

Exercise 7  

is not the best way to capture. can capture a white stone and save four black stones.

Exercise 8

Exercise 8  

Remark: In this exercise, the stones are already dead.

Exercise 9

Exercise 9  

For this problem, black a or black b can be considered to be a solution.

Exercise 9  

in this diagram is a failure. The result is a snapback, at will capture black.

Exercise 10

Exercise 10  

Remark: After the capture, the stones are dead.

Exercise 10  

Capturing the stones at is inferior to the solution above, because can connect and save the three outside Black stones.

Exercise 10  

Notice now that white has made her group alive, and black cannot cut the marked stones. Also White has captured three more stones and lost one. White may make one additional point of territory with , but this also does not represent optimal play. Let's review why.

With , White forces Black to connect at captured . White can then play at A to force Black to connect at B, then create a tiger's mouth at C. White can meet the Black extension at D with E, forming another tiger's mouth; but Black could produce Atari by a play to the right of E, forcing White to close at F. Black could then play the diagonal and attempt to escape White's thickness; with friendly stones nearby, Black can succeed. Without, future play may make the position more favorable to Black.

Exercise 10  

In this sequence, White has forced with . White then creates atari with , forcing Black to connect at . White can now play at A; B becomes a net by the marked point, and C becomes a tiger's mouth. Black can Tenuki or try to reduce White's territory by 1 point; Black tenuki gains the opportunity to threaten to cut White as a Ko threat, so White should connect when possible. White should give priority to extending influence out towards the center, if possible, using the White group to the right.