Wedge - when the approach to 3-5 is possible

Very distant  

There are good reasons for not counting here as an approach play, in relation with Black's 3-5 point stone.

Black encloses  

The exchange of for is normally reckoned as a loss for White.

Considering the whole side  

In order to appreciate White's play one must look at least at the whole side. Here, clearly enough, functions as a wedge, but and permit Black ryojimari with .^[1]

Considering the whole side (2)  

Clearly the positioning of indicates that White would be happy in the overall position to settle a group with here.

An example where this is known in pro play is in a Kobayashi variant:

Hong-Ch'oe  

This is from Hong Min-p'yo-Ch'oe Ch'eol-han (B) 2003-03-07. White uses caution in playing into the formation of the stones.

Continuation  

Black rejected the idea of simply taking the corner, instead applying a staircase technique with and . This forced the issue, since White here can hardly allow a big corner. In the end Wc is captured in a ladder, but White next can fight out at a.

Kitani's wedge  

Charles Matthews