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Shimari
  Difficulty: Advanced   Keywords: Opening, Go term

[Diagram]
Diag.: 19x19 diagram

A shimari is a position in the corner where one player has made 2 moves. The most common shimaris are the ones shown here. In the upper left, the keima shimari is shown. It lays a strong claim on the corner and also radiates influence to the outside. The ikken tobi shimari in the upper right is stronger in influence, especially along the upper side, but weaker at protecting the corner. There is a weak point at A that black can exploit. In the lower left we find the ogeima shimari. It stakes out a larger territory than the keima shimari, but is also rather thin, leaving more aji behind.

When starting at the 3-4 points, one will try to get one of these shimaris. The same holds for the 5-3 and 5-4 points. In rare occasions it is better to make an irregular shimari like the one in the lower right. This one has a strong influence to the center, but despite the fact that black has played two moves, the corner is still open. For that reason, it is only advisable in special circumstances - in particular when black is building a large moyo in the center.


[Diagram]
Diag.: shimari from the 3-3 and 4-4 point

Because of their symmetric position, making a shimari is less important for stones at the 3-3 and 4-4 points. From those a long extension along the side is more common. If a shimari is made, the marked points are the most usual ones.

Authors: Andre Engels



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