![]() StartingPoints Referenced by
|
Passing
Keywords: Rules, Go term
In a go game, players take turns in placing their stones on empty intersection on the board. However, it is legal (in most rules) that a player does not place a stone on the board, but makes a pass (i.e. not playing a stone / doing nothing) and it's now the other players turn. Thus there is no "Zugzwang" in Go. If both players pass on their consecutive moves the game usually ends and Scoring and Counting starts. See also: Rules of Go and Basic rules of Go BillSpight: Under most sets of rules a pass is free. However, under AGA territory scoring a pass costs 1 point. The passer hands his opponent a stone as a captive, called a pass stone. Two passes end play, but White makes the last pass. The practical effect of pass stones is to reconcile territory and area scoring. Several people have had the idea of pass stones, but the AGA incorporation of them can be traced back to an AGA Journal article I wrote in the '70s on the Chinese rules in which I called them bookkeeping stones. Pass stones sounds better, doesn't it? ;-) Ending the game with two consecutive passes can lead to positions similar to Zugzwang, in the sense that not having even a neutral move leads to a loss. Such positions involve moonshine kos. This is a copy of the living page "Passing" at Sensei's Library. (C) the Authors, published under the OpenContent License V1.0. |