Charles Matthews My first comment here is that the shape relationship between
and
is never really good.
into the mix before we can try to claim that the
-
relationship is not really good. When the White stone is missing, it is the standard (5-6 times more frequently played than any alternative) choice for closing the corner.
In this case
and
have a good relationship.
and
on the board the play at
does not have a very successful record. While the theoretical relationship may be nice, it is too passive. When jumps to
, the corner is still vulnerable. Black will likely want to add
anyway. At this point is he better off with the stone on
?
And also in this case
and
have a good relationship.
So you could say that Black has created himself a shape problem, by taking 50% from each pattern.
In this case:
I recommend on general grounds this 'big bulge' shape made of two keima.
HolIgor: We have a winner. This is what I meant.
![[Diagram]](../../diagrams/48/5059cf09ff414343d638f92744c35621.png)
Corner aji
Maybe there are still 3-3 invasion problems at a after
. Black could try a play like b to keep the corner.
Playing
, however, seems to get Black out into the centre in good shape. So it looks like good style to me.
Jan: This was my first idea too, but Charles was quicker[1] (but then, I haven't written a book on shape :-). One thing I wasn't sure about was whether the correct solution really keeps white separated. What happens after the following moves?
seems to be able to reach the upper-side group.
Karl Knechtel: I'm not convinced of that. (5-8 are shown to indicate that a counterattack is futile.)
[1]
Charles Not in the book, and of course I cheated with a database (I wouldn't enjoy posting comments without some sort of verification). But 'big bulge' is a term from Shape Up!