go problem

I made this problem. I think it's well worth looking at it, as it is quite interesting.

http://www.goproblems.com/prob.php3?id=8034

Endgame

Have been leaving it behind for a while. Endgame is a silly part.

or is it?

I recently picked up a book, "Elementary Series: Endgame." Upon seeing the book, I was immediately humbled. I tried problems, but often, I found my endgame computations to be way off. Even screwed up on naming which move is sente or gote or double sente or...

Yet the book gave me a rating of 3-5k, but...I felt worse than that. Considering my current strength, I'm seeing myself as about 1 dan. That means my middle game is a strong part of the game. Since I'm relatively weak with opening and endgame, that probably means that I'm like 5d-something in middle game, or fighting, just to make up for my weaknesses in endgame and opening.

So...I try to sit back and look at endgame, trying to make myself more and more sane about endgame. One game, I missed a 20-point gote move while playing 1-point gote. That tells me how sad my endgame is. That means there is something for me to improve, but it will be a long process before I finally become sane with endgame.

If I became saner with endgame, I certainly would gain few stones in strength, as I will be able to wrap up my strong middle game, and win the games, by putting people away, not giving them chances to come back.

Fighting

One of the biggest difference between Kyu and Dan is that...

It is ability to stand.

What does that mean?

Kyu is basically one long crawl, learning from mistakes, fighting back, bouncing back every time you fall. One long crawl, one long learning how to stand up.

Why the heck I'm making this metaphor, and looking up, the title is fighting?

Often, I have seen in the games, dan players seem to have an idea how to stand back, and find ways to fight back against opponent. Often, I see weaker players cowering, or following around, not taking initative. Or rather, trying to find ways to take initative so could fight back on even terms. That means finding moves that you would never have thought before. Finding tesujis that work in amazing ways.

What makes the difference? It's ability to find a way to fight back. Things may not go well on one part, but just fighting back can make a world of difference. Must have desire to win.

Cannot falter in fuseki
Cannot falter in middle game
Cannot falter in yose.

In all of those stages, must learn how to fight back.

In a way, kyu is like a baby learning how to walk. Dan players are like a toddlers who toddle, knowing how to walk, and how to stand.

With this realization, the board looks much bigger. So distant. So deep. More I understand, less I feel like I know about the game.

New strength, new ideas.

Somehow, I had gotten much stronger in past few weeks.

Why? I do not know yet. Many people are telling me that I'm doing dan-style moves, but...

What are those dan-style moves?

All I know that is the fact that one person gave me tools to look around and go crazy on goban.

Somehow...something just made sense to me. I go away from goban for three weeks, and I came back much stronger. Perhaps it is how I look at the game is changing, and all I needed is a new perspective on the game.

This new perspective...changed way I looked at the game.

Josekis finally made sense.
Fuseki is starting to make sense.
The difference between moves is starting to make sense.

Even if the game is starting to make sense, I still see a large depths of the game. There are so many avenues of exploration.

But one biggest thing that contributed to my changing perspective of the game...was one game against 5d KGS. This player is so patient and always playing strongly. It's quite obvious that any overplays would be punished quickly and summarily. So I had to change my way thinking about how to make moves. Also to learn how to make strong moves, but to the point that it is not an overplay either, and to the point that it affect my opponent to the point that my opponent must do something about it. My attacks has become much more active. My defense is improving.

Of course, I still make small mistakes here and there, but after all, go is a learning experience, and I cannot expect to be perfect immediately, but the game takes work and patience to be able to improve. One game, I managed to put 1d AGA away quickly, but in that game, I made at least five mistakes that all are overplayish, or slightly an underplay, which is a clear evidence that I still have a lot of things to work at still, but I am certainly learning from them, because I'm starting to understand where I should look. All I have to do is to focus this strength properly, and I surely will propel forward.

Go is always a new game everytime when you look at it.

Reading

Reading.

Tricky, yet useful.

I have been trying to discpline myself to read out many different possibilities each move. It's much harder than it seems. It's so easy to get get complacement and just play, play, play.

But I found that more I read in game, more stronger I can get, because I'm starting to notice different aspects of the game. What if I tried something? What if I played one point to left to my "natural instinct"? What if I can force my opponent into a shape that favors me? If I can't ladder, what are my alternative options? How can I keep sente much as I can?

Reading is truly difficult to do, but more I improve at it, game gets more and more interesting because the board starts to open up, and there are more possibilities for me to toy around w