Home > Steve > Go > Problem of the month

December 1999's Go Answer of the Month


Dia 1 - What is move 5?

Dia 1

My thanks to Charles Matthews who has sent me six professional games all of which have this opening, (well actually, in some of them Black 1 and 3 are played in the other order, but...). I intend to make at least two 'Problem of the months' out of this material, but the second part probably won't be next month

Anyway the first part of the problem is to look at this early stage of the fuseki and work out what Black 5 might be, and then to ponder any immediate followups. There could be six different answers or just one...


The first thing to note is that 1, 2 and 4 are all symmetrical 3-3 or 4-4 points. Black 3 is the only asymmetric play. In my view, this increases the significance of a second play in the south west corner.

It turns out that one game had Black 5 played in the south west corner, whilst the other 5 were all knight's approaches to White 2.

Dia 2 - The odd one out.

Nie Weiping 9p v Cao Dayuan 9p
Dia 2

In this 9p v 9p game, Black plays 5 at what I feeel to be the 'obvious' point. The moves up to 14 all then seem to flow as the big points are occupied.

Dia 3 - Two Chinese players.

Yang Weishang v Ding Hong
Dia 3

White 6 here was a pincer. In the remaining four games, White answered Black with a knight's move.

Dia 4 - A Chinese 7p v a Chinese 8p.

Tang Yenwu v Wu Biji
Dia 4

The lower side is settled at once before they move on to the rest of the board.

Dia 5 - Two more Chinese players.

Chang Hao v Ding Hong
Dia 5

Here White prefers to play 8 to sort the south west corner out without giving Black the opportunity to extend as 9 in Dia 4. White plays to capture the lower side on a large scale, but comes under pressure on the right.

Dia 6 - A Japanese game.

Yamabe 9p v Rin 9p
Dia 6

Black 7 makes the "Mini-Chinese" opening (3, 5 & 7). In this game the north west becomes the area of contest.

Dia 7 - 1979 Kisei tournament.

Hasegawa 9p v Iwata 9p
Dia 7

The "Mini-Chinese" again, but a much calmer start.


Home > Steve > Go > Problem of the month
British Go Association
Last updated 2004-08-10
This page is part of http://www.stocton.org/
Email: webmaster@stocton.org