American Go E-Journal

“Don’t try to fight too much, some people really like to fight, but go is a peaceful game,” Ryo Maeda 6P said in his lecture on Friday at the U.S. Go Congress. Due to popular demand, a fifth lecture was added — four were originally scheduled — and Maeda picked up where he left off on Thursday with techniques for attaching to the 4-4 point. “The simpler you play, the less mistakes you make, and your chances (of winning) increase — simple is better,” he said.  When faced with an invasion from your opponent, he doesn’t recommend “trying to kill”, because “once they live in your territory, your loss is so large — let them live small instead.”  But “you always want to punish someone who overplays.”  One way to do that is to exploit the weakness of a group with only two liberties. “Two liberties is more dangerous than you think,” Maeda said.  A group with two liberties “makes normal moves for nearby groups dangerous.”  He demonstrated several examples and joked that “if you do this against a 5D player, they cry.”  Translator Yoshi Sawada 6D pointed out several times that Maeda used English phrases: “see he speaks English — very soon I will be out of a job,” he joked.  Not only was it a bonus lecture, but it also went on for more than an hour and a half, and Maeda looked ready to keep on going, but — like the Congress itself — all good things must eventually come to an end. Fortunately, there’s always next year.
– Report/photos by Jake Edge