Get Strong at Go Series, Volume 5

Get Strong at Invading

by Richard Bozulich

Kiseido Publishing Company
Chigasaki, Japan

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Preface

Invading is an important technique that every go player should have in his arsenal. The purpose of this book is to give the reader a knowledge of the basic positions where invasions are possible and to present the main variations.

The material is presented in a problem format. Each problem is part of a series of problems in which various lines are explored. The answers are usually short, avoiding long, drawn-out variations. In this way the reader can concentrate on the important idea of the invasion being studied.

The reader is not necessarily expected to solve these problems; rather he or she is expected to look at each problem, think about it carefully, come up with an answer, then compare his or her anser with the one given. If you go through the whole book in this way, by the end you will have developed your judgment and intuition as to where, how, and when to invade.

This is a book for players of all strengths. Parts One and Two should be accessible to 20-kyu players, but there is much material here that even dan players will benefit from. Part Three is more difficult, but the weaker player should study it anyway, because he or she will be introduced to many important ideas. In this way, new ideas will enter your thinking and there will come a time when it will all come together and you will find yourself on the threshold of being a dan player.

Copyright Page

Get Strong at Go Series, Volume 5
Get Strong at Invading

by Richard Bozulich

Copyright © 1995 by Richard Bozulich and Kiseido Publishing Company

All rights reserved according to international law. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise copied for public or private use without the written permission from Kiseido Publishing Company.

Published by
Kiseido Publishing Company
Kagawa 4–48–32
Chigasaki-shi, Kanagawa-ken
Japan 253–0082

ISBN of the printed version: 978–4–906574–55–1

Converted for SmartGo Books by John Mifsud.

Contents

Get Strong at Invading
Get Strong at Go Series, Volume 5

Preface

Copyright Page

Some Important Terms and Concepts

Part One: Invasions on the Side

Problems 1 to 10

The chapters in gray are included only in the full book.

Problems 11 to 20

Problems 21 to 30

Problems 31 to 40

Problems 41 to 50

Problems 51 to 60

Problems 61 to 65

Part Two: Invading Corner Enclosures

Problems 66 to 70

Problems 71 to 80

Problems 81 to 90

Problems 91 to 100

Problems 101 to 110

Problems 111 to 120

Problems 121 to 130

Problems 131 to 140

Problems 141 to 149

Part Three: Invading Large Territories

Problems 150 to 160

Problems 161 to 171

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Some Important Terms and Concepts

There are a number of Japanese and English terms that are used throughout this book. Each of these terms has a specific meaning in go, and the reader should review them before starting the problem sections. As the reader progresses with the problems, these terms and the concepts they represent will become clearer.

moyo

A moyo is a framework of territory, involving stones extending from the corners to the sides of the board. Some moyos are huge, while others are modest in size.

Dia. 1

In Dia. 1, the four white stones in the upper left form a moyo. The four black stones in the upper right form an even larger moyo, where black has mapped out territory along both sides from his corner enclosure. If Black were to play at ‘a’ with his next move, he would have mapped out a huge moyo in the upper right quadrant of the board.

sabaki

Sabaki is a very important term in relation to invasions. When you invade, you are entering your opponent’s stronghold. On the other hand, your stones might be split up by an invading stone. In either case, your stone or stones will be outnumbered, so your aim is not to make territory, rather, you want to make good shape, rich in eye potential, so that your stones, if attacked, can easily make eyes in the area where they are attacked or move out into the center of the board. In making sabaki, it is not unusual to sacrifice some of the stones under attack.

light

A light move is one which makes a flexible shape. Moves that make sabaki are often referred to as light.

heavy

Stones which are heavy cannot easily make eye shape and are, therefore, vulnerable to attack. If a group of stones ends up as heavy, then these stones have failed to make sabaki.

Dia. 2

＞＜

In Dia. 2 Black has mapped out a moyo at the top. If White wanted to reduce the size of this area, one way he could begin is to probe at 1. If Black blocks at 2 –

Dia. 3

＞＜

White will cut with 3 in Dia. 3 and play forcing moves with 5 and 7. What does White do now?

Dia. 4

＞＜

The diagonal connection of White 1 in Dia. 4 looks like an efficient move because it defends the two cutting points at ‘a’ and ‘b’. In spite of this, it is a bad move.

Dia. 5

＞＜

Black will peep with 1 and 3 in Dia. 5 and, after Black 5, White is left with a clump of six stones without any eye-making potential. These stones are now ‘heavy’ and will be forced to run away. As they do so, Black will attack, gaining both territory and influence.

Dia. 6

＞＜

Since White 1 in Dia. 4 results in a heavy shape, it has failed to make sabaki. The correct way for White to play is with a ‘light’ move like 1 in Dia. 6. White 1 is called a light move because it doesn’t defend against the cuts at ‘a’ and ‘b’. In other words, it regards the marked stones lightly and is willing to sacrifice them.

Dia. 7

＞＜

If Black does cut with 1 in Dia. 7, for example, White can make shape with eye-making potential with the moves to 8. Here we can say that White has made sabaki.

Dia. 8

＞＜

Black could also cut at 1 in Dia. 8. In this case, White could defend at 2. Black must defend at 3 and White extends to 4. White has driven a wedge between the two black positions at the top. He also has at least one eye at the top with easy access to the center. Again White has made sabaki.

thick

A position is called ‘thick’ if it has few or no defects; i.e. cutting points. Thick positions are very useful in that they can be used effectively for attacking. On the other hand, it is hard for the opponent to attack them.

aji

Aji refers to the latent possibilities that exist in a position. Although these possibilities may never be realized, their existence dictates the course of the game and enables certain moves to be made.

Dia. 9

＞＜

In Dia. 9, the marked white stone in the corner is dead, but it still has aji. Because of this stone’s aji, White need not fear Black’s pushing through at ‘a’, so he can jump to 1, rescuing his three stones at the top.

Dia. 10

＞＜

If Black does push through and cut with 1 and 3 in Dia. 10, White ataris with 4. After Black defends with 5, the aji of the marked stone comes to life and White captures Black’s stones on the right with 6 and 8.

Part One: Invasions on the Side

Problem 1

Black to play

＞＜

With the black stones on the left and the right, White’s three-space extension is vulnerable. Where should Black invade?

Answer 1

Correct Answer

＞＜

Black 1 is the vital point. No matter what White does after this, Black will have no problem.

Continuation

＞＜

If White plays 2, Black pushes up with 3 and, after 4, attaches with 5. Black dominates the top.

Problem 2

Black to play

＞＜

White’s marked stone is high, while Black’s marked stone is lying in wait to gouge out White’s base. What is the correct move for Black?

Answer 2

Correct Answer 1

＞＜

Black 1 is a strong invasion. It is the simplest way to play.

Correct Answer 2

＞＜

The high invasion of Black 1 is also correct, but it is more difficult.

Problem 3

Black to play

＞＜

White has made a three-space extension along the fourth line. How should Black invade?

Answer 3

Correct Answer

＞＜

Invading on the fourth line with 1 is an effective move. It will now be hard for White to make sabaki when he attaches on the third line.

Variation

＞＜

Black plays on the third line with 1 because he wants to link with his allies. However, it will be easier for White to make sabaki when he attaches with 2.

Problem 4

Black to play

＞＜

How does Black answer the one-space jump of White 1?

Answer 4

Correct Answer

＞＜

Simply jumping to 2 is adequate for Black. White is split into two groups.

Variation

＞＜

If White jumps out from the other side with 1, Black plays 2, attacking the white stone on the left.

Problem 5

Black to play

＞＜

How does Black respond when White attaches on top with 1?

Answer 5

Correct Answer

＞＜

Black should wedge in with 2. Up to 6, Black has gouged out White’s base. Black is quite satisfied with this result.

Variation

＞＜

White could also atari underneath with 3. White links up, but Black makes a large-scale moyo on the right when he plays 10.

Problem 6

Black to play

＞＜

White attaches underneath with 1. How should Black answer?

Answer 6

Correct Answer

＞＜

Black should hane at 1. A sharp exchange takes place up to 7. Black now threatens ‘a’.

Variation
7: connects

＞＜

If White answers 3 with 4, Black captures with 5. After connecting with 7, Black will aim at ‘a’ or ‘b’.

Problem 7

Black to play

＞＜

White plays a diagonal move from the left. What is Black’s response?

Answer 7

Correct Answer

＞＜

Taking the corner with Black 2 is enough. White must still deal with the marked black stone.

Continuation

＞＜

After White 3, Black still has moves such as ‘a’ to annoy White with.

Part Two: Invading Corner Enclosures

Problem 66

White to play

＞＜

White has attacked the small-knight enclosure by attaching at 1. How should White follow up his invasion after Black extends to 2?

Answer 66

Correct Answer

＞＜

White easily lives in the corner with 3 and 5. However, the corner territory is small and White ends in gote, so the timing in playing these moves is crucial.

Variation

＞＜

Living in the corner is small, so White might play 1 and 3. If Black attacks with 4, White jumps to 5, aiming to make sabaki by attaching at ‘a’. If then Black ‘b’, White ‘c’; if Black ‘d’, White ‘b’.

Problem 67

Black to play

＞＜

Black wants to invade at the top right. Where should he play?

Answer 67

Correct Answer

＞＜

Black first makes a should hit at 1 and, after White defends at 2, invades the corner with 3.

Continuation

＞＜

If White 1 and 3, Black lives in the corner with the moves to 8; his invasion is a success.

Part Three: Invading Large Territories

Problem 150

White to play

＞＜

Black maps out a huge moyo with 1 and 3. It is now urgent that White reduce the size of this moyo. Where is the weak point of Black’s position?

Answer 150

Correct Answer

＞＜

When Black has a tight small-knight enclosure with extensions on both sides, the weak point is at White 1. Depending on how Black answers, White will make sabaki by playing at ‘a’ or ‘b’.

Dia. 1. Not Applicable here

＞＜

White plays 1 when he wants to erase the top. In this case, Black would push with 2, then cap with 4. This move is very severe, since it not only attacks White’s two stones, but also expands Black’s moyo on the right. Clearly White 1 is not a good idea in this position.

Dia. 2. The worst move

＞＜

Invading with 1 gives Black a target to attack. Black first pincers at 2, then caps with 4. Black is strong above and below, so it will be hard for White to escape.

Dia. 3. A heavy shape

＞＜

If White plays 1 and 3, he is left with a heavy shape after Black 2 and 4. White cannot make a full extension down the side because of the presence of the marked stone. This is a terrible result for White.

Dia. 4. An iron rule

＞＜

Locally, White 1 is a good move, but Black then eliminates the weak point of his moyo by jumping to 2. When dealing with moyos, the iron rule is: ‘Never let your opponent perfect his moyo.’

Problem 151

Black to play

＞＜

The black and white moyos divide the board. With one move, however, Black can break up White’s moyo and wipe out much of its influence.

Answer 151

Correct Answer

＞＜

Making a large-scale moyo from the 3–3 point is unnatural because Black will land a devastating blow in the center of White’s position with 1. White will respond with ‘a’ or ‘b’.

Dia. 1. Continuation

＞＜

After the moves to 5, Black’s stones are quite resilient and cannot be easily attacked. If White ‘a’, Black attaches with ‘b’.

Dia. 2. Black is under attack

＞＜

Playing one line deeper with 1 is bad because Black will come under a severe attack with 2 and 4. If Black 1 at ‘a’, White 2 is again the vital point.

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