Any good player knows that during the game itself-and this is especially true for the opening and the middle game-it is not territory that counts, but influence and power. This is simply because groups that have influence and power will automatically convert them into territory. However, in the end, points do count. The final point count, though, is more the payoff of a combination of strategy and tactics than the result of counting carefully during the game.

The endgame

Often during the endgame, you are faced with a choice between a number of moves and you must count which is the biggest. Even though that may sound simple, one single move may involve different follow-up moves, combinations and other complications. The most important goal is that of sente-keeping the initiative-because the opponent always has to react (gote) to it.

Diagram 1 :
Here it is Black's turn. He can either enlarge his territory by playing at the top, around A, or at the bottom at B. How should he play to win? One key in deciding the next move is the sente-gote problem.

Diagram 2 :
Black could, for example, play the hane-tsugi of 1 and 3. That way White gets sente and is able to play 4 and 6, which is gote, but would be sente for Black. Black gets to play the last yose (endgame) left with 7 and 9. Black now has 14 points and White 12 plus 2 komi (points Black gives White as compensation for playing the first move) for 14 points. The result is a jigo, or draw.

Diagram 3 :
Black could also play at 1 and 3, hoping White connects at 7, then switch to the combination of 1 and 3 in Diagram 2. However, instead of connecting at 7, White could switch to 4 and 6. True, Black could then capture white 2 with 7 and 9, but White gets to play at 10. In the end, Black needs to defend by playing 17 at 2 (not shown) and his final score is 11 points plus 1 prisoner for 12 points against White's 12 points and 2 komi for a total of 14 points. White wins by 2 points.

Diagram 4: The solution is descending at 1. White now needs to defend against the threat of Black jumping to 6. He can do so by playing at 2. In that case, Black can keep sente by playing at 3 and 5, which White has to answer with 4 and 6. Black now has his hands free to play 7 to 10. Black's territory is 16 points and White's is 13 points plus 2 komi for 15 points. Black wins by 1 point.

Problem 1 :
In this example, the territories have mostly been decided. However, at the top and at the bottom there are still some holes. If Black is to play next, how should he proceed to win the game ? Don't forget, the komi is 2 points.

Solution 1 :
Black should first play the sente combination 1 to 4-White needs to answer with 4 otherwise Black cuts there-then play the gote sequence 5 to 7. In this instance, Black has 17 points and White 13 plus 2 komi for 15 points. Black wins by 2 points.

Reference 1 :
In contrast, if Black first plays the gote sequence 1 to 3, White gets sente to switch to the lower edge and play 4 to 7. Black's territory is reduced to 15 points, whereas White has 15 points plus 2 komi for 17 points. White wins by 2 points.

Problem 2 :
Remembering sente-gote and last week's theme of being proactive-not being conservative but playing challenging moves-decide the best course for both Black and White. Black moves first (komi is 2 points).

Solution 2 :
Black should first play the double sente location at 1 and 3-double sente, because White could also play at 3 in sente. Instead of defending in the lower right, White should next set up a similar situation in the upper right. If Black aggressively cuts with 7 instead of defending at 10, White does the same by cutting at 10. The result is Black 11 points plus 1 prisoner for a total of 12 points and White 10 points plus 1 prisoner plus 2 komi for a total of 13.

Reference 2 :
In contrast, if White connects at 4 in gote, Black will play 5 to 7. Black now has 17 points against White's 13 points plus 2 komi for 15 points. Black wins by 2 points.

Solutions to last week's problems

Solution 1 (last week) :
White 1 is a very advanced move. It looks strange but in fact it allows White to force moves even after Black defends at 4. Because of this, Black can't respond to white 13 and needs to reinforce with 14. In the end, the combination of white 29 and 31 force Black to play at E and allow White to play the endgame sequence white F, black G, white H and black I in sente to win the game by just half a point.

Solution 2 (last week) :
Black must play at 1 first to make a seki (a standoff, with neither player being able to play in that area) in sente. White also needs to spend a move at 2 to keep it seki. Next, Black 3 is an exquisite move. White can't cut at 5, because then Black plays at C. White also can't cut at 4 because of damezumari (shortage of liberties)-in other words, White would die. Therefore, White has no choice but to play at 4 (or at C) allowing Black to connect at 5. After this move, it is seki. Sure, both Black and White can start a ko by playing at C and B respectively, but the opponent can take the ko first and there are no ko threats. In other words, the person who starts the ko loses it, and the game as well.

The score is therefore Black 2 points in territory plus 1 prisoner (white 2 that Black can capture at any time). The rest of the board is seki in which no territory points are counted. That leaves White with only 2 komi. Black wins by 1 point.

Reference 3 :
During a class held in Tokyo, some people thought black 1 would work, but White can block at 2. Next, black 3 looks terrific, but White can first capture two stones at 4. Black can connect his stone at 3 by playing at 6, but then White connects where the marked black stone is, giving White two eyes and locally 4 points plus 2 komi for 6 points. Black only has two points in the upper left and he can capture the stone in the upper right for a total of 3 points. White wins by 3 points.