Although strategy and tactics ...

By Rob Van Zeijst

Although strategy and tactics appear unrelated, they are two sides of the same coin. A player who lacks tactical skills can compensate for this by planning his strategy accordingly. If you don't see a tactical maneuver in go because you lack the skill to read the board correctly, you might not be too worried. But better tactics--that is reading the board--is an essential ingredient if you want to improve your strategy. This week, we will continue to focus on the tactical technique hasami-tsuke (pincerlike attachment).

Hasami-tsuke

Diagram 1: Rather than playing immediately at 3, followed by White pulling back to 1, Black should play the sparkling hasami-tsuke at 1 because of the damage it causes in the corner. Connecting at 2 is White's best response. After black 3, White can cut at A or B, but Black will capture the cutting stone to ensure life.

Diagram 2: Should White play at 2, black 3 through 9 would trap the marked stone in a ladder. After capturing with A, White has to defend once more with B. Even if the ladder is unfavorable, Black can play at C instead of 9. This would be followed by white B and black D. Both variations favor Black.

Solutions to last week's problems

Solution 2: In combination with 3, the hasami-tsuke at 1 is tesuji (locally clever move). After 4, Black cuts with 5 to snap up White's marked stones. If White plays at A instead of 4, black B does the trick. White can't save his marked stones. In combination with a guaranteed eye on the right side through the sequence white C, black D, white E and black F, Black's capture of the two marked stones ensures life.

Solution 3A: Last week, we saw the veteran Koichi Kobayashi (Black) lose to his son-in-law, Meijin and Honinbo titleholder Cho U, in his bid to capture the NEC title for the second straight time. He lost because he did not see the winning combination black A, white B and black C. Had he played this combination, White would not have defended this position because he would have lost outright. The hasami-tsuke of 1 is destructive as Black uses 21 through 27 to increase his liberties by one. After 27, if White connects at 21, Black will connect at 16, giving him three liberties at D, E and F, against White's two at G and H. Therefore, Black wins the semeai (capturing race) and the game. If you saw this solution, you are partly correct.

Solution 3B: The players read the board a little deeper than this. After black 1 (black 21 in Solution 3A), white 2 is an excellent move, considering that only 30 seconds were allowed per move. Thinking about it overnight, Cho came up with the combination of 3, 5 and 7. This made a ko, and any ko threat after that would win the game for Black.

Problem

Problem: White has just played the marked stone. Why?

Come to Ben's Cafe in Takadanobaba, Tokyo (03-3202-2445, www.benscafe.com), where you can enjoy free lessons in English, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Van Zeijst is a four-time European go champion and European representative at the Fujitsu World Championship.