A Survey of Basic Tesujis (The Road Map to Shodan) (Volume 4)

In life-and-death situations and during the sharp skirmishes that arise in the middle game, brute-force analysis is usually required. However, intuition also plays a role in your ability to instantly find the key move that turns the position in your favor. Those key moves are called tesujis. There are about 45 different kinds of tesujis that a dan-ranked go player should be familiar with. If a player has solved many problems that involve a certain kind of tesuji, he or she will immediately recognize — almost unconsciously — positions in their games where that tesuji is applicable. This is called 'pattern recognition'. Of course, the player must confirm that the move is indeed the required tesuji by brute-force analysis after the tesuji is played. A Survey of the Basic Tesuji presents more than 40 tesujis that can arise in a game of go. After an example of a tesuji is presented and explained, three to 12 problems follow, showing the various ways that it can be applied. In all, there are 182 problems. Studying this book is the fastest way to bring your ability to find tesujis in your games up to the shodan level.