Black’s move: Are there any alternatives to playing D9?
To me, d9 seems like the natural next move for black. Are there any reasons not to play it?
Consider:
- White just played a kick/contact move, which makes the local situation more urgent. Specifically, d9 becomes the vital point. If white had kept his distance at c11 instead, the follow-ups are not as severe.
- The black stone is alone on the white side of the board. Playing from the weaker position, black should be glad to get an extra exchange to strengthen himself.
- Since black is so glad to play d9, we can view it as punishment for white c10. Where white could have played a pincer at c7 or take a base at g11, he touched the weak stone instead.
The game might continue d9 f11 c6 f3 b4 c3 l5. I think black has a promising position from there.
If you find some unlikely reason why black cannot play d9, I can think of two more options:
- Get influence with e10 d10 e8 e9 f9 d9 f8. I don’t like this option because we are on a small board, where influence is less effective. The upper right corner stone is also very low on 3-3, which makes it easier for white to play reductions against black’s center moyo.
- Dodge to c6. This seems restless, like black is in a real hurry to approach everywhere. I don’t recommend to rush things like this in Go.
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