Looking for someone around 15kyu who can explain the moves and the reasoning behind them….I will understand if that sort of commitment is too much to ask
What timezone are you in? Would just a game and a discussion on chat work for you? Or are you looking for more interactive discussion?
Thanks for replying , an interactive discussion if possible…I live in the UK
Well…you’re not a total beginner… we’ve played three games over the last…six years or thereabouts. I did a name check because your name was familiar to me.
I’m not sure you ever checked out the game reviews I left for you.
The first isn’t particularly in-depth, but the second one is, and explains quite a lot, I think. Yet the reason I bring these up isn’t as a means to mock you or make you feel bad, but to simply say you are not a new player… you are past that hurdle, thank the gods. Thing is, if you havent really been improving in the last five years after getting over the hump of being a new player, the question remains…why?
There is no direct imperative to get better at Go, outside of your own will to do so. Indeed, you seem to have only played about 35 ranked games in the last 4 years. So is there a real drive to improve here? Or, is it likely that you want to be better at a game without actually putting in the time to improve? I’m not trying to be harsh here, but rather asking you to look at the situation objectively and be honest with yourself.
And that honesty needs to start with a reason to even get better at the game to begin with. Do you want to improve because you enjoy the game? Or do you want to improve because you have an idea that you “should” be better than you are? Or indeed… is it both? If you only seek to get better at the game because you feel like you should be better, then you need to remove that part of your thinking as soon as possible. Expectations are the death of free will.
If, however, you are trying to improve because you simply love the game, then that comes with the realisation that to get better at something, you need to personally invest more time into that thing, into Go. Having a one-on-one teaching session with anyone, even a nine-dan pro player who is the best teacher in the world… will only afford you so much, when you yourself aren’t willing to invest the time and do the hard work to internalise the lessons being taught.
The question then becomes, is it fair to ask for help from other players, and use their time, if I’m not going to directly use what they are teaching me, and invest my own time into learning? I have once heard it said that for every hour you spend in a classroom learning something, you should spend an hour studying that thing independently. Indeed, with Go, I have personally found that this is, in fact, a good way to look at things, especially for myself….Except I don’t have a teacher… and I’m in the middle of an extended break away from the game… but I’ve spent many hours playing Go, watching Go, doing Go problems, talking and discussing Go with others, and learning from them… Go is one hobby I’ve been carrying with me for more than a decade. Yes, I have my long breaks from active playing the game, but I’ve paid my dues for the strength of player, that I am.
Can you honestly say that you have done the same? Actually, put the time in and invest in yourself, invested in learning this game? Because I don’t think you have…But I see a desire within you that wants to improve at the game in some way, shape or form… and I want to encourage that, but its going to have to come at the price of you doing the work, and using the resources already available to you. Because you can have a one-to-one… and you may learn a few things from that, but you certainly aren’t going to retain that over a longer period of time, if you yourself don’t give those lessons the context through experience they really need.
I sincerely hope you improve and that you dedicate the time needed to be the best player you can be. Apologies if this comes off as a rant. That is not my intent. I want you to feel motivated to be the best Go player you can be.
Oh hi! ![]()
I haven’t been playing go for long and would love it if someone would be kind enough to play a teaching game with me? ![]()
I’m roughly [25k] and maybe
.
My acc is: Clink [25k] just please tell me your username so I can accept the request.
It’s fine if this is too much too ask for I don’t mind. ![]()
Thanks - Clink
i am 3k in los angeles. i can review a game or play correspondence or if you have discord or skype we can do this in real time.
Hi - I am circling back to this thread now that I have more time. I would be happy to do a teaching game. I’ve been working on a 19x19 FOR BEGINNERS series here on OGS for a while, and I have some ideas about how to introduce the various concepts of the game in a step-by–step way so that they are not as overwhelming. (you can check out a few of my posts below)
My way of playing teaching games is a bit different - it involves a lot of discussion and hand holding - it’s not so much a contest as two people talking about all the things that are happening in a given board position as a way of helping you see the various elements at play in a given game. As such, it’s a lot easier for me to do this over a free video chat like Google Meet or Jitsi. If we can find time in our schedules that matches, and if you have an hour or so to spend on this, I’d be happy to chat and help.
Let me know what you think. Cheers.
Welcome! Online-go is a great place to start learning, and there are many friendly players here who enjoy teaching beginners. I hope you find a helpful teaching game and enjoy your journey with Go.