In go beginners are often taught to resign if they see no way for them to win the game. In other words, resign a lost game. And a lot of people adopt it in their playing habits which often leads to premature resignations, sometimes even when they’re winning. And even at the levels where they should know better.
Nonsense!
Fight! Make your opponent work for their win. When your opponent outplayed you in one part of the board, that doesn’t mean you can’t outplay them in another part of the board. Don’t throw in the towel after the first punch.
As beginners we don’t have the full idea of the possibilities on the board. We might think we’re losing hopelessly and often we’re correct. But there’s a threshold. As long as we see some area where we can get points or an invasion point we shouldn’t give up. Many times I’ve faced a situation where I genuinely thought “no way my opponent can lose this, I’m losing too much”. But I still saw some opportunities for making life harder for my opponent. And guess what, often times they find a way to lose I couldn’t imagine in my wildest dreams.
So as long you aren’t gonna play wet noodle moves without any plan to stir up the position, you can play on and see what happens!
And don’t get me started on people who feel they’re entitled to win easy. They lose and insist you should’ve resigned. Sometimes they try to shame you or tell you that you played ugly moves (unlike them who want to play “beautiful” go, whatever that means). And perhaps these are the same people who teach beginners to resign prematurely.
You know that one little push&cut your opponent left behind? The one you did read like dozen times and didnt see it working? The one which you know very well, that your opponent also wasted a minute of his clock, the one you too think he couldnt see working? …The last hope of your dead center group living?
Just try it before resigning, what else is there to lose anyway ^____^
And don’t get me started on people who feel they’re entitled to win easy. They lose and insist you should’ve resigned. Sometimes they try to shame you […]
Wow, those are some bad manners there
If someone makes a turnaround and win out of nowhere, that is one of the most exciting things in Go! You cannot shame someone that just won by overcoming the odds.
I usually resign not because I lost hope, but because I really hate playing a game that I feel I lost. When making a couple of mistakes, I just feel like an idiot with every move that continues the game, and if I win in the end because my opponent also made blunders, it doesn’t feel gratifying. It feels like a waste of my own time, and perhaps of my opponent.
I know it isn’t a waste of time, and I know it’s good to keep playing, it’s just not so much fun. Especially when my mistakes are of the kind that I know fully well I shouldn’t be making anymore.
As I learn to better understand the game (slooooooowly), I try to resign where nothing interesting is left on the goban. I usually ask my opponents when I know I’ve lost but still see things that are worth playing.
I dislike very strong players who make me feel like a waste of time (especially in tournaments, where it’s really a toss who ends up joining and who you end up playing, I mean, sorry for existing). Not many of those, thankfully.
I recently discovered that I like challenging good people to 9x9 ladder matches. There are two people above me, but close enough for me to challenge. If they told me to cancel the game I would, but sometimes I feel I have to try, even if I go into the game knowing I will lose. If I am being completely honest, I am probably a waste of time to half of my 19x19 games. I am in multiple tournaments that I don’t think I am doing great in because I just am not as good at 19x19. I think I am about 30 moves into a handicap tournament game with a 5d, and you can tell that I don’t know where to play for half of it. I don’t like playing very strong people in 19x19, although I do in 9x9.
The point of my playing a game is to enjoy it, so if a game is no longer enjoyable, I will resign.
When it comes to teaching beginners, I don’t even mention it. Once in a while someone will ask “was I right to resign?” and I would reply with “A dan would probably resign, but ddks make so many mistakes pretty much any game you play can be swung”. Now though, no one aks that because of the AI review.
When I play teaching games, I use it as an opportunity to look for tesuji and ways to punish bad shape or overplays. (I often don’t play them, but the opportunity is there and it’s a fun exercise)
I dont agree at all.
Trying to win a lost game doesnt make much sense to me, it is like lying to yourself, So Yes you may practise a bit of fighting but you lose something more essential to me, your own honesty.
What do you mean? If stronger players make a mistake, that is their problem! Besides, what’s the point in playing Go if you only play half of the game? You don’t learn any endgame skills, and you don’t play the entire game out. Just because you lost one section doesn’t mean you’ll lose the entire game. It’s like resigning because you’re not Black. (They get a small advantage, but that doesn’t mean that the game is lost).
Well When you get a small advantage, Yes it makes sense to have to keep it to the end.
I like to watch Games in the upper ranks on goquest on 13 13 with let say 200 points difference. In most Of the Games the lower ranked lose badly somewhere in the middle game (or even before), thats no surprise. Now for the large majority Of these games, He doesnt resign either. For me It looks like a big waste of time and energy. They would better start another game and have a New opportunity for a win.
By “own honesty” I mean to respect your own idea Of the game. I didnt mean to rely on your opponent failures or not, but to avoid to see working cuts When they are not, life When only death waits you and so on.
It’s enough Hard to get Clear views to chose to not go into the wrong ones by not resigning.
That would be considered a teaching game. Yes, if there is a 200 points difference, you could resign, but that is unlikely. I’m talking about maybe 50 points difference?
If a stronger player decides to waste their time playing with you, you should have the decency of resigning when you know you lost instead of boring him until he might make a mistake.
But, if the stronger player makes a mistake and loses the game because of that, that’s completely fair as well. The stronger player shouldn’t have made the mistake, then.
I see no problem with playing out a game even when behind by a lot.
I can’t remember how many times my go teacher yelled :“Why didn’t you resign!!” at me. I don’t get it. To me, i will still try to attack every stone. Even if i lost, i could at least know how far was I.
