Go game review #3: Honinbo Jowa 9d vs Akaboshi Intetsu 7d

Who?

Honinbo Jowa was said to be one of the strongest go players of Japan's Edo period. History says he was basically unmatched in his go game playing. He became a professional at a young age and by age 20 he was already 2 dan. 

Now what go player wouldn't like that?!

The game:

This game is another one of the most famous games in Japanese go history. It is called the "blood-vomiting game". It is called this because Honinbo Jowa's opponent, Akaboshi Intetsu, vomited blood after the game ended and died soon after that. This sounds like a Japanese go horror story. 

Honinbo Jowa takes white and Akaboshi Intetsu takes black.

Opening:

In this opening white gains the lower left corner. White now has a strong piece of corner territory that he can use to subdue or capture the two blacks groups around it. In this opening white gains a little more than black.

Second corner fight:

This is the second fight for a corner which happens to be the lower right corner. Black gives it up to white when he plays at N2. It would have been better for black to keep it because white captures six black stones and adds some territory to his side group too. Black plays at N2, hoping to kill the six white stones and gain the territory there but he did not actually have to give up the corner to do that.

After mid-game:

This is a little after mid-game. Black has lost to white in the two bottom corners and has only some territory on the left side. Black is now fighting hard to keep his groups alive with no territory in the middle so far. At this point things do not look good for black.

End result:

White wins by resignation. White ends up gaining three corners and black gains no territory in the middle. On top of that black loses many stones. Honinbo Jowa's strong go skills shined through in this game and it showcases how impressive he was. Unfortunately his opponent was not able to learn from the game and make a comeback due to illness and death.

***Beginner's tip:

Resigning or raising the white flag may seem sad or pathetic but in go it is the smart move to give up instead of keeping up the fight when one is obviously losing. If there is a clear winner before the game ends, let it go and say "I resign". You can do better next time because you will play more games and get better at it. Leave your losses behind and quickly move on to improve.