Another example…
Here’s another example of “hidden” tsumego elements. This one is a bit more obvious, but it can still be tricky.
First, a bit of intro is necessary… I consider “basic” tsumego to have one simple element that defines the shape of the answer. For example, “center of three” is my name for playing at the center of a three spaced eye. Many of these names are recognizable, defined on senseis. For example, a “Bulky 5,” and the “hana-roku” (flower six or rabbit six)
Here’s an example of one of these problems… the goal is to understand what type of shape this problem involves… Black to play
<%image(20060408-SP32-20060408-201414.gif|196|224|What kind of problem is this?)%>
Figure: Black to Play
of course it helps if you know what the answer is…. see below:
<%image(20060408-SP32-20060408-201617.gif|195|230|Answer)%>
So, you may have expected that the core of this problem is not a bulky-5! Nope… see the continuation for the answer:
<%image(20060408-SP32-20060408-201806.gif|195|230|Continuing...)%>
In case you didn’t recognize it, this is not a seki. It’s a “Bent 4 in the corner” which kills the white stones. The object of the Bent-4 is that White cannot play first, so Black can fix all ko threats before initiating the following sequence:
<%image(20060408-SP32-20060408-202218.gif|195|230|Bent 4 continuation...)%>
After 6 and 7, Black can play 8. White captures, and B begins the ko:
<%image(20060408-SP32-20060408-202342.gif|195|230|Ko, but...)%>
Ko, but no threats should be on the board!