From: Yoshinori Sawada FA2 SO-NET OR JP> Date: 21 mar 1998 Subject: Words from a Great Player A Knack Not To Lose When you play shogi, is there a knack not to lose? I would like to mention my ideas taking examples of amateur players. Not to lose, it is important to penetrate the opponent's level as early as you can. Once you sit in front of the board facing someone you have just met for the first time, first, please pay attention how he or she sets out all pieces on the board. When amateur players start a game, we can roughly see their level >from their behavior of setting pieces. Which is stronger can be figured out, and that assessment is most of the time not wrong. Good player holds a piece in deferent way, and even the sound made when he places pieces one by one is special. When he is though, distinguishing whether or not he is a dan player is easy. Setting pieces is the preparation for fighting. Because a rule prescribes how to do that, it seems the same whoever sets the pieces. However somehow the subtle deference is found. If one has set pieces properly, his mental attitude is well prepared like "now I am playing shogi!". He has already been absorbed in the game since the beginning of the setting. I believe he has considered a strategy as well. In other words, he has already led his opponent. Some may not believe in that, but watching many games among amateur players, that can be statistically proved. I assert it. Dan players who has good knowledge of shogi set pieces slowly and politely. On the contrary, premature players wants to quickly set the pieces and start game. Sometimes a pawn is placed upside down. He may be just indifferent to such small things, but why he can win without prepared mind. Now the game has started. The indifferent guy does not care how his opponent plays and just moves his own pieces. Already the result of the game is obvious. That is way I said how one sets out pieces tells his level. I wonder this is not limited to shogi but applied everything in your life. No matter what you do, the penetration if one has basic skills is a knack to win the competition especially in a field of victory and defeat. Professional players play with armature players with handicap --- eliminating some of pros' men depending on their opponent's level such as lance handicap, rook handicap, bishop handicap, rook and lance handicap, and two pieces (rook and bishop) handicap. For beginners who cannot win even with two pieces handicap, some more pieces are eliminated, but two pieces handicap is the limit of handicap shogi. If you win pros with two pieces handicap, you are admirably a dan player. Handicap games have josekis respectively. Pros start to study such handicap josekis in their childhood. For amateurs as well, studying handicap shogi helps to improve their basic skills. As a proverb, "If you are in a hurry, make a detour" teaches, that is the shortest way for rasing your level. When I play instructive game in a district, two pieces handicap is played most frequently. Amateurs, however, wants to undo the handicap. The fact is, that is favorable for pros as we can win very easily with less handicap. Some people say pros hardly let amateurs win. Honestly, pros are afraid of such amateur player who says "two pieces handicap please" in spite that he is stronger than that. Therefore pros gather information of the opponent, assess his level and play with the handicap according to his ability. Knowing the opponent is important for pros as well, and that is a knack not to lose. by Yasuharu Ohyama, quoted from "Shobu no kokoro" --- Yoshinori Sawada Tokyo Japan E-mai: sawada fa2 so-net or jp Nifty: VED05133