Lee Sedol 9p extended his lead against Gu Li 9p to 4:2, when he won game 6 of their 10 game match on July 27, 2014.
From left: Lee Sedol 9 dan, Ni Zhanggen (sponsor) and Gu Li 9 dan.
The sixth game of the MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango was held in Liuan, Anhui Province, China.
Another early lead for Gu Li
Once again, Gu Li’s skill in the opening gained him an early lead and the game favored Black after 27 moves.
Black was still in the lead up to move 41, with a large territory in the top right, but then…
Lee Sedols seizes an opportunity
…When Black played a double hane at the bottom, and then extended with 45, Lee Sedol didn’t miss a beat. He cut White’s group in two and started a fight in the bottom right corner.
Black fought back resolutely, but White promptly sacrificed two stones – gaining sente moves in the center and turning to attack Black on the left side.
In the fighting that followed Lee was able to catch up again.
Lee Sedol at game 6 of the MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango.
A brilliant empty triangle
White’s empty triangle at 112 was hard to see, but it was a brilliant move which made miai of L9 and G4 for White. This instigated a large trade.
When the dust settled at 122, White had captured Black’s right side group and made two of his own groups strong in the process.
A sure thing turns to chaos
It looked like White was well on the road to victory when he played 134.
However, just when we were were thinking it was over already, the game became unexpectedly complicated, with White 146 and 148.
Spectators were left on the edge of their seats for another 30 moves – where any move could decide the game.
It was no longer a sure thing, but Lee Sedol pulled through and grasped his fourth win for the match. Black resigned after 178 moves.
Gu Li is under pressure after another disappointing game.
Gu Li needs to find another couplet
The players have alternated between two games each in the match so far.
Lee Sedol won games 1 and 2, but Gu Li came back in games 3 and 4, and so on. It’s as if they were exchanging rhyming couplets!
Gu Li better hope this pattern continues, because if he loses game 7 he’ll have to face three successive kadobans (match deciding games) and will be up against the wall.
Game 7 will take the players back up to the heavens, this time in Lhasa (August 31). Since altitude sickness was a factor in game 5, we might see the players doing some altitude training in the next month.
Lee Sedol is in a good position as the match passes the halfway point.
We’ll be back with a commentary soon, but in the meantime here are An Younggil 8p’s preliminary comments:
An Younggil’s preliminary analysis
Gu Li started the game with a nice opening up to Black 27. White 20 and 24 looked questionable in this sequence.
White 36 was an unexpected ladder breaker, but the result up to Black 41 was still good for Black.
Black 43 and 45 were too much, and White countered with White 46 and 48. White caught up by sacrificing two cutting stones at the bottom.
White 62 and 64 demonstrated Lee’s unique attacking style. They were practical moves, well suited to the situation. The continuation up to White 72 was successful for White and the game became even again.
Black 85 and 87 were sharp, but White’s responses were accurate up to White 96. The game was still playable for both players.
White 98 and 100 were nice haengma, but White 104 and 106 were overplays.
Black 109 was careless, and the game suddenly became difficult for Black.
White 112 was a brilliant move, and Black was in trouble.
The trade up to White 122 was very good for White, and White took a solid lead. I couldn’t find any other options for Black after Black 109.
Black 123 to 129 were a nice way to resist, but White didn’t give Black any chances to catch up with 134 and 138.
White 146 and 148 were big mistakes and they made the game very complicated. White didn’t need to play aggressively like this, because he was already well ahead if he just played it safe.
Black 153 was an incredible move and the game descended into total chaos. However, Black 157 wasted a good opportunity. Black should have played at 162.
White 162 seemed to be a mistake, and Black 167 was the last losing move. He should have played at 169 first, and it still would have been difficult for White to wrap up the game.
White 168 and 172 were the finishing blows and Black resigned.
Lee Sedol (left) and Gu Li – Game 6, MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango. Wang Runan 8 dan (center) oversees the match.
The MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango
Two of the world’s top Go players, Lee Sedol and Gu Li, will play a jubango throughout 2014, to decide which of them is the stronger player.
A jubango is a 10 game match between two players. The term originates from the Japanese language and has been imported into English language Go parlance. The first player to win six games wins the match.
The official name for this event is the MLily Gu vs Lee Jubango. MLily is a mattress and bedding company that also sponsors the MLily Cup.
Game record
Gu Li vs Lee Sedol – Game 6
[Embedded SGF File]
David Ormerod, with Younggil An and Jingning Xue
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seemed to ensure his victory over the course of the game through insightful cuts, sacrifices, and trades. However, the game became more complicated with moves 146 and 148, leaving fans with white knuckles for the last 30 moves. Each move could have swayed the game but Lee persevered until Gu resigned at 178.
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