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Two Temporal Apophthegms

Posted By: Matt Ryder
Date: Thursday, 17 December 2009, at 5:04 a.m.

In Response To: Two Temporal Apophthegms (Rich Munitz)

...it is extremely useful to dwell in the past when it comes to your opponent. What tendencies have you observed in the past that you can take advantage of to make better decisions in the future?

This is a great point. But I find that when I deviate from the 'bot-approved' play to try to take advantage of an opponent's perceived weaknesses, I inevitably get burned. I tried this in a tournament the other day: my opponent displayed a consistent pattern of conservatism, refusing to hit a piece loose or slot. So when he gave me the cube, I took based on a prediction of extreme brittleness in his future position. But sure enough, he immediately started playing more aggressively (as he should), and I wound up losing four points. Was I duped, or did he stumble on the right plays? Who knows; but one thing's for sure - I would've been better off simply making the 'bot-approved' decision.

With beginners, I will certainly vary my opening plays, prioritise complex back games and so on. But I won't make deliberate trap-play 'blunders', because these can easily backfire.

I've also noticed that if I get too caught up in evaluating my opponent's playing skill, I'll tend to get more frustrated if he starts winning, or more complacent if he starts losing. Both mental states are damaging to my win chances.

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