There is something related to effort as well. When i was studying in korea at a point, there was a small 9x9 board tournament in the school.
After playing move 2, i realized that i had become strong enugh to read the game until the outcome was decided. Its not like i was 9x9 perfect player, but i had enough reading power to count the score with an empty board.
It would take me 20-30 minutes to finish the game. I won that small tournament knowing exactly the score of each game and when i was losing and turned around games. After that, i never played 9x9 again. I dont like it, becuase i know i can lplay very well, but its a tremendous effort that i dont want to do.
A professional has to save face against an amateur, because losing would affect his reputation, his mindset etc. So a pro would be more reluctant to play a strong player than a weak player, where he might be able to use less effort.
A short way of putting it: professionals dont play for fun, so why would they play for free for anyone?
> A short way of putting it: professionals dont play for fun, so why would they play for free for anyone?
But fun is probably what got you guys into this game, right?
I got what you meant but for a lot of people it will probably read like it's not a pleasurable activity for you guys anymore.
A counter-example would be a pro Soccer playing saying he never plays casual matches with his friends anymore because he earns to do it. That does not happen and I believe it's the same with you guys in Go, right?
Thank you for answering all the questions and doubts, I've been reading everything and it's been a blast :)
> A counter-example would be a pro Soccer playing saying he never plays casual matches with his friends anymore because he earns to do it. That does not happen and I believe it's the same with you guys in Go, right?
OTOH, I know collegiate soccer players that can't handle "stepping down" to local rec leagues. They learn an aggressiveness appropriate to the one domain, and can't turn it off in the other. I consider that a maturity issue, but it is an issue for people accustomed to one level of performance and competition trying to step into another.
Do you know what Pro Go players play for fun? Catan :)
Once you step into the professional aspect, you do not enjoy the game anymore. Its a passion thing. If you wanted to spend more time on the board at any point, it would be studying, not goofing around playing.
> But fun is probably what got you guys into this game, right?
Hardly. Almsot all professional players were exposed to the game at 4 years old, more like indoctrination. And as a grown up, if you start late (like I did, at 16), when you dream of professionality, the joy goes away, its more like a passionate driven goal of self sacrifice.
After playing move 2, i realized that i had become strong enugh to read the game until the outcome was decided. Its not like i was 9x9 perfect player, but i had enough reading power to count the score with an empty board.
It would take me 20-30 minutes to finish the game. I won that small tournament knowing exactly the score of each game and when i was losing and turned around games. After that, i never played 9x9 again. I dont like it, becuase i know i can lplay very well, but its a tremendous effort that i dont want to do.
A professional has to save face against an amateur, because losing would affect his reputation, his mindset etc. So a pro would be more reluctant to play a strong player than a weak player, where he might be able to use less effort.
A short way of putting it: professionals dont play for fun, so why would they play for free for anyone?