Blog

Learn Go Now

by Anders Kierulf

2016-01-28

In March, Google’s AlphaGo is going to play a five-game match against Lee Sedol. For Go, this may become the equivalent of Kasparov’s match against Deep Blue. Tremendously exciting. And if you don’t know the game of Go, you’ll miss out.

So how do you get up to speed so you have a clue what’s going on? Several possibilities:

  • Friend or Go club: If you have a friend who has been trying to tell you about Go for years, now’s the time. Otherwise, check the American Go Association or the European Go Federation for a Go club near you. (In Salt Lake City, we meet every Thursday after 7 pm at the Salt Lake Roasting Co. — everybody is welcome, and we love to teach beginners about the game.)
  • App with tutorial: The SmartGo Player app for iPhone and iPad includes a tutorial that guides you through the (very simple) rules, then provides over 100 interactive problems to apply those rules (much more complex) and practice your tactics. Then as you play against the computer, it automatically adjusts the handicap to keep the game challenging.
  • Books about Go: There are a number of books that will give you a good introduction to the game , e.g. the “Learn to Play Go” series by Janice Kim followed by the “Graded Go Problems for Beginners” series. Here’s a list of beginner books. If you have an iPad or iPhone, use the Go Books app to read and solve problems interactively; if you prefer printed books, click on the Printed Book link in that list.

Enjoy learning about Go — it’s a game worth knowing. There’s a reason it has been played for thousands of years, and it will remain popular even after computers eventually conquer it.