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In an early episode of _Hikaru no Go_ Akira Toya comments that Hikaru must be
a beginner because he's holding his stones incorrectly. In the show, it is
shown that real Go players use a grip that only uses their index and ring
fingers. Is this true in the real world? And if so, what exactly is the
advantage of this grip? It seems to me that not using your thumb would be more
likely to lead to dropping a stone accidentally, so I'm having trouble seeing
why it would be used.

[![Hikaru holding
stone](https://i.stack.imgur.com/F3wfH.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/F3wfH.jpg)


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2016-11-13T17:01:02.947
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2016-11-22T01:33:33.337
2016-11-13T18:57:11.807
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question
culture hikaru-no-go
Is the grip shown in Hikaru no Go really used by expert Go players?


It is the proper way, and is used by most (if not all?) very strong go players
(and many beginners as well!).

It allows you to easily place a stone in the middle of many others without
touching them, and same to pick one up (when stones are captured you need to
remove them from the _goban_ (the playing board)).

In addition to this practical effect, pros and strong amateurs have a very
gracious way to handle stones using this finger placement. You can see
examples by seeing professional players on the net. I recommend Japanese
players, as the whole ceremonial is quite precise, but also in the anime
Hikaru No Go (especially Saï).


CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-11-22T00:57:40.160
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2016-11-22T01:33:33.337
2016-11-22T01:33:33.337
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answer