Recently, I’ve been having a rough losing streak on Tenhou, which usually comes as a result of some bad luck and some bad decisions. While it can definitely be mitigated, bad luck is something that all Mahjong players just have to learn to deal with. But bad decisions, whether caused by a theoretical mistake or an executional mistake, can be fixed with the right approach.
And so I’ve been looking through replays of previous Tenhoui to try figure out just how they were consistently able to make it to the top of the ladder. I’ve been finding a decent amount of success comparing my thoughts on positions with their decisions. Since I’m joting down a bunch of notes anyways, I figured why not make it public? Maybe they’ll be useful for someone.
So each week, I’ll be going through the replays of a different Tenhoui and looking at some key positions that either I had trouble with, or provide some insight into the overall style, goals and thought process of the player I’m analyzing. I’ll start by writing down what my instincts tell me about the situation, and then once I see the decision they make, I’ll write my interpretation of their decisions. This way, I’ll be able to deeper understand how my instincts guide my decisions and what habits come with those instincts. Then I can work towards either correcting that perspective, or if I think I’m in the right, at least I will be able to consider alternatives.
Since the analysis will be pretty in-depth, I’ll be covering one full rotation (East round or South round) per day, instead of the usual full hanchan.
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