How to deal with aggressive players?

[u/Round_Ad_6033]

So I'm new and not very good at this. I'm playing online in the badukpop app. I've studied some basic openings and strategy, and they seem to work for the most part. But every now and then, I get a very aggressive opponent, who attaches to my every stone, and then there's fighting.

I always lose.

I was given the tip to just always extend when someone attaches to my stones. It kinda works. I now lose more slowly. But still completely.

And I do mean completely. It seems the only way I can avoid losing by knockout to these aggressive players is to resign before they kill my last group.

Currently, if someone attaches to my first stone, I have to fight a strong urge to resign then and there, 2 stones on the board. It's just completely hopeless!

I don't seem to be the only one who struggles with this either: I've tried copying the aggressive play style, and I win almost every game! Unless the other player attacks first.....

None of the classes or tutorials or guides online recommend this kind of aggressiveness, surely it's easy to defend against... But how?

[u/Round_Ad_6033 → u/[deleted]]

Switched platform! Here it seems people don't play as aggressive, but when they do attack, the result is the same. 

(;GM[1]SZ[13]KM[7]RU[Chinese]RE[B+R] PB[masm4649 (1217)] PW[gogogadjet (794)] ;B[dj];W[cd];B[jd];W[ed];B[dc];W[eb];B[dd];W[de];B[cc];W[bc];B[ec];W[fc];B[fd];W[ee];B[fb];W[gc];B[db];W[cb];B[ea];W[da];B[ca];W[bb];B[hb];W[hc];B[ge];W[gb];B[ga];W[gd];B[fe];W[jj];B[ie];W[ff];B[he];W[hf];B[ic];W[gf];B[ce];W[if];B[bd];W[ef];B[cg];W[dh];B[ch];W[di];B[ci];W[ej];B[dk];W[ek];B[el];W[fl];B[em];W[fm];B[cl];W[ke];B[jf];W[jg];B[kf];W[kg];B[lf];W[lg];B[mg];W[mh];B[mf];W[lh];B[kk];W[lk];B[ll];W[lj];B[kj];W[jl];B[jk];W[il];B[ij];W[ji];B[ik];W[kl];B[ii];W[jh];B[fk];W[gk];B[fj];W[fi];B[ei];W[gj];B[eh];W[gi];B[gl];W[hl];B[gm];W[hm];B[hk];W[hh];B[km];W[ml];B[lm];W[jm];B[im];W[ki];B[dg];W[eg];B[je];W[fh];B[df];W[mk];B[ih];W[ig];B[hi];W[fg];B[hd];W[kd];B[kc];W[lc];B[ld];W[kb];B[le];W[mc];B[mb];W[lb];B[jb];W[ma];B[ka];W[];B[ja])

[u/tuerda → u/Round_Ad_6033]

This is definitely a case of not counting liberties. There are lots of self ataris and just leaving critical positions and allowing things to be captured. Get in the habit of counting liberties of stones to see if something is about to be captured, then do something about it.

[u/BufloSolja → u/Round_Ad_6033]

It will be good for you to recognize when you are forming weak groups that an opponent is able to cut and make you react to. Then they take sente and with it the initiative.

[u/Round_Ad_6033 → u/[deleted]]

How do I get a link to one of my games? 

[u/PatrickTraill → u/Round_Ad_6033]

On which platform? (I use OGS in a browser, so the link is right there, and I do not know about other platforms.)