Ikken Tobi

Ikken Tobi, or the one-space jump, is a fundamental move in Go where a stone is placed one space away from an existing stone. This shape is commonly used for moving into the center, escaping from an attack, or efficiently expanding influence while maintaining a degree of flexibility.

The ikken tobi move is valued for its balance between speed and stability. Unlike more aggressive jumps such as the keima (knight’s move) or the niken tobi (two-space jump), which may leave cutting points, ikken tobi remains relatively safe while still allowing a group to advance.

The proverb “the one-point jump is never a bad move” reflects the reliability of ikken tobi as a general-purpose move, even in complex positions. However, depending on the surrounding stones, this jump can still be vulnerable to peeping attacks or cutting plays by the opponent.

Learn more about one-space jump from our free video, which is part of our course on shapes in Go.