Training quote of the day #50: John Nunn

 

From John Nunn's Best Games 1985-1993, Batsford Chess Library, 1995:

I decided that I had still not fully recovered from the overdose of chess at the end of 1988, and that the best cure would be a complete rest from the game. Thus, my 'preparation' for the Rotterdam World Cup was to not look at a chessboard for a month.

The playing conditions and organization at Rotterdam were excellent, and the tournament attracted a good turn-out of spectators.

As I arrived in Holland, I was extremely nervous about how my plan would turn out, but in fact it succeeded beyond my expectations. I felt enthusiastic about playing chess for the first time in many months and I had plenty of energy for the games. Fortunately, most of my opponents challenged me in openings with which I was very familiar, and after six games I had scored five draws and one win.

Annotated Game #291: Static thinking

This third-round tournament game saw an interesting "strategic dialog" between my opponent (Black) and myself in the opening and early middlegame. He chose a double fianchetto development and held off committing in the center until late, after which the position took on some King's Indian Defense characteristics. My decision on move 10 shaped the strategic nature of the middlegame, giving him more of a central presence but initially active pieces for myself. However, I was ignorant (or ignored) various dynamic possibilities in my thinking, including the pawn sac idea on move 15 (and others) which would have given me more activity and the initiative. In the end, I was only partially punished for it, so got lucky.

[Event "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class A"] [Site "?"] [Round "?"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [Date "????.??.??"] [ECO "A47"] [WhiteElo "?"] [BlackElo "?"] [PlyCount "91"] [GameId "2099915250376805"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. e3 b6 3. Nf3 Bb7 4. Nbd2 {a flexible move, waiting to see what Black will do.} (4. Bd3 {continuing with a Colle System setup is more popular here.}) 4... g6 {this type of double fianchetto is more often seen with colors reversed in the Reti.} 5. Be2 {a cautious/solid approach.} (5. Bd3 $5 {would fight for the e4 square.}) 5... Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. c4 {with Black not having committed to the center, I decided to fight for d5 and see what the response would be.} d6 {my opponent chooses to prepare a central ...e5 break.} 8. Qc2 {developing the queen to a better diagonal, eyeing the e4 square and projecting some power on the c-file.} Nbd7 9. b3 {providing an outlet for the Bc1's development.} (9. b4 {is the engines' choice, also grabbing some free extra space.}) 9... e5 {getting in the pawn break before I can add the bishop on b2 to the fight.} 10. dxe5 {I thought for some time here, as the decision will determine the strategic nature of the subsequent middlegame. In all cases the position is essentially equal, although the text move may give up a little more in the center to Black.} (10. d5 {I evaluted as a good choice, but more committal in fixing the center and resulting in more of a classic King's Indian type struggle, including striving for the ...f5 pawn break, with which I thought my opponent would be more comfortable.}) (10. Bb2 {simply developing and maintaining the central tension is also fine.}) 10... dxe5 11. Bb2 Re8 12. Rfd1 {getting the rook into play.} Qe7 13. Nf1 {I had a long think about an appropriate plan here. The idea of improving the Nd2 isn't a bad one, but perhaps could be executed better.} (13. Ng5 {anticipating Black's next} e4 14. Nf1 {is a somewhat improved version. The Ng5 is prepared to redeploy via h3 to f4.}) 13... Ne4 {not the most effective follow-up, as the square is better occupied by a pawn. My opponent's idea evidently is to clear the way for an f-pawn advance.} 14. Ng3 (14. N3d2 $5 {would challenge the Ne4 without allowing an exchange on g3, disturbing the pawn formation in front of the king.}) 14... f5 (14... Nxg3 15. hxg3 e4 $15) 15. Nd2 {again, a good idea in general, but would have been better on the previous move.} (15. c5 {this pawn sac idea is a recurring one, but I did not see it at the time. White in exchange gets much better activity for his pieces on the queenside, along with some initiative.} Ndxc5 16. b4 Nxg3 17. hxg3 Ne4 18. Rac1 $11 {with pressure down the c-file and good squares available for the light-square bishop now.}) 15... Nxg3 16. hxg3 Rad8 {activating the other rook to a central file} 17. Bf3 {another long think here, and another less than optimal plan, although not terrible.} (17. c5 {as an idea still would be useful. For example} Nxc5 18. Ba3 $11 {with the idea of Rac1 and piling up pressure.}) (17. e4 $5) 17... e4 18. Be2 {this was the idea, to provoke Black's pawn advance and lock the structure. Here I'm cramped on the kingside, but Black's position is much less dynamic.} h5 {the most aggressive-looking option.} 19. Rac1 $6 {here I simply miss the fact that Black's c-pawn is mobile.} (19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Qc3+ $11) 19... c5 $17 {now my pieces are also cramped on the queenside and Black can squeeze further at his leisure.} 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Nf1 {the knight is doing marginally more here, helping defend the kingside at least.} Ne5 {this allows me to exchange rooks and un-cramp some.} 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Rd1 $15 Kf7 {a bit of a tempo-waster, as I now un-cramp further.} 24. Rxd8 Qxd8 $11 25. Qd1 {here I decided I could hold with the queens off. I probably could have achieved a draw more easily with them on, but was also fairly mentally tired by this stage, so it seemed simpler.} Qxd1 26. Bxd1 Nd3 27. f4 $6 {an unnecessary weakening of the e3 and g3 squares.} (27. Nd2 $11) 27... Bc6 $15 {the idea is to make progress and open up the queenside using the b-pawn as a lever.} 28. a3 $6 {this takes away the b4 square from the knight, but weakens b3 and leaves the bishop doing nothing.} (28. Bc2 $5) 28... b5 $17 29. Nd2 Ke6 30. Kf1 $2 {both of us missed how strong it would be for Black to take on c4 after this.} (30. cxb5 Bxb5 31. Be2 $17) 30... Kd6 $6 (30... bxc4 31. bxc4 Be8 32. Bb3 Bf7 33. Ke2 Nb2 $19 {and White's pieces get in the way of each other, so that eventually Black can get to one of the White weaknesses (a- and c-pawns) with his much more mobile ones.}) 31. Bc2 $6 (31. Be2 {is superior, pinning the Nd3 at least temporarily}) 31... Nb2 32. Ke1 a6 33. Ke2 {there's not much to be done here.} Bd7 34. Ke1 Be6 35. cxb5 {now this is the least worst option.} axb5 $19 36. Nb1 Kc6 {Black still has an advantage, but now I can at least try to threaten to trap the Nb2.} (36... Nd3+ 37. Bxd3 exd3 $19) 37. Kd2 c4 $6 38. b4 $11 Nd3 39. Nc3 {now my blockade is set and the position equal.} Bf7 40. Ne2 Kb6 41. Nd4 (41. Nc3 {there's really no reason not to just repeat moves.}) 41... Be8 42. Bd1 Nf2 43. Ke1 Nd3+ 44. Kd2 Bf7 45. Bc2 Nf2 46. Bd1 $2 {with a draw agreed. My opponent and I only spotted ...c3+! after the game. I was making it too complicated and provided him with that opportunity for a deflection tactic.} (46. Ne2 Ng4 {and the knight escapes, but so what?}) 1/2-1/2

Training quote of the day #49: Siegbert Tarrasch

“It is not enough to be a good player... you must also play well”

― Siegbert Tarrasch, The Game of Chess 

(See also "Chess performance and chess skills: not the same thing")

Annotated Game #290: Winning is good enough

This second-round tournament game saw me employ the Stonewall as Black against my opponent's Colle-Zukertort setup. I don't believe the matchup of structures is favorable to White, although some tactical ideas did pop up in the middlegame related to the idea of freeing the Bb2 and creating a Q+B battery on the long diagonal. My kingside pressure was too great, however, and once I found the winning idea on move 18, it was essentially over.

It is worth highlighting that there was a better winning idea on move 19, but I struggled to calculate that particular line. Once I realized that the other line also won, however, I did not waste further mental energy in trying to figure out which was the best winning move - it did not matter. This I think is a valuable practical choice in tournament games, often encountered more in the endgame; who cares if it takes an extra several moves to win, if there is a simple way to do so? Winning in the end is good enough.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class B"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D30"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "44"] [GameId "2069779515183161"] 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 c6 {actually the second most popular move in the database, after ...Nf6.} 3. e3 e6 (3... Bf5 {would interrupt the standard Colle System plan, although after c2-c4 we would end up in a Slow Slav.}) 4. Bd3 f5 {the Stonewall formation.} 5. O-O Nf6 6. b3 {leading to a Colle-Zukertort setup.} Bd6 7. Bb2 O-O (7... Qe7 {normally is a better preparatory move, dominating the f8-a3 diagonal. However, White has just played Bb2, so castling seems like a better investment of time.}) 8. Nbd2 Ne4 {since this is the best place for the knight, moving it is not premature, although it is not necessary.} (8... Bd7 {followed by ...Be8-h5 is another standard maneuver.}) 9. c4 Nd7 10. cxd5 exd5 $11 {following the normal Stonewall rule of capturing with the e-pawn following an exchange on d5. The Bc8 is given more scope as a result, while the c6 pawn blocks the semi-open file.} 11. Ne5 Qe7 {joining the fight for e5 and getting off the back rank.} 12. Ndf3 Rf6 {long think here to decide on a plan. In this position, a rook on h6 should be effectively placed.} (12... Ndf6 {I also considered; both options are validated by the engine.}) 13. a3 $6 {this idea is too slow.} Rh6 $15 14. b4 g5 {going for the direct approach, threatening to push away the Nf3.} 15. h3 Bxe5 $6 {the idea was to remove the defender of g4, but it would be much better to, in effect, add two minor piece attackers on the kingside with} (15... Ndf6 $1 {also unleashing the Bc8.}) 16. dxe5 g4 {this still creates threats that are difficult to address, however.} 17. Bxe4 (17. e6 $1 {my opponent found this surprising idea one move later, when it was too late.} Ndf6 18. Bxe4 fxe4 19. Ne5 {is the point, as the square is now available for the knight.} gxh3 20. g4 $1 {now holds things together after} Bxe6 21. Kh1 $11) 17... fxe4 $6 {taking with the wrong pawn.} (17... dxe4 {White cannot do anything with the d-file and there is now an extra advanced pawn on the attack.}) 18. e6 $2 (18. Nh2 {and White survives after} gxh3 19. f4 exf3 20. e6 {again a key idea, opening the long diagonal and allowing a Q+B battery to be formed.} (20. Rxf3 Nxe5 21. Qd4 Qg7 22. Rf2 Rh5 23. Raf1 Be6 $17)) 18... gxf3 $1 $19 {now White's fate is inevitable, as he does not have enough defenders available on the kingside.} 19. exd7 Qg5 {found after a careful think. The immediate mate threat on g2 means White does not have time to execute his own threats.} (19... Bxd7 {I rejected due to an inability to correctly visualize / calculate the sequence after Qd4. However, once I found the win with ...Qg5, this was not critical.} 20. Qd4 Qg5 21. Qh8+ Kf7 22. Qg7+ Qxg7 23. Bxg7 Kxg7 $19) 20. dxc8=Q+ (20. d8=Q+ Qxd8 21. Qd4 Qg5 22. Qh8+ Kf7 23. Qg7+ Qxg7 24. Bxg7 Kxg7 $19) 20... Rxc8 21. g3 Rxh3 22. Qd4 Rxg3+ 0-1

Annotated Game #289: A Stonewall Attack annoyance

This first-round tournament game demonstrated how it is best to have some flexibility with the Stonewall Attack, especially when faced with an annoying early ...Bg4 by Black. In this case, I would have benefited more by taking it into Slow Slav territory, with c2-c4 followed by Qb3, rather than continuing with the Stonewall approach. That allowed my opponent to easily equalize and break with an early ...e5 in the center, although after some careful thought I was able to neutralize his initiative.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class B"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D04"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "51"] [GameId "2099915250376804"] {[%evp 0,12,25,26,13,5,19,-7,43,29,30,23,36,-35,-31]} 1. d4 d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Bd3 c6 4. Nf3 {this allows the annoying follow-up pin, although the alternative may not be to everyone's liking.} (4. Nd2 Bg4 5. Ne2 $5 (5. f3 $5)) 4... Bg4 5. Nbd2 (5. c4 $5 {a typical reaction when the Bc8 moves early, allowing for Qb3 while pressuring the center.}) 5... Nbd7 6. O-O e5 {this pawn lever comes as no surprise. Exchanging the pawn is the best engine choice, although I also considered e3-e4 as an interesting alternative.} 7. dxe5 (7. e4 dxe4 (7... exd4 $6 8. Re1 $16) 8. Bxe4 exd4 9. Re1 Be7 10. Nb3 $11) 7... Nxe5 8. Be2 {a necessary concession.} Bxf3 {this is certainly good enough to assure equality, although not overly amibitious.} 9. Nxf3 Bd6 10. b3 {The Bc1 obviously belongs on b2.} O-O 11. Bb2 Qc7 {threatening the h2 pawn.} 12. h3 {here I spotted the tactical problem of the Nf3 being exchanged off and the h2 pawn hanging. However, the text move was not the only solution.} (12. Nd4 $5 {this is more active; Black's Ne5 does not have any good options for a discovered attack by the Q+B battery on h2.}) 12... Rae8 13. Rc1 (13. c4 {I considered, but didn't like because of} dxc4 14. bxc4 {splitting the pawns; however, Dragon 3.2 assesses there is dynamic compensation with the two bishops, plus at least temporary control of d5.}) (13. Nd4 {again is an excellent place for the knight, which has the f5 square available.}) 13... Nxf3+ 14. Bxf3 Be5 {I missed this idea, although it is not dangerous.} 15. Ba3 $5 {I thought this was the only way to keep some potential play going in the position, with minimal risk. My opponent did not choose the critical continuation, validating the choice to give him opportunities to deviate.} (15. Bxe5 Qxe5 16. Qd2 $11) 15... Bd6 (15... c5 {is the most challenging, even if still just equal.}) 16. Bxd6 Qxd6 {the exchange leaves Black's queen on a worse square, and I finally get in c2-c4, without a pawn structure compromise.} 17. c4 Rd8 18. cxd5 {I thought for a while here; there is nothing better.} Nxd5 19. Qe2 {clearing the square for a rook while defending on the 2nd rank.} Qf6 20. Qc4 {preventing ...Nc3} h6 {evidently played to avoid future back rank tactics.} 21. Rfd1 {time to get the rook into play.} Nb6 22. Qc2 (22. Qb4 $5 $14 {and the more active queen still gives White a slight edge.}) 22... Rxd1+ {now the game is headed for full equality again.} 23. Rxd1 Rd8 24. Be4 {thought for a while here, found nothing better. I did not expect my opponent to fall into a back-rank mate, which is possible now that the h7 square is covered by my bishop, but I figured it was still worth playing.} Rxd1+ 25. Qxd1 g6 {no more back-rank problem (again).} 26. Qc2 {here I offered a draw, as there is no prospect for making further progress. The engine agrees.} 1/2-1/2

Psychology Today article: "The Making of Mental Energy"

One of the keys to my progress in chess (or alternatively sub-par performance) has been the management of mental energy, as mentioned in The Long Journey to Class A. We often tend not to take into sufficient account the energy requirements of our brain during extended mental efforts, although it is a part of our body that needs it as much - actually much more - than our muscles during physical activity.

I recently ran across the Psychology Today article "The Making of Mental Energy" which reminded me of its importance. It also serves as a short and useful background to the topic, including how to manage your energy inputs. One excerpt from the introduction helps frame the situation:

It's only 2 percent of your body weight, but your brain consumes 20 to 25 percent of your metabolic energy. And that's just on idle, the energy cost to keep your 86 billion neurons and give-or-take 164 trillion synapses on standby.

Once the brain is activated, energy demands quickly multiply. Paying attention is an energy-guzzler requiring mental effort, the application of self-control. Decision-making, empathy, even meditation consume mental resources. Taking in information and processing it, conducting a quick inventory check against memory, maintaining focus and interest, to say nothing of suppressing distraction - whew, it's exhausting just thinking about it.

This of course describes chess-related mental tasks quite well, so the applicability of the topic should be obvious. Now I just need to do a better job of it myself...

Annotated Game #288: Losing by rote

In this final-round tournament game, it's my opponent who seemingly loses by rote. I'd seen him play the same setup as White previously, although I hadn't prepared anything specific for it. The Reti/fianchetto/English type opening was not challenging at all for Black, and I had fully equalized by move 7. After that, my opponent did not seem to have much of a plan and soon ended up down a pawn for no compensation. Some of my own games have certainly followed a similar trajectory, so it was good to feel sharp this time and hungrier to create something new, rather than drift planless out of the opening.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "5"] [White "Class A"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A11"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "82"] [GameId "2063048253468751"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 c6 4. c4 Bg4 (4... dxc4 {scores much better in the database. White will need time to recover the pawn.}) 5. cxd5 (5. Ne5 $5 Bf5) 5... cxd5 (5... Bxf3 $5 {is the engines' choice, simplifying further and slightly misplacing White's bishop.}) 6. h3 {although the bishop is now chased away or eliminated, White spends another tempo to do so without gaining anything.} (6. Ne5 {is again an interesting idea, hitting the bishop with a little more initiative.}) 6... Bh5 7. g4 Bg6 $11 8. Nc3 e6 9. Ne5 $6 {now this does not come with tempo, so in fact hurts White's development.} Nc6 10. Nxg6 hxg6 $15 {White exchanges his central knight for my constrained light-square bishop, which I was fine with. The semi-open h-file is also of potential future use.} 11. d4 Bd6 {this seemed the most flexible choice for the bishop.} (11... Bb4 {I also considered.}) 12. Bg5 $6 {White already has problems finding decent moves to make. The pin on the knight does not have much point to it.} Qb6 {long think here, to make sure the idea worked. Both the b2 and d4 pawns are now hanging.} 13. Qb3 $2 {this allows forced simplification with a material advantage.} (13. O-O $15) 13... Qxb3 14. axb3 Nxd4 $17 {this is just a free pawn, and my developed pieces are also better-placed, while White's doubled b-pawns are quite weak.} 15. Ra4 $6 {an attempt at activity, but White's threats can be refuted.} (15. O-O-O $17) 15... Nxb3 {another long think here. Eventually I decided that at worst I'd be two pawns up, if my opponent chose to go for the two bishops, and I would be happy to play that out.} 16. Nb5 Kd7 {defending both the Bd6 and against the fork on c7.} 17. Nxd6 Kxd6 $19 {although White can now castle, there are not enough threats remaining against my centralized king to compensate for the material. I do have to be careful, however, about ideas of e2-e4 and attempting to open the center.} 18. O-O {I now had the longest think of the game here. There are multiple ways to play this out; I chose the third best according to the engine, which is still winning.} Nc5 {guarding b7 and forcing the Ra4 to make a choice.} (18... a5 {is the engine's choice, but riskier-looking.} 19. e4 Nxe4 20. Bxe4 dxe4 21. Rd1+ Kc6 22. Rxe4 Nc5 $19) (18... Nd7 {was the other good option, repositioning the knight.}) 19. Rf4 $2 {this attempt at making further threats results in closing off the Bg5's ability to retreat.} Nfe4 (19... Nh7 {is even more effective, but I did not even consider the knight retreat.}) 20. Bxe4 (20. b4 {this avoids greater material loss, but Black ends up with three extra pawns, including the two connected ones on the queenside, which should easily win.} Nxg5 21. bxc5+ Kxc5 22. Rc1+ Kd6 $19) 20... Nxe4 {an example of a "reloader" tactic, renewing the same threat to the bishop, which cannot be avoided.} 21. h4 f6 $19 22. Ra1 Nc5 {here I wanted to extract the knight, block the c-file and protect b7 again; I had the time, since the bishop cannot get away.} 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Rxf6 Rxh4 25. Rxg6 {perhaps my opponent thought the passed g-pawn would somewhat compensate for the material.} Rah8 {For once I avoid materialistic thinking and emphasize the rook activity, which generates a skewer threat against the Kg1 and Ra1. At this point the win is inevitable, unless I blunder. The Black rooks dominate White's separated ones, and my extra knight is also centralized and mobile.} 26. Kg2 {forced} Rh2+ 27. Kf3 Rf8+ $6 {I wasn't able to visualize the mate here and just concentrated on doubling my rooks on the 2nd rank and winning more material.} (27... R8h3+ 28. Kf4 Rxf2+ 29. Kg5 Ne4#) 28. Ke3 Rfxf2 29. Re1 {I had a long think here again and decided to mobilize the queenside pawns, which would also remove a potential target from a White rook on the 7th rank.} a5 30. Kd2 b5 31. Kd1 Rf4 {harassing the g-pawn and making the rook mobile on the 4th rank.} 32. Rg8 Rg2 33. g5 Rc4 {final long think, to make sure that the mating net would work.} 34. Kd2 Rg3 35. e3 Rg2+ 36. Re2 Nb3+ 37. Kd3 Nc1+ 38. Kd2 Rxe2+ 39. Kd1 Rcc2 40. g6 Nb3 41. g7 {perhaps hoping that I would blunder and miss the mate in one, but} (41. Rd8+ Ke5 {and mate is unstoppable.}) 41... Rcd2# 0-1

Annotated Game #287: A failure of X-ray imagination

For this next tournament game, the notable lessons found in analysis were my failure to visualize X-ray tactics/patterns, the subject of the previous post, along with a general lack of imagination in understanding how I could regroup my forces to pursue a winning attack. An opening surprise did not help, as I adopted a mentality that was too defensive afterwards, although I will give myself credit for rallying after the material loss.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class B"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D00"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "54"] [GameId "2054698018771000"] 1. d4 d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Bd3 e6 4. f4 {heading for a Stonewall formation.} Nbd7 5. Nf3 c5 6. c3 b6 7. Nbd2 Bb7 8. O-O Bd6 9. Ne5 {the classic Stonewall setup. White has various choices for a plan to follow, depending on Black's next moves.} Qc7 {this is a more effective move than it appears to be at first glance, and I did not take into account the x-ray on c3 from the queen's new position.} 10. b3 $6 {I did not see that my opponent could penetrate with her queen on c3 until after I played this, being unfamiliar with the queen location and (breaking my throught process rules) not looking for my opponent's response; instead, I was focusing on how I would develop the Bc1.} (10. Qf3 {with play on the kingside is indicated here.}) 10... cxd4 $15 11. cxd4 Qc3 {this penetration and queen fork of the Ra1 and Bd3 looks very threatening, but Black also has to be careful of getting the queen trapped. I recognized that much, so did not despair completely. However, I did not play the critical continuation, which would have been to occupy c4 with a knight.} 12. Rb1 $6 (12. Ndc4 {I only briefly considered trying to trap the queen here and did not pay enough attention to the idea. The key is the threat to the hanging Bd6.} dxc4 (12... Bxe5 13. Bb2 Qxd3 14. Qxd3 dxc4 15. bxc4 $17 {Black has three pieces for queen and pawn and they will be well-positioned, but this is still not terrible for White. For example} Be4 16. Qb3 Bd6 17. Ba3 Bxa3 18. Qxa3 {and I would be happy playing this out, with Black's king stuck in the center.}) (12... Qxa1 $2 13. Nxd6+ Ke7 14. Qd2 $18) 13. Nxc4 Bf8 14. Bb2 Qb4 {And now White can trap the queen or go for an attack.} 15. Ba3 (15. f5 $5 {with an attack.}) 15... Qxa3 {the best, as the queen can be taken after retreating.} (15... Qb5 16. Nd6+ Bxd6 17. Bxb5 $16) 16. Nxa3 Bxa3 $11) 12... Bxe5 {correctly removing the protector of the Bd3 first.} 13. fxe5 Qxd3 14. exf6 {and now my opponent was too tempted by} Qxe3+ $2 (14... Nxf6 $17 {consolidates the advantage.}) 15. Kh1 {now the engine shows White with an advantage - the Black king in the center and under threat outweighs the material inadvertently sacrificed.} Qd3 (15... O-O) 16. Rf3 {played after a long think. This maximizes the chances for Black to go further wrong.} (16. Nc4 {I thought about this idea for a long time, echoing the move 12 situation, but correctly concluded it did not work.} dxc4 {is the simple refutation, although I had a hard time visualizing this.}) (16. fxg7 {immediately is also good.} Rg8 17. Rf3 $16) 16... Qg6 (16... Qxd4 $16) 17. fxg7 {this seemed like the only option at the time.} (17. Ba3 $1 {is the much stronger follow-up.} Nxf6 18. Rc1 $18 {fixing the king in the center and continuing the attack should produce a win; however, I was too focused on the material balance.}) 17... Qxg7 18. Rg3 $18 {here I still have a great deal of pressure and nice attack, however.} Qf8 19. Nf3 {mobilizing the knight and the Bc1.} Nf6 20. Ne5 (20. Qf1 {would have created more threats with an x-ray on the Nf6, but occupying the e5 outpost immediately was too tempting.}) 20... Ne4 {threatening the fork on f2. I thought for a while here, eventually deciding the rook would be better placed on the f-file anyway.} 21. Rf3 {the safe move.} (21. Qe2 $1 {the idea of sacrificing an exchange did occur to me at various points, but not this early.} Nxg3+ 22. hxg3 {visually this just looks bad for White, with the weak doubled g-pawns, but White's remaining pieces all become more powerful now.} a6 23. Qh5 Rg8 24. Bh6 Qe7 25. Rf1 {now all the White pieces are in action against the king, while Black has a R+B on the queenside that are not effectively playing.} Rg6 {and now} 26. Kg1 $1 {is the engine line, avoiding potential future x-rays on the h-file. Black's g6 rook cannot escape, so White can improve the position at leisure, or strike immediately if Black attempts to force the issue. For example} f6 27. Nxg6 hxg6 28. Qxg6+ Qf7 29. Rxf6 $19) 21... f5 $2 {the wrong f-pawn move, leaving holes behind in its wake.} (21... f6 $11) 22. Qe1 {again thinking too defensively. The key is to further activate White's pieces on the attack. Ideas include} (22. b4 a6 23. Bf4 Rc8 24. b5 a5 25. Rc1 $18) (22. Bf4 Qb4 23. Rc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Bxc8 25. Qc1 $18) 22... Qe7 23. Bd2 (23. Bf4) 23... Rg8 24. g3 {continued unnecessarily cautious play leads to my attack possibilities evaporating, at least temporarily.} (24. Rc1) 24... Rc8 $14 {now Black's rook gets to the c-file first.} 25. Rc1 Rxc1 26. Qxc1 Qd6 $2 (26... Kd8 $14) 27. Bf4 {making several threats, but none decisive.} (27. Bh6 $1 {is found by the engine. At this point I did not see how to rearrange my pieces to continue the attack in his manner. One of the points is to allow for the maneuver Qf4-h4, as well as to prevent Black from using g7 and f8.}) 27... Qe7 $18 {and here my opponent offered a draw. I thought for several minutes, not seeing how I could make progress anymore down the c-file. The engine could have done it, however, in various ways starting with the maneuver Re3-e2, or Qc2 followed by Rf1 and Qe2.} (27... Rg7 $16) 1/2-1/2

Article: "The Most Important Tactical Pattern in Chess" by GM Gregory Serper

While analyzing the next tournament game that will be published here, I recalled the relevance of GM Gregory Serper's Chess.com article "The Most Important Tactical Pattern in Chess". In it, he provides several useful illustrations of the x-ray tactic, which he described as:

 ...a situation where a long ranged piece (a queen, rook, or bishop) attacks an opponent's piece (usually a king or a queen), through a bunch of other pieces (both of your opponent's and your own). Or, how Chess.com's lesson puts it: "The X-ray brings to mind superman's ability to see through objects. A piece is able to mount an attack even if there is another piece in the way."

He also shares insights about how the x-ray pattern actually is the basis for other chess tactics, making it an excellent article for practical improvement understanding. As my next game will show, I lacked the perception to identify x-ray tactics, and could have done better on both defense and offense as a result.

FT article (from How To Spend It) - "Aarti and Sohum Lohia are changing chess, one move at a time"

The latest chess article from the FT in its "How To Spend It" weekend section is entitled "Aarti and Sohum Lohia are changing chess, one move at a time". They're not really changing chess, but it's still interesting to see how Sohum, the talented #2 junior player in the UK, expresses his views on chess and a description of his mother's crusading support of it.

The article touches on some modern scientific points about chess and its calming effect on the mind, as well as the nature of it as a mental sport. Unfortunately it also help perpetuate some of the typical fallacies of chess imagery in popular culture - the first photo in the article shows a somewhat abstract chess board set up properly, while the following ones, showing an antique set, have the board rotated 90 degrees from where it should be (with wrong color squares for the pieces). This includes shots of Sohum playing on it. I expect that was just for show for the journalist (understandable) and perhaps he didn't notice - but then again, especially strong players should really be aware of these things when sitting down at a chessboard.

Annotated Game #286: Lessons in the Exchange Caro-Kann

With this next game, I revert to my tendency to lose as Black in the first round of a tournament. Under analysis, however, it reveals some useful lessons in the Exchange Caro-Kann, which I think is regaining popularity at the Class level. The trade-offs involved with 6. h3 I had never previously examined, and I think continuing with the response 6...g6 is fully justified, although breaking in the center with 6...e5!? is now a possibility. In the game, I was too shy of playing Bf5 and delayed developing, then find the wrong idea on move 17 for the middlegame and the trend from there is all downhill.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class A"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B13"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "67"] [GameId "2054700566052891"] {[%evp 0,67,19,38,60,60,55,55,51,34,30,24,23,-38,29,31,37,35,25,24,31,21,49,13,25,26,26,26,23,6,4,-1,9,-1,-12,-16,26,33,31,36,46,35,67,65,70,65,64,72,72,61,68,61,72,74,82,65,82,90,106,104,400,411,409,539,543,546,566,808,801,561]} 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. c3 Nf6 6. h3 {this is the first time I recall facing this line, which eliminates Black's possibility of playing ...Bg4. It's quite common nowadays, though still second to Bf4 in popularity.} g6 (6... e5 $5 {is the direct challenge to White's last move and demonstrates the drawback of not playing Bf4, as e5 is now controlled by Black. This leads to an imbalanced IQP position, however, so one has to be comfortable playing that.} 7. dxe5 Nxe5 8. Qe2 $5 Qe7 {with an awkward position for both sides.}) 7. Nf3 Bg7 {while all right in theory, this move has the worst practical results in the database; despite the open g7 square, a fianchetto may not be the best placement for the bishop.} (7... Bf5) (7... Qc7) 8. O-O O-O (8... Bf5 {this can still be played to Black's benefit here and on subsequent moves.}) 9. Re1 Qc7 {stopping the Bf4 development for White.} 10. Nbd2 Nh5 {this is a common idea, with the knight poised to go to f4.} 11. Nf1 {the knight had no future on d2, so my opponent quickly moves it on.} Nf4 $6 {there was no rush to occupy the f4 square, however, and moving the same piece three times while others (the Bc8) are undeveloped is not principled play.} (11... Bd7) 12. Bxf4 {this exchange validated my last move, however.} (12. Bb1 $16) 12... Qxf4 $11 {despite some missteps in the opening, the middlegame is now balanced.} 13. Ne3 Qd6 {after spending some time here, I correctly evaluated that retreating the queen to its best square was the best move.} 14. Qb3 {this is aimed at preventing my other bishop development, at least for the moment, by targeting b7 and d5 simultaneously.} e6 15. Ng4 a6 {a simple way to tactically protect the b-pawn after the bishop goes to d7, as the White queen would be trapped after taking it.} (15... Bd7 {is fine now, however.} 16. Qxb7 $6 Rfb8 17. Qa6 Rb6 18. Qa3 Qxa3 19. bxa3 Rc8 $17 {despite being a pawn down, Black's pieces are much better coordinated for pressure on the queenside, plus with the two bishops Black's structural and dynamic advantages overcome the material deficit.}) 16. Qd1 Bd7 17. Qd2 f5 $2 {almost the correct f-pawn idea, but this unfortunately forces White into an advantageous position.} (17... f6 $11 {I correctly calculated that the e-pawn would not be a true weakness, and with this move the f-pawn covers e5 and g5, preventing any White attacking ideas.}) 18. Nge5 $16 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 Bxe5 20. Rxe5 {While superficially the position looks defensible, White has all the play in it, and can bring his forces to bear on the kingside. Meanwhile, I cannot get my counterplay on the queenside going effectively.} b5 21. a3 Rfe8 22. Rae1 Qf8 23. Qf4 Qf7 24. R1e3 Rad8 $6 {unnecessary and also causes problems later with defending against queenside penetration.} (24... Qf6 25. h4 Kh8 $16) 25. Rg3 Kg7 26. h4 h5 $2 $18 {again, one square too far, opening up a hole on g5.} (26... h6 $16) 27. Be2 Rh8 28. Rg5 Qf6 29. Re3 Qf7 $2 {this now loses.} (29... Be8 {was necessary. I was too concerned about the White queen penetrating on the dark squares.} 30. Qc7+ Bf7 $16) 30. Reg3 $18 {Bxh5 immediately is also good.} Be8 31. Bxh5 {and the position is cracked open.} Rxh5 32. Rxh5 Kf8 33. Rh8+ Ke7 34. Qh6 {between the advancing h-pawn and all of White's major pieces available to penetrate on Black's bank ranks, the cause is hopeless and I resign.} 1-0

Article: How Your Brain Detects Patterns Without Conscious Thought

While pattern recognition's role in chess ability is (or should be) well-known, I still think it's somewhat under-emphasized in actual improvement programs. Perhaps that is because it often operates at an unconscious level ("System 1 thinking" or what we can also call "intuition"), rather than as part of our conscious ("System 2") calcuation process. This recent Scientific American article further illustrates the point of how learning actually does take place on an unconscious level:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-your-brain-detects-patterns-without-conscious-thought/

This may also affect our perceptions of "plateauing" at chess (or any other skill), since the phenomenon described in the article implies that our conscious "library" of patterns will grow more slowly than the unconscious one.

Specific to the role of intuition in chess, I think Carlsen's quote on his thinking process in "How Carlsen Makes Us Feel Better About Chess" is still very relevant.

Book completed: Trouble Is My Business

 

From the story "Red Wind" in Trouble Is My Business by Raymond Chandler:

We were almost at my door. I jammed the key in and shook the lock around and heaved the door inward. I reached in far enough to switch lights on. She went in past me like a wave. Sandalwood floated on the air, very faint.

I shut the door, threw my hat into a chair and watched her stroll over to a card table on which I had a chess problem set out that I couldn’t solve. Once inside, with the door locked, her panic had left her.

“So you’re a chess player,” she said, in that guarded tone, as if she had come to look at my etchings. I wished she had.

Calculation is not enough

The following game was included in Attacking Strategies for Club Players by GM Michael Prusikin, which I'm currently working through during lunch hours at work (when I can take them, that is.) While calculation obviously played a large part in this tactical masterpiece, the final winning idea by Black (GM Eduard Gufeld) is something that I certainly never would even have begun to calculate when trying to generate candidate moves. This highlighted the insight that calculation is not enough - one has to first have the necessary ideas in mind, then recognize that the position in front of you may allow them to work. (The related training quote of the day #47 is relevant as well.)

In this case the sequence beginning on move 24, which uses the concepts of clearance and deflection sacrifices, is particularly striking. The necessary move of simply hanging your bishop (move 25) is highly unlikely to occur to anyone employing a "brute force" type of thought process. Understanding that this move will both clear the 8th rank for the queen and divert the protection of the c4 square are both necessary ideas. Clearance sacrifices in particular I think are a sign of mastery, and I expect will be a separate topic in the future.

[Event "URS-ch41 Semifinal"] [Site "Kirovabad"] [Date "1973.06.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Bagirov, Vladimir"] [Black "Gufeld, Eduard"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E84"] [PlyCount "64"] [GameId "270424022216"] [EventDate "1973.06.06"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "15"] [EventCountry "URS"] [SourceTitle "EXT 2009"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.11.26"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.11.26"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. e4 Nf6 5. f3 O-O 6. Be3 Nc6 7. Nge2 Rb8 8. Qd2 a6 9. Bh6 b5 10. h4 e5 11. Bxg7 Kxg7 12. h5 Kh8 13. Nd5 bxc4 14. hxg6 fxg6 15. Qh6 Nh5 16. g4 Rxb2 17. gxh5 g5 18. Rg1 g4 19. O-O-O Rxa2 20. Nef4 exf4 21. Nxf4 Rxf4 22. Qxf4 c3 23. Bc4 Ra3 24. fxg4 Nb4 25. Kb1 Be6 26. Bxe6 Nd3 27. Qf7 Qb8+ 28. Bb3 Rxb3+ 29. Kc2 Nb4+ 30. Kxb3 Nd5+ 31. Kc2 Qb2+ 32. Kd3 Qb5+ 0-1

Book completed: The Colle System (12th edition) by George Koltanowski

 

I recently completed The Colle System (12th edition, 1990) by GM (honorary) George Koltanowski. As the quote from its first lesson may indicate, this is more of an old school book on openings than a modern treatment of theory. As such, it was more entertaining and also had some more general chess-related observations, which I found both useful and refreshing. The intended audience is specifically improving club players.

Here's a sample game included in the book, which also illustrates the standard Colle System setup by move 6.

[Event "Sitges"] [Site "Sitges"] [Date "1934.06.05"] [Round "13"] [White "Koltanowski, George"] [Black "Domenech, Rafael"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D05"] [PlyCount "47"] [GameId "272191622851"] [EventDate "1934.??.??"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "EXT 1999"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "1998.11.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "1998.11.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. e3 c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nbd2 Bd6 7. Qe2 O-O 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. e4 dxe4 10. Nxe4 Nxe4 11. Bxe4 Bd7 12. O-O Rc8 13. Bf4 f5 14. Bc2 Qf6 15. Rad1 Rfd8 16. Bg5 Qf7 17. Bxd8 Rxd8 18. b4 Bb6 19. b5 Nb8 20. Ne5 Qf6 21. Bb3 Bc8 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. Qc4 Qxe5 24. Qxc8 1-0

The content outline, as presented in the book:

Here are some summary observations. As a 90-page book, I think it's a good investment in chess learning, especially if you have any interest in the Colle System.

Positives:

• Koltanowski played the opening himself a great deal, against players of all strengths; annotated games of his are included from tournament play against top-level GMs like Paul Keres, from master tournaments, and from simultaneous exhibitions. This gives a better feel for the range of play in the opening structures and not just the theoretical best.
• Similarly, a range of other famous masters' games in the Colle are included, which may surprise modern readers who think of it as just for club players.
• As mentioned above, it's not just about opening play. Koltanowski on the second page of lesson one, before getting past move two, presents the ideal endgame pawn structure as one of the main goals of the opening. He also emphasizes the value of endgame training multiple times.
• Koltanowski does not over-promise success with the Colle, but shows how it can be used as a reasonably safe choice that also has a lot of attacking potential. Many examples bring this point home in the middlegame.
• The Colle is not in fact presented as a "system" opening, with Koltanowski advocating for varying from the basic setup in several instances, for example when Black brings his light-square bishop out early, or plays in King's Indian Defense style.

Negatives:

• The 12th edition (algebraic) appears to have been converted from descriptive notation by some sort of automatic process; otherwise, I have a hard time explaining the occasional game score errors where (for example) it's clearly meant Nf6 instead of Nf3 - the original must have been N-KB3. This happens several times, along with some other typos.
• The material is useful to see but not particularly well-organized, so trying to find (for example) the author's best recommendation for a particular line or position will be difficult.
• The level of annotations is uneven and is occasionally too brief, I would say, for the club player audience. That said, requiring active engagement with the material (after for example "and now White wins" without further explanation) is not in itself a bad thing for the learning process.
• One example of the Colle-Zukertort setup is given early on, but then is ignored. This is the reverse of the modern preference and practice of the setups (playing b3 in the Colle-Zukertort instead of c3). 

Training quote of the day #48: George Koltanowski

 From lesson one of The Colle System (12th edition) by GM (honorary) George Koltanowski:

Experience has proven that once you know one opening thoroughly in all its strong and weak points, all other openings become much easier to understand and play correctly. Thus when you once have a good understanding of the Colle, with practical experience in playing it, you will be able to switch to any other opening with success. In chess, as in any other game in which you wish to advance, it is practice that counts. Many will tell you that the Colle System is very tame and does not give White maximum chances. Well, they are right in a way. The Colle is tame . . . only at the same time it does not permit your opponent to spring any opening surprises. The Colle does not let your opponent make the slightest mistake without his getting a serious positional disadvantage. The Colle also gives you excellent end game chances, and this, together with a safe, sound opening, gives you more chances in general. Don't forget that, as an average player, you must also be able to gain an advantage over players of your own ability.

Annotated Game #285: A failed Stonewall leads to a queenside crush

In this last-round tournament game, my opponent did well out of the opening, gaining central control and a significant developmental lead after exchanging my Stonewall pawn on d4. However, I patiently continued bringing out my pieces and developed reasonably well, with a breakthrough occurring due to a positional blunder on move 17. This is a notable example of how strategically important piece exchanges can be. In this case, it gave me full control of the outpost on c5 and allowed me to establish a crushing dominance on the queenside, which I eventually converted.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class C"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D00"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "87"] [GameId "497982781165"] 1. d4 d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Bd3 c5 4. c3 {establishing a partial Stonewall structure.} (4. Nf3 $5 {it seems has been played a lot in blitz, for example} Nc6 5. h3 e6 6. b3 cxd4 7. exd4 Bb4+ 8. c3 Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Re1 Qc7 11. Bg5 Nh5 12. c4 Nf4 13. Bf1 h6 14. Bxf4 Bxf4 15. c5 e5 16. Nc3 exd4 17. Nxd5 Qb8 18. Nxd4 Be5 19. Nxc6 bxc6 20. Ne7+ Kh8 21. Nxc6 Bh2+ 22. Kh1 Qc7 23. Ne7 Be6 24. Rxe6 fxe6 25. Ng6+ Kg8 26. Nxf8 Rxf8 27. Qe2 Be5 28. Re1 Bc3 29. Qxe6+ Kh8 30. Rc1 Bd4 31. Bd3 Qf4 32. Re1 Bxc5 33. Qg6 Kg8 34. Qh7+ Kf7 35. Bc4+ {1-0 Nakamura,H (2775)-Holt,C (2540) Titled Tuesday intern op 09th May Late Chess.com INT blitz 2023 (3)}) 4... Nc6 5. Nd2 {still holding out for a Stonewall Attack formation, but Black's next spoils that.} (5. Nf3 {would transpose into a Colle System and may be the best option.}) (5. f4 Bg4 {scores very well for Black.}) 5... e5 $17 {unfortunately there's no good response to this. White taking either the c5 or e5 pawn gives Black a nice center along with good development, following the recapture, while Nf3 is no longer possible due to the pawn fork on e4.} 6. Bb5 {this is an idea I had seen in previous similar positions with engine analysis. Here it's not great, but does at least fight for the e5 square.} (6. Ne2 {is the engines' choice, admitting that there's no better square to develop to.}) 6... cxd4 7. cxd4 {this maintains the symmetry of the pawn formation and I felt more like solid play at this point.} (7. exd4 {the engines all prefer this recapture, which means ...e4 is less stifling for White.}) 7... e4 {now I do not have a pawn lever available against the d5 pawn.} 8. Ne2 Bd7 9. O-O Bd6 {Black at this point has a classically nice position with excellent development and a space advantage, thanks to the d5-e4 pawn chain. So it's time to start doing something about that.} 10. f3 {Dragon 3.2 agrees this is the best chance for White, playing analagous to a reversed French and attacking the head of the advanced pawn chain.} Qc7 11. f4 {the engine does not like this, but in practical terms it shuts down Black's ideas on the kingside for now and gains a bit of space for me, at the cost of leaving the e4 pawn in place.} (11. fxe4 {I admit I didn't even consider, since it looks like it just loses a pawn at first.} Bxh2+ 12. Kh1 dxe4 13. Rxf6 $5 {this exchange sacrifice, however, significantly changes the landscape.} gxf6 14. Nxe4 $11 {and now Black has to be careful. The f6 pawn is doomed, getting some material back for White, and the bishop on h2 is hanging by a thread.} O-O-O (14... Bd6 {a simple retreat loses.} 15. Nxf6+ {and now e3-e4 is coming as a central pawn roller. For example} Kd8 16. e4 a6 17. Bg5 $18 {with the threat of Nd5 with discovered check.}) 15. Nxf6 (15. g3 $2 {trying to trap the bishop does not work after} f5 16. Kxh2 fxe4 $19 {the White king will not have enough protection against the coming onslaught of the h-pawn and all of Black's pieces.}) 15... Be6 {White's strong central d-pawn provides compensation.}) (11. h3 $5 {is the solid alternative, although I didn't like the weak dark squares around the king.}) 11... O-O 12. h3 {the idea being to take the g4 square away from Black as a prophylactic measure. The engine prefers White exchanging first on c6.} a6 13. Bxc6 {the bishop has no future on the light squares, so gladly exchanges itself.} bxc6 $6 $15 {the backward pawn on the half-open file now gives me a weakness to play against.} 14. Nb3 {first step is to restrain the pawn's advance. I would be happy to exchange pawns after c6-c5, get Black's bishop off for my knight, and then have the backwards d-pawn to play against.} Rab8 15. Bd2 {simple development, also clearing c1 for the rook.} Qb7 16. Rc1 $11 {by this point my piece activity has significantly picked up and Black's backwards c-pawn offsets his advanced e-pawn structurally.} Rfc8 17. Rc2 {protecting b2 and also looking to potentially double on the c-file.} Bb4 $2 {a positional blunder. I expect my opponent had no idea about a plan, other than to exchange pieces. This was the wrong one to go with, however, since my knight now goes into a very strong outpost.} 18. Bxb4 Qxb4 19. Nc5 $16 Qb6 {the queen has to avoid being potentially trapped.} 20. Nc3 (20. g4 $5 {played now this may have a bit more impact than later, as there's no hurry to move the Ne2. Black will have to spend a tempo defending or moving the Bd7, as the threat is g4-g5 removing the Nf6 as a defender.}) 20... Qa7 21. Qe2 {pressuring a6 and opening the first rank for the Rf1.} a5 {logically dodging the pressure.} 22. N3a4 {this is what I was looking to do on move 20. Black can no longer evict a knight from c5, since exchanging there will now simply replace it.} Rb5 23. Rfc1 $18 {with the immediate positional threat of taking on d7 and removing a key defender of c6.} Be8 24. g4 {the engine validates this choice, which gains space on the kingside and threatens to start operations there, with the queen and rooks easily switched over. At the time, I felt it was a bit risky, but I did not see any way to make immediate progress on the queenside.} Nd7 {proactively fleeing the g-pawn advance, but this has a major tactical flaw that I did not spot.} 25. b3 $18 {I thought for a while here and came up with the second-best move, according to the engine. This consolidates a4 and c4 while making sure I don't have to worry about protecting the b-pawn.} (25. Nxd7 $1 {Black has a back-rank problem, which makes this possible. The knight is tactically defended, so Black simply loses a piece.} Bxd7 (25... Qxd7 {appears to solve things, but in fact the queen can get chased away.} 26. Qxb5 $1 cxb5 27. Rxc8 bxa4 28. R1c7 Qe6 29. f5 $1 $18) 26. Qxb5 $1 $18 {and the c6 pawn is pinned against the mate on c8.}) 25... Nb6 {exactly what b3 was intended to combat, this knight trying to get to c4. I could simply exchange it off, of course, but now the Rb5 is trapped after} 26. Nc3 Rxc5 27. dxc5 Nd7 {at this point I'm a full exchange up with no weaknesses, so should win. My opponent attempts to construct a blockade, though, with success in delaying things.} 28. Na4 (28. Qd2 {followed by Nc3-e2-d4 is a superior idea.}) 28... Rb8 29. Qd2 Rb5 30. Kh1 {this was basically a waiting move, also clearing g1 for a rook if I wanted to start kingside operations.} f6 {this clears a square for the king, which I presume was my opponent's primary intent, but also creates a weakness in the pawn shield, which becomes critical later.} 31. Qc3 Rb7 32. h4 {it's not clear to me how to make progress on the queenside, so I try the kingside first.} h5 {a good practical try, but I keep the advantage in hand with} 33. g5 f5 {with the kingside locked up, although with more space and a very nice open long diagonal for me, I turn my attention to the queenside again.} 34. a3 {I need to mobilize the pawns and open a file, but it takes some time.} (34. Nb6 {looks like it's pointless, but the engine spots a nice tactic after} Nxb6 35. Qe5 Re7 36. cxb6 $1 Qd7 37. Qd4 $18) 34... Qb8 35. Rb2 (35. b4 {immediately is possible.} axb4 36. axb4 Rxb4 37. Nb6 Rb5 38. Nxd7 Bxd7 39. Qa1 {followed by Ra2 achieves a winning breakthrough on the a-file.}) 35... Rb5 36. Qc2 {this just wastes time.} Qa7 37. Qc3 {admitting the queen is better placed here, eyeing the long diagonal.} Nb8 $2 {I debated whether immediately going Qe5 was best, eventually deciding on hopping the knight to its new outpost first. Both should win.} 38. Nb6 Na6 (38... Qc7 {covering e5 allows the breakthrough with b4.}) 39. b4 axb4 40. axb4 Qb7 41. Ra1 {now it's clear Black cannot stop the rooks penetrating on the a-file, causing destruction in the back ranks.} Nc7 42. Rba2 Bd7 43. Ra7 Qb8 44. Qe5 {now I finally pull the trigger on the e5 penetration with the queen.} 1-0

Annotated Game #284: Ask yourself what is different in the opening

Whenever your opponent deviates significantly from your known repertoire, especially early, it is important to understand what the main difference is from other lines, and what you can do to take advantage of it. In this round 3 game, my opponent's 4. Bf4 provoked some thought, but at the time I did not identify the key difference, which was Black's ability to now harass the bishop after 4...Nf6. While I managed to play equally for a short while, the novelty of the position increasingly threw me off and I ended up unnecessarily entering an unfavorable, pawn-down position. Part of the problem was having unrealistically high hopes for a larger advantage, along with inaccurate calculation.

The other main takeaway from this game, as in a number of others, is the value of fighting hard and never giving up. My opponent played competently, but missed a drawing line in which my centralized knight managed to equalize in an unexpected burst of activity. I was happy to achieve that, after being positionally lost for most of the game.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class B"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D10"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "90"] [GameId "498001369780"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 dxc4 {clearly a surprise for my opponent.} 4. Bf4 {Tthis was a surprise in turn for me. After some thought, I stuck with the standard plan after anything except a2-a4.} b5 (4... Nf6 {scores the best in the database, with the idea of harassing the exposed bishop. Black need not fear} 5. e4 (5. a4 Nd5 6. Bg3 {and Black has a pleasant choice of how to play, already having equalized. For example} Nd7 7. e4 Nxc3 8. bxc3 Nf6 $11 {baiting White into possibly going} 9. e5 $6 Qa5 10. exf6 $4 Qxc3+ 11. Ke2 Bf5 $19) 5... b5 6. e5 $2 Nd5 $17) 5. a4 b4 6. Na2 e6 {opening the diagonal for the bishop and protecting the b4 pawn, while not being necessarily concerned about hanging on to the extra pawn.} (6... a5 {is the engines' preference, just playing to hold onto the extra pawn.}) (6... Nf6 $5) 7. e3 Ba6 {I thought for a bit and decided there was no reason not to at least make it more difficult to retake the extra c-pawn.} 8. Rc1 $6 Qd5 {the correct reaction, getting the queen centralized and pressuring g2.} 9. Qd2 {my opponent was evidently focused on recovering the material by force, and unfortunately here I run out of concrete ideas.} Nf6 $6 {a decent developing move, but I did not have a good follow-up prepared with the queen after the obvious capture on b4.} (9... c5 {this did not occur to me at all, but the engine shows a major advantage. Let's see what happens.} 10. dxc5 Bxc5 {now the b4 pawn is tactically protected.} 11. Nf3 (11. Nxb4 $2 Qxd2+ 12. Kxd2 Bxb4+) 11... Nf6 $19 {Black has consolidated the pawn advantage and positionally the advanced b/c pawn duo dominate the queenside.}) (9... c3 {I considered carefully, but did not see anything coming out of it. This was the correct evaluation.} 10. bxc3 Bxf1 11. Kxf1 a5 12. Nf3 $11) 10. Nxb4 Qa5 $2 {This just leaves me a pawn down.} (10... Qf5 {is the engine's choice and something I did not consider.}) 11. Nxa6 Qxd2+ $6 (11... Qxa6 12. Bxc4 Qxa4 $16 {White is still significantly better here, with a much stronger pawn structure and the two bishops, but the queens are still on the board and there's material parity.}) 12. Kxd2 Nxa6 13. Bxc4 $18 {White is now a clear pawn ahead with the two bishops and her king position is just fine with the queens off the board and reduced material.} Nb4 {I was pleased with this active knight on the b4 outpost, one of the few good things about my position.} 14. f3 {taking away the e4 square from the Nf6.} Be7 15. Ne2 O-O {I thought here I might get some play against White's king, although that is more a hope than a strategy.} 16. Rhd1 Rfd8 17. Ke1 {the withdrawal is a bit awkward and gives up influence over some territory, so my knight hops forward to good effect.} Nfd5 $16 18. Kf2 g5 $6 {an aggressive idea about trapping or harrassing the bishop that doesn't really go anywhere.} (18... Nxf4 19. Nxf4 $14 {now with opposite-colored bishops a draw looks more possible.}) 19. Bg3 Rd7 {with ideas of doubling on one of the files.} (19... h5 {would be the logical follow-up, although the simple reply h3 is just fine for White, as I saw.}) 20. Nc3 a5 {consolidating the b4 outpost.} 21. Ne4 Rad8 22. Nc5 $6 {this is actually a fine move, except for a tactic that neither of us spotted.} Bxc5 (22... Nxe3 $1 {this would justify the doubling of the rooks, as the Re1 is under-protected.} 23. Kxe3 Bxc5 $15) 23. dxc5 $18 {at this point I thought I could hold, and this turns out to be the case in the game, but White should with best play be able to engineer a breakthrough using her two bishops and extra pawn.} Ne7 24. Rxd7 Rxd7 25. Ke2 Nf5 26. Be1 {correctly preserving the bishop...at first.} Rb7 27. Bxb4 Rxb4 ({not} 27... axb4 28. a5 $1 $18) 28. b3 {forced, but good.} Kf8 {time to activate the king} 29. Rd1 {correctly seizing the file and barring the king from getting over to help protect the c-pawn.} Ke8 30. e4 Ne7 31. Ke3 Rb7 32. g4 $2 {this allows the draw, as now the knight goes to g6, from where it can prevent a breakthrough in conjuction with the g5 pawn.} (32. Rd6 $18) 32... Ng6 33. Rd6 Ne5 {the knight's flexibility in the center stymies White, who can try to trade off the g-pawn, but then will get into a drawn rook ending after the minor pieces come off.} 34. Kd4 (34. f4 Nxc4+ 35. bxc4 Rb3+ $1 $11) 34... Nxf3+ {my opponent may have missed this, or hoped that I would snatch the h2 pawn. In any case, it is a draw from here, although she plays it out all the way.} 35. Kc3 Ne5 36. h3 Ke7 37. Be2 Rd7 38. Rxd7+ Kxd7 39. b4 axb4+ 40. Kxb4 Kc7 41. Kc3 f6 42. Bc4 Nxc4 43. Kxc4 e5 {this puts an end to any further action on the kingside, with the queenside soon to follow.} 44. a5 Kb7 45. Kb4 Ka6 1/2-1/2

Annotated Game #283: Geometry lessons

Chess is a game of geometry, something illustrated well by this round 2 game. An unusual but not unknown opening position is reached, but I make two decisions (on move 8 and move 10) which affect the long-term geometry of my position, specifically the weakening of the h-file and the difficulty I have in covering it. I eventually end up in a won endgame position after a wild middlegame, but again have a geometry fail on move 56 and miss the winning idea of an indirect exchange. Full credit to my opponent for hanging tough the entire time.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class C"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D00"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "120"] [GameId "497983854743"] 1. d4 d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Bd3 Bg4 4. f3 {this directly opposes the early bishop sortie.} Bh5 5. c4 e6 6. Nc3 Bb4 7. Nge2 {the idea being to get to f4 and exchange off the bishop.} (7. cxd5 {is another way to play, getting the c-pawn exchanged for the e-pawn, which is also more dynamic.} exd5 (7... Nxd5 8. Nge2 $16 {with e4 coming}) 8. Qa4+ (8. Nge2 {is the solid and less venturesome choice.}) 8... Nc6 9. Ba6 $5 {is an interesting idea suggested by the engine. If} bxa6 10. Qxc6+ {and Black loses the right to castle, or material. For example} Nd7 $6 11. Qxd5 $18) 7... Bg6 {successfully baiting me into exchanging, which is not at all best.} 8. Bxg6 (8. cxd5 {is strong.} exd5 9. Qa4+ Nc6 10. Ba6 $16 {is similar to the above variation.}) 8... hxg6 $11 {the half-open h-file will cause me problems later.} 9. c5 {this was a muddled threat to trap the bishop, which of course does not work, and gives up the idea of exchanging on d5.} c6 {this opens up a route back along the a5-d8 diagonal, or of course the bishop can exchange on c3.} 10. Kf2 $6 {this looks like a relatively natural move, but the geometry results in a weakened kingside.} (10. O-O) 10... Qc7 {Here I really had no idea what was best, so simply covered down on the kingside.} 11. Qg1 (11. Bd2 {and Black taking the h-pawn is actually better for White.} Rxh2 12. Rxh2 (12. e4 $1 {getting the central pawns rolling and threatening Bf4 is an even better idea.}) 12... Qxh2 13. Qb3 Bxc3 14. Bxc3 {now White is threatening to trap the queen after Ng3 and Rh1.} Qc7 15. Rh1 $16 {the open file and accessibility of Black's king more than compensate for the pawn.}) 11... e5 $15 {taking advantage of the obvious central pawn lever. Now I'm definitely a bit worse.} 12. a3 {here the sequencing matters. Playing Bd2 first would help equalize development.} (12. Bd2 {and if} Bxc3 13. Bxc3 $11) 12... Bxc3 13. Nxc3 Nbd7 14. b4 {with Black's king still uncastled and him looking dangerous in the center and on the kingside, I wanted to press ahead and open things up on the queenside, if possible.} O-O-O {I felt this was something of a gift, as it makes my queenside counterplay more effective with the king as a more direct target.} (14... O-O $17 {would give up ideas of attacking down the h-file, but provide for a safe king position and allow Black to focus on his superior central play.}) 15. b5 $11 {I thought for a while here, ultimately concluding that I should quickly get on with counterplay. The engine validates the choice.} Rh7 {with the obvious plan of doubling rooks on the h-file. Now would be a great moment for me to either press the queenside counterplay or play a prophylactic defenseive move. However, I do neither, after some thought.} 16. Bd2 {simple development is good enough to maintain equality, but does not address the main needs of the position.} (16. Rb1 $16 {is the logical follow-up to the previous move, preparing to force open the b-file to my advantage.}) (16. h3 $5 {emphasizes safety first, but I had erroneously thought my opponent could take advantage of the weak g3 square.} Nh5 17. bxc6 bxc6 18. Ne2 $16 {however covers it well.}) 16... Rdh8 17. bxc6 {a good move, but this has much less punch without the Rb1 present.} bxc6 18. Ne2 $6 {the general idea of adding defense to the kingside is correct, but my flawed disposal of h2-h3 as a candidate move means that the defense is not optimal. However, Black does not use his central pawn lever, instead going for the flank.} (18. h3 $14 {now White has defensive resources like Ne2 and Qf1 possible, among others.}) 18... g5 (18... e4 {causes the most problems.} 19. Ng3 exf3 20. gxf3 g5 {with ...g4 coming. The engine gives it as equal, but with difficult-to-find moves for White like h2-h4 immediately.}) 19. Qe1 $6 (19. Ng3 {immediately is a much better idea, fighting for and blocking the b8-h2 diagonal.}) 19... g4 $17 20. Ba5 {this was the idea behind the queen move, but objectively does not cause enough problems for Black.} (20. Rb1 {I debated moving this first, which would have been an improved version of the idea, but then Black gets in ...gxf3 with advantage.}) 20... Qb7 {forced} 21. Rb1 Qa6 $19 {this is a somewhat awkward placement of the queen, but on the a6-f1 diagonal it still is doing very well, and I can't further attack it.} 22. Ng3 {now I am in trouble on the kingside, but my opponent does not open lines fast enough.} g6 (22... gxf3 $1 $19 {is the critical idea.}) 23. Qc3 $6 {trying to generate some counterplay in the center, but this allows Black to break up the pawn shield.} (23. f4 $5 {did not occur to me at the time.} exf4 24. exf4 Rxh2 25. Rxh2 Rxh2 26. Kg1 $11) 23... exd4 24. exd4 Qc4 $6 {this essentially loses a tempo for Black and allows me to immediately equalize.} 25. Qb2 $11 {now threatening to penetrate on the b-file.} Qb5 $6 {going back to the status quo would probably be drawish, but here I could exchange into a won ending.} (25... Qa6 $11) 26. Qd2 {intentionally keeping the queens on the board, thinking my attack would be better than Black's. From a practical standpoint, it does allow him to go wrong, but the same goes for myself.} (26. Qxb5 cxb5 27. Rxb5 $18 {and Rhb1 is the main threat, for example} Rxh2 28. Rhb1 gxf3 29. Kxf3 $1 {I failed to see this at the time. Now Rb7! is unstoppable.}) 26... Qc4 $2 {now I'm winning, and in fact find the initial correct follow-up.} 27. Rb4 Qa6 28. Rhb1 {setting up mate threats, while the Ba5 is tactically protected.} gxf3 {Here I thought for a long time, considering the winning Qf4! but erroneously calculating that it did not work in the end, so I played the second best move.} (28... Qxa5 $2 29. Rb8+ Nxb8 30. Qxa5 $18) 29. Kxf3 (29. Qf4 {the point is threating immediate mate on c7. Somehow I hallucinated a defense for Black.} Qxa5 $4 30. Rb8+ Nxb8 31. Rxb8+ Kd7 32. Qd6# {I saw this but somehow miscounted the captures on b8.}) 29... Ne4 30. Qe1 $2 {a blunder, as I end up deciding I have to capture on e4 anyway.} (30. Nxe4 $1 dxe4+ 31. Kf2 $18) 30... Re8 (30... Qd3+ $1 {is what I was most worried about and would have been decisive.}) 31. Nxe4 Qd3+ {this allows for a defense, which I however do not find, having been under combined time and mental pressure.} 32. Kf2 $2 (32. Qe3 $1 dxe4+ 33. Kf2 $18) 32... Rxe4 $19 33. Rd1 {the best practical try, as well as the engine's choice. Of course I am still losing objectively.} Qc2+ $6 (33... Qxa3 $19) 34. Rd2 $2 {this has one flaw, but was in fact a decent practical choice.} (34. Qd2 $11 {unfortunately did not occur to me in time pressure.}) 34... Rxe1 (34... Ne5 {would be very difficult to find over the board.} 35. Rxc2 Nd3+ 36. Kg3 Rxe1 $19 {and White has to lose material to avoid getting mated.}) 35. Rxc2 $11 Re4 $2 (35... Ra1) 36. Rcb2 $1 $18 {now I should be winning again, with the threats renewed against Black's king.} Rhh4 37. Rb7 {this was the key move I had been looking to get in for a long time.} Rhf4+ 38. Kg1 Rxd4 39. Rc7+ {this should win, but I could have thought about safety first, since the situation was not going to change.} (39. g3 {creates "luft" and keeps the pressure on Black.}) 39... Kd8 40. Rxa7+ Ke7 {and now I cannot find the winning idea, going for the easy check instead.} 41. Re2+ $6 (41. g3 Rd1+ 42. Kg2 {and now the threat of Rbb7 is decisive.}) 41... Rfe4 $11 42. Rxe4+ {essentially forced.} dxe4 43. Rc7 Rd5 44. Bb4 {at this point the engine evaluates this as a draw.} e3 $6 {too aggressive, weakening the e-pawn.} 45. Kf1 Ke8 $2 (45... Rf5+ 46. Ke2 Rf2+ 47. Kxe3 Rxg2 48. Rxc6 Rxh2 $2 (48... Ne5 $16) 49. Ra6 $1 $18 {the engine shows as winning for White, due to the advanced passed c-pawn.}) 46. Rxc6 $18 {now I should be winning (again).} Ne5 47. Rd6 $1 {forcing the rooks off.} Rxd6 48. cxd6 Kd7 49. Ke2 f5 50. Kxe3 {now this should be an easy win, but in time pressure I give Black an out, as he masterfully uses his knight to bamboozle me.} Ng4+ 51. Kf4 Nxh2 52. Kg5 {I am still winning here, but the fundamental idea is flawed. I try to play on the kingside rather than push my outside passed pawn.} (52. a4 $1 {passed pawns must be pushed!}) 52... Ke6 53. Kxg6 Ng4 54. Kg5 Ne3 55. g3 Nd5 {now my materialistic instincts doom this to a draw, as I am unwilling to tactically trade pawns.} 56. Kg6 $2 $11 (56. Bd2 $1 Kxd6 57. Kxf5 $18) 56... f4 57. gxf4 Nxf4+ {by this point I saw what was coming.} 58. Kg5 Nd3 {now White must lose the d-pawn and my king is too far away from the action, so Black's king will clean up.} 59. Kg4 Nxb4 60. axb4 Kxd6 1/2-1/2

Annotated Game #282: If it's the first round, I must lose as Black

This next tournament's first-round game unfortunately comes as no surprise, in terms of the result. I very much dislike ascribing a loss to time trouble, since that is normally a symptom rather than a cause, but in this game it is certainly the most important single factor. Right up to the penultimate move I had at worst an even game, but hallucinated sufficiently under time pressure to make the wrong move. Other than that, it was an interesting Caro-Kann Advance with a number of useful teaching points, including how queenside pawn advances could have been employed to good effect.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class C"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B12"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "77"] [GameId "497288691264"] 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Bg4 6. Be2 e6 7. Nbd2 {I had not seen this move in the Caro-Kann Advance before - White typically castles - so had to think about what would be best to do.} Qb6 $6 {premature development of the queen.} (7... cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxe2 9. Qxe2 Nxd4 10. cxd4 {and only now} Qb6 $11) 8. Nb3 {this blocks the b-file pressure and frees the Bc1 up, but does not directly challenge Black. It also leaves the knight potentially open to attack from an advancing Black a-pawn.} (8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. O-O $14 {and Black is going to have to lose time retreating the queen or bishop, due to the threat of b4.}) 8... cxd4 9. cxd4 $6 {this allows Black to pressure d4.} (9. Nfxd4 $11) 9... Bxf3 {another premature move.} (9... a5 {I spotted this idea but thought it was too aggressive. However, it nets the d-pawn, so is worth it. For example} 10. Be3 {and now} Bxf3 11. Bxf3 a4 12. Nd2 (12. Nc1 Bb4+ 13. Bd2 Qxd4 $19) 12... Nxd4 $17 {the pin looks dangerous, but Black can play ...Bc5 next move.}) 10. Bxf3 Bb4+ {I was pleased with this, but did not find the right follow-up idea, namely ...a5 to chase away the knight.} 11. Bd2 $6 (11. Kf1 $11) 11... Nge7 {good enough for equality, but there was more.} (11... a5 $1 12. a4 $2 {blocking the a-pawn does not help, since it leaves the Nb3 unprotected.} (12. O-O a4 $17) 12... Bxd2+ 13. Nxd2 Qxd4 $19) (11... Bxd2+ 12. Qxd2 a5 $15) 12. Bc3 Rc8 13. O-O Nf5 {this is a premature deployment of the knight, there is no rush to determine its square.} (13... O-O) 14. Rc1 O-O 15. Qd2 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Na5 {heading for c4.} 17. Rb1 Nc4 18. Qd3 Qd8 {I thought for a while here. The queen should move away from the discovered attack on the b-file; d8 is as good a square as any, allowing her to be redeployed on the kingisde.} 19. Bg4 Nh4 (19... Nh6 $11 {looks awkward but could have been simpler.}) 20. f4 {I missed this and as a result it caused me great problems, as I was counting on ...Qg5 ideas on the kingside. However, there are multiple good options from here.} b6 {around here I got wise to the possibility of a White knight sac on e6, but analysis shows it does not need to be feared. The text move was intended to keep the White knight out of c5, and is not bad.} (20... g6 {restraining a further f-pawn advance.} 21. Nc5 b6 22. Nxe6 fxe6 23. Bxe6+ Kg7 24. Bxc8 Qxc8 $11 {is equal according to the engine.}) 21. Qh3 Rc6 {defending e6 and also along the third rank in general.} (21... g6 $5 {again is solid.} 22. g3 Nf5 $15) 22. Be2 Nf5 23. Bd3 g6 {long think here and the engine validates the choice, but now I start to get down on time.} 24. Bxf5 exf5 25. Rf3 Kg7 {here I focused on keeping the queen out of h6, which should be all right.} (25... Qd7 {better to clear the square for a rook, to increase flexibility. White cannot break through.} 26. Qh6 Na3 27. Rc1 $6 (27. Re1 Nb5 28. Ree3 Rfc8 29. Rh3 f6 30. exf6 Rxf6 $11) 27... Rfc8 $17) 26. Rg3 Qc8 (26... Na3 {this idea seemed to go nowhere for me, but I did not consider it fully.} 27. Rc1 {always seemed to hold everything, but then ...Qd7 followed by ...Rfc8 is a more dynamic way of playing.}) 27. Re1 {now I decide I need counterplay, so play actively and cast the die.} a5 (27... Rh8 $15 {would be solid.}) 28. Qh4 {expected, with doubling on the h-file to come.} a4 $1 {again, the correct and active way to play, as confirmed by the engine.} 29. Nc1 Nd2 {so far so good.} 30. Rh3 Rh8 {I burned more time trying to decide between this and ...h5, which would have been better.} (30... h5 {I was concerned about the idea of a pin on the g-file and tactics involving taking the h5 or f5 pawns. Although I did not see anything concrete, it was enough to deter me.} 31. Ne2 Ne4 $17 {should be fine, though.}) 31. Qh6+ (31. Nd3 {I was more concerned about this idea, which in fact would cause more problems.} h5 {now this is needed anyway.} 32. Nb4 Ne4 33. Nxc6 Qxc6 $11 {the defensive exchange sac looks like it gives good chances to hold.}) 31... Kg8 32. Ree3 $6 (32. Ne2 $11) 32... Ne4 33. Ne2 g5 {while technically this is still a draw, the loose structure in front of my king now leads to my downfall. I mistakenly thought the active play was necessary.} (33... b5 $17 {leads to a significant advantage, according to the engine. White now is vulnerable to back-rank tactics, among other problems, while Black can target the backwards c-pawn on the open file.}) (33... f6 {is another good idea, opening up the 7th rank for defense.}) (33... Qf8 {this would have been good for a solid defense, but I chose the more aggressive text move, despite not seeing a clear outcome.}) 34. Qh5 g4 35. Rxe4 {I did not consider this, but it works. Low on time, I didn't even consider capturing on h3.} dxe4 $2 36. Rg3 (36. Re3 $1 $18 {leaving h3 open for the knight to move to the attack.}) 36... Kg7 {low on time now, but this should still hold.} 37. d5 Rg6 {I thought for a while and under pressure played the wrong rook move. :(} (37... Rh6 38. Qg5+ Rg6 39. Qe7 $2 (39. Qh5 $11) 39... Qc5+ {I calculated a version of this variation but somehow decided it was bad for Black.} 40. Qxc5 bxc5 $19) 38. Nd4 $1 $18 Rh6 {one move too late.} 39. Nxf5+ 1-0

Mastery Concept: Indirect piece exchanges

Periodically I'll post what I have identified as key ideas at the board that distinguish Master-level chess from amateur level; they are collected in the sidebar in Mastery Concepts: Amateur vs. Master. Today's is the concept of indirect piece exchanges.

We are all familiar with "automatic" recaptures of pieces, which are usually obvious moves; you take my knight with your bishop, I capture your bishop back with my (pawn/other knight/queen/etc.) The point is to maintain material equality. However, one of the consistent themes with mastery concepts is that they expand your possible candidate moves, and this one is no exception. The deeper point with employing an indirect piece exchange is that while material is equalized - not necessarily on the following move - it is done via the capture of a different piece of your opponent's. This may allow for a positional or tactical advantage, or avoid inflicting positional damage on yourself.

In reviewing a number of master-level games for my commentary series, or in annotated games collections, I've noted how this is essentially taken for granted by strong players, who recognize that a specific recapture may not be forced, and so will be alert to other alternatives. The concept may be more familiar and common in endgames - especially rook endgames, where active rooks may keep eating pawns on different sides of the board.

As with any mastery concept, it's best to look at some illustrative examples.

Included in My Best Games by Victor Korchnoi, Game 97 (move 18):

[Event "Horgen CS"] [Site "Horgen"] [Date "1994.??.??"] [Round "4"] [White "Gelfand, Boris"] [Black "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E59"] [WhiteElo "2680"] [BlackElo "2615"] [PlyCount "74"] [GameId "284556311941"] [EventDate "1994.09.??"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "16"] [SourceTitle "CBM 043"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "1994.12.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "1994.12.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 c5 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. O-O Nc6 8. a3 Bxc3 9. bxc3 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Qc7 11. Ba2 e5 12. h3 b6 13. Qc2 e4 14. Ng5 Ba6 15. Rd1 Rae8 16. f3 Bd3 17. Qf2 h6 18. fxe4 hxg5 19. Rxd3 Nxe4 20. Qf3 Na5 21. c4 b5 22. cxb5 c4 23. Rd1 Nb3 24. Bxb3 cxb3 25. Rb1 Nc3 26. Rxb3 Nxd1 27. Qxd1 Re4 28. Bd2 Rfe8 29. a4 Qd7 30. a5 g4 31. hxg4 Rxg4 32. b6 axb6 33. Rxb6 Qf5 34. a6 Qe4 35. Qf1 Ra8 36. Rb7 Rxa6 37. Qxf7+ Kh7 0-1

See the sequence starting on move 12 below:

[Event "Candidates sf Kortschnoj-Polugaevsky3-2"] [Site "Buenos Aires"] [Date "1980.07.??"] [Round "12"] [White "Polugaevsky, Lev"] [Black "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E17"] [WhiteElo "2635"] [BlackElo "2695"] [PlyCount "145"] [GameId "272191946433"] [EventDate "1980.07.20"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ARG"] [SourceTitle "Candidates"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "1999.07.01"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "1999.07.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 b6 3. g3 e6 4. Bg2 Bb7 5. O-O Be7 6. d4 O-O 7. d5 exd5 8. Nh4 c6 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nf5 Bc5 11. e4 Ne7 12. Nxg7 Kxg7 13. b4 Bxb4 14. Qd4+ f6 15. Qxb4 c5 16. Qd2 Nbc6 17. Bb2 Ba6 18. Rd1 Ne5 19. Na3 N7c6 20. Qe3 Qe7 21. f4 Nc4 22. Nxc4 Bxc4 23. e5 fxe5 24. Bxc6 dxc6 25. Rd7 Qxd7 26. Qxe5+ Kf7 27. Qf6+ Kg8 28. Qg5+ Kf7 29. Re1 Qe6 30. Qg7+ Ke8 31. Rxe6+ Bxe6 32. Bf6 Bf7 33. Bg5 Kd7 34. Bh6 c4 35. Qxh7 c5 36. Bxf8 Rxf8 37. Qg7 Ke7 38. Qe5+ Kd7 39. g4 Re8 40. Qf6 Bd5 41. g5 Re2 42. h4 b5 43. Qf5+ Kd6 44. Qf8+ Kc6 45. Qc8+ Kd6 46. Qd8+ Kc6 47. Qa8+ Kd6 48. Qf8+ Kc6 49. a3 Re3 50. h5 c3 51. Qf6+ Be6 52. Kf2 c2 53. Qb2 Rh3 54. Kg2 Bf5 55. Qf6+ Kc7 56. Qxf5 c1=Q 57. Qe5+ Kb6 58. Kxh3 b4 59. axb4 cxb4 60. h6 Qh1+ 61. Kg4 Qd1+ 62. Kf5 Qc2+ 63. Kf6 b3 64. h7 Qxh7 65. Qe3+ Kc6 66. Qxb3 Qh8+ 67. Ke7 Qh4 68. Qc4+ Kb6 69. Qb4+ Kc6 70. Qe4+ Kb5 71. Kf7 a5 72. g6 Qg4 73. Qe5+ 1-0

See the sequence starting on move 25 below:

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2005.11.29"] [Round "1.3"] [White "Yu, Shaoteng"] [Black "Harikrishna, Pentala"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B13"] [WhiteElo "2516"] [BlackElo "2673"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2005.11.27"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Bf4 Nf6 6. Bd3 g6 7. Nf3 Bg7 8. O-O O-O 9. Re1 Nh5 10. Bg5 Qc7 11. Nbd2 f6 12. Be3 e5 13. Qb3 Be6 14. dxe5 fxe5 15. Ng5 Bf7 16. Nxf7 Qxf7 17. Nf3 h6 18. Bb5 e4 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Nd4 Rac8 21. Rad1 Nf6 22. h3 Nd7 23. Qb7 Nc5 24. Qxf7+ Rxf7 25. Nf5 gxf5 26. Bxc5 Rb8 27. Re2 Rfb7 28. Rdd2 h5 29. Rc2 Kf7 30. b3 a6 31. Red2 Rd7 32. Rd1 Ke6 33. Rdd2 Bf8 34. Bxf8 Rxf8 35. Rd4 Rg8 36. Kf1 Rdg7 37. g3 h4 38. gxh4 f4 39. Ke2 Rg1 40. c4 Ke5 41. Rd1 f3+ 42. Kd2 e3+ 0-1

And here's an endgame example:

[Event "RUS Cup Regions"] [Site "Belgorod"] [Date "2008.11.21"] [Round "1"] [White "Chuprikov, Dmitry"] [Black "Yudin, Sergei"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D31"] [WhiteElo "2443"] [BlackElo "2556"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2008.11.21"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "EXT 2010"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.25"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.25"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c6 4. e3 Bd6 5. Bd2 f5 6. f4 Nf6 7. Nf3 O-O 8. Be2 b6 9. O-O Bb7 10. Rc1 Nbd7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Ne5 c5 13. Be1 Rc8 14. Bh4 Be7 15. Bf3 Kh8 16. Re1 a6 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Ne2 Nfd7 19. Bg3 Nxe5 20. fxe5 Ne4 21. Bxe4 dxe4 22. Nd4 Qd5 23. Rxc8 Bxc8 24. Qb3 Qc5 25. Ne6 Bxe6 26. Qxe6 f4 27. Bf2 f3 28. gxf3 Rxf3 29. Rf1 h6 30. Qg6 Qxe5 31. Bg3 Rxf1+ 32. Kxf1 Qf6+ 33. Qxf6 Bxf6 34. b3 Kh7 35. h3 Kg6 36. Be1 Kf5 37. Kg2 g5 38. Bd2 h5 39. Be1 h4 40. Bd2 g4 41. Be1 g3 42. Bb4 Bg5 43. Bd2 Ke6 44. Kf1 Kd5 45. Ke2 a5 46. Bc1 Kc6 47. Bd2 Kb5 48. Kf1 a4 49. Ke2 axb3 50. axb3 Be7 51. Bc3 Bb4 52. Bf6 g2 53. Kf2 Be1+ 54. Kxg2 Kb4 55. Kf1 Bg3 56. Ke2 Kxb3 57. Kd2 b5 58. Kc1 Ka2 59. Be7 Be1 60. Kd1 Bc3 0-1

Annotated Game #281: First blood for the Colle-Zukertort

In this final round tournament game, which I needed to win to get back to an even score, I win for the first time playing the Colle-Zukertort. The opening is quite balanced, but easy to play for White, and the game's turning point is the thematic 19. e5! which released the pent-up energy of White's pieces in the center and targeting Black's king. The battle is on after that, with some see-saw evaluations during time pressure, but I was at least never worse than even. The attack is eventually converted into a winning king and pawn endgame, which is a good reminder that mating or gaining material is not necessarily the ultimate point of even a dangerous attack on your opponent's king.

In the past few tournaments since my latest chess career reboot, I've followed a similar pattern: lose as Black, dig myself into a hole, then claw my way out as White, including a final-round victory. I'll need to break that pattern to be successful in tournaments, although at least there has been an upward trajectory in each case, with a bit of redemption (if not positive results) at the end.

 

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class A"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E14"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "119"] [GameId "489173303299"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. e3 b6 3. Nf3 Bb7 4. Bd3 e6 5. O-O Be7 6. b3 {heading for the Colle-Zukertort.} O-O 7. Bb2 d6 {taking control of e5.} 8. Nbd2 Nbd7 9. Qe2 c5 10. c4 {I had a long think here, then made the correct reaction per my repertoire. The point is to fight for the d5 square.} Qc7 11. Rac1 {activating the rook and placing it opposite the queen.} Rac8 12. Rfe1 {looking at preparing for e4, although it's not necessary to wait, while placing the rook on what should eventually be a more active file.} Rfe8 13. h3 {prudently creating luft while also taking away the g4 square from Black's knight.} Qb8 {removing the queen as a target on the c-file.} 14. a3 {this is part waiting move, part preparing a potential b3-b4 advance, part taking away future use of the b4 square from the Black bishop.} a5 {the first inaccuracy from my opponent. This does restrain the b-pawn advance, but leaves behind a weak b5 square and a backwards b6 pawn.} 15. e4 $14 {another long think, correct decision. White needs to start mobilizing the pawn center.} cxd4 16. Nxd4 {now the b5 square is looking good for the knight.} Nc5 17. Bc2 {done to overprotect b3, while also preventing the exchange of the strong bishop.} h6 18. Nb5 {occupying the outpost square.} Ba6 $2 {the idea to exchange off the advanced knight is good, but this is the wrong square from which to do it.} (18... Bc6 19. Nd4 Bb7 $14) 19. e5 $1 $18 {releasing the energy of White's pieces, namely the two bishops and the Nd2. This is a typical motif in the Colle-Zukertort, where a central pawn advance suddenly and surprisingly changes the game to White's advantage.} Nh7 (19... dxe5 20. Bxe5 Qb7 21. Bxf6 {positionally this looks bad, but the Be7 is overloaded, defending both the Nf6 and the d6 square.} Bxf6 (21... gxf6 {prevents the knight fork on d6, but White then gets a kingside attack.} 22. Qg4+ Kh8 23. Qf4 $18 {targeting the h-pawn, while threats of a Re3-g3 rook lift and Nd6 are in the air.}) 22. Nd6 $18 {winning material.}) 20. Nxd6 {the simplest way to make progress I could find.} Bxd6 21. exd6 Qxd6 22. Ne4 (22. Rcd1 $5 {would activate the rook on the open file, with Ne4 in reserve. "The threat is stronger than the execution."}) 22... Nxe4 23. Bxe4 {here I valued the centralized bishop and control of the a8-h1 diagonal more than the alternative.} (23. Qxe4 {I also considered and Dragon 3.2 rates as better.} f5 24. Qe3 $18) 23... f5 24. Bf3 {solid and still focused on controlling the long diagonal.} (24. Bb1 $5 {would keep the bishop pointed towards the kingside, its usual function in this structure.}) 24... Nf6 {this looks reasonable, but the knight in fact has no good squares from f6.} (24... Ng5) 25. Rcd1 {another long think. I didn't see anything else that was forcing, so decided the rook was best placed on the open d-file and I would see where the Black queen landed.} Qe7 26. Qe5 {with the correct idea of Rd6 as a follow-on, but this was not the best way to go about it.} (26. Bxf6 {this again seems contradictory in principle, exchanging the great bishop for a limited knight, but the tactics justify it.} Qxf6 27. Rd6 $18 {forking e6 and b6.}) 26... Bb7 {logically looking to trade bishops, as Black's is worse.} 27. Bxb7 Qxb7 28. Rd6 $1 {this is still very strong.} Rc6 {somehow I missed this defensive idea, but White is still winning. Another long think and the best decision.} 29. Red1 {keeping the tension.} Rc5 30. Qe3 {targeting the e-pawn.} (30. Qg3 {I wanted to play this, targeting g7 and threatening to take on f6, but saw the knight fork on e4 and stopped calculating. However, White has a spectacular tactical response.} Ne4 31. Rxb6 $1 {deflection tactic, as the queen is guarding against the mate on g7, so this simply wins a pawn.} Qf7 32. Qd3 $18) 30... e5 {best defense. I was starting to feel some time pressure now.} 31. Rd8 {still winning and the simplest path I could see.} Qe7 32. R8d6 $16 {the second best move, according to the engine. Following is all in time pressure until the endgame is reached. The idea here was to threaten b6.} (32. Rxe8+ $1 Qxe8 33. a4 $18 {not exactly easy to see, preventing a5-a4 to break up White's queenside pawns; then White is superior after some maneuvering around.}) 32... Qb7 33. f3 {a good idea in several variations, to take the e4 square away from Black's knight. Not optimal here, though.} (33. Qd3 {threatens f5 and other things.}) (33. Rd8 $5) 33... Qc7 34. g4 $6 {played to keep the pressure on in the mutual time scramble. Dragon 3.2 calls it a draw now, however.} (34. a4) 34... f4 35. Qd3 Kf7 $2 {now I can correctly penetrate and win.} (35... Rc6 $11) 36. Qf5 $1 $18 {with threats of Rd7 or an exchange sac on f6.} Kg8 37. Qg6 {I couldn't work out the exchange sac in the amount of time given, but this still should win.} (37. Rxf6 gxf6 38. Rd7 $1 $18) 37... Rf8 38. g5 $6 (38. h4 {is needed to prepare first.}) 38... hxg5 $11 {and Black can now hold.} 39. Qxg5 Nh7 $6 {this actually detracts from the defense, although it hits the queen.} 40. Qg6 $16 Rf6 41. Rd8+ Nf8 (41... Rf8 $2 42. R8d7 $18) 42. Qe8 Qf7 43. Bxe5 $11 (43. a4 {once again this positional idea keeps White on the winning side.}) 43... Qxe8 44. Rxe8 Rf7 $2 {I get lucky with this inaccuracy, which at first glance seems reasonable to defend g7.} (44... Rg6+ $11) 45. Rdd8 $18 {while I couldn't fully calculate the results, this move seemed obviously best, building up on the 8th rank.} g6 46. Rxf8+ {I assessed I would have a winning endgame after this forced sequence. The engine agrees.} Rxf8 47. Rxf8+ Kxf8 48. Bd6+ $1 Kf7 49. Bxc5 bxc5 {and now it is a winning endgame, although I was not 100 percent sure at the time I saw it appear on the board. Black's two disconnected queenside pawns are weak, but at least temporarily manage to hold back my three pawns. However Black will soon be in zugzwang.} 50. Kf2 Kf6 51. h4 {deciding to first shut down any possibilities on the kingside for Black.} Ke5 (51... g5 52. hxg5+ Kxg5 53. Ke2 Kh4 54. Kd3 Kg3 55. Ke4 $18) 52. Ke1 Kd4 53. Kd2 {gaining the opposition; Black only has losing moves in response.} a4 (53... Ke5 54. Kc3 {Black's king cannot penetrate, and now White wins by creating a passed pawn after b3-b4.}) 54. bxa4 Kxc4 55. a5 {now Black's king will have to go to the edge of the board to stop the a-pawns, while I grab the c-pawn and my king dominates.} Kb5 56. Kc3 Kxa5 57. Kc4 Ka4 58. Kxc5 Kxa3 59. Kd4 Kb4 60. Ke4 {and White wins the race to the kingside.} 1-0

Annotated Game #280: When you are in a hole, stop digging

In this fifth-round tournament game as Black, having lost previously twice with that color, I managed to at least stop digging myself any further deeper into negative territory. This time I had the mental toughness to go ahead and play my somewhat risky repertoire line against the Two Knights in the Caro-Kann, unlike the previous time I had faced the variation, which ended in an embarassing loss (Annotated Game #271). While I slightly goofed in the opening, I still managed to equalize by around move 13, and sealed the draw by move 17 by achieving a structure that White could not break down. While I do not advocate playing for a draw from the start of the game, as that tends to have worse results in practice, I was fine achieving one here and breaking another losing streak as Black.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class A"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B16"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "63"] [GameId "489173303298"] 1. e4 c6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 {unlike in the previous tournament, here I have my personal repertoire line prepared.} 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ gxf6 {now we are in Bronstein-Larsen territory, deliberately unbalancing the kingside pawn structure, unlike the more solid Tartakower variation with ...exf6.} 6. d4 Bg4 7. Be2 e6 8. Be3 Bd6 {perhaps a premature commitment of the bishop.} (8... Nd7) 9. Qd2 Qc7 10. h3 Bf5 11. Bd3 Bg6 {this would be more useful if I had planned kingside castling.} (11... Bxd3 $5) 12. O-O-O Nd7 13. Bxg6 hxg6 $11 {by this point I have managed to equalize. There is a solid row of pawns on the 6th rank and White no longer has a developmental advantage.} 14. c4 O-O-O 15. Kb1 Kb8 {this gives White a bit more play than is necessary, although it is solid enough.} (15... c5 {played immediately is more assertive.}) (15... e5 {is also possible to strike in the center.}) 16. d5 {this allows the central tension to be resolved.} (16. c5 Be7 17. Bf4 e5 {Black would be cramped without this pawn lever, but it keeps things equal.}) 16... exd5 17. cxd5 c5 {played after a long think here; I later learned that this is a common theme in this position-type. The point is that White's play is contained by the blockade of the d-pawn and Black's influential c-pawn.} (17... Ne5 {was my other main candidate move.}) 18. Qc2 b6 {this solidly shores up the c-pawn further.} (18... Nb6 $5 {is a more active choice.}) 19. Nd2 Bf4 {this exchange benefits Black, since clearly Black's dark-square bishop is doing very little, while White's would have more scope on the board.} 20. Nc4 Bxe3 21. fxe3 {either recapture is fine here. Now the d-pawn is not isolated, but the e-pawn is backward on an open file.} Ne5 {improving my worst piece, never a bad idea.} (21... f5 $5 {would be another way to play, fixing the e-pawn (or exchanging it off if advanced).}) 22. e4 Nxc4 {this exchange ensures Black's central blockade will be successful.} 23. Qxc4 Qe5 {from this point on it is completely even, as neither side can make progress.} 24. Rhe1 {overprotecting the weak e-pawn.} Kb7 {mostly a waiting move.} (24... Rh4 $5 {would keep the pressure on, also with a transfer to f4 possible.}) 25. Qb5 Rd6 {defending against the threatened penetration on c6.} 26. Qc4 Re8 {at this point I am just marking time and keeping White honest.} 27. Qf1 Rh8 28. Rd3 a5 {this is not necessary, but takes away some potential play on the a-file, for example after Ra3 eyeing the a6 square.} 29. Rde3 Rc8 30. Qc4 Re8 31. Qb5 Rc8 32. Qc4 {and with no ideas for progress left, a draw was agreed.} 1/2-1/2

Annotated Game #279: Do something different

With the first three tournament rounds going loss-draw-loss, I was sitting on -2 with a White coming up. The way I was playing, I did not relish another struggle in the Stonewall Attack, so decided I had to do something different to break the streak, turning to the English Opening. I ended up with exactly what I needed - after a number of exchanges, a much less stressful game with a small positional pull heading into a reduced material middlegame. This time, I handled the limited tactics well and converted into a winning pawn-up endgame.

The success here was more due to "meta" - the correct choice of opening, which really means the type of positions you want to play - than brilliant play over the board. This points out the value of having multiple openings in your repertoire, for different tournament situations or simply personal feelings on the day. Korchnoi often alluded to these types of choices in his annotations; mood can matter, as can listening to what your brain feels like doing at that particular time. There's also the simple rule that if you are threatening to "tilt", you should deliberately choose do something different than what you've been doing, and not keep going with the same approach that is obviously not working for you (at least in the moment).

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class B"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A11"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [PlyCount "87"] [GameId "488803953689"] 1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 {I was wondering if my opponent would choose a Nimzo-Indian with ...Bb4, but (as most do) she went for a QGD setup.} d5 4. e3 c6 {now it's a Semi-Slav formation.} 5. b3 Nbd7 6. Bb2 Bd6 7. Qc2 b6 8. d4 {now it's really a Semi-Slav.} (8. cxd5 $5 {is an independent option.}) 8... Bb7 9. Bd3 c5 {an early challenge in the center, with neither king castled.} 10. cxd5 Bxd5 $6 {I was fine with my opponent giving up the bishop pair here.} 11. Nxd5 Nxd5 12. O-O Nb4 {this is obviously what she had in mind, exchanging one of White's bishops forcibly now, but White is left with stronger central control.} 13. Qe2 Nxd3 14. Qxd3 Nf6 15. Qb5+ {essentially forcing the exchange of queens. This keeps a small plus for White, but may not be the best course of action.} (15. Rad1) (15. Qc4 $5) 15... Qd7 16. Qxd7+ Kxd7 {even with the queens and a pair of minor pieces off, it is still a little awkward for Black to have her king in the center, with the material left on the board.} 17. Rfd1 (17. dxc5 {looks more effective, immediately opening up the are in front of the king.} Bxc5 18. Ne5+ Ke7 19. b4 {tactically protected due to the knight fork on c6} Bd6 20. Nc6+ Kd7 21. b5 $14) 17... Ke7 {now however the position is level.} 18. Rac1 Rhd8 19. Ba3 {I thought for a while here and did not see a real breakthrough possibility, but decided that increasing the pressure on the a3-f8 diagonal was worth doing.} Nd7 20. g3 {the idea being to give the king the g2 square and avoid potential back-rank mate threats. It also puts an extra pawn in the way of the Black dark-square bishop.} Rac8 21. Ng5 {here the idea is to transfer the knight to e4; the h7 pawn is tactically protected.} Rc6 {a somewhat awkward placement of the rook, which is now hanging.} 22. dxc5 {a tricky move taking advantage of the rook placement, as recapturing with either minor piece now loses, due to the Rc6 being unprotected. The pawn capture was worth doing in any case, to give Black weaker and isolated pawns on the queenside.} (22. Nxh7 f6 {cuts off the knight's retreat square.}) 22... bxc5 (22... Nxc5 23. b4 $1) (22... Bxc5 23. b4 $1) 23. Ne4 {further increasing the pressure on both c5 and the Bd6.} Be5 $2 {this loses the pawn without a fight.} (23... Ra6 $11 {holds things together, threatening to tactically swap pawns.}) 24. Nxc5 $18 {this had to be calculated out, as the bishop capture does not work well enough.} (24. Bxc5+ Nxc5 25. Rxd8 Nxe4 $11) 24... Nxc5 25. Rxd8 {my opponent may have missed this, otherwise the tactics favor Black.} Kxd8 26. Rxc5 Ra6 {I actually had not calculated this far, so was relieved to see the Ba3 in fact had an out.} 27. Bc1 {here I am a pawn up with very good prospects in the endgame, but still plenty of work to be done. The idea is to get the rooks off whenever possible, in which case White's endgame advantage will become much clearer.} (27. Bb4 $5 {I briefly considered and rejected after ...Bd6, but White is fine.} Bd6 28. Ra5 $1 {is what I didn't see.} Rxa5 29. Bxa5+ Kd7 $18 {with a winning endgame.}) 27... Bd6 28. Rc2 $18 {now the forced sequence has ended, with advantage intact. It should be sufficient for a win, although I'm only a pawn up, since in effect both Black's king and rook are largely cut off from the action.} Ke7 29. e4 {it is most important to reactivate the bishop now.} f5 30. exf5 exf5 31. f4 {played with the idea of permanently grabbing the e5 square and restricting Black, but it also interferes with my own bishop.} (31. Be3 {immediately is perhaps better.}) 31... g6 32. Be3 Ra5 33. Kf1 {time to activate the king as well.} Ke6 34. Ke2 Kd5 35. Kd3 {Black is now out of counterplay and has very few squares left for the rook.} a6 $2 {not recognizing the rook's plight.} 36. a4 {taking away the b5 square.} Ke6 {clearing the square for the rook to escape...temporarily.} 37. Kc4 Rd5 38. Rd2 $1 {achieving the strategic goal of exchanging rooks.} Rxd2 39. Bxd2 Bb8 40. Be3 {the endgame is now clearly won for White, with Black helpless to prevent the creation of a dominant passed pawn.} Kd6 41. b4 Kc6 42. b5+ axb5+ 43. axb5+ Kd7 44. Kd5 1-0