The blog features analysed games of mine, consisting of chess, chess960 and 3 check. There are also puzzles that you can solve by moving the pieces on the board and the solution can be checked by using the engine provided by the ChessBase's publishing tool. All games and puzzles can be downloaded for free!
The game I am sharing today was played at Loimaa in a weekend tournament that was held there in February 2010. This game is from the 4th round and this was my second win in a row. On the first two rounds I lost my games, so after a rough start things were looking up again. On the last round I suffered another loss and it meant that I only managed to get 2 points out of the possible 5. I have not been one to like gambits, but when I am able to refute them, I feel quite happy. I will only go through some moments of this game and you can then view the full game with the game viewer. The first position I am going to take a look at arised after my fourth move 4...Nf6. In the position below my opponent played 5.f4, which is a first real mistake of this game. 5.c4 was a better alternative.
Then just a couple of moves later I played 7...Qa5 in the position below, briefly bringing the game into balance, or at least close to it. My opponent replied with 8.Nd2, making his position clearly worse again. 8.Ne2 was the better choice. I continued with 8...Be7, which is only good enough for a small advantage, 8...b3 was the right way to go and I would have been clearly better, had I chosen to play that move.
When we reached the position below, all of my advantage was almost gone. It was my move and I played 28...Na3, after which there was nothing left of my advantage.
It did not take long, however, until my opponent made the blunder that lost the game. In the position below my opponent played the horrible 30.Ng3, after which the game is lost for White. The correct move was 30.Rc1. To the move played in the game I replied with the strongest move 30...Rc3.
The game was not even close to being over just yet, because the game ended to my opponent's resignation after 51...Kf8. I have added a mate in two puzzle 744, mate in three puzzles 668 & 669 and mate in four puzzles 531 & 532 today.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
1.e4
1,166,623
54%
2421
1.d4
947,298
55%
2434
1.Nf3
281,602
56%
2441
1.c4
182,102
56%
2442
1.g3
19,702
56%
2427
1.b3
14,265
54%
2427
1.f4
5,897
48%
2377
1.Nc3
3,801
51%
2384
1.b4
1,756
48%
2380
1.a3
1,206
54%
2404
1.e3
1,068
48%
2408
1.d3
954
50%
2378
1.g4
664
46%
2360
1.h4
446
53%
2374
1.c3
433
51%
2426
1.h3
280
56%
2418
1.a4
110
60%
2466
1.f3
92
46%
2436
1.Nh3
89
66%
2508
1.Na3
42
62%
2482
Please, wait...
1.e4c52.b4Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambitcxb43.d43.a3bxa3
Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit, Carlsbad Variation3.Bb2Sicilian Defense:
Wing Gambit, Abrahams Variation3...e6B20 Sicilian: Unusual White 2nd
moves4.Bd3Nf64...g65.h4Nc66.Ne2Bg77.e5d68.f4h59.Nd2Nh610.Nc4Bf811.exd6Bxd612.Bb2Ne713.Qd2a614.Ng3Rh715.Ne4Nef516.Ng5Rh817.d5Rg818.dxe6Bxe619.0-0-0Khorganov,V (2075)-Osokin,V
Barnaul 2013 1-0 (36)5.f4N Black's piece can't move: c85.Ne2Be76.a3Nc67.0-00-08.Bg5h69.Bxf6Bxf610.e5Be711.Be4d512.Bd3bxa313.c3Bd714.Nxa3a615.f4b516.Nc2Qb617.Kh1Na518.Ne3Nc419.Bxc4dxc4Gluchaciov,N-Januseviciute,D (1800) Klaipeda 2010 1-0 (35)5.a3d56.Nd2dxe47.Nxe4Nxe48.Bxe4Nc69.Nf3Be710.h4Qa511.Bd2Nxd412.axb4Nxf3+13.gxf3Qe514.Ra5Qc715.f4b616.Re5Bb717.Rg1Bf618.Bxb7Qxb719.Re30-0-0Vogiatzis,D (2033)-Struk, J (2266) Fuerth 2001 0-15.Nd2d56.e5Nfd77.f4Nc68.Ne2g69.h4h510.Nf3Nb611.Ng5Nc412.g4hxg413.h5gxh514.Ng3Nxd415.Nxh5Rxh516.Rxh5Nf3+17.Nxf3gxf318.Qxf3Qc719.Qg3Bd7Lauren,M (2210)-Funck,K Finland 1997 1-05.c4!? =5...Nc6
Black threatens to win material: Nc6xd46.Be3d67.Qf3Qa57...e58.fxe5dxe59.d5+/-8.Nd28.Ne2d59.e5Ne4=8...Be78...b39.Ne2Nb410.0-0bxc211.Bc4+/-9.Nb39.Ne2Qh5=/+9...Qh510.Qxh5Nxh511.Nf311.g4Nf612.g5Nd7=/+11...Nf6+/-12.h3b613.g4Bb713...d514.e5Ne415.Nbd2+/-14.g5White threatens to win material:
g5xf6Nd715.Kf2White loses the right to castleNa5Black has a cramped
position16.Nbd216.Nxa5bxa517.a30-0=/+16...Rc816...d517.h4+/-17.Rab117.a3!? should not be overlookedbxa318.Rxa3=/+17...d5+/-18.e5Nb819.f5exf520.Bxf5Rd820...Rc321.h4+/-21.h4Bc8Black threatens to win material: Bc8xf522.Bd3Be6Blocks the pawn
on e523.Nf1Rc824.Ng3Black has a cramped positionNc4White has a
very active position. Menacing25.Bc1Nc6White has an active position26.Nf5White threatens to win material: Nf5xg7Bf827.Bf4N6a527...a528.h5Kd729.g6fxg630.hxg6=/+28.h5= Black has a cramped positionNa3
Attacks the backward pawn on c2. Black threatens to win material: Na3xb1.
Black forks: c2+b129.Rbg1Nxc2Black has a cramped position.29...Rc330.Ne3N5c4=/+30.Ng3?? there were better ways to keep up the pressure30.Rc1would keep White in the gameb331.axb3=30...Rc3-+31.Ke2?? terrible, but what else could White do to save the game?31.Rd1Bg432.Ne2-+31...Bg432.Bxc232.Kd2doesn't do any goodBxf333.Bxc2Nc4+34.Kc1Bxh135.Rxh1Na3-+32...Bxf3+32...Rxc2+!? and Black can
already relax33.Bd2Bxf3+34.Kxf3Rxd235.Ra1Rd3+36.Kf2Rxd437.Rad1
-+33.Kf2Bxh134.Ba4+Kd835.Rxh1Ra336.Bb5Rxa2+37.Kf337.Ne2
cannot change what is in store for Whiteb338.Rb1Bb4-+37...b338.Bd338.Rb1does not solve anythingb239.Ke2Nc440.Bxc4dxc4-+38...b239.Bb139.Rd1is not the saving moveRa140.Ke2Nb3-+39...Ra140.Bd240.Bd3does not help muchNc4-+40...Nc441.Bc341.Ke2
cannot undo what has already been doneNa342.Bc3Rxb143.Rxb1Nxb144.Bxb2Kd7-+41...Ba341...Ra3secures the win42.Ne2Bb443.h6gxh644.Kg4Bxc345.Kf5hxg546.Kf6-+42.Kg4Be743.Bd3Rxh144.Nxh1Ba345.Ng345.Nf2doesn't get the cat off the treeg6-+45...g646.Ne246.Kf3is not much helpKd7-+46...Kd747.Be147.Nf4is no salvationKc6-+47...Rc848.Nf448.Kf3-+ there is nothing better in the
position48...Ne3+49.Kf3Nc250.Bb5+Ke751.Nxd5+Kf851...Kf852.Bc3b1Q53.Ba6Qh1+54.Ke2Rxc355.Nxc3Bc156.d5Qg2+57.Kd3Qd2+58.Kc4Qd4+59.Kb3Na1+60.Ka2Qd2+61.Kxa1Qb2#0–1
I am taking a look at my old over the board games this week, since there seemed to be enough never before covered opening variations to last for this week. Well, opening variations that have not seen the light of day in this blog that is. This game was played in a weekend tournament at Turku in April, 2009. The tournament consisted of four groups and I played in group D with 11 other players. The game below was played on round two and it was my first loss. I had won my first round game against a player who was rated 1643. On the next two rounds I was able to win my games again, but on the last round I suffered my second loss. With a score of 3 out of 5 I shared third place in the group, but due to tie-break I was 5th in the fianl standings of group D.
The first position of interest appeared after my opponent played 6...c6. These days I would almost always castle in that position without much thought, but in this game I chose for some reason to play 7.d5, which seems a bit premature since my king is still in its original square in the center. 7.d5 was a really bad idea and the first clear mistake of the game.
It was not the start of my downfall just yet though, because a few moves and some inaccuracies later we reached the position after 12.O-O. You can see that position below. My opponent replied with 12...Rae8 after which the position was even once again. 12...Nc5 was the best option to keep the advantage.
The next clear shift in the balance came in the position below after I had played 24.Bxc4. My opponent was slightly better in that position, but then he played 24...a4, which gave me a chance for a clear advantage. Unfortunately I did not play 25.Ba6, which meant that instead of being the one in a favorable position, I gave the favorable position to my opponent with the move 25.Ne2.
The game then went on without big mistakes until we reached the position below. It is taken after my 33rd move Nxc5. My opponent played 33...Qf8, which is a huge blunder according to Stockfish 7 64 POPCNT. The engine thinks that I am in a winning position after 33...Qf8. The correct move was 33...Qb6 and the position would have been even after that. Again I missed the strongest move, which in this case would have been 34.Ne6. The move I chose, 34.Be2 is good enough to a clear advantage, so I should have been doing quite well at this point in the game.
Two consecutive blunders changed the outcome of the game. In the position below I was on the clearly favorable side, but I went to grab the a-pawn with the knight instead of the possibly winning move 36.Ne6 and suddenly the position was more even again. Especially after my opponent played 36...Qh4. The other option to keep the equality was to play 36...Qa5.
The former option was probably better for practical reasons as it seems like the harder one to make a good move against. I was not able to find a good answer to 36...Qh4 and made the game losing move 37.Bf1. The only move that could have kept me in the game was 37.g3, all other moves were losing for me. I did play a few more moves, but had to accept my defeat after 42...Rxf7. I have added a mate in one puzzle 523, mate in two puzzles 742 & 743, a mate in three puzzle 667 and a mate in four puzzle 530 today.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.e4d62.d4Nf63.Nc3g64.Nf3Bg7Pirc Defense: Classical Variation5.Bc45.Be20-06.0-0Bg4Pirc Defense: Classical Variation, Quiet System,
Parma Defense6...c6Pirc Defense: Classical Variation, Quiet System,
Czech Defense6...Nc6Pirc Defense: Classical Variation, Quiet System,
Chigorin Line5...0-06.h3c6B08 Pirc Defence: Classical System7.d5b57...Nbd78.Bf4h69.h4Qa510.0-0Ng411.Qd3Nde512.Bxe5Nxe513.Nxe5Bxe514.a3b515.Ba2Ba616.Rfd1Qb617.b4c518.Qe3cxb419.Qxb6axb620.axb4Bxc321.Rab1Bb722.Rd3Farcas,T (1001)-Didiliuc,D (1582)
Calimanesti 2013 0-1 (40)8.Bd3b49.Ne2Qc7N9...cxd510.exd5Qa511.Bc4Bb712.Nf4Nbd713.0-0Nb614.Bb3Nbxd515.a3Nxf416.Bxf4Qf517.Bd2Ne418.axb4Nxd219.Qxd2Bxf320.gxf3Qxh321.c3Be522.f4Qg4+23.Kh1Bxf424.Qd3Adoamnei,R (2071)-Barbu,N (2202) Ploiesti 2002 0-1 (48)9...cxd510.exd5Bb711.Nf4+/-10.c410.a3cxd511.exd5Bb712.axb4Nxd5=/+10...Nbd710...bxc311.Nxc3cxd512.0-0dxe413.Nxe4+/-11.Ng311.a3cxd512.exd5Nc513.axb4Nxd3+14.Qxd3Bf5=11...Bb7
White has an active position11...Nc5!?12.Be3cxd513.cxd5Nfd7+/-12.0-0Rae812...Nc513.Be3=13.Bf4Black has a cramped positione5Black threatens to win material: e5xf413...Nc514.Qd2=14.Be3
White threatens to win material: Be3xa7a5Black has a cramped position15.Qd2Nc516.Bxc5dxc5Black has the pair of bishops17.Bc2cxd5Black
forks: c4+e418.cxd5White has a new protected passed pawn: d5Rd819.Bb3White has an active positionNe820.Rac1Nd6In the style of Nimzovich21.Qe3Attacking the backward pawn on c5. White threatens to win material: Qe3xc5
Rc822.Nd2Ba623.Nc423.Bc4Bb7=23...Bxc424.Bxc4The bishop
likes it on c4a424...f525.Qf3=/+25.Ne225.Ba6!? +/-25...Qa5Less advisable is25...Nxc426.Rxc4Qd627.a3+/=26.Rc226.Ng3Qd8=/+26...Nxc427.Rxc4Rfe828.Rfc1+/-26...Rc726...f527.exf5gxf528.Qc1+/-27.Nc127.Ng3f528.exf5gxf5=/+27...Kh827...f528.b3=/+28.Nd3f529.f329.exf5Nxf530.Qg5Bh6=29...fxe430.fxe4Rxf1+31.Kxf1Rf7+31...b3!? is worthy of consideration32.axb3axb3=/+32.Kg1+/=Qd833.Nxc533.Qe1+/=33...Qf8??33...Qb6and Black hangs on34.Kh2Bf8=34.Be234.Ne6!?Bh635.Qg3Bf4+-34...Bh6+/-35.Qd3Qd836.Nxa4?? forfeits the advantage36.Ne6White has a promising positionQh437.Rc6Qf2+38.Kh1+/-36...Qh4=37.Bf1?? overlooking an easy win37.g3would be a reprieveQxh338.Nc5=37...Qe138.Qa638.Qe2does not win a prizeQg339.Qd3Be3+40.Kh1Nxe441.Qxe3Qxe342.Ba6Qg343.Kg1Nf244.Rc8+Kg745.Rf8Nxh3+46.Kh1Kxf847.Nc5Rf248.Ne6+Kg849.Nf4exf450.a3Qxg2#38...Be3+39.Kh2Rxf140.Qa8+40.Qxf1does not improve anythingQxf141.Rc1Bxc142.Nc5Bf4+43.g3Qf2+44.Kh1Bxg345.a3Qh2#40...Kg741.Rc7+Nf741...Kh642.Qf8+Rxf843.a3Qg1+44.Kg3Bf2+45.Kg4Qxg2#42.Rxf7+Rxf742...Rxf743.Qf8+Rxf844.Nc5Qg1+45.Kg3Bf2+46.Kg4Qxg2#0–1
The game below was played over seven years ago at Espoo in a weekend tournament. This game is from round 4. I played in group B and before this round I had only managed to get one draw, so the tournament continued to go downhill for me with this game. I lost also my last round game, so I only got 0.5 out of 5, which is one of my worst results to this day. My rating dropped 58 points because of this really bad result. I ended being on last place in the group of 20 players. My opponent finished 16th in the group.
It did not take long for me to be in a lost position in this game, in fact after my 8th move my position was completely hopeless. However, the position below is taken after 7.Na3. At that point the position is roughly even.
My reply was 7...a6 in order to prevent 8.Nb5. It was actually a huge mistake and the only move that could have kept me in the game was 7...Nge7. I did get another chance to hold the position when my friend played 8.Re1. It does leave White in a slightly better position, but 8.Nc4 would have been the move that has the possibility to fight for a clear advantage. Unfortunately for me, I did not use my last chance and played the horrible 8...d6 for some reason. I can't really remember the reason for that move anymore. My best option was to play 8...Nge7. After the gigantic blunder 8...d6, Tomi was able to find a strong continuation that should have resulted in my resignation, but for some reason I wanted to suffer a bit longer and only resigned after the move 22.Nc5.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.Nf3c52.e4Nc63.Bb5g6Sicilian Defense: Nyezhmetdinov-Rossolimo
Attack, Fianchetto Variation4.0-0Bg75.c3Qb65...e56.d4Sicilian
Defense: Nyezhmetdinov-Rossolimo Attack, Fianchetto Variation, Gufeld Gambit5...Nf66.d4Sicilian Defense: Nyezhmetdinov-Rossolimo Attack, Fianchetto
Variation, Lutikov Gambit6.Ba4B31 Sicilian: 2...Nc6 3.Bb5 g6e67.Na37.d4cxd48.cxd4Nxd49.Na3Ne710.Nc4Qa611.Nxd4Qxc412.Be30-013.Rc1Qb414.a3Qxb215.Qd3Qb616.Nf5Qd817.Nxg7Kxg718.Qd6Nc619.Rfd1f620.Bxc6bxc621.e5f5Timman,J (2610)-Short,N (2650) Hilversum 1989 1/
2-1/2 (40)7...a67...Nge78.Nb50-09.d4cxd410.Nbxd4a611.Re1Qc712.Nxc6Nxc613.Be3b514.Bc2Ne515.Bf4Rd816.a4Bb717.axb5axb518.Rxa8Bxa819.Nd4Qb620.Bg5Re821.Nb3d522.Be3Savic,D (2109)-Civric,Z
(2211) Sabac 2014 1/2-1/2 (54)8.Re1N8.Nc4Qc79.Bxc6Qxc610.e5Ne711.Nd6+Kf812.d4b613.Ng5f614.exf6Qxd615.fxe7+Kxe716.Qf3
1-0 (16) Horvath,A (2245)-Bastys,R Rimavska Sobota 19968.Nc4Qc79.Bxc6
+/-8...d6?? Prevents intrusion on e58...Nge7+/= was possible9.d4+-cxd410.cxd4Bd710...Kf811.Nc4Qd8+-11.d5Nb811...Ne5
no good, but what else?12.Bxd7+Kxd713.dxe6+fxe6+-12.dxe6fxe612...Bxa4does not save the day13.exf7+Kxf714.Qd5+Ke715.Ng5+-13.Nc4Qb413...Qc7does not help much14.Bxd7+Qxd715.Nb6+-14.Nxd6+Ke714...Kf8doesn't get the bull off the ice15.Bxd7Nxd716.a3
+-15.Bg5+Bf616.Bxd716.e5and White can already relaxBxg517.Nxg5Nc6+-16...Nxd716...Qxd6is one last hope17.Qxd6+Kxd618.e5+Kxd719.exf6Nc620.Rad1+Ke821.Rxe6+Kf7+-17.e5Bxg518.Nxg5Nh619.Rc1Raf820.Nde420.Rc7Rd821.Nc8+Ke822.Nxe6Nf523.Nxd8Qd424.e6Nc525.Qxd4Nxd426.Nxb7Ncxe627.Re7+Kf828.Nbd6Nf3+29.gxf3Ng530.Rd7Nxf3+31.Kh1Nxe132.Rf7+Kg833.Ne7#20...Nf521.Rc7Nd422.Nc522.Nc5Rd823.Nge4+-1–0
The chess960 filled week is coming to its end, though I still have to publish the last video of the week after this post, but other than that I am getting very close of preparing things for next week again. Especially this week the videos I have shared to YouTube have been of games that I have shared the previous day in this blog, which is in some ways a problem. To me, it is obviously convenient to share the games in this way, but if someone who follows both this blog and my YouTube channel, things can get a bit repetitive. While I think both ways are exploring the game in different ways, I might need to do something a bit different for next week and in the future.
While I played this game, I did not really like the way I started the game, but today when I added the reference game into the notation, I saw that the game followed a game between two strong engines up to my move 3.Ngf3, which made me think that maybe the start of the game was okay after all. That being said, the problem I have with the move 2.d3 is that it blocks the natural development square of my e-knight. I actually kind of liked the way that my opponent developed his or her pieces. Especially the bishop pair that my opponent had seemed more dangerous than their counterparts. Well, my light-squared bishop was my problem bishop and maybe the dark-squared bishop for my opponent was maybe a big pawn. However, the dark-squared bishop had at least the potential of being a strong piece in case that the c-pawn advances and the bishop would then target f2. It never became a reality and I was actually the one to play c4 blocking the a7-g1 diagonal for the bishop after which it became just a big pawn. Small inaccuracies by my opponent, 10...h6 and 11...Qd7 allowed me to gain a small advantage. The position after 12.Rd1 is seen in the diagram below.
Here danishdog's position started to fall apart. My opponent played the move 12...Bc6, which is a really bad move. After the reply 13.Ne5 I should be winning according to Stockfish. I did complicate things by playing 16.Qc3 in the position below. After I had moved the queen to c3, it did not seem like a good place for it and there indeed is some problems with it. The queen can be easily driven away from c3, for instance. I should be clearly better even after the queen move because my pieces are better developed and the bishop on b6 is a really bad piece.
My opponent did go for the right idea at first by moving the knight to e4 on move 16 and harassed my queen. The queen went to d3 and after that 17...N8f6 was played. At that moment I thought that I had to go to b1 with the bishop in order to give the square c2 for my queen after my opponent plays Rd8. I was wrong, it seems and I could have actually taken the rook with my queen and with precise play I would have a winning advantage. In the game I followed my plan and played the queen to c2, giving away most of my advantage. Of course, I was not aware of that during the game. Some inaccuracies later we reached the position below. It is taken after my 22nd move h3.
For me the game became really easy because my opponent blundered with 23...Rh6. It was a desperate move in the time trouble my opponent was in. Well, danishdog had a bit over a minute left on the clock when he or she played that move. I had a bit over 3 minutes left on my clock at that time. I think my opponent wanted me to take on g4 with my h-pawn, but instead I took on e4 with the queen and had easily winning position in front of me. I think hxg4 would have been good enough for a win too, but 23.Qxe4 was the simpler way to go. I have added mate in two puzzles 738 - 741 and mate in four puzzle 527 today.
The game above can also viewed in the video below.
This short game was played at lichess.org. This is so short that the reference game in the notation is actually a lot longer and perhaps more interesting because of it. There is nothing wrong with the moves 1.d4 g6, but already with the move 2.c4 my opponent gets into trouble. While the loss of a pawn might seem rather bad this early, my opponent, gftklmt, did get minimal compensation for it in view of more space. Apart from the pawn sacrifice, I think gftklmt played reasonable moves until my opponent played 5.Ne5. The move does not make any sense at all to me. My opponent can't afford to waste moves like this if he or she wants to get a good result from the game. The final blunder came in the form of 9.Ndxc5 in the position below.
Of course this game would have been quite easy to play even if my opponent had not sacrificed the queen, but since it resulted in gftklmt's resignation, it helped a lot in ending the game. I have added mate in one puzzles 521 & 522 and mate in three puzzles 663 - 665 today.
This game can also be viewed in the video below. In the video I discuss my thought process during the game and also offer some analysis after the game.
This game, like the one I shared yesterday, were played last Sunday, though this one was played at lichess.org. It was also the day when I played in a simultanenous exhibition against a FIDE Master Kalle Niemi, against whom I managed to get a draw. It was the second simultaneous exhibition I had played in this year, in the first one I played against Grand Master Heikki Westerinen and that game I lost. These chess960 games I played in the evening of last Sunday and I was quite tired when I played them. When I am tired or otherwise can't properly concentrate on the games, it has a very noticeable effect on my playing strength, I play a lot worse than I would normally play.
I really struggled to find a good way to develop my pieces from the move 4 onward. I think I should have played 4.c4 and put my light-squared bishop to c2 and move my knight to c3 via e2. It seems to me the best way to handle the development at this moment. The moves I went for in the game seem overly complicated and bad to me. For instance, the move 6.Nb2 was intended to be the starting point for its journey to e3 via c4. I ended up in even bigger problems when I played 9.c4, in the position below. Had I played 9.Re1, I might have been still fighting for a draw in a slightly worse position. While my opponent did not find the strongest reply, pancake should still be favored after 9...Bc7.
On my 10th move I made an even bigger blunder with d4. It seemed like a good idea to try to open the e-file, since pancake's king was still at e8. However, I had not seen all the possible replies by my opponent and pancake had for a couple of moves a completely winning position. Until we reached the position after 12.bxc4. In the position below pancake went off the winning path by playing 12...e4.
Pancake's 12th move gave me an opportunity to seize the advantage, but horrible moves continued both from me and my opponent and in the end pancake was the one who stopped blundering first, which meant that my opponent was the one who ended up being on the better side of the board. I was in huge trouble in the position you can see below. I was down the exchange and very likely to lose the game, but then my opponent decided to play 24...b5, which gave me some much needed counterplay. Enough in fact that I had full compensation for the material lost. I continued with the correct idea 25.c6 in order to give my dark squared bishop a square on c5. Pancake replied with 25...Bd6, which I thought to be a good move during the game and lessen the impact of the move Bc5. However, I was wrong in my assumption. It was actually a bad idea to play 25...Bd6 and had I moved my bishop to c5, I could have been on the driver's seat for the rest of the game.
I went for the pawn on a7 instead and the chance to take the advantage passed me by. Then with my 27th move, Bc5, I handed over the advantage to pancake. My opponent was able to maintain the advantage until we reached this position. In this position pancake unwisely played 31...bxc4 and allowed my knight to jump to c4. I think this was already the time trouble phase of the game. It also explains the huge blunder 32...Rc8. After that I was, of course, completely winning, but I was very low on time and it was hard to make good moves.
My opponent was even kind enough to step into mate in one, one or two seconds before my time ran out. Unfortunately I was unable to find 42.Bd1. Had I seen the idea early enough, I would have had time to play that move and win the game. I have added mate in two puzzles 735 - 737 and mate in three puzzles 661 & 662 today.
This game can also viewed in the video below and you can hear my live commentary and after game analysis. There are also some comments added in the video editing phase.
Last Sunday I played my 5th chess960 game at FICS in a sleep deprived state. It was not a good idea to put my rating points in jeopardy, but for some reason I thought it would go well. For one thing, I did not expect to get a clearly higher rated opponent, because it is something that almost never happens. This is not because my rating would always be all that high when compared to the ratings of other people, however, my Wild rating at FICS was 1995 before this game, which is a reasonably high rating. That Wild rating means in my case a chess960 rating, since it is the only chess variant I have played there. Due to my long period of inactivity when playing chess960 at FICS, my ratings deviation or RD had become quite high, which meant that my rating dropped 112 points because I lost this game. Maybe with the next game I can get back over 1900 and start chasing the 2000+ rating once more.
When I finally got an opponent to play a game, it seemed to take forever, I moved quite fast, so that my opponent would not abort the game. I had already at this point tried to get a game at lichess.org, but there nobody was interested in playing against me with the time controls I would have liked to play with. I spent a few minutes waiting for an opponent there and then switched to FICS. The problem with moving rather fast was that I had not properly looked at the starting position. This had the unfortunate result of me playing a horrible and ill-advised first move against 1.Ng3. The move I chose, 1...g6, is quite bad in my opinion because it blocks the natural development square of the h-knight. I played 1...g6 in order to get my dark-squared bishop to g7, but I realised after the reply 2.b3 that moving the bishop to g7 would be stupid immediately and therefore I had to prepare it by blocking the long diagonal with 2...e5. Had I played 1...e5 and developed my bishop to the f8-a3 diagonal, I might have not wasted so much time to make my silly first move to make some sense. My awful first move had made the development of the kingside pieces much harder than it should have been.
Regardless of the bad start, I should have been only slightly worse and draw could have been still within my grasp. My real problems started when we reached the position below. In that position I wanted to defend the e-pawn with my d-pawn because had I played 5...f6, the bishop on g7 would have seem like a really bad piece. What I did not realise in my sleep deprived state was that defending the e-pawn with the d-pawn can be really bad for me, since it might lead to the opening of the d-file where my king resided. Of course my opponent was more awake and took his or her opportunity to open the d-file with devastating consequences for me. Anandkvs played 6.dxe5 and at this point in the game I had my last chance of saving the game. Had I played 6...O-O-O and sacrificed the e-pawn, I might have survived.
I replied with 6...Bxe5, which turned out to be the losing move. I did unintentionally make the winning easier for my opponent than I should have a few moves later when I played 10...f5. It was answered with the move 11.Bc4, which wins more material by force. I should have maybe resigned at that point, but wanted to prolong my misery for some reason, but a few moves later I had to accept that there was no way I could get even a draw from this game, so I resigned after 15.Qxe5. I have added mate in two puzzles 732 - 734, mate in three puzzle 660 and mate in four puzzle 526 today.
The pawn structure I went for in this game is not something I like to repeat if I get into this or similar starting positions in the future. I have played in similar way before when my bishops have also been located in g8 and h8 in the starting position. In all of them my bishops have been somewhat out of play. Especially the light-squared bishop has been a real problem piece because I have needed to play both e6 and d5 for some reason or the other. In the future I would like to start these kind of starting positions by moving the g-pawn one square forward and the f-pawn two squares forward. I should also avoid playing d5 and or e6 if possible. It might be better to go for the g6, f5, e5, d6 pawn formation if allowed by the opponent in order to keep the position as open as possible for the two bishops.
The first move of mine that I did not really like, but played anyway was 12...Nb4. I did not like it because I thought that it would be replied with 13.a3 and I would not have accomplished anything except maybe to slightly weaken the queenside pawn structure. However, it was not really a mistake to play the knight to b4 as the position remained roughly even after that. The idea behind Nb4 was not only to attack the pawn on a2, but also protect a6, so that I could play b6 and drive the knight away. Since my opponent did not drive my knight away with a3, I was able to execute my plan. The position below is the one that was on the board after 13...b6. In that position my opponent made a bad choice and traded the knights on e4. It is a bad move because I can take back with my d-pawn and my light-squared bishop has a bigger scope because of it.
It was only the start of the problems my opponent, pancake, faced. Pancake made things worse for himself or herself with his or her next move 15.g4. I should have replied with 15...Qd5 and my position would have been the clearly favorable one, but I played the move 15...a5, which let my opponent off the hook a bit. During the game the move 18.c4 looked dangerous for me, but it is actually dangerous for the side who played it. The position below is after pancake had played 18.c4. Because I had a defensive mindset and focused on playing defensive moves, I did not even consider the correct move 18...a4. The move I played 18...e6, gave up a lot of the activity that my light-squared bishop had. I only played my 18th move, because I thought that it would be necessary to stop the advance of the d-pawn. My passive play meant that the position became more evenly fought again.
A few moves later we reached the next position. The last move played in the game was 21.c5, which was a mistake. The problem was that I made a huge mistake in reply and allowed pancake to take the driver's seat. I should know better to play for activity instead of passivity, but for some reason I still do these kind of moves. I played 21...Qf8, which was probably the worst move up to that point. Then my opponent played 22.cxb6 and I replied with 23...cxb6.
Pancake continued by playing 23.Rc1 and I did not stop playing bad moves just yet, I had to blunder once more and play 23...Rc8. I should have been quite lost and I actually waited for my opponent to play the crushing moves. We reached the position below after I moved my bishop from f7 to e8. It was a huge blunder, which I only realised afterwards. Had my opponent played 25.Nc5+, it would have ended this game right there, becuase I would be completely lost, no matter what I would have played. It was the move I expected pancake to play, but luckily he or she blundered the gave away instead with 25.Red1.
I was not actually sure during the game that I was winning after 25...Nxd4, but I thought it to be my best chance to fight for that possibility. I thought that my pieces were still less coordinated than those of my opponents and had I not moved my king to the right square after 26.Nxa5+, I would have lost this game. The rest of the game was just a matter of technique. I have added mate in one puzzle 520, mate in three puzzle 659, mate in four puzzles 524 & 525 and mate in five puzzle 187 today.
The game can also be viewed in 1080p 60fps in the video below.
B14 Caro-Kann: Panov-Botvinnik Attack with 5...e6 and 5...g6 (1.c4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.e3 Bg7 4.d4 cxd4 5.exd4 Nf6 6.Nf3 d5)
This is one of those opening variations where the name for it depends on the source you are looking it up from. The name I chose is the one that lichess.org uses. If you look this up using the Chess.com openings explorer, then the name is Modern Defense: Pterodactyl, Quiet Line. Interestingly enough they have removed the ECO codes from the opening names on the new version of Chess.com, which means that I have no longer any use for it... It was a very useful tool for me in the past and now it is completely useless. I even made a bug report of it, to which I got a quite quick reply to and the person who replied seemed to agree with my point, but because that person was not the one who can make such chances, only to pass the information to someone who can change it, it has not changed to the useful tool that it was yet. I am starting to think it never will. When I use the analysis board at lichess.org, it can detect the name of the opening, whether or not the moves are made in the theoretical order. That is a feature I like a lot. However, I do not think there is a way to check the theoretical move order anywhere at lichess. If there is and you know how to find it, please leave a comment. It is probably the only complaint that I can think of about the site, because for a site that offers you all of its features for free, is really awesome. The theoretical move order is 1.d4 g6 2.c4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c5 4.e3.
Now for the game below. I am going to take a look at some of the key moments of the game and then you may look through the whole game using the game viewer provided by Chess.com. The position below is taken after my opponent castled on move 13. Usually castling is a good thing, but sometimes it is a very bad move, like it was in this game. Actually there have been many times in my games where playing either O-O or O-O-O has been a bad move and you may see examples of that in some of the games that I have already shared. The best option for my opponent would have been to play 13.c5 and not allow me to take on c4. After 13.c5 my bishop on e6 would have been a bad piece.
Taking on c4 with the d-pawn was the only way of taking advantage of the mistake of my opponent. My 13th move dxc4 was replied with 14.Nxc4, which could have been the losing move if not for my horrible reply 14...Qc7. The correct move was 14...Bxc4, which I did not play because I wanted to keep my bishop pair. I should have realised that the bishop on e6 is not at all a good piece and trading it to the more active knight would have been a good idea. These days I am not as afraid to give up the bishop pair if the position requires it. I still prefer to have the bishop pair over the pair of knights though. Moving my queen to c7 was just too passive. However, I still was on the better side of things after my 14th move, but only slightly. The next position of interest is after White's 17th move f5.
The idea behind the move 17.f5 is to open some lines for the rook and for the dark-squared bishop. The problem was that the move does not tactically work and I could have won a pawn by taking on d4. In the line that you can see in notation, White can't take the bishop on c4 on move 21 due to Qb6+. I did not see that possibility during the game, but my response to 17.f5 was also clearly favorable for me. Then after 20.Qe1 we reached this next position. I went for the right idea in the wrong way. I played 20...Qb6 in order to put more pressure towards the pawn on d4. The problem with the move I chose is that Nc2 is possible and my opponent may be able fight for a draw. Had I played Be4, it would have still accomplished putting more pressure towards the pawn on d4, but it would have also prevented the move Nc2 defending the pawn.
My opponent did not go for the right defense and made a huge blunder instead with the move 21.Rf4, which is a good candidate for a losing move, but it turned out later in the game that I had to make things a lot harder for me than they should have been. Everything went quite well for me until we reached the position below. This position is taken after my opponent played 30.Qg5. There was a lot of things to think about and I decided to offer a trade of queens by playing Qf6. It is a rather desperate looking move to try and make the game easier for me to play. Unfortunately 30...Qf6 handed over the advantage to my opponent and then it was me who tried to even things up.
My opponent played 31.Qc5, threatening both my knight and rook at the same time, both pieces were undefended. There was no good way to defend against the threats, but I tried my best and played 31...Nc6. Had my opponent just played 32.Qxc6, I would have been on my way to a loss. However, my opponent played 32.d5 instead, turning the tables for the last time during this game. Until Monday, my fellow chess enthusiasts!
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.c4c52.Nc3g63.e3Bg74.d4A40 Pterodactyl Defense: Queen Pterodactyl,
Quiet Linecxd45.exd4Nf66.Nf3d5B14 Caro-Kann: Panov-Botvinnik Attack
with 5...e6 and 5...g67.Ne50-08.Be38.f3Nc69.Nxc6bxc610.b3Ba611.Be3Qa512.Qd2Rfe813.Na4Qxd2+14.Kxd2dxc415.bxc4e516.Nc5exd417.Bf2Bc818.Bd3Nd719.Nb3c520.Rhe1Ba621.Rxe8+Rxe822.Re1Rxe1
Nagy,Z (1705)-Martonosi,A (1769) Hungary 2015 0-1 (58)8...Nc68...Nbd79.cxd5Nb610.Qb3a511.Bc4a412.Qb5Bf513.0-0Ne414.Rfd1Nd615.Qb4f616.Be2fxe517.dxe5Ndc818.g4Bd719.e6Be820.d6exd621.e7Qxe722.Bxb6Nxb623.Qxb6Heinemann,J (2003)-Rozov,B (2152) Dresden 2013 0-1 (52)9.Be2Be6N White has a very active position9...dxc410.Nxc6bxc611.Bxc4Bg412.f3Bf513.Qd2Nd514.Rd1Nxe315.Qxe3Qb616.Rd2e517.Ne4exd418.Qb3Qa519.Kd1Qc720.Nc5Rab821.Qa3Qf422.Re2Bh623.b3d324.Nxd3Martin,L (1960)-Alpern,A (2187) Mar del Plata 2008 0-110.b3White
has an active positionRc810...Qa511.Nxc6bxc612.Qd2=/+11.f411.Nxc6bxc612.c5Ne413.Nxe4dxe4=11...Qa5=/+12.Qd2Rfd812...dxc413.bxc4Ne8=/+13.0-013.c5= and White hangs on13...dxc4
+/-14.Nxc4?14.bxc4Nd715.Nxc6Rxc616.Ne4+/-14...Qc7
?? simply marches past the door to victory14...Bxc4nails it down15.bxc4Nxd416.Bxd4Ne417.Nxe4Bxd4+18.Kh1Qxd219.Nxd2Bxa1-+15.Rad1Nd516.Nxd5Bxd5The bishop likes it on d517.f517.Ne5e6=/+17...b517...Nxd418.fxg6hxg619.Bxd4Bxd4+20.Qxd4Bxc421.Qf2Rxd122.Rxd1Bxe223.Qxe2+/-18.Na3a619.fxg6hxg619...fxg6?!20.Bg4e621.Nc2=20.Qe120.Nc2+/-20...Qb620...Be421.Qf2e522.dxe5Rxd123.Rxd1Bxe5-+21.Rf4??21.Nc2=/+ the rescuing straw21...Bh6
-+22.Bg422.Qf2there is nothing else anywayBxf423.Bxf4-+22...Bxf423.Bxf4Ra823...Nxd4makes sure everything is clear24.Kh1Be625.Bxe6Nxe6-+24.Qg3?! offers little resistance24.Nc2f525.Bf3Nxd426.Rxd4Bxf3-+24...Ra724...Nxd4!? might be the shorter path25.Be3Be426.Kh1-+25.h425.h3Nxd426.Be3Be4-+25...Be425...e5makes it even easier for Black26.Bg5Re827.Qf2exd428.Nb1-+26.Be3Rd526...Qc727.Bf4e528.dxe5Rxd1+29.Bxd1-+27.h527.Rc1Ra827...Nxd4?!28.Rc8+Rd829.Rxd8+Qxd830.Qe5=27...Rxd4?!28.Qf2=/+28.Nb1Bxb1-+28...Nxd4?!29.Nc3Rad830.Nxe4=28...Rxd429.Nc3Rd330.Kf2Rxe331.Qxe3Qxe3+32.Kxe3Bxg233.Rg1+/-27...Nb427...Nxd428.Qf4f529.Rxd4Rxd430.Nc2-+28.hxg6?28.Nb1Bxb128...Nxa2?!29.Nd2Bd330.Bf3=/+29.Rxb1Nc2+/-29...Nxa2?!30.Rf1Nc331.hxg6Qxg632.Qb8+Kg733.Bh3Ne2+34.Kf2=28...Bxg628...Qxg6and Black has it in the bag29.Re1f530.Qb8+Kf7
-+29.Bf329.Rc1Ra829...Nxa2?? the pawn is something Black will
choke on30.Rc8+Kg731.Nc2+-30.Bf3Rad831.Bxd5Nxd5+/-31...Rxd5?!32.Rc8+Rd833.d5=29...Rd830.Qg5Qf6?? letting the wind
out of his own sails30...Rad731.d5Qf632.Qxf6exf6+/-31.Qc5+/-Nc632.d5?? an unfortunate move that relinquishes the win32.Qxc6
the advantage is on the side of WhiteQxc633.Bxc6+-32...Rad7-+33.Rf1Ne534.Bg434.Nc2Nxf3+35.Rxf3-+34...Qd634...Nxg4and Black
has triumphed35.Rxf6exf6-+35...Nxf6?!36.Nc2-+35.Bxd7+/-
Qxd735...Nxd7?!36.Qxd6exd637.Nb1=/+36.Rd1?? another bit
of territory lost36.Nc2Bxc237.Qxc2Qxd5+/-36...Nd336...Qg437.Rd2Nf3+38.Kf2Nxd239.Bxd2-+37.Qc6?? a blunder in a bad position37.Qd4Qf538.Rf1Qxd539.Qxd5Rxd5+/-37...Qxc637...Qg4and Black
can celebrate victory38.Rxd3Bxd3-+38.dxc6+/-Rc839.Nc2Rxc640.Nd4Rd641.Ra1Be442.Ne242.Nf3!? +/-42...Rg6-+43.g3Bf3
Black threatens to win material: Bf3xe243...f5-+44.Kf1??44.Nf4was a good chance to save the gameRh645.Nxd3Rh1+46.Kf2Rxa147.Kxf3Rxa248.b4=/+44...Re6-+45.a445.Nf4does not help muchRxe346.Nxd3Rxd3-+45...Rxe346.Nd4b447.Nf5Re548.g448.Nd4doesn't get
the cat off the treeBd5-+48...Kh749.Nd449.Ng3-+ otherwise it's
curtains at once49...Bxg450.Kg2Kg651.Ra2Re452.Nf3Bxf3+53.Kxf3f554.Rc2Ne1+54...Ne1+55.Kg3Nxc256.a5Re257.Kf3Nd4+58.Kf4e5+59.Kg3Kg560.Kh3Kf461.Kh4Rh2#0–1
This game was played on the fourth round of a tournament that was held at Salo almost eight years ago. On the first three rounds I was able to win all my games, so this was the first loss I suffered in the tournament. This also turned out to be the only loss I suffered in this five round tournament. I finished the tournament with a score of 4 out of 5. It was enough for me to secure the second place in group B. My new rating because of this good result was 1764.
This game featured only small inaccuracies until we reached the position below. Last move that was played in the position was 24.Bf1, the bishop moved there from g2. It was not the best move in the position either, but the move my opponent played 24...Qb6 was the worst move that had been played up to that point. 24...Qa4 would have been the right idea to go for. The problem with the move 24...Qb6 was that I can trade queens and after 25...Nxb6 I could have played 26.Bc5, forcing the reply 26...Rb7. After that my a-pawn could have gone up the board more freely.
I did not trade queens for some reason or the other, obviously I did not see the benefits it could have given me. The decision to play 25.Qc3 made playing the game more difficult for me. I think it would have been much easier to play after the trade of queens. That being said, I think I managed to play reasonable moves in the line I chose. Well, up to the point it came time to play my 34th move that is. In the position below I moved my queen to d1, which was clearly the most awful move that had been seen in the game up to that point.
The move was so bad that I should have been completely lost after that. Luckily for me, my opponent did not use the light square weaknesses around my king to full effect, so I could have ended up with a fighting chance if not for the fact that I immediately blundered and threw away my best chance to hold a draw. Then with the move 35...Nf3+ my opponent gave me a last chance to play well and hold the draw, but I was not up to the task and made the move 36.Kg2, which became the final mistake of the game and the reason I lost. I have added mate in one puzzles 516 & 517, mate in two puzzle 731, mate in four puzzle 522 and mate in five puzzle 186 today.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.c4c62.g3Nf63.Bg2g64.d4d55.Nf3Bg76.0-00-0Neo-Grünfeld
Defense Defense: Classical Variation, Original Defense7.Nbd2D78
Fianchetto Grünfeld: 6.O-O c67.cxd5cxd5Neo-Grünfeld Defense Defense:
Ultra-delayed Exchange Variation7...a67...Bg48.b3Re89.Bb2Nbd710.Rc1Rc811.h3Bxf312.Nxf3Ne413.Rc2Qa514.Qb1b515.cxd5cxd516.Rfc1Rxc217.Rxc2b418.Qa1Rb819.Bf1e620.e3Bf821.Ne1Bd622.Rc6
Demina,J (2390)-Mueller,M (2355) Budapest 1992 1/2-1/28.c5N White gains
space8.Re1b59.cxd5cxd510.Ne5Bb711.Qb3Nc612.Nxc6Bxc613.Nf3e614.Ne5Qb615.e3Rfc816.f3Nd717.Nxd7Bxd718.f4a519.a4b420.Bd2Ra721.Rec1Rac722.Qd1Rxc1Tobisch,J (1926)-Eden, T (2185) Hampstead 2013
1/2-1/2 (43)8.b3b59.Bb2Nbd79...Bf510.Nh4Be611.Qc2Nh512.Rad1Qb613.c5Qc714.e4dxe415.Nxe4Nd716.f4Nhf617.Rfe1Nxe418.Bxe4Nf619.Bg2Nd520.f5Bc821.fxg6fxg622.Qe2e623.Bh3Re824.Nf3Kumar,
A-Matos,B (1551) Porto Carras 2010 1-0 (46)10.cxd5cxd511.Rc1Bb712.Qc2Rc813.Qd3Qb614.h3Ne415.a3a516.Ne5Nxe517.dxe5Rxc118.Bxc1Nxd219.Bxd2Bxe520.Be3d421.Bxd4Bxd422.Bxb7Bxf2+Efimov,I (2142)
-Petukhov,D (2332) Saratov 2012 0-1 (54)8.b3Bf5=8...b58...Nbd79.Rb1=9.cxb6Qxb610.Nb310.Nb1Bf5=10...Bf510...Nbd711.Bf4=11.Bg5Nbd712.Rc1Rfc813.Ne5Exerts pressure on the backward
pawnNxe514.dxe5Nd715.Bxe7Bxe516.Qd2a517.e3Prevents intrusion on
d4+f4Bxb218.Qxb2a419.Rc319.Bd6axb320.axb3Qd8+/=19...axb3=
20.Rxb3Qa6Black threatens to win material: Qa6xa221.Ra1Rcb822.Bd6Rxb323.Qxb3Black king safety improvedRa723...Qb624.Rc1Qxb325.axb3=24.Bf1White threatens to win material: Bf1xa624.a4Qb625.Qa3c5
+/=24...Qb624...Qa425.Qxa4Rxa426.a3=25.Qc325.Qxb6!?Nxb626.Bc5+/-25...c5=26.Bf4f6Controls e5+g527.h4d427...Be4!? = looks like a viable alternative28.exd4+/=cxd429.Bc4+29.Qc8+!?Kg730.Bc4+/=29...Kg7=30.Qe1White has a mate threatQc5Black threatens to win material: Qc5xc431.Bb3Ne532.Qc1White
threatens to win material: Qc1xc5Qb5White has a cramped position33.Bh6+Kh834.Qd1?? ignoring the path to victory34.Qf4Re735.Rd1Qb6=34...Bg4Black threatens to win material: Bg4xd134...Qb7and Black has
reached his goal35.Rc1Bh3-+35.Qc235.Qb1Ra836.Bc2Qxb1+37.Rxb1d3=35...Nf3+35...Re736.Qc1Nf3+37.Kh1Re1+38.Qxe1Nxe139.Rxe1Bd7+/-36.Kg2??36.Kh1=/+ was possible36...Qb7-+37.Kf1Nd2+37...Nxh438.Ke1Qh1+39.Kd2Nf3+40.Kd3Bf5+41.Kc4Ne5+42.Kxd4Qxa1+43.Qc3Nf3+44.Kc4Rc7+45.Kb5Qxc346.Bg7+Kxg747.Bc4Qxc4+48.Kb6Qc5+49.Ka6Bd3#38.Ke138.Kg1doesn't change the outcome of the game
Bh339.f3Nxf3+40.Kf2Nd241.Rg1Qf3+42.Ke1g543.Qc5Qe3+44.Kd1Bg4+45.Kc2d3+46.Kc3Qxc5+47.Kxd2Qb4+48.Kc1d2+49.Kb2Qd4+50.Kc2Rc7+51.Kb1Bf5+52.Bc2Bxc2#38...Nxb339.axb339.Qxb3doesn't do any
goodQe4+40.Be3Rb741.Kd2dxe3+42.fxe3Rd7+43.Kc1Rc7+44.Kd2Qg2+45.Kd3Qe2+46.Kd4Qd2+47.Ke4Re7+48.Qe6Rxe6+49.Kf4Qf2+50.Kxg4Qf5#39...Rxa1+40.Bc140.Kd2does not improve anythingQb4+41.Kd3Bf5+42.Ke2Re1+43.Kf3Qb7+44.Kf4Re4+45.Kf3Re3+46.Kf4Rf3#40...Rxc1+40...Qf341.b4Rxc1+42.Kd2Rd1+43.Qxd1Qxd1#41.Qxc141.Kd2doesn't
change anything anymoreRxc2+42.Kxc2Qb443.f3Qc3+44.Kb1d345.b4d246.f4d1Q+47.Ka2Qdb3#41...Qe4+41...Qe4+42.Qe3Qb1+43.Kd2Qd1#0–1
D02 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 sidelines, including 2...Nf6 3.g3 and 2...Nf6 3.Bf4 (1.d4 Nf6 2.g3 d5 3.Bg2 Bf5 4.Nf3)
The game below was played on the first round of a tournament that was held at Salo between November 1st and November 2nd of 2008. The tournament was held in memory of FIDE Master Aarne Hermlin, who had died on November 17th, 2007, while playing a game for Salon Shakkikerho (Salo Chess Club in English) in a team match against EtVaS. The tournament had two groups of 30 players and I played in group B.
The first clear mistake in this game was played by my opponent on move 9, when he played Nc3 and allowed the move 9...Qxd4 to be played, which wins a pawn. The position below is after White's 9th move. Keijo should have played 9.Nxc6 instead of the move played in the game.
While this mistake certainly helped me, it was not the mistake that decided the outcome of the game. My position was not without its weaknesses and after the knights were traded on c6, it left a backward pawn for me on c6. That pawn gave my opponent some counterplay and he started to put some pressure to that pawn with the move 13.Rc1. With accuarate play that counterplay should not be enough for the lost pawn. Actually my opponent made things worse for himself by playing 17.Kf2 in the position below.
The moves 17.b4 and 17.g4 were better alternatives. The move 17.Kf2 is understandable, since it connects the rooks and allows the rook from h1 to be activated. However, it was not what the position required. 17.b4 would have, for example, prevented me from playing 17...c5, a move that frees my position a bit. After the double square advance of the b-pawn, my c-pawn would have been stuck at c6 for awhile, making it a weakness for me for a longer period of time. Everything went well for me until we reached the position after 20.h4. I played the move 20...d4 in the position below. It was a better idea to play either 20...dxe4 or 20...c4.
When I look at that position now, almost 8 years after this game was played, my move looks horrible, unfortunately it also was a really bad move and did not just look like one. It did not fully turn the tables, it just resetted the game to a balanced state. Luckily for me and unfortunately for my friend, Keijo blundered with 21.Rc4, which turned out to be the mistake that cost him the game. The only move that could have saved my opponent was 21.Bf1. I have added mate in one puzzles 514 & 515, mate in two puzzle 730 and mate in three puzzles 655 & 656 today.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.d4Nf62.g3Indian Game: Tartakower Attack2.g4e5Indian Game:
Gibbins-Wiedenhagen Gambit, Oshima Defense2...Nxg43.e43.f3Nf64.e4
Indian Game: Gibbins-Wiedenhagen Gambit, Maltese Falcon3...d64.Be2Nf65.Nc3Indian Game: Gibbins-Wiedenhagen Gambit, Stummer Gambit2...d53.Bg2Bf54.Nf3D02 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 sidelines, including 2...Nf6 3.g3 and 2...Nf6 3.
Bf4h65.c4c65...e66.cxd5Nxd57.0-0Nd78.Nc3Nxc39.bxc3Be410.Qb3Be711.Nd2Bxg212.Kxg2Nb613.e40-014.Ba3Bxa315.Qxa3Qd616.Qb3c517.Nf3Qc618.Rfe1Qa419.dxc5Qxb320.axb3Shilyakin,G (2006)
-Topchiy,V Taganrog 2013 1-0 (43)6.cxd56.Qb3Qb67.c5Qxb38.axb3Bxb19.Rxb1Nbd710.b4g611.Ne5a612.Nxd7Nxd713.Bd2Bg714.Bc30-015.Kd2f516.f3e517.e3Rae818.Rbe1Re719.f4exd420.exd4Rfe8Gorman,D
(2324)-Sturt,R (2294) Philadelphia 2011 1/2-1/26...cxd57.Qa4+N7.Qb3Qb68.Qxb6axb69.Nc3e610.0-0Nc611.Bf4Ne412.Nb5Kd713.Ne5+Nxe514.dxe5Bc515.Be3Ra516.Nd4Rha817.Rad1Rxa218.f3Bxd419.Bxd4Nc520.e4Bg621.exd5exd5Bronstein,D-Polugaevsky,L Riga 1958 1-0 (38)7.Nc3e68.Ne58.0-0Nc69.a3Be710.b4a611.Bb2b512.Rc1Rc813.e30-014.Nd2Qb615.Nb3a516.bxa5Nxa517.Nxa5Qxa518.Qb3b419.axb4Qxb420.Qxb4Bxb421.Na4Ra822.Nc5Ra2Nguyen,T-Pham Thi Ngoc,T Hanoi 2002 1/2-1/2
(32)8...Be79.0-00-010.h3Qb611.Na4Qb512.Nc3Qb613.b3Nc614.Be3Rac815.Na4Qb516.g4Bh717.Nxc6Rxc618.Nc5b619.a4Qb420.Nd3Qd621.Bf4Qd8Horvath,A (2299)-Csom,E (2134) Budapest 2002 1/2-1/2 (36)7...Nc68.Ne5White threatens to win material: Ne5xc6Qb6Black threatens to
win material: Qb6xd49.Nc3White threatens to win material: Nc3xd59.Nxc6Bd7=9...Qxd4=/+10.Nxc6Qxa411.Nxa4bxc612.Bf4e613.Rc1Bb4+14.Kf114.Bd2Bxd2+15.Kxd2Kd7+/-14...Rc815.a3Be716.f30-017.Kf217.Be3Nd718.Nc5Nb6+/-17...c518.Rhe1Rfe818...g519.Bd2
+/-19.e4Bg620.h420.Be3d421.Bf4+/-20...d4Black has a new
protected passed pawn: d420...dxe421.fxe4e522.Be3-+21.Rc4?21.Bf1!? = and White can hope to live21...Nd722.Rec1e522...Bh723.Bf1f524.exf5Bxf525.Re1+/-23.Bd223.Bh3!?f524.exf5+/-23...Nb624.Nxb6axb625.a425.Ra4f5+/-25...Ra825...f526.exf5Bxf527.Re1-+26.Ra126.Bh3Reb8-+26...f626...b5!? makes it
even easier for Black27.Rcc1bxa428.Rc4-+27.Rcc1Bf728.Bf1Reb829.Bd3Bb330.Bb5Ra731.Bc6Rc832.Bd5+?32.Bb5-+32...Bxd533.exd5Rd834.b334.Ke2Rxd535.Kd3Rd8-+34...Rxd534...f5and
Black can already relax35.h5-+35.Rab135.Ke2f536.Kd3Rd8-+35...Kf735...f5might be the shorter path36.h5-+36.Ke2Ke636...Rd8seems even better37.g4-+37.h537.Kd3Rd8-+37...f538.Rc438.Kd3does not save the dayRd8-+38...Rd839.Re139.Rcc1
doesn't get the cat off the treeBd6-+39...Kd5Black plans e440.Kd340.Ra1is not the saving moveBd6-+40...Bd641.g441.Ke2cannot
change destinye4-+41...fxg442.fxg4Rf843.Ke243.Rcc1cannot
change what is in store for Whitee4+!Decoy: e344.Kc2Rf2-+43...e444.Rf144.Kd1Rf345.a5Rxb346.Rc1bxa547.Rf1-+44...Rxf145.Kxf1Rf7+46.Ke2Rf3Black intends e346...d3+47.Kd1Rf1+48.Be1Bf449.Rc2Rxe1+50.Kxe1dxc251.g5c1Q+52.Kf2Qc2+53.Kf1e354.Kg1Qf2+55.Kh1Qf1#47.a547.Be3a fruitless try to alter the course of the gameRxe3+48.Kf2Rg349.Rc1e3+50.Ke2Ke451.Re1d3+52.Kd1Bf453.b4d254.Ke2dxe1Q+55.Kxe1Rg1+56.Ke2Bg357.a5Re1#47...bxa547...d3+48.Kd1Rf1+49.Be1Bf450.Rc2Rxe1+51.Kxe1dxc252.g5c1Q+53.Kf2Qb2+54.Ke1e355.b4Qd2+56.Kf1Qf2#48.Bxa548.Kd1is no salvationd349.Kc1Rf1+50.Kb2Be5+51.Rc3Rf252.Kc1Bxc353.Bxc3Rc2+54.Kb1Rxc355.Kb2Rc2+56.Ka3Kc657.g5d258.b4d1Q59.b5+Kxb560.g6Qd3#48...Rxb348...d3+49.Kd2Rf2+50.Kc1Rf1+51.Kb2Be5+52.Bc3d253.Bxe5d1Q54.Ka3Rf355.Bc3Rxc356.Rd4+Kxd457.Ka4Qxb3+58.Ka5Qb4+59.Ka6Ra3#49.Rc1Rb2+50.Kf1e351.Bd8d352.g552.Ba5hardly improves anythingKe453.Kg1d254.Ra1Rb455.g5e256.Bxb4d1Q+57.Kf2cxb458.Rxd1exd1Q59.g6Qc2+60.Ke1Kf361.Kf1Qb1#52...hxg552...Bh253.Bb6Rf2+54.Ke1d2+55.Kd1Rf1+56.Kc2dxc1Q+57.Kb3Qb1+58.Ka3Rf259.g6Qb4#53.Bxg5Ke454.h654.Re1does not solve anythingBf455.Bxf4Kxf456.h6d257.Ra1Ra258.Rb1Kf359.Kg1e260.Rb3+Kg461.h7d1Q+62.Kh2Qxb363.h8Qe1Q#54...gxh655.Bxh655.Bxe3is not much helpKxe356.Kg1Re257.Ra1Kf358.Rb1Kg359.Ra1c460.Rb1Bc5+61.Kf1Rh262.Ke1Be363.Ra1Rh1#55...Kf355...Bh256.Rc4+Kf357.Bxe3Kxe358.Rh4Rf2+59.Ke1Bg360.Re4+Kxe461.Kd1Rf1+62.Kd2Be1+63.Kc1Bc3#56.Bg756.Bxe3
doesn't get the bull off the iceKxe357.Kg1Re258.Ra1c459.Rb1d260.Ra1Re1+61.Kg2Rxa162.Kh3Rg163.Kh4d1Q64.Kh3Qh5#56...Rg256...Rg257.Bh6e2+58.Ke1Bg3+59.Kd2e1Q+60.Kxd3Qe4+61.Kc3Be5+62.Kb3Qb4#56...d257.Bxb2e2+58.Kg1dxc1Q+59.Bxc1e1Q#0–1
A25 English Opening vs King's Indian with ...Nc6 but without early d3 (1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.e3)
I have decided to go through my over the board games for a change. These old games seem to be more willing to provide something new to share, in view of opening variations that is, than my latest games. The game below was played on round two in a 2nd division team match between VammSK 2 and SalSK 3. I played on board 1 for SalSK 3 at the time. This match was played on 5 boards and like you might guess from the rating difference on board 1, I faced an opponent who was nearly 400 points stronger than me, we were clearly the weaker team, in view of ratings that is. We lost the match 4 - 0, our board 5 player was the only one who managed to get a draw. Draws are not counted to the final score in these team matches.
I was able to maintain a good control in the position and it was actually my opponent, who ended up in some trouble first. In the position below my opponent played 14...h5, which is not a good idea.
The idea behind the move was to push the pawn all the way to h4 and get the h-file open. I would not have taken on h4, of course, because then my opponent could have taken back with the queen and I would have been in serious trouble. At least I am assuming that pushing the pawn to h4 was the plan, I can't say for sure, but it does seem like the plan to me. I continued with the right plan at first, but then on move 17 I played my queen to b3, which allowed my opponent to get back into the game. The blunder I made in the position below, 19.hxg4, could have meant the start for my downfall if not for the reply 19...Qb6?? It gave me an opportunity to keep the position even, but I took a step in the wrong direction instead and my opponent started to gain some advantage again.
My 20th move might have been the beginning of the end for me, but my 27th move was the one that secured a loss for me. It was positive to see that already almost eight years ago I was able create some problems for a player who was rated over 2100. The sadder part is that my playing strength has not made any significant changes for the better since those times. There have been some signs of improvement though and I do look to the future with a positive attitude. I have added mate in one puzzle 513, mate in two puzzle 729, mate in three puzzle 654 and mate in four puzzle 521 today.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.c4e52.g3Nc63.Bg2g64.Nc3Bg75.d3d6English Opening: King's
English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry6.e3A25 English Opening vs
King's Indian with ...Nc6 but without early d36.e4English Opening:
King's English Variation, Botvinnik System6...Nh67.Nge20-08.0-0f58...Be69.h39.Rb1Qd710.b3Bh311.e4Bxg212.Kxg2f513.f3Ne714.b4a615.a4Nf716.b5axb517.axb5c518.Be3g519.exf5Nxf520.Qd2g421.fxg4Nxe3+22.Qxe3Qxg423.Qf3Qxf3+Gomez,J (2524)-Nguyen,A (2239) Ho Chi
Minh City 2015 1-0 (66)9...Rb810.Rb1a611.b3Qd712.Kh2b513.Bb2bxc414.bxc4f515.Qa4Nb416.Qxd7Bxd717.Rfd1e418.dxe4Nxa219.Ba1Nxc320.Nxc3Rxb121.Rxb1Bxc322.Bxc3fxe423.Bxe4Petursson,M (2565)
-Hjartarson,J (2570) Reykjavik 1995 1/2-1/2 (39)9.Rb1a5N9...Kh810.b410.b3g511.f4Nf712.Bb2Ne713.d4gxf414.exf4e415.d5c516.Qd2Nh617.Nd1Rg818.Ne3Qf819.b4b620.bxc5bxc521.Qa5Qd822.Bxg7+Kxg723.Qc3+Kf724.h3Rg7Dimitrov,V (2456)-Arnaudov,P (2226) Velingrad 2004
1-0 (60)10...g511.Nd5Ne712.b5Ng613.Qa4Bd714.f4a615.Qb4gxf416.exf4axb517.cxb5Rxa218.Nec3c519.bxc6Rxg2+20.Kxg2Bxc621.Kg1Ng422.h3Nf623.Qc4Nh524.Kh2Grimm-Preker,H (2220) Porz 1986 0-1 (35)10.a3Secures b4g511.f4gxf412.exf4Ng413.b4axb414.axb4h514...Nd4!? +/= deserves consideration15.Nd5+/-Be616.Bd216.fxe5dxe517.b5Ne7+/-16...Nb816...Ne7+/-17.Qb317.h3Nf618.Ne3+/-17...c6=18.h3cxd519.hxg419.cxd5Qb6+20.Kh1=19...Qb6+
?? forfeits the advantage19...dxc420.dxc4hxg421.fxe5dxe522.Bd5Bxd523.cxd5+/-20.Kh220.c5would keep White alivedxc521.bxc5Qxb322.Rxb3=20...dxc4=/+21.dxc4hxg422.Be322.fxe5dxe523.Be3Qc7
=/+22...Qc7+/-23.Rbc123.fxe5Qxc424.Qxc4Bxc4+/-23...Nd723...e4!?24.Nd4Bxd425.Bxd4b5-+24.Bd5Bxd525.cxd5Qd826.Rc226.fxe5Bxe527.Kg1Qe8+/-26...Qe827.Kg2?27.Kg1+/-27...exf4-+28.Nxf428.gxf4Qe4+29.Kg1-+28...Qe4+29.Kg1Rfc830.Rxc8+Rxc831.Bf231.Qd3is the last strawQxd332.Nxd3-+31...Ne532.Be132.Qe3there is nothing else anywayNf3+33.Kg2-+32...Rc132...Nf3+33.Rxf3Qxe1+34.Rf1Bd4+35.Kg2Qe4+36.Qf3gxf3+37.Kh1Rc738.Kh2Rh7+39.Nh3Rxh3+40.Kxh3Qg4+41.Kh2Qh5#33.Ng233.Bd2
a fruitless try to alter the course of the gameNf3+34.Qxf3Qxf335.Rxc1Bd4+36.Kh2Qf2+37.Kh1Qxd238.Rg1Qe339.Rg2Qc1+40.Kh2Kf741.Nh5Qh642.Kh1Qxh5+43.Rh2Qg544.Rf2Bxf245.Kg2Bd446.b5Qc147.b6Qg1#33...Nf3+34.Rxf3gxf334...gxf335.Qa2fxg236.Qxg2Rxe1+37.Kh2Re238.Qxe2Qxe2+39.Kg1Bd4+40.Kh1Qf241.g4Qg1#0–1
E70 King's Indian: Miscellaneous lines with 4.e4, including 5.Nge2 and 5.Bd3 O-O 6.Nge2 (1.d4 e5 2.d5 d6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nc3 g6 5.e4 Bg7 6.Nge2)
In the game below I tried something different against 1.d4 and even though things did not really work out well for me, it was not due to the opening phase of the game. This might mean that I am willing to do more testing of this opening in the future. There are some improvements that I would need to remember. For instance, on move 4 of this game, I should play Bf5 in order to prevent White from playing e4. In the game, the bishop on c8 became a problem piece to some degree, my opponent took all the good squares away from it. While the pawn storm that Kojjootti generated created him more space, it also took some time off from development and therefore I had better development, but also less space to work with. The game was played reasonably well by both players until I played 14...Qb6. Up to that point only small inaccuracies were seen. 14...Qb6 was the first move to tip the advantage clearly in favor of my friend. With two inaccurate moves in a row from Kojjootti, 15.Ng3 and 16.Nce2, would have allowed me to get a slightly favorable position with 16...b3, but I missed my chance and the position was roughly even once again. Kojjootti kept making mistakes and his 18th move gave me a chance to obtain a winning advantage. Because this was a 5 minute game, my moves were not that well thought out either and the move I chose was only good enough for clear advantage. I did get another chance for the winning advantage immediately as Kojjootti blundered with 19.g5.
I was clearly in the driver's seat after that until I had to blunder with 27...Nf8. Due to that move the game became even again for a few moves. Then on his 31st move, Kojjootti played 31.Nf5, after which he should have been completely lost. However, I suffered some sort of brain malfunction at this point and did not take the knight with my pawn. I honestly can't remember what was I thinking. I either did not see that my pawn can take the knight or I thought that I saw some dangerous line if I take the knight. Whatever the reason, I made a really horrible move as a reply to Nf5. I played 31...Qa6 and I was on the losing side of the board. I was not going to give up the fight though because it was a blitz game and things can change quite dramatically in time trouble. My fight was rewarded first with an even game when my opponent played 42.Kb1. One might think that it is easy to hold the draw here, but when players try to find ways to win the game, there might be problems. The first move to take the wrong direction after 42.Kb1 was 45.Bc8. It was replied with 45...Rb6, a move that I must have regretted almost immediately after moving the rook. The rook is very badly placed at b6 and I can't understand why I moved my rook there. Then my friend played 46.Be6, after which I remain on the better side of the board to the end of the game. The only thing that saved my opponent was my time running out.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
1.d4e52.d5Englund Gambit Complex: Declinedd62...Bc53.e4Qh4
Englund Gambit Complex: Declined, Diemer Counterattack3.c4Nf64.Nc3g65.e4Bg76.Nge2E70 King's Indian: Miscellaneous lines with 4.e4, including 5.
Nge2 and 5.Bd3 O-O 6.Nge20-0N6...a57.Ng3Nbd78.Be2Nc59.h4h610.Qc2Bd711.h5g512.Nd1Ng813.Ne3Ne714.Bg4Bxg415.Nxg4Qd716.f3f617.Be3Na618.Bd2b619.Ne30-020.Ngf5Nxf521.Nxf5Ader Hausman,
W-Gentil,L Mar del Plata 1952 1-0 (43)6...c67.Ng37.f3cxd58.cxd5Na69.Be3Bd710.Qd20-011.g4h512.h3Nh713.Ng3h414.Nge2Bf615.Nc1Nc516.b4Na417.Nxa4Bxa418.Nb3Bxb319.axb3Bg520.Bc4Qf621.0-0Bxe3+Alber,H (2340) -Kersten,U (2365) Doernigheim 1994 0-1 (46)7.h3cxd58.cxd5a69.Be3Nbd710.Ng30-011.Bd3Ne812.Rc1Bf613.Qd2Ng714.0-0Bh415.Nge2f516.f4exf417.Nxf4Ne518.Be2fxe419.Nxe4Bf520.Qb4Qe721.Ne6Nxe6Naranja,R-Panno,O Lugano 1968 0-1 (36)7...a67...cxd58.cxd5a69.a4h510.Be2a511.Nf1Na612.Bg5Bh613.Bb5+Kf814.Bxh6+Rxh615.Ne3Nc516.Qc2Ng417.Nc4f518.f3Nf619.0-0-0Kg720.b3Rh821.Kb2Rf822.Rdf1Bertok,M-Tatai,S Reggio Emilia 1967 1/2-1/2 (34)8.Be2h59.Bg5cxd510.exd5Nbd711.0-0Qc712.Rc1h413.Nge4Nxe414.Nxe4f515.Nc3h316.g4b617.gxf5gxf518.Kh1Nf619.f4e420.b4Kf821.Rg1Miles,A
(2560) -Johansen,D (2410) Edinburgh 1985 1-0 (39)7.h3Secures g4Na68.g4Black has a cramped positionNc59.f39.Ng3a5+/=9...c6Covers
b510.h410.Be3cxd511.cxd5Ne8=10...cxd5=11.cxd5Qa511...h512.g5Ne813.Be3=12.Qc212.Ng3b513.Bxb5Rb8+/=12...a612...h513.Ng3hxg414.h5gxf315.h6=13.h5White wins space13.a3Ncxe414.fxe4Nxg4+/=13...b5=14.Bd2Qb614...b415.Nd1Bxg416.fxg4=15.Ng315.b4!?Na416.h6+/-15...b4+/= Black threatens
to win material: b4xc316.Nce216.Nd1b317.Qc3a5+/=16...a516...b317.Qc4Bxg418.fxg4=/+17.hxg617.Nc1!? = should be considered17...fxg6+/-18.Bh6?? cause more grief18.Be3Nfd719.Ng1b320.axb3Qxb3+/-18...Rf718...Bxh6and Black can celebrate victory19.Rxh6b320.axb3Bxg421.fxg4Nxg4-+19.g5??19.Be3=/+ was
possible19...Nfd719...Bxh6makes it even easier for Black20.Rxh6Nfd721.Ng1Nd3+22.Qxd3Qxg123.Ne2Qxg524.Qd2Qxd2+25.Kxd2Rxf326.Rh3-+20.Bg220.Ng1a last effort to resist the inevitableBxh621.gxh6-+20...Ba621.Nc1Bf821...Bxh6seems even better22.gxh6Raf823.Qf2-+22.Bxf822.Qf2is not much helpBxh623.Rxh6Raf8-+22...Raxf822...Rfxf8?!23.Qf2-+22...Nxf8?!23.Qf2-+22...Kxf8?!23.Nf1-+23.Qd223.Qf2cannot change what is in store
for WhiteQd824.Qe3Rf4-+23...Rf423...Rxf3and Black can already
relax24.Bxf3Rxf3-+24.Nge224.Qe3the only chance to get some
counterplayQd825.Nge2Qxg526.Rg1-+24...Bxe224...Nxe4and Black
has it in the bag25.fxe4Qf2+26.Kd1Qxg227.Nxf4Qf3+28.Nce2Qxh1+29.Qe1Qxe430.Ne6Qxd5+31.N2d4Rf132.Qxf1Bxf133.Ke1Ba634.Kf2exd435.Nf4Qf536.Kg3Qxg5+37.Kh3Qxf438.Rg1Ne539.Rg3Bf1+40.Kh2Qf2+41.Kh1Qxg342.a3Qg2#25.Nxe225.Qxe2doesn't get the bull off the iceNxe4!doomsday26.Rf1-+25...R4f725...Nxe4finishes off the
opponent26.fxe4Qf2+27.Kd1Qxg2-+26.0-0-0?? leads to further
unpleasantness26.Qe3+/-26...Rc826...Qb5!? makes it even easier
for Black27.Ng3Nb628.Qe2Qxe229.Nxe2-+27.Kb1Nf8?? Black is
ruining his position27...b3the advantage is on the side of Black28.a3Nxe429.fxe4Rc2-+28.Qe3=Qb529.Bh3Rcc730.Ng3a431.Nf5?31.Bf1Qb832.Rc1=31...Qa6?? instead of simply winning the game31...gxf5Black clearly has the better chances32.exf5Qc4-+32.Nh6+
+-Kg733.Nxf7Rxf734.Bg4Kg835.Qf2?? White lets it slip away35.Rc1+- keeps an even firmer grip35...Nd3??35...Nxe4and Black is still
in the game36.Qe3Nc5+/=36.Qh236.Qe2might be the shorter pathNc537.Qxa6Nxa638.Be6Nxe639.dxe6+-36...Qc4?? Black crumbles in
face of a dire situation36...Nc5+-37.Qc237.Qe2makes sure
everything is clearNxb238.Qxb2+-37...Qxc2++/-38.Kxc2Nf239.Rdg1Nxh140.Rxh1Nd7?? another bit of territory lost40...Rc7+41.Kd2Kg7+/-41.b3White threatens to win material: b3xa441.Be6Nc542.Bxf7+Kg743.Be6b3+44.axb3Nxb345.Kc3+-41...a3?? lets it slip
away41...Nc542.bxa4Ra743.Kb2=42.Kb1Loses material42.Be6
and White winsNf843.Bxf7+Kxf744.Kd3+-42...Nc5=43.Rc1Kg744.Rc4White threatens to win material: Rc4xb4Rb745.Bc845.f4h545...exf446.e5Rf747.exd6+/-46.fxe5hxg446...dxe547.Bh347.Rxc5hxg448.Rc1Rf7=/+47...Rb548.d6+-47.exd6Nd7=45...Rb645...Rb846.Bg4h547.gxh6+Kxh648.Kc2+/-46.Be646.f4and White
can hope to surviveexf447.e5=46...h6+/-47.Kc2hxg548.Kd2?48.Rxc5dxc549.Kd3g450.Bxg4Rb8+/-48...Kf648...Rb849.Bg4-+49.Ke2?49.Bg4+/-49...Nxe649...Rb7makes it even easier for
Black50.Ke3Rh751.Rc2-+50.Kf2Kojjootti won on time50.Kf2Nc551.Ke2-+1–0
The game I am sharing today was played on the third round of the 2014 October Long Haul Split I tournament at Red Hot Pawn. The tournament started on October 24th, 2014. On August 10th, 2016 the tournament finished and it was decided that my opponent, caissad4, won the tournament. This tournament could have ended on the second round if we had not tied in points. If me and caissad4 would have kept getting one win each, we would have continued to play this tournament until one of us would have had at least one win and a draw. I am, in a way, glad that it stopped the way it did, I would have liked to be the winner, of course, but unfortunately I was not able to do that this time. Caissad4 certainly deserved to win as I was compeletely destroyed in this game. I should have probably played the opening I played on the second round as it was the game where I was victorious, but I wanted to change things for this round. Obviously that was a bad idea.
It was rather sad that already on my 7th move I played a move so horrible that it sealed my destiny. I can't believe I played 7...c5 without properly judging the consequences of the move. If the game was not lost after my 7th move, it certainly was after I moved my queen to c7 on move 9. I should have just moved the knight, but I thought that I will prevent losing a whole rook this way. In the game continuation I was only able to get a pawn for the knight, which is clearly not enough. I did try to fight back for awhile, but on my 20th move I decided that resistance was futile and resigned. I should, of course, be able to offer a better play in a correspondence game, but lately I have not been as interested in using as much time to think my moves as I used in the past. Maybe I need some time off from correspondence chess and maybe come back later with more enthusiasm. These days I am much more interested in playing games in one sitting. I have added mate in one puzzles 511 & 512, mate in two puzzle 728, mate in three puzzle 650 and mate in four puzzle 519 today. Until Monday, my fellow chess and chess960 enthusiasts and other people who do not fit in that category!
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Position not in LiveBook
Please, wait...
1.d4Nf62.c4g63.Nc3Bg74.e4d65.f30-06.Be3b6King's Indian
Defense: Saemisch Variation, Double Fianchetto6...c67.Bd3a6King's
Indian Defense: Saemisch Variation, Byrne Defense6...e57.d5c67...Nh58.Qd2Qh4+9.g3Nxg310.Qf2Nxf111.Qxh4Nxe312.Ke2King's Indian
Defense: Saemisch Variation, Bronstein Defense8.Nge2cxd5King's Indian
Defense: Saemisch Variation, Closed Variation, Main Line7.Bd3c5E82
King's Indian: Sämisch: 6...b68.e5dxe58...Ne89.Be4Nc710.dxc5bxc511.f4Bf512.Bxa8Nxa813.Nf3Nb614.Qe2Nc615.Rd1Qb816.0-0dxe517.Bxc5exf418.Nd5Re819.Nd4Nxd420.Bxd4e521.Bxb6axb622.Qf2g523.g3Kraidman,Y (2440)-Nemet,I (2460) Skara 1980 1-0 (41)8...Nc69.exf6Bxf610.d5Ne511.Be2a612.f4Nd713.Nf3Bg714.0-0Nf615.Kh1Bd716.a4Rb817.Qd2Qc718.Rae1Rfe819.Bd3b520.cxb5axb521.Bxb5Bxb522.Nxb5Qb723.Rd1Miedema,D (2390)-Soubirou,O (2060) Lille 2014 1/2-1/2 (44)9.dxe5Qc7? N9...Ne810.Be4Nc711.Qxd8Rxd812.Nb512.Bxa8Nxa813.f4Bb714.Nf3Nc715.Ke2Bxf3+16.Kxf3Kf817.Rhd1Ke818.Rxd8+Kxd819.Rd1+Ke820.a4Nc621.Nb5Nxb522.axb5Na523.Ra1f624.e6Kd825.Bxc5Nxc426.Rd1+Ke8Littke,H-Grellmann,T (1892) Mecklenburg VP 2004 1-0 (32)12...Nba613.Nxc7Nxc714.Bxa8Nxa815.f4f616.Nf3Bb717.Ke2fxe518.Nxe5Bxg219.Rhd1Rxd120.Rxd1Bxe521.fxe5Bc622.e6Kg723.Bg5h624.Bxe7
Knaak,R-Redlich,B Warsaw 1970 1-09...Nfd710.Be4Nxe511.Bxa8Nd3+12.Kf1Nxb2+/-10.exf6+-Bxf611.Be411.Nd5seems even betterQe512.Ne2Bb7+-11...Bb712.Qc2Nc613.Nd5Qe514.0-0-0Bg715.Bf4Qh5
?? an oversight. But Black was lost anyway.15...Qe616.Ne2Qc8+-16.g4Qh417.Qd2f617...h6doesn't get the cat off the tree18.Bg3Qg519.Qxg5hxg520.Nxe7+Nxe721.Bxb7+-18.Bg318.Nxe7+!? keeps an even
firmer gripNxe719.Bxb7Rae8+-18...Qh619.Qxh619.f4makes it
even easier for WhiteKh820.h4Nd421.Nxf6Bxe422.Nxe4b5+-19...Bxh6+20.Kb120.Kb1Rad821.Ne2+-1–0
