1944 US Amateur

     In 1944, WW2 was still raging and here is a curious fact I bet you didn't know. Mary Babnik Brown became the first woman to have her hair used in crosshairs for military aircraft bombsights. The hair had to fit strict criteria such as being blonde, over 22 inches long and never been treated with chemicals or hot irons.

    Sports were still being played in the US. College football bowl games were still being played. Texas A and M won the Orange Bowl, the University of Southern California won the Rose Bowl and Georgia Tech won the Sugar Bowl. The Green Bay Packers won the National Football League championship. In baseball the St. Louis Cardinals were the World Series champs.

    Chess was still being played, too. On May 7, 1944, Arnold Denker won the US Championship, held in New York with a +13 -0 =3 tally. Reshevsky wasn't playing. Gisela K. Gresser won the US women's championship with a +8 -0 =0 score. 

     The US Open was held in Boston and Reshevsky showed up on a whim. In My Best Games of Chess (ghosted by Fred Reinfeld) Reshevsky stated that happened to be in Boston on a vacation and decided to play. 

     Results of the 18-player event are scarce, but Reshevsky scored +15 -1 =1 to finish first by three points ahead of Anthony Santasiere and E.S. Jackson who finished a clear third. Reshevsky lost to Walter Suesman (who tied for 6th) and drew with Santasiere. 

     Having looked at the 1943 US Amateur on the January 4th post, I decided to take a look at the 1944 event. E. S. Jackson. Jr., of Short Hills, New Jersey regained his title by scoring 11-2 in this, the third Amateur tournament. The previous year's winner, Dr. A.A. Mengarini was a neuropsychiatrist serving in the US Army Medical Corps in Germany and was unavailable. 

     The tournament preliminaries for the 1944 Amateur began on Columbus Day (October 12) with 21 entrants in three sections. They played two games a day and by the 15th twelve had qualified to join Jackson and West Virginia state champion Dr. Siegfried Werthammer who had also been seeded into the finals which were held at the Marshall Chess Club and the USCF headquarters. They played two rounds a day between October 21st and November 2nd. 

     After 4 rounds, Gustaf Gustafson led with four points while Jackson was having a hard time; he had an adjourned game against Stephens and he had lost to Batten. 

     Gustaf Gustafson (1889-1976) came from Sweden to New York before World War I and established himself in Brooklyn as a cabinet maker. He was champion of the Swedish Chess Club in 1922 and champion of the Scandinavian Chess Club several times. In Brooklyn he was the 1935 champion of the Brooklyn Chess League, West Side champion (1937), Hawthorne Chess Club co-champion (1942), USCF Amateur Championship vice champion (1944), and champion of the Sunset Park Chess Club (1951). 

     After the 7th round Irving Stein, Secretary of the Bronx-Empire City Chess Club, had the lead with 6.5-0.5 when Jackson defeated Gustafson leaving them both tied at 6.0-1.0. 

     Then Jackson forged ahead after Stein lost to both McCready and Erdos. In the crucial final round, Stein, playing white, faced Jackson in a game that he (Stein) needed to win.

     Stein's irregular opening (1.e3 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.exd4) allowed Jackson easy equality, but things soon got dramatic when Stein snatched a Pawn in a position where Jackson was offering a draw by perpetual check. Stein couldn't accept the perpetual and had to play for a win so he returned the material, but ended up losing to Jackson's superior endgame play. 

     Jackson's opponent in the following game was C. Fred Tears, Jr. (May 13, 1919 - May 27, 1998, 79 years old). In 1947, he won the Correspondence Chess League of America's Grand National Championship and in 1950, he won the Texas State Championship. 

     In his October 1998 Chess Life column "The Check is in the Mail" Alex Dunne wrote that Tears' son, C.F. "Rick" Tears III, said that in the 1950s his father was visited several times by "men in dark suits" because the notation in his correspondence games with the Russians resembled what the FBI thought was code. 

     These visits were no doubt prompted by the fact that in March 1944, chess was banned by trans-Atlantic mail in order to prevent enemy agents from using chess notation to get coded messages across the Atlantic. Censors searched letters for discussions of chess because enemies would often hide codes in chess symbols and moves. Read more...

     The FBI visits were also the result of the Red Scare which was the promotion of a widespread fear of the rise of communism. 

     Most people familiar with the Red Scare are not aware that there was actually two of them in the US. The first occurred immediately after World War I and was the result of a perceived threat from the American labor movement, anarchist revolution and political radicalism. 

     The second happened immediately after World War II and everyone was preoccupied with the perception that the US was being infiltrated by Commies from Russia. The best known scare was this latter one that was lead by a howling off his rocker Senator from Wisconsin named Joe McCarthy.  Read more...

     When Tears died he was competing in the World Correspondence Championship. He was scheduled to be awarded the postal IM at the ICCF Congress in September of 1998. He died of cancer.

E.S. Jackson Jr. - C. Fred Tears Jr.

Result: 1-0

Site: US Amateur, New York

Date: 1944

Ruy Lopez

[...] 1.e4 e5 2.♘f3 ♘c6 3.♗b5 a6 4.♗a4 ♗b4 This weird move is what was called the Alapin Defense Deferred and Modern Chess Openings of the day stated there was no known refutation. However, no known games with the move had been published! 5.O-O ♘ge7 6.c3 ♗a5 7.d4 exd4 8.cxd4 d5 This is the idea behind this variation: black momentarily surrenders the center only to re-invade it. 9.♘c3

9.exd5 was recommended by MCO. 9...♕xd5 10.♗b3 ♕h5 claiming that the position is now equal, but that does not seem to be the case as after 11.d5 ♘e5 Even though it looks dubious 11...Na7 is also plausible.

11...♘a7 12.♗d2 ♗xd2 13.♘bxd2 O-O 14.♖e1 ♘g6 followed by ...Nb5-d6. White is better in this line also.

12.♘xe5 ♕xe5 13.♘c3 O-O Prokes, L-Alapin, S/Prague 1908 white is better.

9.e5 O-O 10.h3 ♗f5 11.♘c3 b5 12.♗b3 ♗b6 13.♗g5 is eaual. Szalanczy,E (2237)-Babits,A (2120)/Heviz HUN 2012

9...b5 This poor move only forces white's B to move to a more active square. Simply 9...dxe4 was better after which in spite of black's odd defense the position is about equal. 10.♗b3 ♗xc3

10...dxe4 would also not work out to black's advantage. 11.♘xe4 ♗f5 12.♘g3 ♗g6 13.d5

11.bxc3 White already has a significant advantage, but black could have kept the damage to a minimum with 11...O-O 11...dxe4 After this black is pretty much lost!

11...O-O 12.exd5 ♘xd5 13.♖e1 ♗f5 is reasonable and white can only claim a slight advantage.

12.♘g5 ♘d5

12...O-O isn't much help as after... 13.♕h5 ♗f5 (13...h6 14.♘xf7 white is winning.) 14.♗xf7+ ♖xf7 15.♕xf7+ ♔h8 16.f3 e3 17.g4 ♗d3 18.♗xe3 ♗xf1 19.♕h5 ♕g8 20.♘f7+ and white is winning.

12...O-O the last chance for counterplay 13.♕h5 ♗f5 14.♗xf7+ ♖xf7 15.♕xf7+ ♔h8 16.♕xf5 ♘xf5 17.♘f7+ ♔g8 18.♘xd8 ♖xd8+⁠−

13.♘xf7 Accepted or declined this sacrifice wins. 13...♔xf7 14.♕h5+ ♔e6 15.♖e1 ♘ce7 16.f3

16.♖xe4+ This, too, is very good. 16...♔d6 17.♗g5 ♗f5 18.♗xd5 ♘xd5 19.♗xd8 wins.

16.♗g5 is also a winner. 16...♕d6 17.♖xe4+ ♔d7 18.♗xe7 ♘xe7 19.♖ae1

16...♔d6 (16...e3 also loses 17.♖xe3+ ♔d6 18.♗a3+) 17.fxe4 ♘b6 18.♗a3+ ♔c6 19.♕c5+ ♔d7 Black loses quickly after this. Better was hiding on a2.

19...♔b7 20.♕xe7 ♕xe7 21.♗xe7 ♖e8 and white's position is much better,. While he may be only a P ahead his position is far better than black's.

20.d5 This ties black's N down on e7 and threatens to open the d-file placing the Q and K in mortal danger.

20.♖f1 This simple move sets up the knockout. 20...♗b7 21.♕e5 Threatening Be6+ with mate to follow. 21...♔c8 22.♗xe7 and wins.

20...♔e8 21.♕d4 ♘c4 22.♗xc4 bxc4 23.♕xg7 ♘g6 (23...♖g8 fails. 24.♕xh7 Threatening Bxe7 and Qxg8+) 24.♖f1 ♕d7 Allows mate in 2, but he was lost anyway.

24...♕g5 and black is still lost. .. 25.♖f6 ♕e3+ 26.♔h1 ♕xc3 27.♖e6+ ♗xe6 28.♕xc3 ♗d7 29.♕xc4 White's material advantage assures an easy win.

25.♕xh8+ Black resigned.

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The First Chess Review Magazine

     During the Great Depression, Al Horowitz (1907-1973) was trader on Wall Street, but in 1932 it had gotten to the point that he couldn't make a living at it. That's when he abandoned trading and began hustling chess with the belief that he could always win a quarter and that was enough to buy a meal. 

     Then right in the heart of the Depression he got the idea of publishing a chess magazine, borrowed money from his friend Fritz Brieger and Chess Review was born. Brieger was a devotee of the game and an apartment house owner who also served as a patron and tournament director. 

     In the initial issue of January 1933, Chess Review proclaimed that for the past three years new clubs had been springing up like mushrooms, chess books were being bought, they were being added to library shelves and newspapers were giving more space to the game and correspondence leagues were thriving. 

     Also, during the last three years names like Salo Flohr, Sultan Khan, Gosta Stoltz and Erich Eliskases, all well under thirty years old, were beginning to make names for themselves. 

     In the United States Isaac Kashdan, Arthur Dake, Al Horowitz and Herman Steiner were becoming well known. Plus there was Samuel Reshevsky, the Polish boy wonder and 18-year old Reuben Fine who making an impression. 

     Thus for the new era Horowitz was offering a new magazine with the aim of providing both entertainment and instruction. The magazine would offer games of the masters authoritatively annotated, innovations in the openings would be discussed and interesting endings would be features. Additionally, the problem lover would find a rich selection. The articles aimed to be both serious and witty. It would also present the latest news of chess events and personalities everywhere. Horowitz also tried an innovation for a chess magazine in that there was a section devoted to bridge because contract bridge had reached a point where it almost equaled the fascination, if not the depth, of chess. 

     The magazine was published monthly from its offices in Woodside, New York which was located in Brooklyn. A yearly subscription in the US and Canada was $2.50. That was actually a pretty hefty price... $50.00 in today's money. Single issues were $0.25, or about $5.00 today. 

     The Editor in Chief was Isaac Kashdan, I.A. Horowitz was Associate Editor, Otto Wirzburg was Problem Editor, Fritz Brieger was the Business Manager and George Reith the Bridge Editor. Contributing Editors were Fred Reinfeld, Arthur Dake, Reuben Fine, Donald MacMurray, Barnie Winkleman and Lester Brand. 

     The games Depatment featured Alekhine-Winter and Flohr-Thomas (London 1932), Flohr-Naegeli, Alekhine-Sultan Kahn and Alekhine-Flohr from Berne 1932, Bogoljubow-Vidmar (Sliac 1932), Bogoljubow-Spielman (Semmering 1932) and Euwe-Flohr and Spielman-Euwe from Amsterdam 1932. 

     Reinfeld presented analysis on a popular variation of the Caro-Kann and there were some positions given in Mistakes of the Masters. A humorous article on annoying your opponent by Donald MacMurray was included. There was also an article of instruction on a R+P vs. R ending and finally, a brief review of Kashdan's recent activities followed by several problems in the Problems Department. An article containing analysis of a position from Dake vs. Alekhine, Pasadena, 1932 was also presented. 

     The magazine stated that each month they desired to present one or two games more fully annotated than the rest with the view to giving the underlying motives of the moves. The idea was to point out how favorable middlegames depend on the opening and how the endgame structure must be kept in mind throughout the game. 

     To that end in the first issue Isaac Kashdan presented two of his own games. Let's take a look at the game between Kashdan and Euwe that was played at Hastings, 1931/32. That Hastings event marked the beginning of Flohr's streak of three Hastings victories in a row. 

     After reading Kashdan's brief notes to the two games it makes me wish he had published a book of his best games! As far as I know there is only one book of Kashdan's games and that's Isaac Kashdan, American Chess Grandmaster by Peter P. Lahde. The book contains 757 of his games. According to one reviewer "a fair number" are annotated by Kashdan and "one can learn much from his pragmatic and methodical approach to the game." 

     Flohr and Kashdan dominated the tournament. By round 2 they already were a full point clear of the field. They drew in round 3, then it was a race to the finish. Kashdan took the lead briefly in round 4, but Flohr won his last five games, but in the last round Kashdan could only manage a draw against Stoltz and so finish a half point behind Flohr.

Isaac Kashdan - Max Euwe

Result: 1-0

Site: Hastings

Date: 1932.01.02

Alekhine's Defense

[...] 1.e4 ♘f6 Alekhine's Defense was in vogue in the 1920s but by the time this game was played it was infrequently seen. 2.e5 ♘d5 3.c4 ♘b6 4.d4 d6 This is about the only good move here. At Pasadena in in 1932 Fine played 4...Nc6 against Borochow and lost a piece.

4...♘c6 5.d5 ♘xe5 6.c5 ♘bc4 7.f4 (7.♕d4 was actually better.) 7...e6 8.♕d4 ♕h4+ 9.g3 ♕h6 10.♘c3 exd5 11.fxe5 1-0 Harry Borochow-Reuben Fine/Pasadena 1932

5.exd6 This leads to a quieter game than the 4Ps Attack (5.f4), but according to Kashdan it does give white a tiny positional edge because of his greater freedom and control of the center. 5...exd6 6.♘f3 Kashdan believed 6.Nc3 was a shade better. Indeed, it is more popular and yields slightly better results. Kashdan pointed out that when there is a choice of developing moves the proper order to be followed depends on two considerations. First) move the piece which has only one good square. That is the reason for the well known maxim Ns before Bs because the Ns are generally best placed at c3/b6 and f3/f6 whereas the best post for the B will depend on the position. Second make the move which gives your opponent least choice. In this game black can immediately pin the N. This could have been delayed by Nc3 and even Be3. 6...♗g4 7.h3 ♗h5 8.♗e2 ♘c6 This is probably better than the more popular alternative of 8...Be7.

8...♗e7 9.O-O O-O 10.♘c3 ♖e8 11.b3 ♘8d7 12.♗f4 ♗f8 13.♖e1 ♘f6 Vorobiov, E (2590)-Dvalishvili,P (2428)/Moscow 2014. White is slightly better.

9.d5 This move isn't in the books. As Kashdan explained, it deliberately loses time to force black to play ...Bxf3. He added that experience has shown that the possession of the two B's is an advantage and this was typical of Kashdan who was known for his exaggerated love of the two Bs. However, he did add that losing moves in the opening is always dangerous and this game will show the type of difficulties that have to be met.

9.♘bd2 ♗e7 10.O-O O-O 11.d5 ♗xf3 12.♘xf3 ♘e5 13.♘xe5 dxe5 14.♗e3 is equal. Baeta,A-Matozis,P/Brasilia 2005

9...♗xf3 (9...♘e5 at once loses a P. 10.♘xe5 ♗xe2 11.♕xe2 dxe5 12.♕xe5+) 10.♗xf3 ♘e5 11.♗e2

11.b3 would be a mistake according to Kashdan because after 11...♕f6 the threat is ...Nxf3 and ...Qxa1. This note reveals Kahdan's disire to keep the two Bs. 12.♘c3 ♘xf3+ 13.♕xf3 ♕xf3 14.gxf3 when both Stockfish and Komodo evaluate the position as dead equal. Actually, to a human though white's position is not appealing.

11...♕h4 White's c-Pawn is now o attacked three times, and only defended once. (11...♘exc4 12.♗xc4 ♘xc4 13.♕a4+ wins material.) 12.O-O When he played 9.d5 Kashdan had to see that black still could not take the c-Pawn. 12...g5 After his last move Euwe is pretty much committed to this rash attempt at a K-side even though his pieces are not coordinated and white has ample defensive resources. Even so, white still faces a dangerous attack which comes very near to succeeding. One consideration which prompted Euwe to play this is that otherwise white plays f4 driving back black's only well placed piece. (12...♘exc4 is still a blunder. 13.g3 ♕f6 14.♗xc4 ♘xc4 15.♕a4+) 13.♕c2 ♖g8 14.♘d2 g4 15.hxg4 ♘xg4 16.♕e4+ According to Kashdan this move was a mistake. The idea was that after ...Be7 white maintains the pin and thus delays black's playing ...O-O, but, things didn't wotk out that way. He recommended 16.Nc3. Actually Kashdan was being a bit harsh on himself because even after 16.Qe4+ he has the advantage.

16.♘f3 was actually a shade better that either 16.Qe4+ or Kashdan's recommendation of 16.Nc3. After 16...♕h5 17.♖e1 O-O-O and white is slightly better.

16...♗e7 17.♘f3 ♕h5 18.♗f4 f5 19.♕c2 White had trusted that he could play Qe6 attacking the R but overlooked that he would lose his Q. He referred to 19.Qc2 as a abject retreat, but again that's too harsh a judgment as white still has the better position. (19.♕e6 ♖g6 and the Q is trapped.) 19...O-O-O Kashdan stated that now that black has been allowed to place his B on e7 and his P on f5 without any penalty the game is in black's favor. Once again, the engines don't agree' even the conservative Komodo give white the edge at slightly less than P. 20.♖fe1 This threatens to attack black's B.

20.♘d4 This promising looking move can be met by 20...♖df8 21.♘e6 ♖f6 22.♗xg4 ♖xg4 23.g3 with unclear complications.

20...♘d7 An interesting position. Komodo evaluates the position as 0.00 but Kashdan gave it a ! explaining that it's the last piece to enter the fray. 21.♘h2

21.♘d4 ♗h4 22.g3 ♗xg3 23.♗xg3 f4 24.♕f5 ♕xf5 25.♘xf5 fxg3 26.♘e7+ ♔b8 27.f4 ♖g7 28.♘f5 with an unclear position.

21...♕f7 22.♗d3 ♘xh2 So far Euwe has played quite well, but according to Kashdan here he goes astray and this proves the turning-point of the game. He had to play ...Rdf8 not so much to protect the , as to prevent the entry of the white B at f5. White is well satisfied with the exchange of Ns, which relieves the pressure considerably. Here again the engines find no fault with Euwe's actual move. 23.♗xh2 f4 24.♗f5 ♖g5 A wee bit of a slip that hands white a slight advantage.

24...f3 with a sharp position that keeps the chances balanced. 25.♗g3 ♖g7 26.♗e6 ♕h5 27.♖e3 ♖f8 and, again, both sides have chances in this sharp position.

25.♗h3 f3 26.♕e4 ♕g7 Of this move Kashdan wrote...This is a miscalculation, which loses more quickly. He is right, but instead of "more quickly" he should have written "at once."

26...♖g7 and white can hardly be considered to be winning. 27.♖e3 fxg2 28.♖ae1 ♖f8 29.♗xd7+ ♔xd7 and the position is equal.

27.♕xe7 ♖xg2+ 28.♔h1 ♖g8 29.♕e8+ ♖xe8 30.♖xe8#

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1943 US Amateur

     Welcome to the first post of 2021! I thought it would be nice to go back fifty years to 1971. In doing so I discovered that on January 15, C. C. MacApp passed away. MacApp (aka Carroll J. Cle) was the pseudonym of Carroll Mather Capps (born November 27, 1917), a science fiction author and long-time benefactor of San Francisco chess. He was a former president of the San Francisco Bay Area Chess League and won the Northern California and San Francisco championship several times. 

     After that I somehow got sidetracked when I ran across a few games from the 1943 US Amateur Championship that was won by a 24-year old medical doctor named Ariel A. A. Mengarini when he scored 11 straight wins in the finals! Sven Almgren and former champion Edward S. Jackson. Jr., both of New York, tied for 2nd and 3rd places with Almgren being declared the runner-up because he won his individual game against Jackson. 

     Almgren (May 14, 1900 - January 31, 1973) was born in Eskilstuna, Sweden. A strong amateur who participated in the US Championships of 1944 and 1948, he eventually settled in California.

     Edward S. Jackson Jr. (June 15, 1897 - September 6, 1987) was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He won the first US Amateur Championship in 1942 and again in 1944.  Mengarini didn't play in the 1944 event because he was serving in the military. Jackson remained an active tournament player until his death. 

     Oddly, Almgren almost didn't qualify from the preliminaries. He tied for 3rd place with August Otten just made it into the finals by virtue of having defeated Otten in their individual game. Mengarini and Jackson were seeded into the finals while the other qualified from a field who competed in four preliminary sections.

     Looking over the list of 44 entrants, most of whom were from New York City, there were a couple of recognizable names who didn't qualify: Arthur Bisguier, Gisela K. Gresser, Julius Partos, L. Walter Stephens and Richard Wayne. 

     The last named was the many time TD for the Ventnor City tournaments. Stephens, the long time secretary of the Manhattan Chess Club, organized and financed many national tournaments. He is best remembered as the TD who mistakenly forfeited Arnold Denker after Samuel Reshevsky's flag had fallen during their game in the 1942 US Championship. 

     Stephens' blunder, which he stubbornly refused to correct, cost Isaac Kashdan the US Championship. Had Stephens corrected his error Kashdan would have won with a score of 12.5-2.5 and Reshevsky and Denker would have tied for second with 11.5-3.5. As it was, Kashdan and Reshevsky tied for first and Denker finished tied for third with Albert Pinkus. Reshevsky went on to defeat Kashdan in the playoff match +6 -2 =3. 

     Partos (1915-1968) is not so well known, but he won the NY City High School championship in 1933. For many years he was the champion of Queens and frequently played in tournaments in the NYC area.  Known as a cheery individual with a knack for blitz chess, at the age of five Partos was playing chess against lady champion Mary Bain who lived in the same apartment. He was employed by the City of New York as Administrative Assistant and worked in the Comptroller's Office. Later, he was transferred to the Department of Social Services where he was administrator of a surplus food depot. In later years, due to the pressure of work and because he took to playing duplicate tournament Contract Bridge, he became inactive in chess. 

     There was plenty of excitement in the Amateur as former champion Jackson and newcomer Mengarini racked up win after win all the while being closely followed by Almgren.

     Jackson and Mengarini met in the tenth round. Jackson had an adjourned game with Almgren who was expected to win. Thus, Jackson was forced to go for broke and play for a win against Mengarini. Jackson had white and opened with the Ruy Lopez and got a good game with the Exchange Variation, but on his 15th move tried too hard to win and sacrificed a piece for a mating threat that Mengarini easily refuted. Thereafter, Jackson struggled valiantly, but in the end he had to resign. 

     Mengarini mowed down his three remaining opponents and clinched the title when Almgren defeated Jackson in their adjourned game which was played off before the last round. 

 

Sven Almgren - Dr. A.A. Mengarini

Result: 0-1

Site: US Amateur, New York City

Date: 1943

Queen's Gambit

[...] 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.♘c3 ♘f6 4.e3 e6 5.♗d3 dxc4 6.♗xc4 b5 7.♗d3 a6 8.♘f3 c5 9.O-O ♘c6 Black gets better results with either 9...Bb7 or 9...Nbd7. 10.b3 While this is certainly not bad 10.a4 was more to the point

10.♘e4 is innocuous. 10...cxd4 11.exd4 ♘b4 12.♘xf6+ gxf6 13.♗e4 0-1 Muselimyan,M (2035)-Udovichenko,N (2202)/Maykop RUS 2008

10.a4 b4 11.♘e4 and white stands quite well. Note that the d-Pawn is immune from capture. 11...cxd4 12.exd4 ♘xd4 13.♘xd4 ♕xd4 14.♗b5+

10...♗b7 11.♗b2 cxd4 12.exd4 ♘b4 Often in isolated d-Pawn positions white has a R on c1 and so he can retreat Bb1 then set up a B+Q battery aimed at h7. Here, of course, that isn't such a good idea as the B would shut in the R, so the B should retreat to e2. 13.♘e5 ♗e7 Giving white another opportunity to retreat the B to e2. 14.♖e1 ... which he ignores. 14...♘xd3 15.♕xd3 O-O 16.♖e3 Instead of a routine move like 16.Rac1 white plays this interesting R lift...can black survive the coming attack? 16...♘d5 17.♖h3 Black must decide how to defend against the threat to h7. 17...f5, 17...h6 and 17... g6 all come to mind 17...f5 The disadvantage to this is that it leaves his e-Pawn weak.

17...h6 is technically the best and with careful play black should end up slightly better. 18.♕g3 ♗g5 19.♘xd5 ♕xd5 Black has a the better position.

18.♘e2 ♖c8 19.♖e1 ♘b4 This allows his R to reach the second rank which is very appealing. However, white's pieces are going to flock around black's K and the absence of his N on the K-side might make itself felt. A reasonable move is 19...Bd6. 20.♕g3 ♖c2 After this good looking move black loses his advantage and is subjected to a dangerous looking attack. Better was simply 20...Nd5 maintaining a slight advantage. 21.♘f4 ♗d5 22.♗c1

22.♗a3 could have been trappy. 22...♖xa2 Black could keep things equal by playing 22...a5. 23.♗xb4 ♗xb4 24.♕g6 hxg6 25.♘fxg6 and mate follows.

22...♘xa2 23.♖xh7

23.♕g6 fails to 23...hxg6 24.♘fxg6 ♗h4 25.g3 ♕a5 and black wins.

23.♘xd5 This was white's best and after 23...♖xc1 24.♖xc1 ♘xc1 25.♘xe7+ ♕xe7 black's advantage is minimal.

23...♔xh7 24.♗a3 Hoping black takes the B. 24...b4 (24...♗xa3 is diastrous... 25.♕h3+ ♔g8 26.♘fg6 and mates.) 25.♕h3+ ♗h4 26.♘fg6 ♗xg2 A practical decision. Being a R up black decides to return some material to ease his defense.

26...bxa3 is perfectly fine as after 27.♘xh4 ♕g5 28.♘hg6+ ♕h6 29.♘xf8+ ♔g8 black is perfectly safe.

27.♘xf8+ ♔g8

27...♕xf8 28.♕xh4+ ♔g8 29.♘g6 ♕f6 30.♕h8+ ♔f7 31.♘e5+ ♔e7 32.♔xg2 and white wins.

28.♕xg2 ♗xf2+ 29.♔f1 ♔xf8 30.♕g6

30.♗xb4+ would have offered stiffer resistance. 30...♘xb4 31.♕b7 ♖c7 32.♕xb4+ ♔g8 33.♖d1 ♖c2 34.♕b7 but here, too, black would still be winning.

30...♕e8 31.♕g2 Signifying the end of his attack. 31...bxa3 32.♖e2 ♖xe2 33.♔xe2 ♗xd4 34.♘g6+ ♔g8 35.♘f4 ♕b5+ 36.♔d2 Almgren resigned without awaiting black's move.

36.♔d2 Black has a mate in 10. 36...♕b4+ Or 36. ..Qa5+ 37.♔d1 ♕xb3+ 38.♔e1 ♕b1+ 39.♔d2 ♕b2+ 40.♔e1 ♘c3 41.♕a8+ ♔h7 and white cannot avoid mate.

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