A Lesson On the Initiative

Belavenets

    The Russians Play Chess by Irving Chermev is a collection of 50 great attacking games from the years 1925-1945 (in my 2nd edition there are 6 games additional games by Bronstein, Smyslov, Tal and Petrosian, from 1951-60). 

    Most of the games are short sacrificial affairs and many are by lesser-known, or long forgotten, players of a bygone era. The real problem is that Chernev was not a Master and his motes are superficial at best. Another annoying habit, like his contemporary author Fred Reinfeld, is that the events and dates are not given. For example, in today’s game the event and location were not given, but I was able to locate that information. Unfortunately all of the games and the final standings are not available. 

    There is a diagram every few moves, so you can read it without a board. This means you could use the book for an unsystematic book on tactics, but the best thing is just playing over he games for enjoyment. 

    Although his analysis is frequently wrong, Chernev makes frequent comments so you aren't left in the dark about what's going on for long stretches of the game. Chernev tends to focus on threats more than anything else which helps in making it a good way to study tactics. 

     One review complained that the games are not of the same quality as those of better players, say Alekhine, Tal or Fischer. Maybe not, but that's the beauty of them! We see the mistakes, sometimes crude ones, that we will run into or make ourselves. 

    Here is one game I especially enjoyed. The winner, Sergey Belavenets (1910-942) was a Soviet master, theoretician, and chess journalist. He was born in Smolensk to a noble family. He and Mikhail Yudovich, known as the Smolensk twins, had been close friends since meeting in a school match in 1925. 

    Over the next few years they studied with Belavenets's uncle, Konstantin Vygodchikov, a master who enjoyed success in many very strong local Soviet tournaments. He was awarded the Soviet Master title in 1929 after tying with Botvinnik in the preliminary round of the USSR Championship. 

    Belavenets was in the Soviet Army and was killed in action while fighting at Staraya in 1942. His daughter Liudmila (born 1940) held the title of women's world correspondence champion from 1984 to 1992. 

    In this game white chose an opening line that allowed black to seize the initiative. Defining the initiative is sometimes a little slippery. It's usually defined as an advantage belonging to the player who can make threats that cannot be ignored.   

    Having the initiative puts the opponent in the position of having to use his moves to respond to threats rather than executing his own plans. The one who possesses the initiative can maneuver his pieces into more and more aggressive positions which will ultimately result in a strong attack. 

    Evgeny Zagoryansky (1910-1961) was born in Yerevan, Armenia. He frequently competed in the Moscow Championships. He authored The Story of Morphy, the life and fate of a chess genius. 

 

[Event "Trade Union Champ, Moscow"] [Site "?"] [Date "1936.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Evgeny Zagoryansky"] [Black "Sergey Belavenets"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D81"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "46"] [EventDate "1936.??.??"] { D81: Gruenfeld Defense} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Qb3 {At one time this move, known as the Accelerated Russian System, was very popular, but it has all but disappeared today. It's a solid, positional approach for aimed at challenging black’s center immediately. It often leads to complex, forcing lines.} c6 {At one time this was very popular, but it has all but disappeared today in favor of 4... dxc4} 5. Bg5 {This looks aggressive, but as will soon be seen, it allows black to get an advantage. Best ws 5.Nf3} dxc4 6. Qxc4 b5 {Well played! White now loses time with his Q.} 7. Qd3 Bf5 {Black has easily equalized. This develops with a gain of time by forcing white to move his Q again. White also has the option of playing 8.e4 which gives black an esy game.} 8. Qd1 {This is white's least favorable move. Black now gains even more time by attacking the N.} (8. e4 Nxe4 9. Nxe4 Qd5 10. f3 Bxe4 {This is the only good move black has.} 11. fxe4 Qxg5 12. h4 {with equal chances.}) 8... b4 9. Na4 {Retreating to b1 is no better.} Ne4 {Another good move.} 10. Nf3 {He can't afford to lose more time retreating to h} Bg7 { [%mdl 2048]} 11. Bd2 Qa5 (11... c5 $142 12. Nxc5 Nxc5 13. dxc5 Bxb2) (11... Bxd4 12. Nxd4 Qxd4 13. Be3 Qxd1+ 14. Rxd1 {White has sufficient compensation because of black's backward c-Pawn.}) 12. e3 c5 {Another forceful move. It should be pointed out that white's position gas no real weaknesses and black's only advanbtage is in the form of the initiative. After this white's position rapidly deteriorates.} 13. a3 (13. Rc1 cxd4 14. Nxd4 Bd7 15. Qc2 Nxd2 16. Qxd2 Bxd4 17. Qxd4 O-O 18. Nc5 {and white has all but equalized.}) 13... Nxd2 14. Nxd2 cxd4 {As a result of his inferior 13th move whiye is now in difficulty and this is the critical position.} 15. Qf3 {After this white loses quickly. The attacl on black's R is immaterial. His best chance was 15.axb4} (15. exd4 Nc6 16. Nc4 Qc7 {Black picks up the d-Pawn.} 17. Bd3) (15. axb4 Qxb4 16. Qb3 Qxb3 17. Nxb3 dxe3 {Black maintains a promising position.}) 15... dxe3 { [%mdl 512]} (15... Qxa4 16. Qxa8 O-O 17. e4 d3 18. exf5 Nc6 19. Qb7 Rb8 20. Qc7 Be5 {and even after the best nove} 21. b3 Qb5 22. Qd7 Bxa1 {Black is winning.}) 16. Nc4 (16. Qxa8 exd2+ 17. Kxd2 O-O 18. Bc4 bxa3+ 19. Ke2 axb2 20. Nxb2 Qe5+ 21. Kf1 Qxb2 22. Qxa7 Qxa1+ 23. Qxa1 Bxa1 {Black will eventually win.}) 16... exf2+ 17. Kxf2 Bd4+ 18. Ke1 Qxa4 19. Qxa8 O-O 20. Qf3 bxa3 21. Rxa3 Qb4+ 22. Kd1 Rd8 23. Nd2 Bxb2 {White resigned. A good lesson on the advantage of the initiative.} 0-1

Shootouts and Endgame Tablebases in Fritz

    I received an e-mail asking about Shootouts that were mentioned in a recent post. Fritz 12 and later versions allows automated engine vs. engine games where the engines play against itself from any given position. This can be used to determine possible results from that position or to compare engines. 

    For those possessing Fritz this is accomplished by going to the Analysis Menu then selecting an engine to use and setting the parameters. You can configure the time to analyze (blitz with increments) or fixed depth (number of plies). The engine will then play a series of games and show the results. The default move limit off 999 move is recommended as is Permanent Brain (thinking on opponent's time). 

When using Fritz it is essential that Engame Tablebases be installed because if they aren’t even Stockfish may nor find the win and the position will be declared drawn. I have seen Stockfish unable to win a K+R vs. K ending. 

    For more information and to download Endgame Tablebases you should visit THIS site. There are also a few other downloads that you might find helpful. For instructions on installing the tablebases check out Steve Lopez’ excellent video on You Tube.

A Real Thriller

    As promised in the previous post here is what was probably the most exciting game from the 1943 U.S. Speed Championship. The Fine vs. Kupchik game was a real thriller. 

    Kupchik conceived an ingenious sacrificial attack. His brilliant conception wasn’t good enough for a win though and later in a flurry of Queen checks by both sides he went astray and lost. 

    In his great book The Bobby Fischer I Knew (published in 1995) Arnold Denker described Kupchik as a "timid, tiny whisper of a man with the saddest eyes and the most disproportionately large nose on a small face that I have ever seen." 

    In this game Kupcjik’s play belies his personality. He is almost unknown, but Chessmetrics estimate his highest ever rating to have been a hefty 2641 in 1926 which placed him at #14 on the rating list. 

 

 

 

[Event "U.S. Speed Chamo. New York"] [Site "?"] [Date "1943.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Reuben Fine"] [Black "Abraham Kupchik"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C06"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "107"] [EventDate "1943.??.??"] {C06: French Tarrasch} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. Bd3 c5 6. c3 Nc6 {[%mdl 32]} 7. Ne2 Qb6 8. Nf3 Be7 9. O-O h6 10. a3 {[%mdl 32]} c4 {It's worth noting that in this position black invariably plays 10...a5, but Kupchik's move gets the approval of Stockfish.} (10... a5 11. Rb1 a4 12. Be3 c4 13. Bc2 Qb5 14. Nd2 Nb6 15. f4 g6 16. g4 Bd7 {White's position is the more promising. Naiditsch,A (2678)-Cao,S (2491) Hungary 2008}) 11. Bc2 Na5 12. Rb1 Nb3 {Even though black's N is well entrenched on b3 white still has a much more promising position because he has more space and there is really nothing constructive that black can undertake.} 13. Be3 a5 14. a4 Nb8 15. Nd2 Nxd2 16. Qxd2 Bd7 17. f4 g6 18. g4 h5 19. f5 gxf5 20. gxf5 Nc6 21. Nf4 O-O-O 22. b3 { Strongly threatening bxc4.} cxb3 23. Rxb3 Qc7 24. Rfb1 Rdg8+ 25. Kh1 Nd8 26. f6 {This P has a future!} Bf8 27. R3b2 Bc6 28. h3 Bh6 29. Kh2 h4 30. Bd1 Rg3 { An ingenious idea; he is planning to sacrifice the exchange for a K-side attack. White's defensesd are more than adequate. but Kupchik's plam is a good practical choice.} 31. Bf2 {Slightly better would have been 31.Ng2. The text exposes his c-Pawn.} Rhg8 (31... Bxf4 {would minimize white's advantage.} 32. Qxf4 Rxc3 33. Ra1 Bd7 {White still enjoys a slight advantage.}) 32. Bxg3 Rxg3 33. Bg4 {It's here that Fine's play weakens. Getting the Q out of the pin with 33.Qf2 was much better.} (33. Qf2 Rxc3 34. Qxh4 Bf8 35. Ne2 {and black is in trouble.}) 33... Bd7 {Both players miss a tactical shot that this mvoe allows. Better was either 33...Kb8 or 33...Qd7} 34. Rc1 {Fine reacts to the threat to his c-Pawn and the tripling of heavy pieces on the c-file and as a result all of his advantage is gone.} (34. Nxe6 Bxe6 (34... Bxd2 35. Nxc7 Bxc3 36. Bxd7+ Kxc7 37. Bg4 Bxd4 38. Re2 Bc5 39. Rc1 Kc6 {White is up the exchange.} 40. Rd2 Ra3 41. Rcd1 Ne6 42. Rxd5 Ng5 43. R5d3 Ra2+ 44. R1d2 Ra1 45. Bd7+ Kb6 {[%eval 266,22]}) 35. Qxh6 Rxc3 36. Qxh4 Rc4 37. Rg1 {Black cannot take either P.} Rxd4 38. Bxe6+ Nxe6 39. Rg8+ Kd7 40. Qh5 {wins.}) 34... Nc6 35. Rg1 {[%mdl 8192] This is another tactical mistake that both players missed. But, it must be remembered that they are playing ay 10 seconds per move. Safer was, as earlier 36/Qf2} Rxg1 (35... Nxe5 {takes advantage of the pin on the N.} 36. dxe5 Rxg1 37. Kxg1 Qxe5 38. Qd4 Bxf4 {Black inly has a B+P for the R, but he is winning!} 39. Qxe5 Bxe5 {and white has three Ps threatened.} 40. Bd1 Bxf6 41. Rf2 Bxc3 42. Rxf7 {Technically at least black's B+3Ps outweigh whte's R. In Shootouts white scored +0 -3 =2.}) 36. Kxg1 Nxe5 {This time this doesn't win because white has an antodote.} 37. dxe5 {Another tactical error.} (37. Nxe6 {The same as in the note 34.Nxe6, but the positions are not exactly the same. There white has a R on b1 and black a R on g3 and black's N was on d8.} Bxd2 38. Nxc7 Nc4 {is completely equal.} 39. Rxd2 (39. Bxd7+ Kxc7 40. Rxd2 Nxd2 41. Be6 Ne4 42. Bxd5 Nxf6 43. Bxf7 Ne4 {with equal chances.}) 39... Nxd2 40. Nxd5 Kd8 41. Bxd7 Kxd7 42. Kf2 Nc4 43. Nf4 Nb6 44. Ke3 Nxa4 {with equal chances.}) 37... Qxe5 38. Qd4 {Black should now take the N (either way) after which he would have had excellent winning chances.} Qe1+ 39. Kg2 Qg3+ 40. Kf1 {\} Bxf4 41. Qc5+ (41. Rg2 {This is the fly in the ointment to black's move sequence.} Be3 42. Rxg3 Bxd4 43. Rf3 {with equal chances.}) 41... Bc6 {[%mdl 8192] Much better would have been 41,,,Kb8} (41... Kb8 42. Qf8+ Bc8 43. Qxf7 Bd6 44. Qg7 Bc5 45. f7 Qg1+ 46. Ke2 Qf2+ 47. Kd3 Qxb2 48. f8=Q Bxf8 49. Qxf8 {Black's extra Ps shpuld sin.}) 42. Qf8+ Kc7 43. Qxf7+ Kb8 {Now some fancy footwok by Fine scores the point.} 44. Qf8+ Kc7 45. Qe7+ Bd7 46. Qc5+ Bc6 47. f7 {The P cannot be stopped.} Qd3+ 48. Re2 Qd1+ 49. Re1 Qd3+ 50. Re2 Qd1+ 51. Kg2 d4+ 52. Qxc6+ $1 {[%mdl 512]} Kxc6 53. f8=Q Be3 54. Rxe3 {Black resigned} 1-0

Fine Bests Reshevsky in Speed Chess

    When Samuel Reshevsky was once asked why Reuben Fine never won the U.S. Championship he said, “Because I was [laying.” That wasn’t the case in the 1943 U.S. Speed Championship (10 seconds per move). That wasn’t the case in 1943 when Fine retained his U.S. Speed Title, romping through the field with a perfect score/ 

    There were some surprises in the four preliminary qualifying tournaments. Arnold Denker lost to Jack Soudakoff, at the time a Sergeant in the Army, in the last round and failed to make the championship group. As a result, he withdrew from the event. 

    Another strong player, Albert Pinkus, also failed to qualify. The strong amateur Edward S. Jackson also failed when in the last round he was barely outpointed by Irving Heitner of Philadelphia and so it was Heitner who went into the finals. 

    The following game between Reshevsky and Fine is, to be honest, a bit boring, but Reshevsky’s Rook handling is peculiar in that they are doubled on a rank other that the 7th and not a file. Both players missed a black win at move 30. After that it was nip and tuck before Fine finally managed to squeeze out the win. The next post will feature what was probably the most exciting of the tournament.

 

 

[Event "US Speed Champ, New York"] [Site "?"] [Date "1943.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Samuel Reshevsky"] [Black "Reuben Fine"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D28"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "76"] [EventDate "1943.??.??"] {D28: Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Main Line} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Bxc4 c5 6. O-O a6 7. Qe2 cxd4 8. Rd1 {This opening is pretty boring, but that's the way the greats played the openings in those days. I remember reading an artice by Anthomy Santasierre on the 1941 Reshevsky-Horowitz U.S. Championship match in which he complained bitterly about their boring opening play. Years later Larry Evans, in an in print dispute with Santasiere, wanted to know where were the games that qualified Santasiere as the spokesman for Romantic chess?} b5 {Interesting! By far the most usual move here is 8...Nf6, but Fine plays this rarely used move which also happens to be the engine's top choice.} 9. Bb3 {After Fine's last move the opening tree has been pruned to one move, 9...Bb7. Stockfish makes no distinction between that move and Fine's.} Be7 (9... Bb7 10. Nxd4 Nbd7 11. e4 { Now if black had played 11...Qc7 the chances would have been equal. Vernay, C (2440)-Sarthou,G (2386) Guingamp FRA 2010}) 10. a4 (10. Rxd4 Qc7 11. Rd1 O-O 12. Bd2 {White has lost time with his R, but it doesn't matter because the position cpuldm't be more equal. The same thing could be said of capturing on d4 with wither the N or P.}) 10... bxa4 11. Rxd4 Qc7 12. Bxa4+ Bd7 13. Nc3 Bxa4 {Here, too, it makes no difference how white recaptures...the position could not be moere equal.} 14. Raxa4 O-O 15. e4 Nc6 16. Rdc4 {This is an odd position in that the Rs operate on the rank (other than the 7th) and not a file. This comfiguration is not going to be able to accomplish much and Reshevsky soon repositions them. The fact that he has the time to do so without damaging his position speaks to the equality of the position.} Rfd8 17. e5 {Completing his development with 17.Bg5 was a good alternative.} Nd5 18. Nxd5 Rxd5 19. h3 {With not much going on and the Q required to guard against .. .Re1# this is a good safety precaution.} Qd7 20. Bf4 a5 21. Ra1 {It’s obvious he needs to reconfigure his Rs} Nb4 22. Kh2 Rd8 {\} 23. Bg5 h6 24. Bxe7 Qxe7 25. Rac1 Nd3 26. R1c3 Qb7 27. b3 Qb8 {[%cal Rd3e5]} 28. Rc7 Qb4 29. g3 { Better was 29.Rc8. Now Fine gets the better of it and keeps up the pressure.} Qb6 {Fine puts his finger on the weak point in white's position, f2.} 30. Kg2 { This is a tactical mistake, but Fine missed it, too. Correct was 30.Qe3} Qb5 { After this white is back in the game and now neither side can claim any advantage. However, the position is quite sharp and bothe sides must choose their move carefully.} (30... Nc5 {This cuts off the R on c7.} 31. R7xc5 (31. Re7 Kf8) 31... Rxc5 {and black has won the exchange.}) 31. Qe4 Nxe5 32. Qf4 ( 32. Nxe5 Rxe5 33. Qc4 {is equal even though black has an extra P because it is on the 4 to 3 majority on the K-side which makes it meaningless plus black's pieces are not well coordinated.}) 32... f5 (32... Rd1 {threatening ...Qf1+ leading to mate was the only way to keep up the pressure. After} 33. R3c4 Nd7 ( 33... Nxc4 34. Qxf7+) 34. Ra7 Qb6 35. Qc7 {The chances are equal and an eventual draw seems a likely outcome. In Shootouts black drew 4 and scored one win.}) 33. Nxe5 Rxe5 34. Re7 Qd5+ 35. Kh2 Re1 {[%mdl 128] White needs to defend precisely.} 36. Rf3 {[%mdl 8192] ...which he fails to do. This is the wrong piece to put on g3. He had to play 36.Qf3 which blocks the long diagonal and guards d1.} (36. Qf3 Qxf3 37. Rxf3 Rdd1 38. Rc3 {and the double R ending should be drawn.}) 36... Qd1 {Now the gane is over.} 37. Rxg7+ Kxg7 38. g4 Qd6 {White resigned. A nice game by Fine who kept up the pressure and with a little help from his opponent scored a forceful win.} 0-1

Boredom Turns Into Excitement

    The Great Depression in the United States began in August 1929, when the country’s economy first went into a recession that culminated with the Wall Street Crash in October 1929. It was the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth. The economy hit bottom in the winter of 1932–33, but things picked up a little with four years of growth until the Recession of 1937 brought back high levels of unemployment. 

    May 6, 1937 saw the Hindenburg disaster when the German airship burst into flame when mooring in Lakehurst, New Jersey. On May 27 the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco opened to pedestrian traffic. The next day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington, D.C. and opened the bridge up for vehicle traffic. Then, as bad as things were, there was a labor strike at US Steel in Chicago. 

    May was also the month the Marshall Chess Club held its championship which was won by Marshall himself. Additionally, the club's women's champion was Adele Rivero followed by Mary Bain while Mrs. B.W. McCready and Mrs. William Slater tied for 3rd and 4th. 

    The Marshall, in Greenwich Village in New York City, was formed in 1915 by a group of players led by Frank Marshall. Over the years the club had as members many of the country's best players: Arthur Dake, Larry Evans, Reuben Fine, Bobby Fischer and Fred Reinfeld, to name a few from a bygone era. 

    It has also had artist Marcel Duchamp and film director, screenwriter and producer Stanley Kubrick as members. In more recent times "shock jock" Howard Stern, a radio and television personality gas been a member. 

    The '37 club championship had Dr. Harold Sussman (1911-2004) playing.  He was from Brooklyn and had the distinction of being Bobby Fischer's dentist. Sussman said Fischer originally had a great set of teeth, but in the early 1980s they were full of fillings which he had removed because the KGB could bug them or use the metal to send damaging rays into his brain. 

    Was Fischer crazy? Can you really hear radio broadcasts in your fillings? Yes, it is scientifically possible to hear radio broadcasts through metal dental fillings, though it is rare. Metallic fillings (especially older amalgams) can act as a rudimentary crystal radio receiver, picking up strong AM radio signals which then vibrate the jawbone to produce sound. Actress Lucille Ball reportedly heard radio music and Morse code through her dental work. Read more... 

    Another interesting participant in the championship was Kenneth O. Mott-Smith (1902 – 1960) who was a writer and cryptographer. There is a trophy bearing his name that is awarded at the American Contract Bridge League’s Championship. Mott-Smith was on the Laws Commission, editor of their Bulletin and a contributor to The Bridge World magazine. 

    During World War II he was chief instructor for the OSS in the training of cryptographers and analysts. He wrote or co-wrote more than 29 books on games and served as games consultant for the Association of American Playing Card Manufacturers. The following game was an important result in determining the standings. 

 

 

     In this game Fred Reinfeld, who was one of the strongest players in the country from the early 1930s to the early 1940s, went down in defeat to Milton Hanauer. In the 1930s Reinfeld was the only American player who posted a plus score against Reshevsky with a score of +2 -0 =3. 

 

[Event "Marshall CC Championship"] [Site "New York, NY"] [Date "1937.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Fred Reinfeld"] [Black "Milton Hanauer"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A22"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "1937.??.??"] {A29: English Opening: Four Knights Variation with 4 g3} 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. g3 {Typical of Reinfeld's rock solid Hypermodern opening play. He was known for squeezing out wins with precise positional play.} d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bg2 Nb6 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. O-O Be7 8. d3 Be6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Ne4 Nd5 {More ambitious was 10...f5, but such a move was not in keeping with Hanauer's style which was characterized by in classical principles with am emphasis on clear, logical, and technically sound moves.} 11. Bc5 {A fine move; on e3 the B was blocking his position.} h6 12. Rc1 Bd6 13. Nxd6 cxd6 14. Ba3 Nde7 (14... Qd7 15. e4 Nc7 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Nb5 {is about as equal as it can get. In Abasov,N (2210)-Meneses Gonzalez,K Herceg Novi 2005 white squeezed out a win in a long game.}) 15. e4 f5 16. exf5 {This does not turn out too good for white as black gets the initiative. Continued boring play with 16.b3 was better.} Nxf5 17. Nd2 Rf7 {Hanauer wisely avoids snatcjing the a-Pawn. This defends the b-Pawn.} (17... Bxa2 18. b3 Qa5 19. Bb2 d5 20. Ra1 {and black is in trouble.}) 18. Nc4 Ncd4 19. f4 {The advance of the f-Pawn was good for black, but it's not good for white. Again, 19.b3 was better.} Bxc4 (19... Rc8 { was even better. After} 20. b3 Rfc7 {followed by ...b5}) 20. dxc4 {White has straightened his Ps out but...} Ne3 {Now what?} 21. Qh5 {Setting a trap that backfires. Now things get tactical.} (21. Qd3 Nxf1 22. Bd5 Nd2 23. Qxd2 Kh8 { White can't take the R} 24. Kg2 (24. Bxf7 {wins the Q} Nf3+) 24... Rc7 25. Rf1 {Black is up the exchange, but white's position is going to be tough to crack.} ) 21... Rf5 {A nasty surprise for Reinfeld,} 22. Qg6 Rf6 {[%mdl 2048]} 23. Qe4 Nxf1 24. Rxf1 Nc6 {Unlike in the note to move 21.Qd3 while white is the exchange down here, too, he is losing. A major factor is the position of white's Q which turns out to be exposed allowing black time to build up his attack.} 25. Rd1 (25. Qd5+ {was worth a try.} Kh8 26. b3 Qc7 {White's position is solid, but then black still has the exchange.} 27. Bb2) 25... exf4 26. gxf4 Qa5 27. Rxd6 Rxd6 28. Bxd6 Qd2 {A hiccup that allows white to equalize. Whereas a while back capturing the a-Pawn would have been bad, now it would have been good.} (28... Qxa2 29. b4 Rd8 30. c5 a6 {and white's b-Pawn is a serious weakness.}) 29. Qe6+ (29. Qd5+ {forcing the exchange of Qs was the only way to keep the balance.} Qxd5 30. Bxd5+ Kh8 31. b4 {Black is still the exchange up but here white's Bs are in a strong position plus white has a P majority on the Q-side.}) 29... Kh8 30. Bxc6 bxc6 {[%mdl 4096]} 31. Be5 { The situation has really changed since 28...Qd2. Black may be up the exchange, but white's Q and B are well placed in the center, so black is facing extreme difficulty making progress if that's even possible.} Qe1+ 32. Kg2 {Black is facing a mate threat with Qxh6+.} Qe4+ 33. Kh3 {The pendulum has swung back to black's favor after this! Much better would have been 33.Kf2. In that case black might even have considered repeating moves.} Kh7 {Eliminationg the immediate mate threat and, at the same time, hoping to uystilize his slight material advantage.} 34. f5 {Threatening ate again with 35.Qg6+. Can black escape?} Qe3+ 35. Kg2 Qg5+ {So, g6 is covered, but cab blck make any progress?} 36. Kf3 Qh5+ 37. Ke4 Re8 {Now it's natural for white to want to keeo Qs on because he can ise hus to generate threat against black's cornered K. However, it's a mistake. Reinfeld would have been able to prolong the game even though he would be the exchange down.} 38. Qd6 $2 (38. Qg6+ Qxg6 39. fxg6+ Kxg6 40. b4 {Black has some technical difficulties to overcome, but he should eventually win.}) 38... Qe2+ 39. Kd4 {Note that Qg6+ and mate is still a threat!} Qxb2+ { Grabbing an extra P, but it wasn;t necessary.} 40. Ke4 Qe2+ 41. Kd4 Rd8 $1 { [%mdl 512] White resigned. His Q is skewered.} (41... Rd8 42. Qxd8 Qd2+ 43. Ke4 Qxd8) 0-1

The Immortal Losing Game

 

    Bogdan Sliwa (1922-2003) of Poland was awarded the International Master title in 1953, and the Honorary Grandmaster title in 1987. He won the championship of Poland six times. In 1946, he won the first Polish Chess Championship after World War II. He also won it in 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954 and 1960. His last name is pronounced Shlee- (rhymes with plea), vah (rhymes with spa). 

    In the following game Sliwa defeated David Bronstein, who at the time was (along with Smyslov, Keres and Botvinnik) one of the best players in the world. At the time of the game Sliwa was way, way down the list...not even in the top 150 according to Chessmetrics. 

    The game came to be known as The Immortal Losing Game. It likely got that moniker because of the rating difference and not because Bronstein even came close to getting a better position let alone winning. Instead, Bronstein found himself in a hopeless position, but managed to lay some elementary traps, but the alert Sliwas avoided them and emerged victorious. 

 

[Event "Gotha"] [Site ""] [Date "1957.09.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Bogdan Sliwa"] [Black "David Bronstein"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A81"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "1957.??.??"] {A81: Dutch Defense} 1. d4 f5 2. g3 g6 {The Leningrad Variation. From g7 thr B will not only be a good defender of the K, but also pt wil;l be active on the an long diagonal.} 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Bg5 Nc6 6. Qd2 d6 7. h4 {Because white plans to castle Q-side, this immediate attack on the K-side is not a damgerous wealening.} e6 (7... h6 8. Bxf6 Bxf6 9. Nf3 e6 10. O-O-O d5 {White is just a bit better. Karl,H (2251)-De Laubadere,P (2003) Hockenheim 2007}) 8. O-O-O {White is better.} h6 9. Bf4 Bd7 10. e4 fxe4 {With this capture black opens the f-file, which is one of the ideas behind the Dutch.} 11. Nxe4 Nd5 { While this can hardly be called bad black should probably finish his development by11…Qe7 and ...O-O-O.} 12. Ne2 Qe7 13. c4 Nb6 {It would have been better to plat 13...Nxf4 because the B strenthens white's attack.} (13... Nxf4 $142 14. Nxf4 Qf7 15. h5 {with the initiative.}) 14. c5 {This sharp tactical blow was apparently overlooked by Bronstein,} dxc5 15. Bxc7 O-O { Was Bronstein aware of the lurking danger and knew he was castling into a winning attack or did he believe castling was simply his best option?} (15... Nxd4 16. Nd6+ Kf8 17. Nf4 {is better, but white still has a considewrable advantage.}) 16. Bd6 Qf7 17. Bxf8 Rxf8 18. dxc5 {White has a material advantage amd a won game, but the wily Bronsteien manages to lay a few traps.} Nd5 19. f4 Rd8 20. N2c3 Ndb4 21. Nd6 {[%mdl 32]} Qf8 22. Nxb7 {Sacrificing the second R gives b;acl the opportunity to set a few elementary traps. They are certainly not very deep or profound, but you never know...} Nd4 {Black is the exchange down with zero compensation so his position is lost. Thus he has nothing to lose by sacrificing another R for a few traps.} 23. Nxd8 Bb5 24. Nxe6 Bd3 {Daring Sliwa to grab the Q.} 25. Bd5 (25. Nxf8 Nxa2+ 26. Nxa2 Nb3#) 25... Qf5 26. Nxd4+ Qxd5 {Offering the Q again.} 27. Nc2 (27. Nxd5 Nxa2#) 27... Bxc3 28. bxc3 {[%mdl 32]} Qxa2 {His last hope.} 29. cxb4 {Black resigned.} (29. Nxb4 Qb1#) 1-0

1954 Prague / Marianske Lazne Zonal

 

    You probably would not want to have been living in Prague in 1954. It was at the peak of Stalinist repression and a highly controlled, nightmarish atmosphere following the Communist takeover in 1948. The early 1950s saw the largest show trials in Eastern Europe. Notable among these was the Slansky trial, which ended just prior in late 1952, but its atmosphere of fear and purges against class enemies, Catholics, and Jews continued through 1954. 

    The city’s cultural life was strictly dictated by the state, with art and media required to follow Socialist Realist guidelines. People faced scarcity and poor living conditions and there was deep resentment that the regime had to keep suppressed.

    That was the backdrop for the 1954 Zonal tournament, but the participants were probably unaware of what was really happening because upon arrival the participants were accommodated in the comfortable and quiet Palace Hotel where the Czech Music Week and the Glass Industry Exhibition were going on. 

    The tournament hall was the beautifully decorated located within about 15 minutes walking distance from the hotel. About mid-tournament the event moved to a newly renovated large auditorium in a beautiful hotel in Marianske Lazne. As expected, the event turned out to be a race between Laszlo Szabo and Ludek Pachman. 

 

    The winner of this game was Guomundur Palmason (1928-2004) of Iceland. Beyond that little is known about him. Chess metrics estimates his highest rating to have been 2530 in 1959. Likewise, his Egyptian opponent, Saad Zaglul Basjuni (1920-????) is unknown except that he was part of the generation that represented Egypt on the international scene following the Egyptian Revolution in 1952. Chess metrics estimates his highest rating to have been 2475 in 1951. 

 

[Event "Prague/Marianske Lazne Zonal"] [Site ""] [Date "1954.05.30"] [Round "?"] [White "Gudmundur Palmason"] [Black "Sad Zaglul Basjuni"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D13"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "1954.05.29"] {D13: Slav Defense} 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 c6 4. cxd5 cxd5 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Bf4 e6 7. e3 Bb4 8. Bd3 O-O 9. O-O Nh5 10. Rc1 (10. Bg5 Be7 {is usual.} 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Rc1 f5 13. Bb5 {White is better. Claus,J-Kienel,N Dresden 2001}) 10... Nxf4 11. exf4 g6 12. g3 Be7 13. Qd2 Bd7 14. Bb1 Na5 15. Rfe1 Nc4 16. Qe2 Bf6 17. b3 Na5 18. Ne5 Nc6 19. Qe3 Kg7 20. Na4 Be8 {Up to here the game has been uninteresting, but after this rather poor move things get interesting.} (20... Nxe5 {remains equal.} 21. fxe5 Be7 22. Nc5 b6 {Now white has no reason to exchange his N for black's bad B.} 23. Nd3 {equals.}) 21. Nc5 Na5 {Pointless; the N is stuck here for the rest of the game.} (21... b6 {Unlike previously this is tactically faulty.} 22. Nxe6+ fxe6 23. Nxc6 Qd6 24. Ne5 {White has won a P and has a distinct positiona; advantage.}) 22. Bd3 b6 {Because his N is covering c6 white cannot capture on e6.} 23. Na6 {Unlike black's N on the a-file white's N is actually accomplishing something; it eyes c7.} Be7 24. h4 Ba3 25. Rc2 {Excellent!} (25. Rc7 {is less good because it allows black to return his B with a gain of time.} Bd6 26. Rc2 Rc8 27. Rxc8 Qxc8 28. Rc1 { White is only slightly better.}) 25... Rc8 {Wild play starts! White to play and win.} 26. Rxc8 {Not bad, but 26.b4 was a winning tactical shot.} (26. b4 { Exposing the B on a3 to a discovered attack.} Nc4 27. Bxc4 dxc4 28. Qxa3 { White has won a piece.}) 26... Qxc8 27. h5 gxh5 {This only plays into white's hands, Black shouls play 27...f6 driving back the well placed N.} 28. f5 { The advance of the f-Pawn was discussed in the post of Februry 26th.} f6 29. Nf3 exf5 30. Nh4 Bg6 31. Qf4 Rf7 32. Nxf5+ {After this poor mover all of ehite's advantage has disappeared.} (32. b4 Nc4 33. Re2 Bb2 34. a4 Bxd4 35. Qxd4 Qxa6 36. Qxd5 b5 37. Nxf5+ Bxf5 38. Qxf5 Kf8 39. Qxh5 {is winning for white.}) 32... Bxf5 33. Bxf5 Qxa6 34. Qh4 Qb7 35. Qxh5 {Now begins a series of move where there is only one move that avoids loss.} Kh8 36. Bxh7 {[%mdl 640] This sacrifice does not win. In fact, the position remains dead equal, but not all equal positions are the same. In this one both sides are walking a tightrope.} Rxh7 37. Re8+ {In this position white only has one move that doesn't lose and this is it. Now we have a curious situation where it's black that only has one move that doesn't lose,} Bf8 {[%mdl 8192] And this certainly is not it! It's quite possible that black's flag was hanging otherwise this move is hard to explain.} (37... Kg7 {Guess what? Again, white only has one move that does not lose,} 38. Qg4+ {This one.} Kh6 {and white has to take the draw by repitition.}) 38. Rxf8+ Kg7 39. Qe8 {Black resigned.} (39. Qe8 Rh8 40. Rxh8 Qf7 41. Rh7+) 1-0

Russia vs. Rest of the World 1970

    There were three major USSR/ vs. Rest of the World matches. These matches featuring the best players from the Soviet Union against an elite team representing the rest of the world. They were: 

 

1970 (Belgrade): The Soviets won 20.5-19.5. 

1984 (London): The Soviets won 21-19. 

2002 (Moscow): The Soviets won 52-48. This one was a Rapid format. 

 

    The first match in Belgrade was billed as The Match of the Century and Dr. Max Euwe was the captain of the Rest of the World team.  He was responsible for determining the team’s board order which sounded simple enough...players would be assigned in order of their ratings. But, there was a snag. 

    Fischer, ranked number one, had been in seclusion for two years, but it was possible to get in contact with him and his answer was, “No.” He was then offered an all expense paid trip to Belgrade as an observer and that changed his mind about playing...provided his laundry list of 23 demands ranging from lighting to money were met. 

    Bent Larsen was then informed he’d have to play second board behind Fischer. That put Larsen in a snit, but since nobody actually believed Fischer would show up it was a moot point. 

    Then, when it looked more and more like Fischer would play, Larsen changed his mind and refused to play if Fischer was on first board. An organizer managed to chase him down by phone and Larsen agreed to play, but a few days later changed his mind again; he would not play second board. 

    Organizers then invited Larsen and his wife to visit the match, all expenses paid of course. Once the Larsens arrived in Belgrade organizers tried to persuade him to take second board, but Fischer’s arrival only hardened his resolve not to play. After all, he had won more important tournaments in the last 2-3 years than Fischer had won in his whole career. 

    When asked about the interests of the team, Larsen insisted there wasn’t any team; it was just ten matches of four games. A reporter asked him if that was the case, what difference did it make which board he played on? He didn’t answer. Even the Russians tried to convince him to play, but he still refused to play on board two. 

    Fischer had hinted before he left for Belgrade that he would let Larsen have board one...for a substantial fee. But, then he dropped a bombshell. Larsen could play on board one for nothing! But, there was fly in the ointment. Several weeks before the match the board order had been agreed to so that players would know who their opponent was and get prepared. 

    Euwe’s list had Fischer on board one and now the Rest of the World was purposing a last minute change. When informed of the change the day before the start of the match the Russians disappeared for an hour to discuss it then returned and agreed to the change.    

    Meanwhile, Yugoslav GM Milan Matulovic announced he wasn’t going to play because he was on board 8 behind East German GM Wolfgang Uhlmann. After all, he had better recent results than Uhlmann and had even beaten him in a match. Nobody seemed to care about his threat, so he agreed to play anyway.

 

    The line up of the Russian team wasn’t based on ratings, but on recent results and juggled to insure they were matched against opponents against whom they had good records. 

    For example, Botvinnik was way down on board 8 because his opponent, Matulovic, had a “Botvinnik complex” and had a poor record against him. Likewise, Taimanov on board 7 had a huge plus against Uhlmann. The second round brought gasps, cheers and hand clapping when Larsen went down I flames in the following game.  

[Event "Rest of World vs USSRm Belgrade"] [Site ""] [Date "1970.03.31"] [Round "2"] [White "Bent Larsen"] [Black "Boris Spassky"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A01"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "34"] [EventDate "1970.03.29"] {A01: Larsen Opening} 1. b3 {Inspired by another great Danish player, Nimzovich, who often played 1.Nf3 and 2.b3, white prepares to fianchetto his B where it will help control the central squares. Fischer played it five times in 1970, winning all five games.} e5 {The most common response, making a grab for the center and limiting the scope of white's B.} 2. Bb2 Nc6 3. c4 {This isn't played very often, but its results are on a par with the much more common 3.e3.} Nf6 4. Nf3 {Real hypermodern stuff, luring the e-Pawn forward.} e4 {Black does best to accept the challenge as either 4...Bc5 or 4...d6 allow white easy equality.} 5. Nd4 Bc5 6. Nxc6 {White's idea here is to get rid of the N and gain control over d4 and e5.} (6. Nf5 O-O 7. e3 d6 8. Ng3 Re8 9. Nc3 {is equal. Aravindh,C (2607)-Zhigalko,S (2572) chess.com INT 2023}) 6... dxc6 { By capturing away from the center Spassky opens up the diagonal for his B. 6... bxc6 would be less effective.} 7. e3 Bf5 8. Qc2 {Black is already better.} Qe7 9. Be2 O-O-O {White is experiencing difficulties. Black has more space and white is unable to play d4. For white, castling K-side would be very risky. Clearly Larsen has not come out of the opening well.} 10. f4 {This is the losing move.} (10. O-O Ng4 11. Bxg4 Bxg4 12. Nc3 f5 13. a3 Qg5 {White's position is lost. For example...} 14. f4 exf3 15. Rf2 f4 16. Ne4 Qg6 {and white has no reasonable moves.}) (10. a3 {at leasty keeps him in the game.} Kb8 {Unlike in the game black has no crushing reply and so must continue in a positional manner.} 11. b4 Bd6 12. c5 Be5 13. Bxe5 Qxe5 14. Nc3 {Black is better and has the initiative after 14...h4}) 10... Ng4 {After this black can win in any number of ways, including a sacrifice on d2 followed by ...Nxe3 which gives him a winning attack. White has absolutely no move that offers any kind of resistance!} 11. g3 {[his further weakens the position if his K, but he really does nit have a good move. Black has at least a half dozen moves that win, but Spassky plays the best one.} h5 {The idea of this is to rip white's guts out with ...h4. Also vicious is 11...Rxd2} (11... Rxd2 12. Qxd2 Nxe3 13. Ba3 Bxa3 14. Nxa3 Ng2+ 15. Kf1 Bh3 16. Nc2 Rd8 17. Qc3 Nxf4+ 18. Kf2 Nd3+ 19. Bxd3 Rxd3 20. Qxg7 e3+ 21. Kf3 e2+ 22. Kf2 Qe4 {and it's pretty obvious white is donr for.}) 12. h3 {There's nothing for white to do but await his fate. He can't even try to run to the Q-side with his K.} (12. Qc3 Nxe3 13. dxe3 Bb4) (12. Kd1 Nxe3+ {wins the Q}) 12... h4 13. hxg4 hxg3 14. Rg1 {Now black could win with the coldblooded 14...Bxe3, but Spassky has a more flashy finish.} Rh1 $3 {[%mdl 512] The crowd of spectators roared and applauded after this move.} (14... Bxe3 15. Nc3 Bf2+ 16. Kd1 Bxg1) 15. Rxh1 {This deflects the R back to h1 and so gains a tempo. |^t also caused the spectators to erupt with cheering and applause.} g2 16. Rf1 Qh4+ 17. Kd1 gxf1=Q+ {White resigned. It's mate in three. What a humiliating debacle for the world team's top board. Accuracy: White = 23%, Black = 94%.} (17... gxf1=Q+ 18. Bxf1 Bxg4+ 19. Kc1 Qe1+ 20. Qd1 Qxd1#) 0-1

Sometimes Less Is More

    In his book The Art of Sacrifice in Chess, the old master of attack, Rudolf Spielmann, game some instructions on the sacrifice of the exchange. 

    Spielmann wrote that the absolute value of the pieces is what form the basis on which most exchanges are made, i.e. Q=9, R=5, B and N and B=3 and P=1. However, it is the relative value that is the decisive factor for positional play and especially for sacrifices. To wit: 

1) The simpler the position, the more the absolute value carries weight. 

2) The more complicated the position, the more the relative value of the pieces gain in importance. 

 

    When it comes to the sacrifice of the exchange it is never an exactly even transaction so you either win the exchange or you lose it. Exchange sacrifices are dependent on specific positional and tactical factors. Spielmann offers the following helpful definitions: 

 

1) Any voluntary loss in material counts as a sacrifice. 

2) The sacrifice of the exchange is when a Rook is given up for a minor piece and a Pawn. 

3) The term sacrificing the exchange when applied to situations where a Rook is given up for a minor piece and two Pawns is incorrect; it should be wins two Pawns for the exchange. 

4) The sacrifice of the exchange can serve any purpose. It can be a sacrifice for: 

    a) Development 

    b) An obstructive sacrifice, a sacrifice intended to blockade a square, file, rank or diagonal. 

    c) A sacrifice designed to expose the opponent's King. 

 

    In all cases, the sacrifice of the exchange is designed to improve the position of the minor pieces. Here is a case in point taken from the game Spielmann vs. Tarrasch that was played in Carlsbad 1923. 

    Spielmann gave this game in his classic The Art of Sacrifice in Chess. A great attacker and sacrificial player, in this book he classified various tactical motifs, but as with almost all of those old books from pre-engine days, analytical errors abound in the examples. Still, there is a lot to be learned from the book. 

 

    Even if his evaluations and play in the following game are not always correct, they worked against the great Tarrasch which says something...we can learn ideas from them and maybe use theme in our own games.

  

[Event "Carlsbad"] [Site "Karlsbad CSR"] [Date "1923.05.06"] [Round "?"] [White "Rudolf Spielmann"] [Black "Siegbert Tarrasch"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C30"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "1923.04.28"] {C30: King's Gambit Declined} 1. e4 e5 2. f4 Bc5 {Statistically, at least in my database, this move produces much poorer results for black than accepting the game. White has a lot of ways to counter this move and many times black will end up with a much worse position than if he had accepted it. If black wants to decline the gambit then the Falkbeer (2...d5) is a better choice. The idea is that the B prevents white from castling.} 3. Nf3 (3. fxe5 {This is a trap that loses for white.} Qh4+ 4. g3 Qxe4+) 3... d6 4. c3 {Other options are 4.Nc3 and 4.Bc4, but the text is considered slightly better.} Bg4 {This pin is somewhat annoying and the method white uses here to counteract it originated with Frank Marshall.} 5. fxe5 dxe5 6. Qa4+ {Equally good is 6.Bc4} Bd7 7. Qc2 Nc6 8. b4 {Black's next move is forced. 8...Bd6 is necessary to prevent white from winning the e-Pawn.} Bd6 9. Bc4 {Now 9.b5 isn't so effective.} (9. b5 Na5 10. d4 {1-0 (41)} c6 {Black has full equality.}) 9... Nf6 10. d3 Ne7 11. O-O Ng6 12. Be3 {This permits black to obtain counterplay so 12.a4 would have been more precise.} b5 13. Bb3 a5 14. a3 axb4 15. cxb4 {Black's Q-side advance has succeeded in forcing white to play this which has resulted in black achieving full equality.} O-O 16. Nc3 c6 17. h3 Qe7 18. Ne2 Bb8 {The purpose of this move is to exchange Bs after ... Ba7 in the hope of establishing a N on f5, but the maneuver is somewhat labored.} 19. Kh2 Ba7 20. Bg5 h6 21. Bxf6 Qxf6 22. Nfd4 Qd6 23. Nf5 Bxf5 $1 24. Rxf5 Nf4 25. Rf1 {Up to this point black has defended himself ably and picked up a positional advantage in the better P-formation because white's Ps on a3 and d3 are backward and may become weak. For his part white has built up strong pressure on the f-file which Tarrasch seems to underestimate. (Spielmann) Actually, white's last move gives black a slight advantage, but he must play accurately because the slightest slip will give white tactical chances. It doesn't matter how great a positional advantage you have, miss a tactical shot and the positional advantage means nothing!} (25. Nxf4 {This is the correct move.} exf4 26. e5 Qd7 27. Rxf7 Rxf7 28. e6 Qd6 29. exf7+ Kf8 {and the chances are equal.}) 25... g6 {Here Spielmann makes the incorrect claim that it would be better to decline white's offer of the exchange implied by his last move and that black had little choice but to play 25...Ne6. The text move "wins" the exchange at the cost of enabling white's attack, hitherto directed only against f7, to spread over the whole K-side. (Spielmann)} (25... Ne6 {This move does result in an equal position so Spielmann is correct in that claim.} 26. Qa2 Rae8 {with equal chances.}) 26. R1xf4 {This is white's best move, but it is black who has a slight advantage.} exf4 27. e5 {Black can claim a slight advantage here... provided he finds the best moves...it is this difficult task that makes the games of great attackers like Spielmann, Nezhmetdinov, Tal and others so entertaining...in the complications their opponents often went astray.} Qe7 ( 27... Qc7 {was a little more accurate.} 28. Rf6 Kh8 29. Qc3 Be3 30. Rxc6 Qd8 31. Rf6 (31. e6+ Kh7 32. exf7 {would be a bad mistake.} f3 33. Ng3 Qg5 34. Qf6 Rxa3 {with a winning attack.}) 31... Qe7 32. Nxf4 Rxa3 {Black is slightly better.}) 28. Rf6 {Spielmann has completely misjudged the position, not only did he do so during the game, he did so when he wrote the book! He wrote - "The powerful establishment of the R on this square is the point of the sacrifice. There are now many threats, above all 29. d4 and only then capture at g6 by either the R or Q. True, Black remains with two Rs for the Q, but his K-side is so critically weakened that successful defense is, in the long run, impossible. Yet this would be better than the defense which Black actually selects." That's all wrong as any engine will tell you. Stockfish puts black's advantage at nearly 3 Pawns.} (28. Qxc6 {This move, not mentioned by Spielmann, would have drawn which is white's best course.}) 28... Kg7 {[%mdl 8192] The critical position! Spielmann makes no comment on this move, but it is the one that costs black the game. It's not the only losing move available to black thought. However, he also has a winner.} (28... Qxe5 $2 {loses after} 29. Rxg6+ Kh7 (29... Kh8 30. Rxh6+ Kg8 31. d4) 30. d4) (28... Kh8 $3 {and black is winning.} 29. Qc3 Be3 {White is the exchange down and there is no good way he can conjure up any kind of an attack.} 30. Qxc6 Qxe5 {is winning for clack.}) 29. d4 {Now white wins quickly.} Bxd4 30. Bxf7 Bxe5 31. Qxg6+ {Black resigned, It's mate next move.} 1-0

Bushwhacked by Arthur Maas

    Although sometimes associated with the Netherlands due to his participation in European tournaments, Arthur James Mass (1857-1933, 76 years old) was described as "thoroughly English". That’s because he was. Although he died in Hyeres, Var, France, where he spent his later years, he was born in Southwark, a district of London, England.

    Maas was primarily active in the late 1800s and early 1900s. While not a top level player (Chessmetrics estimates his highest rating to have been 2317 in 1932) he participated in several notable international events. 

    At the age of 18 Maas won both the junior and senior handicap events at the City of London Chess Club. In the senior final, he defeated the established master W. Norwood Potter while receiving odds of Pawn and move. 

    Maas’ obituary described him as, “an astonishingly good player in his early days...Maas will always be remembered as the donor of the Philidor Cup and he ran at his own expense four contests for it at Hyeres, whilst a fifth was undertaken by the Nice chess club, who are now the owners of the trophy.” 

     In this game Maas’ opponent makes a routine move that established a N outpost on e5 and offers to ease his defense by exchanging a piece...normally a good idea, but Instead he got bushwhacked.  

 

[Event "Thornton Heath CC - Clapham CC m"] [Site ""] [Date "1911.01.04"] [Round "?"] [White "A. Howell"] [Black "Arthur J. Maas"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D53"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "50"] [EventDate "1911.??.??"] [Source "(London) Globe, "] {D53: Queen's Gambit Declined} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e3 Ne4 {This results in simplification, but in practical play it does not serve him any better than the usual 5...h6} 6. Bxe7 Qxe7 7. cxd5 Nxc3 8. bxc3 exd5 9. Bd3 {9.Qb3 presents black with the problem of how to effectively develop his B. .} (9. Qb3 c6 10. Bd3 O-O 11. Ne2 Nd7 12. O-O {with a compfortable game. Korchnoi,V (2650)-Pfleger,H (2520) Bath 1973}) 9... Nd7 10. Nf3 O-O 11. O-O Nf6 12. Rc1 Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. Re1 Ne4 15. c4 c6 16. c5 {So far the play of both sides has left nothing to criticize, but this move takes the pressure off the center and allows black to commence operations on the K-side. As a result white cannot do anything on the Q-side. Even so, his position has no weaknesses so he should have no trouble defending himself.} f5 17. Be2 f4 18. Qb3 Rae8 {Here white can play just about any reasonable move, for example 19. exf4, and he would be OK. However, his next move, which looks good because the N occupies the usually good post on e5 and, at the same time, offers to exchange anoher piece, looks logical. Butm the move contains a fatal flaw.} 19. Ne5 {[%mdl 8192] This move exposes the f2 sqaure to an attack which Maas conducts with great vim.} Qh4 {Alert play! Black has a decisuve advantage.} 20. Bxh5 {There is not a single move that will save white.} (20. f3 Qf2+ 21. Kh1 Ng3+ 22. Kh2 Nxe2) 20... Qxf2+ 21. Kh2 Rxe5 {[%mdl 512] Very nice! One of the protectors of f3 is eliminated.} 22. dxe5 f3 23. Bxf3 {Black has a forced mate. } Rxf3 {Black mates.} 24. Qxb7 Rxh3+ {[%mdl 512]} 25. Kxh3 Qg3# {A brilliant finish by Maas.} 0-1

Play the Fred?!

    Jalo Aatos Fred (1917-2003) was a Finnish player, two-time Finnish Champion (1947 & 1955) and the Olympiad individual bronze medal winner in 1964. His main claim to fame is the Fred Defense, a questionable (some prefer the term aggressive) response to 1.e4 where black plays 1...f5 with the aim of surprising white. 

    The Fred is most often seen in online Blitz games where even a few very strong players have given it a try. In the following over the board game black never even got a sniff of equality. 

 

 

 

 

 

[Event "Challengers Tmt, Hastings"] [Site ""] [Date "2004.01.05"] [Round "9"] [White "Arne Hagesaether"] [Black "Charles Linford"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B00"] [WhiteElo "2058"] [BlackElo "2179"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate ""] [EventType ""] [EventRounds ""] [EventCountry ""] [Source ""] [SourceVersion ""] [SourceVersionDate ""] [SourceQuality ""] {Fred Defense} 1. e4 f5 {My database has ober 2.000 games, most in Blitz events, where the Fred was played and it’s surprising that by far white’s most popular move is 2.d4 whicj only gives him a 50-50 chance of winning! The next most popular move is 2.Nf6 which produces about the same results.} 2. exf5 {This is white's best reply (58% wins, 42% losses).} Nf6 {Best.} (2... Nh6 { This is not a good idea. After} 3. Qh5+ Nf7 4. Nf3 e6 5. Ne5 Qf6 6. Qxf7+ Qxf7 7. Nxf7 Kxf7 8. fxe6+ dxe6 {It's probably going to be a long game, but wjite is a P up and black has no winning chances.}) 3. Be2 {The threat is 4.Bh5+} (3. g4 {is interesting.} h6 4. Nf3 d5 5. Ne5 e6 6. Ng6 {White is a bit better.}) ( 3. d4 {This is probably white's best reply. Engine analysis runs} d5 4. Bd3 c5 5. c3 {With a solid centerand a P up.}) 3... h5 (3... d6 4. Bh5+ Nxh5 5. Qxh5+ Kd7 {White does not have a forced win, but nobody would want to play black's position.}) 4. Nf3 d5 5. Nh4 Bd7 6. d4 {Black has not made any glaring errors, but white already has a strategically won positio.} Qc8 {A feeble attempt at getting the ( back.} 7. Bd3 c5 8. c3 cxd4 9. cxd4 Nc6 10. Be3 {White need not be in any hurry to play Ng6. He first completes hi development.} Qc7 11. Nc3 Qb6 12. Qd2 Nb4 13. O-O Nxd3 14. Qxd3 Rc8 15. Rfc1 {One is tempted to say wrong R, but it really doesn't matter which one he places pn c1.} Kf7 {Black has little choice. He either has to move something or resign. White is now ready to proceed with the gutting of his opponent.} 16. Ng6 Rg8 17. Ne5+ Ke8 18. Nxd7 Kxd7 19. Na4 {[%mdl 32] A piece with a future!} Qb4 20. Nc5+ Ke8 21. Ne6 Rxc1+ 22. Rxc1 Rh8 {To repeat... he either has to move something or resign. } 23. Qc2 Kf7 24. Ng5+ Kg8 25. Qc8 {Threatening Qe6#} Qb6 26. Rc7 {Black resigned. There is no point in cntinuing.} Nh7 27. Ne6 Qxb2 28. Rxe7 Qa1+ 29. Bc1 Qxc1+ (29... Qxa2 30. Rxg7#) 30. Qxc1 Bxe7 31. Qc8+ Nf8 32. Qxb7 {and so forth.} 1-0

The Aggressive f-Pawn Advance

    Ludek Pachman (1924-2003) won the 1957 Czechoslovak Championship that was held in Prague. Pachman was a dominant figure in Czechoslovak chess during this era and was known for his strong international performance, including victory in the 1957 Dublin Zonal tournament. 

    Few people realize how strong Pachman was during the late 1950s. (n their December 1959 rating list Chess metrics rates him at 2695 placing him at #15 in the world. That put him in a group with names like David Bronstein, Bobby Fischer, Lazslo Szabo, Miguel Najdorf and Samuel Reshevsky. Mikhail Botvinnik (2797) and Pail Keres (2772) lead the list. 

    Remember these ratings do not compare to those of today! Ratings measure statistical performance against opponents, not absolute strength. A good example of this point was made in the 1970s by  Claude F. Bloodgoo III (1937-2001), a petty criminal who was serving a life sentence in the Virginia State Penitentiary for murdering his mother. 

    Bloodgood was of about Expert (200-2199) strength, but he pumped up his rating to over 2700 when he manipulated the rating system by creating a rated pool of fellow prisoners and submitted fake tournaments. 

    In the process of winning the ‘57 Czech Championship Pachman played the following instructive game that illustrates the motif of advancing the f-Pawn which can be either a high-risk or a high-reward tactical and positional idea that is used to break open the center or launch a K-side attack. 

     In the King's Indian Defense the advance of the f-Pawn is a common aggressive strategy that initiates a Pawn storm against the opponent's castled King.  

[Event "Czech Champ, Prague"] [Site ""] [Date "1957.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Ludek Pachman"] [Black "Jiri Kopriva"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E94"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "1957.??.??"] {E94: King's Indian: Classical} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O 6. Nf3 e5 7. O-O {This is the classical system.} c6 {Black has multiple options here. Besides the text he can also play 7...Nbd7 or the interesting 7.. .Na6.} 8. Re1 {An old move. Other options are 8.Be3 and 8.d5} Qe7 {Frequently seen is 8...Nbd7} 9. Bf1 {Another old move which really serves to purpose.} Bg4 10. d5 $1 c5 11. h3 {Emphasizing the point that black's 9th move was harmless and he should have played 9...Nbd7. Of course he does not want to trade it foe the N so he has to undevelop it woth 11...Bc8 or go back to d7 where it takes that square away fron the N. As a result of black's less than accurate opening play white already has a considerable advantage.} Bd7 12. a3 a5 13. Bd2 Na6 14. Rb1 b6 15. g3 {Over the last several moves operations on the Q-side have come to a standoff. Consequently, both sides turn their attention to the other side and utilize the motif of advancing their f-Pawn. This advance proves to be more difficult for black. Where is black's N on a3 going to find employment?} h6 (15... Ne8 {Clearing the way for the advance of the f-Pawn.} 16. g4 f5 17. exf5 gxf5 18. Bd3 fxg4 19. Ng5 Nf6 20. hxg4 {White's pieces are aggressively placed agaosnt and the shaky position of black's K.}) 16. Nh4 Kh7 17. Kh2 $18 Ng8 18. Bd3 {This is additional preparation for the advance of the f-Pawn. Pachman judged its immediate advance to be premature.} f6 (18... Rab8 {This attept to generaye play on the Q-side can be ignored by white.} 19. Rg1 Nc7 20. a4 {Black is stopped cold.}) 19. f4 {After this a casual glance at the position may give the impression that black s defenses on the K-side will hold, but, in fact, white is winning.} Qd8 20. f5 g5 {With the P-formation locked up it may look like black has succeeded in defending himself, but watch how Packman opens up the position.} 21. Ng6 Rf7 22. h4 Be8 23. Rh1 Rb7 {Black's pieces are horribly limitde in mobility.} 24. Kg2 {Preparing to open the h-file.} Bxg6 25. fxg6+ Kxg6 26. hxg5 fxg5 {Now the obvious way to continue the attack is 27.Qh5+. In his analysis Pachman concluded that black would get some very good defensive possibilities. After a 30 minute analysis by Stockfish white had a decisive advantage, but there was no forced win, so in principle Pachman was correct.} 27. Be2 {This is a surprising move because it blocks the Qs path to the K-side, but even though it leads to a winning position because 17.Qh5+ gets complicated the text is a bit more clear. As played in the game the B comes into play and the position of black;s K remains very unsafe.} Kh7 (27... Nf6 {prevents Bh6+ but white has} 28. Bg4 {Od courde black will not willing exchange his N which aids in the defense.} Nc7 { Prevents Be6} 29. Qf3 Kf7 (29... Qe7 30. Bxg5 Kf7 (30... hxg5 {30...Kf7 4.96} 31. Bh5+ Nxh5 32. Qxh5+ {mate next move.}) 31. Bxh6 {White has a winning attack against the nude black K.}) 30. Rbf1 Qe7 31. Be6+ Nxe6 32. dxe6+ Qxe6 33. Nd5 {wins the N.}) 28. Bg4 Nc7 {Even though this N aids the defense by covering e6 white's pieces are so well coordinated that black no longer has any defense.} 29. Bf5+ Kh8 30. Qh5 Ne8 31. Rh2 (31. Bxg5 {Pachman saw this, but concluded that his way was even stronger. Technically there is not that much difference between the two moves, but practically speaking Pachman was correct.} Nef6 32. Qh4 Qe7 33. Rbf1 Rf8 {Strategically white is winning, but there is no clear path to a breakthrough/}) 31... Bf6 32. Qg6 Rg7 (32... Raa7 { was a smidgen better.} 33. Rxh6+ Nxh6 34. Qxh6+ Kg8 35. Be6+ Rf7 36. Rf1 Bg7 37. Qg6 {White has a decisive advantage.}) 33. Rxh6+ Nxh6 34. Qxh6+ Kg8 35. Be6+ Kf8 36. Rf1 {This pin concludes the game. White wants to mate with Bxg5.} Raa7 37. Bxg5 Raf7 38. Nb5 {Well played! Of course he could have played 38. Bxf6, but black is now out of reasonable moves.} Ke7 39. Rxf6 {Black resigned. The pim decides the game. A very strong performance by Pachman.} (39. Rxf6 Nxf6 40. Bxf6+ Rxf6 41. Qxg7+ Ke8 42. Nc7+) 1-0

Black Scores Against the Isolated d-Pawn

  In this game we see the other side of the Isolated d-Pawn...black wins.

 

 

 

 

[Event "Offerspill Invitational, Oslo"] [Site ""] [Date "2020.06.10"] [Round "?"] [White "Aleksander Fossan"] [Black "Kristian Holm"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D40"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "2020.06.10"] {D40: Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch} 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. c4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nf3 Be7 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxc4 O-O 9. O-O Nc6 10. a3 b6 11. Re1 Bb7 12. Qd3 Rc8 {Note the similarities between this position and the Szabo - van Seters game in the previous post.} 13. Ba2 {This is the thematic move where white intends to set up the battery of Q+B on the b1-h7 diagonal. White has also tried 13.Bg5 but it has been considerably less successful.} h6 14. Be3 Bd6 15. Rad1 Ne7 {[%mdl 32] Black is preparing a solid blockade of the d-Pawn. While white's position is solid he has little prospects of launching a successful K-side attack.} 16. Ne5 Ned5 17. Bd2 (17. Bb1 {is not playable.} Nxc3 18. bxc3 Be4 19. Qd2 Bxb1 20. Rxb1 Ne4 {wins the c-Pawn.}) 17... Re8 { White has what would probably be better options tan what he now plays/} 18. Qh3 {While this move cannot be classified as a mistake it allows black to change the P-formation and put white on the defensive.} (18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Bb1 f5 20. g4 {with some attacking prospects although black should be able to defend himself.}) (18. f4 a6 19. f5 {Black has no real way of securing an advantage and the chances are equal.}) 18... Nxc3 19. bxc3 {Although it is only temporary this, the Isolated Pawn Pair, is another typical P-formation. Ir generally arises, as it does here, from a N blockading an Isolated d-Pawn is exchanged. Often the Ps on c3 and d4 are a serious weakness if the opponent can blockade the c-Pawn and attack it. It also offers the opponent a spatial advantage in the Q-side. Additionally, the isolated a-Pawn is weak.} Ne4 { This is far better than grabbing the a-Pawn and risk getting skinned alive.} ( 19... Bxa3 20. Bxh6 gxh6 21. Re3 h5 22. Qg3+ Kf8 23. Qf4 Ke7 24. d5 Bd6 25. Rf3 Bxe5 26. Qxe5 Nxd5 27. Qxh5 Rf8 28. c4 Nf6 29. Rxf6 Qxd1+ 30. Qxd1 Kxf6 { White's Q has a chance of prevailing against the two Rs.}) 20. Bb1 {It would probably have been better to have tried to advance the f-Pawn f4- and f5 which is more active than this B retreat which offers few prospects in this position. } Nxd2 21. Rxd2 Bxe5 {Taking on a3 would greatly enhance white's prospects.} ( 21... Bxa3 22. Qd3 {Completely justifying his 20th move.} f5 23. Ra2 Qe7 24. g4 {and white has seized the initiative!}) 22. Rxe5 Qd6 {After this all of the defects of the Isolated Pawn Pair are clearly seen.} 23. Qd3 Qxa3 {It's still wrong to grab the a-Pawn! Fortunately for black his opponent misses the chance to equalize.} (23... Qc6 {Threatens mate and wins the P on c3.} 24. f3 Qxc3 { and black is winning.}) 24. Qh7+ Kf8 {How does white meet the threat of ... Qc1+?} 25. Rde2 {[%mdl 8192] Not this way!} (25. Rd1 Rxc3 26. Qh8+ Ke7 27. Qxg7 Kd8 (27... Rc1 {is a tactucal blunder...} 28. Rxe6+ Kxe6 29. Qxh6+ Kd7 30. Bf5+ Kc7 31. Rxc1+ {White is winning.}) 28. Qf6+ Qe7 29. Qxh6 {White is better.}) ( 25. Rd1 Qxc3 {This is the correct cpature, but white is equal after} 26. Qh8+ Ke7 27. Qxg7 Bd5 {White threatened to sacrifice his R on e6.} 28. Bg6 {White's Q, R and B working togeyjer assure him of at least equality.}) 25... Rxc3 26. Qh8+ Ke7 27. Qxg7 Rc1+ 28. Re1 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Qa5 30. Rd1 (30. Re3 {Ublike in the previous variations white can't get his pieces coordinated because after} Qg5 {white has to exchange Qs and the ending is clearly lost.}) 30... Qg5 31. Qxg5+ hxg5 {[%mdl 4096] The material is equal, but black demonstrates that the ending is a clear win for him because of white's weak Ps.} 32. f3 Kd6 {Both Ks approach the center.} 33. Kf2 Rc8 34. Be4 Bd5 35. Rb1 f5 36. Bd3 Rc3 37. Ke2 Ra3 38. Rb2 Ra4 39. f4 gxf4 (39... Bxg2 40. Kf2 Bd5 41. fxg5 Rxd4 {is also winning.}) 40. h4 Rxd4 41. h5 {The P poses no threat.} f3+ {[%mdl 512] White resigned. Instructive play by Holm. Also, kudos to Fossan for realizing the ending was lost.} (41... f3+ 42. Kf2 Rh4 43. gxf3 Rh2+ 44. Kg3 Rxb2 45. h6 { Black to play and win.} f4+ (45... e5 {also works.} 46. Bxf5 Bg8 47. h7 Bxh7 48. Bxh7 a5 {and wins.}) 46. Kh3 e5 47. h7 Be6+ 48. Kh4 Rh2+ 49. Kg5 a5 {etc.}) 0-1