[White "Stevan"]
[Black "amit sarkar"]
[Event "InstantChess"]
[WhiteElo "1561"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ICCause "0"]
[ICEcause "1"]
[Annotator "amit sarkar"]

1.e4 c6 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 d5 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Bd2 Bxc3
7.Bxc3 Nf6 8.b3 O-O 9.Bc4 Qd7 10.Bb4 Re8 11.Ne5 Qd8 12.O-O Nbd7
13.Nxd7 Qxd7 14.Bc3 b5 15.Be2 Nd5 16.Qd2 Rb8 17.Bf3 Qb7 18.Bxd5 cxd5
19.Bb4 e5 20.Bd6 e4 21.Bxb8 Qxb8 22.Rfe1 Bf5 23.Qe3 Bg6 24.f3 f5
25.g3 Qc8 26.Rac1 a5 27.Kf2 b4 28.c3 bxc3 29.Rxc3 Qb7 30.Rc5 Qa8
31.Rec1 a4 32.bxa4 Qxa4 33.Rc8 Qxa2+ 34.Qe2 Qa4 35.Rxe8+ Qxe8 36.Qe3 h5
37.Rc5 Bf7 38.fxe4 fxe4 39.Qg5 Qe6 40.Qd8+ Kh7 41.Qg5 Kg8 42.Ke3 Kh7
43.Qe5 Kg6 44.Qxe6+ Bxe6 45.Rc6 Kf5 46.Rc7 Kg6 47.Kf4 Kf6 48.Rc6 g5+
49.Ke3 Kf5 50.Rd6 Kf6 51.Rd8 Bf7 52.h3 Be6 53.h4 g4 54.Re8 Bf7
55.Rf8 Kg7 56.Rd8 Kf6 57.Kf4 Be6 58.Rh8 Bf7 59.Rh6+ Bg6 60.Rh8 Bf7
61.Rd8 Be6 62.Rd6 Ke7 63.Rb6 Kf6 64.Rb3 Bf7 65.Rb2 Be6 66.Rf2 Bd7
67.Ke3+ Bf5 68.Rf4 Ke6 69.Kd2 Kf6 70.Kc3 Ke6 71.Kb4 Kf6 72.Kc5 Ke6
73.Kc6 e3 74.Rf1 e2 75.Re1 Bd3 76.Kc5 Bc4 77.Kb4 Kf5 78.Kc3 Ke4 79.Kd2 Kf3 0-1

[Event "1 Festival Int. Caissa 90'+30"/m"]
[Site "Vitinia"]
[Date "2009.10.25"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Cavaterra, Umberto"]
[Black "Lucarelli, Christian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B20"]
[WhiteElo "1801"]
[BlackElo "1766"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2009.10.25"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[TimeControl "5400+30"]

1. e4 c5 2. b3 d6 3. Bb2 Nf6 4. d3 Nc6 5. Nd2 e6 6.
Ngf3 Be7 7. Be2 Qc7 8. O-O O-O 9. a3 d5 10. exd5 exd5 11. d4 cxd4 12. Nxd4 Nxd4
13. Bxd4 Bf5 14. c3 Rfd8 15. Bf3 Ne4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. Bg4 Qf4 18. Bxf5 Qxf5
19. Qe2 Re8 20. b4 Bf6 21. Rad1 b6 22. Rfe1 g6 23. Bxf6 Qxf6 24. c4 Qc3 25. Ra1
Rad8 26. Rec1 Qd3 27. Qc2 Qxc2 28. Rxc2 Rd3 29. g3 Red8 30. c5 bxc5 31. bxc5
Rc8 32. a4 Kf8 33. Rb1 Rc7 34. c6 Ke7 35. Rb8 Rd8 36. Rb4 f5 37. Kf1 Rd3 38.
Rb8 Kd6 39. Rd8+ Ke5 40. Re8+ Kd5 41. Rd8+ Ke6 42. Re8+ Kf6 43. Rf8+ Kg5 44.
Kg2 Rd6 45. Ra8 h5 46. a5 Rdxc6 47. Rxc6 Rxc6 48. Rxa7 Rc2 49. Kf1 e3 50. fxe3
Rxh2 51. a6 Ra2 52. Ra8 Kg4 53. a7 g5 54. Ke1 Kxg3 55. Rg8 Rxa7 56. Rxg5+ Kf3
57. Rxf5+ Kxe3 58. Re5+ 1/2-1/2

Time control is 90 min for the whole game + 30 secs increment per move. I'm playing black.
It's a pity I spoilt the win on move 53...g5?? but objectively white blundered before, so a draw is the correct result.

White played a somewhat passive Sicilian which easily lets black equalize. After the inaccurate 24. c4 white continued with the passive 25. Ra1 and already black is slightly better (all active pieces and strong cramping e4 pawn and kingside pawn majority. White's a1 rook is passive but he has a more valuable queen side pawn majority).

What I'd like Dennis to analyze is the position after 27. Qc2.
My reasoning was as follows: I'm slightly better but I don't see a way for black to continue with queens on the board (for example I cannot mobilize my pawn majority, or it is risky). Also white's plan is to advance his queenside pawns and create a passed pawn (except for the a1 rook white's queen & rook are well placed to assist c pawn advance, and later the a1 rook can activate through the b file). If I let this happen with queens on the board white will have plenty of play, tying my pieces to defend from promotion while white can possibly attack elsewhere (maybe the King). If I exchange queens I will make things more concrete, reducing white's options to just creating a passed pawn. Here's my plan: block the c pawn from advancing with a rook (probably with the pawn on c6). At first it will appear a little passive but then comes the key difference: I can activate my King easily while white has problems in doing so. I thought I could win the c pawn in this way (active king + active rook on the d-file and blocking rook on c-file vs. active rook on b-file + protecting rook on c-file + passive king).
It is important to leave black's a pawn on a7 so that b6 is taboo for a white rook to support the c6 pawn.

This was my plan starting from move 27...Qxc2. Around move 39.Re8+ I realized that I could not capture the pawn because the black king can always be checked while trying to reach d6 or I could capture the pawn but lose the a7 pawn (which could be quite dangerous!) even though my rook could come to the c2 and eventually to a2 (controlling the a pawn from behind and cutting off the king.

So I began thinking of a similar but better plan: infiltrate my king on white's kingside after some checks (or not), then capture the c6 pawn which cannot be defended anymore because of white's rook on the 8th rank but at the cost of the a7 pawn. The difference is not going immediately for the pawn trade c6 for a7 before the black king is totally activated.
I must admit white did not play the best moves (like 49. Kf1, better was 49. h4+ setting up the best pawn formation and setting a trap: if 49. Kg4 Ra6 50. f4 Rxg6+ and white wins) and blundered with 51. a6?? (white should have played 51. Ra6 but it's not easy to see). Black returned the favor with 53...g5?? (correct was Kf3 threatening mate, which I saw of course) not realizing that when white will capture on g5 the other pawns f5 & h5 are on the same rank making it easy for white. Black thought that he could delay threatening mate (he has 'nearly' all the time he wants) and get his pawns closer to promotion in view of the capture of the a7 pawn.
It's incredible how just one move, 51. a6?? for white, throws away the draw and one move for black, 53...g5?? for white, a much much easier move to make than black's 51st move, throws away the win!

Was the queen exchange a good idea together with the 2 step plan I had in mind (ok it's maybe the only plan available, but I liked how I saw that at first I black might look passive and slightly worse but later he could activate more than black, especially with his king? If not what might have been a good plan with the queens on the board?

Hi, Dennis!

I am currently trying the new openning against 1. e4 and it is the Paulsen System of the Sicilian. Here is one of my games I played on the playchess server. The openning stage was horrible, but I think in the middelgame despite of the blunder on the move 28 I played well.

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 a6 5.c4 Nc6 6. Nc3 Bb4 7. a3 Ba5 8.b5 Bc7 9. b5 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Nf6 11. e5 Ng8 12.Be2 Ne7 13.g4 Ng6 14. f4 d6 15. Qe3 dxe5 16.f5 exf5 17.gxf5 Bxf5 18. Bb2 Qh4+ 19.Qf2 Qxf2+. 20. Kf2 0-0. 21. Nd5 Bd6 22. Bf3 e4 23. Bg2 axb5 24. cxb5 Nh4 25. Bf1 Bc5+ 26. Kg3 Ng6 27.Bc4 Bg6+ 28. Kf2 Ne5 (???) 29. Ne3 Ng4+ 30. Nxg4 Bxg4 31. Ke3 Bf5 32. Bd5 Bc5+ 33. Kf4 g6 34. Rae1 Ra4 35.Bxb7 Bxa3 36. Bxa3 Rxa3 37. Bxe4 Bxe4 38. Rxe4 Rb3 39.Re5 Rb8 40. Re7 R3xb5 41. Rhe1 Rf5+ 0-1

Hiho Dennis!
Yesterday, there was a team match taking place at our club, which we gratefully won 6-2 to give us the second place over the winter.
My game seemed to be pretty nice, because even in the analysis we did'nt really find mistakes on my opponents part, despite maybe putting his bishop on the wrong diagonal. Also, my question is whether my maybe a little too hasty kingside attack was justified or not, and if not what I should have done else to improve me position.

[Event "Emscherliga"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2009.12.20"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Pütter, Pascal"]
[Black "Wendt, Peter"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "1790"]
[BlackElo "1632"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[WhiteTeam "Schwarz-Weiß Oberhausen"]
[BlackTeam "SG Gladbeck"]
[TimeControl "300"]

1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Be2 O-O
6. Be3 c6 7. Qd2 b5 8. a3 a5 9. O-O Bb7 10. e5 dxe5 11. Nxe5 Nbd7 12. f4 e6 13.
Bf3 Qc7 14. g4 Nb6 15. f5 exf5 16. Bf4 Qc8 17. gxf5 Nbd5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Bxd5
cxd5 20. Bh6 f6 21. Bxg7 Kxg7 22. Ng4 g5 23. h4 Qc7 24. Rf3 h6 25. Nxh6 Kxh6
26. hxg5+ Kg7 27. gxf6+ Kf7 28. Qh6 Rg8+ 29. Kf1 Qc4+ 30. Rd3 Qxc2 31. Qh7+
Kxf6 32. Qh6+ Kf7 33. Qe6+ Kf8 34. Qf6+ Ke8 35. Qe6+ {0} Kf8 36. Qf6+ Ke8 37.
Re1+ Kd7 38. Qf7+ Kc8 39. Qxg8+ Kc7 40. Rc3+ Qxc3 41. Qf7+ Kb6 42. bxc3 1-0

time controll was 120/40 and 1/rest of the game. This is also the reason why I repeated moves once, I just wanted to be one move nearer to the controll as my clock was hardly showing anything.

regards,

Sengi

[Event "Team match"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2009.12.06"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Fahlberg, Kenneth"]
[Black "Bergström, Jakob"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A87"]
[WhiteElo "1739"]
[BlackElo "2050"]
[Annotator "Bergstrom,Jakob"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2010.01.10"]
[SourceDate "2010.01.10"]
[WhiteTeam "Fagervik-Sundsvall"]
[BlackTeam "Kungstornet"]

1. d4 f5 2. c4 d6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 g6 5. g3 Bg7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Qe8 8. d5 a5
9. Qc2 Na6 10. a3 c6 11. Be3 {What to do against this plan? Help.} Bd7 12. Na4
c5 13. Nb6 Rb8 (13... Ra7 is better) 14. Bd2 a4 15. Ng5 Nc7 16. Ba5 Na8 17. Nxd7
Qxd7 18. Ne6 Rf7 19. Nxg7 Kxg7 20. Bc3 Kg8 21. Bxf6 exf6 22. Bh3 b5 23. e4 bxc4
24. exf5 g5 {My defence his boxed in bishop.} 25. f4 h6 26. fxg5 hxg5 27. Rae1
Rh7 28. Bg4 Nc7 29. Re3 Re8 30. Rfe1 Re5? 31. Qxc4 Rxe3 32. Rxe3 Re7 33. Rxe7
Qxe7 34. Qxa4 Qe1+ 35. Kg2 Qd2+ 36. Kh3 Qd3 {He had seconds on his clock and I
gambled that he would not find Qd1.} 37. Kg2 Qxd5+ 38. Bf3 Qxf5 39. Qc6 Qc2+
40. Kh3 Qf5+ 41. Kg2 Qc2+ 42. Kh3 Qh7+ 1/2-1/2

I like to play the Leningrad as black and mostly it serves me well. However, there is a plan that crops up that I really don't have a clue of what to do against. This is my most recent encounter facing this plan. Should I give up the Leningrad? Help.
/kind regards.

Bayes,

For both convenience and because your curiosity about the game seems focused on the opening, I'm going to cover it in my next Viewer Questions (rather than Viewer Games) presentation. I'm about to record it now, and it should be up by the end of the week.

If you could, this game was played at 30 min time control at my last chess club meeting. I feel like I am having a hard time generating an initiative against players in the class B range even though I think I can hang with them most of the time. My annotations here are fairly weak, I'll cut and paste the pgn and show the viewer. I am most interested in your thoughts on the possible pawn breaks in this game, as I felt that d5, c5 and maybe even e5 were all possible at different points, but in the end my indecision allowed white to push through and gain an initiative despite his weaker position out of the opening. Thanks!




[Event "rated standard match"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Reggie Best"]
[Black "Jordan Whistler"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "1664"]
[BlackElo "1512"]
[ECO "E14"]
[TimeControl "1800"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. e3 Bb7 5. Bd3 {d5, c5 and Be7 are the most
common moves for black in this position. Instead I followed the general
principle of establishing a piece on e4, with f5 to follow.} Ne4 6. Nbd2 Bb4
{Pinning the knight. This is where the game starts to go off into it's own
territory. After 6. Nbd2 see game Liberzon-Miles, Malta 1980. I played this
move as a result of sort of mixing up queen's indian ideas with
bogo/nimzo-indian moves.} 7. a3 Bxd2+ {Maybe slightly better is Nxd2 which
doesn't leave white with the bishop pair, as after 7. ... Nxd2 8. Nxd2 Bxd2+
9. Bxd2 Bxg2 is possible.} 8. Bxd2 O-O 9. O-O d6 {Preparing the c5 break.}
10. Qe2 Nd7 {Heading to f6 to reinforce e4 after playing f5. Maybe slightly
better is the immediate c5 or f5.} (10. ... c5 ) 11. Rac1 {A slightly passive
move, preparing to play b4 and c5.} f5 {Reinforcing control of e4 and perhaps
allowing Rf6 ideas or Qf6-g6 in the future.} 12. Bc3 {Moving the bishop to a
more active square where after d5 it will aim at the g7 pawn.} Nxc3 $2 {A
poor decision, removing blacks best piece from the board. Better is to leave
the knight on e4, while bring the other knight from d7 to g4 via f6.} 13.
Rxc3 Nf6 {Headed to e4.} 14. Rfc1 Ne4 15. R3c2 {Withdrawing the rook, as
after Bxe4 fxe4 and Qf6 black will have strong pressure on the f file.} Rc8
16. b4 Ba6 $2 {I miscalculated during the game and thought I couldn't play c5
myself, so I tried to prevent white from playing c5. The idea is that after
17. c5 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 bxc5 19. bxc5 dxc5 the d pawn will be pinned to the
queen for some sort of future tactic.} 17. Bxe4 {Doubling blacks pawns.} (17.
c5 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 bxc5 19. bxc5 dxc5 ) fxe4 18. Nd2 d5 {Trying to force c5. I
missed that white can play b5 here.} 19. b5 Bb7 20. c5 Ra8 {Removing the rook
to allow Bc8 after c6 by white. Then black will try for Qe7 and e5 to free
the bishop.} 21. cxb6 {I was surprised by this move.} cxb6 22. Rc7 Bc8 $2 {A
horrible move. Rc8 was possible but I missed it.} 23. Qg4 Rf7 {Better is Qf6
activating the queen.} 24. Rxf7 Kxf7 25. Qf4+ Qf6 26. Rc7+ Kg8 27. Qxf6 $2
{Much better is Qd6 threatening Qc6.} gxf6 28. Nf1 a6 {Hoping to activate the
bishop via a6.} 29. bxa6 {Better is Ng3, heading to h5 with strong threats.}
Bxa6 30. Rc6 Bxf1 $2 {Better is Bc4 hitting the a3 pawn or Rc8 trading down.}
31. Kxf1 Rxa3 32. Rxb6 Kf7 {Also playable is Ra1+} 33. g3 f5 34. Rb7+ Kg6 35.
Re7 Ra6 36. Kg2 h5 37. Kh3 Kg5 38. Kg2 Rb6 39. h4+ Kg6 40. Re8 Ra6 41. Re7
Rb6 {Draw agreed.} 1/2-1/2

[White "Montresor 1815"]
[Black "Fortunato 1712"]
[Opening "Danish gambit"]
[ECO "C21"]

1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Bc4 Nc6 5.Nf3 d6 6.Nxc3 Nf6 7.Ng5 Ne5 8. Bb3 h6 9.f4 hxg5 10.fxe5 Ng4 11.e6 Ne5 12. exf7+ Nxf7 13. Bxf7+ Kxf7 14.O-O+ Kg6 15. Qb3 Be7 16. Qf7+ Kh6 17. Nd5 Re8 18. b3 c6 19. Bb2 Bf6 20.Bxf6 gxf6 21.Rxf6+
1-0

I am playing the black pieces so if this is good enough to make it into your video analyze this from black's point of view.

[White "1810"]
[Black "1761"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Opening "Scotch gambit"]
[ECO "C44"]
[NIC "SO.06"]
[Time "19:52:15"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. c3 d3 6. Qxd3 d6 7. a4 a5 8. O-O Nge7
9. Bg5 O-O 10. Nbd2 Be6 11. Nd4 Bxc4 12. Nxc4 Qd7 13. Nb3 Ba7 14. Kh1 h6 15. Bh4 f5
16. f4 fxe4 17. Qxe4 d5 18. Ne5 Qe6 19. Qe2 Ng6 20. Bg3 Rf5 21. Rae1 Re8 22. Qb5 Ngxe5 23. fxe5 Rxf1+ 24.Rxf1 Bb6 25. Re1 Rd8 26. Nd4 Nxd4 27. cxd4 Bxd4 28. Qxb7 Qb6
29.Qxb6 Bxb6 30. Rf1 Rf8 31.Rf3 Rd8 32. Bf2 d4 33. Rd3 Kf7 34. Kg1 Ke6 35. Bg3 c5 36. b3 Bc7 37. Kf2 Bxe5 38. Bxe5 Kxe5 39. Ke2 Kd5 40. Rg3 Re8+ 41. Kd2 g5 42. Rf3 Rb8 43. Rf5+ Ke4 44. Rxc5 Rxb3 45. Rxa5 Rb2+ 46. Kd1 Rxg2 47. h4 gxh4 48. Rh5 Kd3 49. Ke1 Ra2 50. Rxh4 Ra1+ 51. Kf2 Rxa4 52. Rxh6 Kd2 53. Rc6 Ra8 54. Re6 Rf8+ 55. Kg2 d3 56.Re7 Kd1 57. Re6 d2 58. Re7 Rf5 59. Rc7 Ke2 60. Re7+ Kd3 61. Rd7+ Ke3 62.
Re7+ Kd4 0-1

Hi Dennis! Here is one game I played on chess.com that ended today, and I think it was pretty awesome. Haven't checked it with Fritz/Rybka yet, but I'd really really love to know if there has been a faster win than just baling out to the endgame a pawn up (which was, as I thought, indeed winning, but took quite some time). It's just like that you analyze the position on a board where you can move the pieces around and try some crazy stuff, that, in the end, even works, but my opponent defended very nicely (I thought that he'd be mated and overlooked his response, sadly.)
All in all, well....Here is the game

[Event "European League 2009 Round 3: Latvia vs Germany - Board 6"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2009.12.11"]
[White "kaupeenslaupiitaajs"]
[Black "Sengi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2131"]
[BlackElo "2192"]
[TimeControl "1 in 3 days"]
[Termination "Sengi won by resignation"]

1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Nge2 g6 4.g3 Bg7 5.Bg2 d6 6.d3 e6 7.Be3 Nge7 8.Qd2 Nd4 9.O-O-O Qb6 10.Rhe1 Nec6
11.Bh6 O-O 12.Bxg7 Kxg7 13.a3 Bd7 14.Kb1 a5 15.Qf4 Nb4 16.axb4 axb4 17.Nxd4 bxc3 18.Nb3 Ra1+ 19.Kxa1 Qxb3 20.Qf6+ Kxf6
21.e5+ dxe5 22.cxb3 c2 23.Bxb7 cxd1=R+ 24.Rxd1 Rb8 25.Be4 Rxb3 26.Rc1 Rb5 27.Kb1 Ke7 28.Rc3 f5 29.Bf3 g5 30.h3 Ra5
31.Ra3 Ra4 32.Kc2 Kd6 33.Kc3 Bb5 34.Rxa4 Bxa4 35.Kc4 Bc6 36.Bxc6 Kxc6 37.g4 Kd6 38.Kb3 Kd5 39.Kc3 e4 40.dxe4+ fxe4
41.Kc2 Kd4 42.Kd2 e5 43.Ke2 e3 0-1

I didn't intend for there to be a follow-up game, but since I made it into the video and I just played the same opponent with the same colors I thought I would post a part 2. Also, it sounded like you weren't getting many viewer games anymore so here's another one. This one has attack, an endgame, time trouble, but also some mistakes no doubt. So it could be interesting enough for a video.

You mentioned how I didn't really "wall-up" my opponent in the game, but this time I pretty much did. Once my pawn got to e6 is entombed his king and did not allow his pieces on the queenside to come to his rescue, or let his king flee. Because of this I got a great attack that was almost certainly winning very quickly, but unfortunately I ended up letting his king get out and coming out with a worse game. He was in bad time trouble (down to about 2 minutes with 30 second increment) and I outplayed him in the rook endgame that turned into pawn endgame. This game would have been a lot more fitting if I didnt mess up my attack and I crushed him, but since I did that it offers an endgame to learn from and the "good guy" won in the end anyway!

I wasn't planning on having any annotations but I already entered them in the pgn file for someone else and I didn't want to delete them all. Maybe you can use them if this makes it into a video, but usually you just do your own thing anyway.

[Date "2010.03.13"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Montresor 1826"]
[Black "Fortunato 1676"]
[Opening "Sicilian: dragon, Yugoslav attack, 9.Bc4"]
[ECO "B77"]
[NIC "SI.18"]


1. e4 c5
{This came as a little bit of a surprise to me. He always plays the danish
with me. He has tried this in chess club against me but with no success so this was a surprising decision.}
2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3
{The alternative I think is Be2 with 0-0 and plans to play f4 and f5.}
O-O 8. Bc4
{I couldn't remember if Bc4 or Qd2 comes first. I felt this was more
accurate since Qd2 cannot be prevented.}
Nc6 9. Qd2 Re8
{Normally they dont play Re8 so fast and it allows Bh6 trading the bishops.
I wasn't quite sure how to handle this but I thought I could play about the
same way.}
10. O-O-O Bd7 11. h4
{I wonder if i should play Bh6 first and then h4, since then he cannot stop
h5.}
h5
{This move is sometimes good and sometimes bad here. I'm not sure here but I
wouldn't play this as black, I would play Rc8 starting my own play.}
12. Bh6 Bh8
{The problem i was worried about with Re8, after Bh6 he just plays Bh8.}
13. Nxc6
{!? This was an interesting idea. I wanted to play Qg5 threatening Qxg6 but
he would have Ne5 after Qg5.}
Bxc6 14. e5
{! I think this move is very good. I was planning on playing Qg5 now, but
then he has e6. Now if he plays dxe5 I play Qg5 with tempo (attacking the
queen) and then Qxg6 is unstoppable.}
d5 15. Bd3 {My position is already very good. He is in a big trouble.} Nh7
{If Nd7 e6.}
16. e6
{! This pawn is very annoying for him. Now it forces weaknesses in his
castle position and I have a strong attack to follow. If I had to guess I
would say black is already lost.}
f5
{The pawn on e6 is so strong that is makes it impossible for his pieces to
come from the queenside to help defend his king. Also it prevents his king
from running away.}
17. g4
{?! This is a good move but it should be prepared. I missed his next move.
If I play Rdf1i prevent his next moves that wins material and g4 cannot be
prevented. He is just dead.}
d4
{! After g4 I thought he was just going to get crushed but I missed this
move. Now I have to give up material but my attack is still very strong.}
18. Ne2 Bxf3 19. gxf5 Bxh1 20. Rxh1 {! Instead of fxg6 which blocks the g
file.} Bg7 21. Rg1 Nf8
{His king is just trapped where it is and he has no pieces to defend.}
22. Bxg7 Kxg7 23. Nf4
{? This is a mistake. I missed his next move. I should have played Qg5! The
point of Qg5 is that is blocks the kings escape and Nf4 is coming and i dont
see how he can stop my attack.}
Kf6
{!? The king doesn't want to be in the center normally but he is dead on the
kingside so he tries to escape.}
24. Nxg6
{? This is another bad move. I should have played Qe2 (the king cant escape)
and then Nxg3 next! The reason I didnt play Qe2 is because of Qd6 attacking
the f4 knight but after Nxg3 its still defended and after 24.Qe2 Qd6 25.
Nxg6 Nxg6 I play Rxg6+ and his queen doesnt have time for any attacks on
f4.}
Nxg6
{Now I'm in trouble. I let him escape my great attack and i was down the
exchange for it so I needed it to work.}
25. fxg6
{Since my attack is pretty much over since i cant stop his king from running
away, instead of Rxg6+ i make a passed pawn to play g7 and Bh7 winning back
my exchange.}
Kxe6 {Now I think I am worse but with my g pawn i still have threats.} 26.
Qf4
{?! Probably a bad move. This allows him to bring his queen out with tempo
since I really dont want to trade queens. I should have played g7 but I
tried to make some threats because he only had 1 min left, with 30 second
increment, and i had 15 min.}
Qd5 27. b3 Qe5
{I dont want to trade queens so this is an annoying move. My position has
gotten bad but he is low on time so I knew i still had chances.}
28. Qf7+ Kd6 29. Kb2 {Qe3+ ideas were not very nice for me} Rf8 30. Qc4 Qc5
31. g7 {! Now I get my exchange back so I'm all right.} Qxc4 32. Bxc4 Rg8
33. Bxg8 Rxg8
{This is probably a draw now because even though i have an annoying pawn on
g7 he has a strong e pawn.}
34. Kc1 e5 35. Kd2 Ke6
{? This helps me a lot. I didnt have a lot of time to find the truth of this
position but now I liked my position. I think he has to play e4 here. My
idea after e4 was to play c3 and weaken those pawns up, but black probably
has a resource that I couldnt see in the time rush.}
36. Kd3
{Now My position is just very good and i think winning. His rook cannot move
anywhere and the only way he can revive it is to move his king away from the
center, which my king will gladly go.}
Kf6 37. Ke4 {The ideal position for me.} Ke6 38. Rg6+ Kf7 39. Rg5
{He cannot take the g7 pawn otherwise i am simply won in the pawn engame. I
do some rook maneuvers to try win a pawn.}
Kf6 40. Rf5+
{I could take Rxh5 and after Rxg7 take on e5 but im not so sure that is
winning. I'm better and have chances but I didnt want to release his tied
down position yet.}
Kg6 {If Ke6 i take on e5 with check so this seems forced, but now i win
simply.} 41. Rxe5
{Now no matter which way he takes i trade rooks. If he doesnt take it I play
Rg5 again and he is lost.}
Rxg7 42. Rg5+ Kh6 43. Rxg7 Kxg7 44. Kxd4 Kf6 45. Ke4 b6 46. Kf4
{Now I just need to create a passed pawn or get him in zugzwang. If his king
moves the h5 pawn is lost.}
a5 47. a3 {a4 also wins by zugzwang but why not create a passed pawn?} b5
48. c4
{This wins but easiest was c3 followed by a3. After this he can play a4 and
create a passed pawn. My king can stop it but why even deal with that? So
best way to win was 47.a4 or 48. c3 and then a4.}
1-0

Heres a game I played (120 mins for each of us), Im unclear on some of the opening, I was going for a Keres attack, and wasnt sure if I did everything right. Also the ending tactics are nice, plus I think 18 Rg5 is one of my best moves ever (stops b4 and a5 moves), so showing it off is what I want to do.

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bc4
e6 7. Bb3 Be7 8. g4 h6 9. Rg1 Nc6 10. Be3 Qc7 11. h4 h5 12. gxh5 Nxh5 13. Bg5
Qb6 14. Nxc6 Qxc6 15. Bxe7 Kxe7 16. Qd2 b5 17. O-O-O Bb7 18. Rg5 Nf6 19. f3
Rxh4 20. Rxg7 Rh7 21. Rxh7 Nxh7 22. Nd5+ exd5 23. Bxd5 Qc7 24. Bxb7 Qxb7 25.
Qxd6+ Ke8 26. Rg1 f6 27. Qe6+ Qe7

Hey Dennis

After
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 exd4
I went for
4.c3
with the idea of
4...dxc3 5.Bc4 cxb2 6.Bxb2
in order to get a quick development and a danish-like position.
6...Nc6?
So here we are. After the danish (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Bc4 cxb2 5.Bxb2), I thought 5...Nc6 was a rather ambitious, almost careless move which leaves black with a bunch of attacks against his king - so, is it any good here?
7.O-O
I'm not so sure about 7.Qb3 or 7.Nc3, seems a bit precipitant - or am I wrong?

So, what are blacks lines after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3 dxc3 5.Bc4 cxb2 6.Bxb2 and with which moves can white in each case keep the tension?

The game went on with
7...h6 8.Nc3 a6
so I think it can't be representative for this opening; black is just ignoring his problems.
9.Qb3
and all he then found defending f7 was
9...Be6
which I saw beforehand would loose the b-pawn after
10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.Qxb7
- or am I wrong? Any ideas for black after 11.Qxb7 that would make you rather grab the e-pawn with white? Or was Be6 only second best?

After the doubtful a6 and h6, is it a good idea to go for a manoevre such as 9.Qb3, intending to win back material, or should white keep developing and prepare a mating attack? Any guidelines when to pressure and when to pause in this gambit?

Some more moves:
11...Na5 12.Qb4 c5 13.Qa4+ Kf7 14.Rad1 e5 15.Nxe5+ Ke6 16.Nc6 Qb6 17.Nxa5 Qxb2 18.Qc4+ Kd7, and after 19.Qxc5
my opponent blundered
19...Qxa2 and resigned.

Did I miss something during the last ten moves? I don't think it was sharp play, but was it okay at least? Or did I indeed offer a defence somewhere?

I hope you like this game although it's not of high quality.
Thank you in advance!
Raphael

Hey dennis:
I've decided to play a system against the bird's opening, by playing h5-h4 and opening up the kingside. It's just the reasoning that g3 is significantly weakened because of f2-f4. In this game I tried to play Bg4, Qd7 0-0-0 and h5-h4-hxg3 but in the end he forced me to castle kingside or play Rf8. After that I blundered a pawn in an approximately equal position and offered him a draw. He declined but since he was low on time he started hanging stuff and lost.
My question is, is this system (h7-h5-h4-h3-xg3, Bg4, Qd7, 0-0-0) a good idea?

[Date "2008.07.20"]
[Round "2"]
[White "H@mer, Greg 1871"]
[Black "Cridl@nd, Gr@h@m 1794"]
[Opening "Sicilian: Rossolimo"]
[ECO "B30"]


(8) H@mer,Greg (1871) - Cridl@nd,Gr@h@m (1794) [B30]
Pacific Coast Open (2), 20.07.2008

This game was played in the second round of the Pacific Coast Open, and my opponent was the rating favorite in the slower schedule of the tournament. My second Black in a row, I immediately ended up in discouraging circumstances. 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 e6 4.0–0 Nge7 My usual response to the Rossolimo. If 4 Bxc6 dxc6 Black has no problems. 5.c3 a6 6.Bxc6?! The obvious choice, since otherwise why did White play Bb5 anyway? However, after 6 Be2, White has given up a single tempo and misplaced the Black knight on e7. In addition, a7-a6 isn't the most useful move in a "Sicilian" where White has no knights on c3 and d4. Note that 6 Ba4 b5 and ...c4 prevents White from setting up his intended center. 6...Nxc6 7.d4 d5 Anything else is a concession, but I really was not enjoying the opposition of king and rook on the e file. In fact Black has little to fear, but offering multiple pawn trades in the center required some calculation. In some lines, White can get a quick attack after pushing an (often isolated) pawn on d4 to d5. 8.Re1 Be7?! Allowing the line that follows. I remain convinced that the ending is O.K. for Black, but 8.dxe4 would have avoided the ending. 8. cxd4 may be playable as well, but it looks a little bit fishier: (8...cxd4 9 exd5 Qxd5 10 cxd4 Be7 11 Nc3 Qd6 12 Re4 intending Bf4 with possibly a good intiative – this is that line with d4-d5...) (8...dxe4 9 Rxe4 Be7 10 Nbd2 cxd4 11 Nxd4 0-0 12 Nxc6 bxc6 =ish). 9.dxc5 dxe4 10.Qxd8+ Nxd8 11.Rxe4 Bxc5 I evaluated this ending as being basically equal after the preceding exchanges. This isn't wrong, but it turned out very nicely for Black for all the obvious reasons (extra central pawn, two bishops). White's lead in development is essentially optical, as it is far from clear what the Re4 is supposed to be doing. The center is open, which favors Black's bishops (once they become active). 12.b4?! What on earth was this move? I had not considered it as a response to the forcing line ending in ...Bxc5, but the best square for the bishop seemed obvious so I flashed out the response and then started looking for a line that would unravel before White's queenside pawns rolled down the board. White's alternatives are: [12.Rg4 Kf8 (12...e5!? 13.Rxg7 Ne6 14.Rg3 e4 15.Nh4©) 13.Rc4 Be7=; 12.Nbd2 Other "normal" moves are also met by ...f6 12...f6 13.Re1 e5=] 12...Be7 13.Bb2? White puts the remaining Bishop on the long diagonal and prepares c4-c5. I thought for a while here (about fifteen minutes), and finally came up with an ambitious plan to keep all of White's pieces bottled up. The alternative was ...0–0: 13...f6! Black expands in the center and blunts both the Nf3 and the Bb2. The risk is that White can threaten to sacrifice on e5 at some point, but that point never comes along and White is forced to return to his Queenside play with limited maneuverability [13...0–0 14.a3 b6 15.Re1 Nc6 16.c4 Bb7 17.Nc3 Rfd8 18.Rac1 Bf6 19.Ba1=] 14.Nbd2 e5 15.Rae1 Bf5 16.R4e3 Nc6 I had seen this far when I played ...f6, and though that Black had a good game. In fact, White is already seriously worse. 17.a3 0–0–0 [17...0–0 18.c4 Rfd8 19.Rc1 b6 20.Ne4 Rac8 21.Nc3 Be6 22.Na4 Rb8 23.Re2] 18.c4 Bd6?! Black overprotects ...e5, fearing ghosts (I spent substantial time looking at all the ways things could sacrifice themselves on the e5 square. Nothing ever works, but there are mistakes to be made - for instance, where the bishop on e7 could hang.), and repositions the bishop to the Queenside. I don't see a problem with this plan, but there is a line which forcefully executes on the advantage: [18...Rd3 19.b5 Rxe3 20.Rxe3 Nd8 21.Nd4 Be6 with an edge.] After the game, I was kicking myself for playing the move that maintains the advantage, rather than the move that makes progress. 19.Nb3 Bc7 20.b5? Now that the a5 square is under Black's control, this just weakens the queenside. 20...Na5! 21.Rc1 Nxb3 22.Rxb3 Rd3 Possibly even stronger was: [22...Rd7 (...Rd6 is similar) 23.h3 Rhd8–+] 23.Rxd3 Bxd3 24.a4 Rd8 25.Ne1 Bf5 [25...Be2!?] 26.Bc3 Kb8 27.c5 Rd5 (clearing the way) 28.b6 Bd8 29.Bb2 Kc8 30.Nf3 Kd7 31.Kf1 Kc6 32.Ke2 Be7 33.a5 Rxc5 34.Bc3 Kb5 35.h3 Rc6 36.g4 Bg6 37.Kd2 Bb4 Here White lost on time. Black is winning easily. 0–1

Here's the question, Dennis. First of all, what do you think of the plan with ...f6? But more to the point, what should I have been -thinking- about both before and after the transposition to the ending/queenless middlegame after 8...Be7? Apart from the obvious tactical considerations, how do you evaluate positions and transpositions and (for instance) should I have gone for the ending without seeing ...f6 in advance?

Last question: at what point did you consider the game "won" for black?