tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89732002024-03-13T23:03:12.581-04:00C's ChessCraighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.comBlogger237125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-45441345337858764792011-09-18T19:32:00.002-04:002011-09-18T19:35:11.460-04:00Actually went to a tournament2.5/5...didn't play very well, but played well enough to win some points. the only "clean" win was my round 3 game...ahven't thrown them into fritz or looked at the book yet. the losses were against a master and an expert so i can't be disappointed in that. The VD game was weak but it was the 5th G/40 in a day and i haven't played a tournament since 2008 so i was tired by the end...<br /><br />ZK(2252) - C [B12]<br /> September Active London, ON (1), 17.09.2011<br /> <br />1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be3 Nd7 6.Nbd2 Ne7 7.Nb3 c5 8.dxc5 Nc6 9.Nfd4 Nxd4 10.Nxd4 Bg6 11.c6 bxc6 12.Nxc6 Qc7 13.Bb5 a6 14.Ba4 Be7 15.0-0 Kf8 16.Nxe7 Kxe7 17.f4 Nc5 18.Bxc5+ Qxc5+ 19.Kh1 h5 20.c3 h4 21.h3 Be4 22.Bc2 Qe3 [ 22...Bxc2 23.Qxc2] 23.Bxe4 Qxe4 24.Qe1 Qc4 [ 24...Qf5] 25.f5 g5 26.fxg6 fxg6 27.Qe3 Raf8 28.Qa7+ Ke8 29.Qb8+ Ke7 30.Qd6+ Ke8 31.Qxe6+ Kd8 32.Qd6+ Ke8 33.Qxg6+ Kd8 34.Qd6+ Ke8 35.Rfd1 1-0<br /><br />C - LM (1402) [D26]<br /> September Active London, ON (2), 17.09.2011<br /> <br />1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 a6 6.0-0 b5 7.Bd3 [ 7.Bb3] 7...Bb7 8.Nbd2 c5 9.dxc5?? The "real" queen's gambit :) 9...Qxd3 10.Ne5 Qd8 11.b4 Nbd7 12.Bb2 Nxe5 13.Bxe5 Be7 14.Qe2 0-0 15.Rfd1 Qc8 16.Rac1 Qc6 17.Nf3 h6 18.Bxf6 Bxf6 19.Rd6 Qe4 20.c6 Rac8 21.Nd2 Qxb4 22.Qd3 Ba8 23.Nb3 Be5 24.Rd4 Bxd4 25.Nxd4 Rfd8 26.Qe4 Rc7 27.h3 Rdc8 28.Qd3 Qd6 29.Qe4 Bxc6 30.Qg4 Bd5 31.Rd1 Qf8 32.Kh2 Rc1 33.Rd2 Ra1 34.e4 Bxa2 35.f4 Rcc1 36.Nf3 Rh1+ 37.Kg3 Bc4 38.Qh4 Ra3 39.Rd8 Qxd8 40.Qxd8+ Kh7 41.Qh4 Be2 42.Kf2 Bc4 43.Ne5 Ra2+ 44.Kg3 g5 45.fxg5 1-0<br /> <br />DA (1405) - C [A48]<br />September Active London, ON (3), 17.09.2011<br /><br />1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.Bg5 Bg7 4.Nbd2 d6 5.e4 0-0 6.Bc4 Bg4 7.h3 Bxf3 8.Qxf3 Nbd7 9.0-0-0 e5 10.c3 c6 11.h4 h6 12.Be3 b5 13.Bb3 a5 14.g4 a4 15.Bc2 h5 16.gxh5 Nxh5 17.Rdg1 Qa5 18.Bd1 a3 19.b4 Qd8 20.Qg2 Ndf6 21.Bb3 d5 22.exd5 Nxd5 23.Bg5 Qd6 24.Ne4 Qd7 25.Bd2 exd4 26.Nc5 Qf5 27.Bc2 Qc8 28.Bxg6 fxg6 29.Qxg6 Ndf6 30.Rg5 Qe8 31.Qd3 Rd8 32.cxd4 Rd5 33.Rhg1 Rxg5 34.Rxg5 -- 35.Rg2 Qf7 36.Kb1 Qd5 37.Bh6 Rf7 38.Rg5 Qh1+ 39.Kc2 Qa1 40.Bxg7 Qxa2+ 41.Kd1 Rxg7 42.Qf5 Qa1+ 43.Ke2 Qxd4 44.Ne6 Qe4+ 45.Qxe4 Nxe4 46.Rxh5 Re7 47.Re5 a2 48.Rxe4 a1Q 49.Rg4+ Kf7 0-1<br /> <br />i messed up third round game because i missed a move somewhere, but anyways...<br /><br />RG (1625) - C [B14]<br />September Active London, ON (4), 17.09.2011<br /><br />1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nf3 Bb4 7.Qb3 Bxc3+ 8.bxc3 0-0 9.Bd3 dxc4 10.Qxc4 b6 11.Bf4 Ba6 12.Qb3 Bxd3 13.Ne5 Ba6 14.Rd1 Bb7 15.0-0 Nbd7 16.Rfe1 Qc8 17.Re3 Nd5 18.Rf3 Nxf4 19.Rxf4 Bd5 20.Qc2 Qc7 21.Rh4 Nf6 22.g4 Be4 23.Qe2 Qe7 24.Qe3 [ 24.g5] 24...Bg6 25.Nxg6 fxg6 26.g5 Nd5 27.Qg3 Rf5 28.f4 Raf8 29.Rf1 Qc7 30.Qe1 Qd6 31.c4 Rxf4 32.Rfxf4 Rxf4?? [ 32...Nxf4] 33.cxd5 Rxh4 34.Qxh4 Qxd5 35.Qf4 Qd7 36.Qb8+ Kf7 37.Qf4+= Ke7 38.Qe5 Kd8 39.Qb8+ Ke7 40.Qe5 a5 41.Qxg7+ Kd6 42.Qe5+ Kc6 43.h4 Qd5 44.Qg7 Qd7 45.Qe5= 1/2-1/2<br /><br />C - VD(1945) [D86]<br /> September Active London, ON (5), 17.09.2011<br /><br />1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 c5 8.Be3 Qc7 9.Bb5+ [ 9.Rc1] 9...Bd7 10.Bxd7+ Nxd7 11.Ne2 0-0 12.0-0 Rad8 13.Rc1 Nf6 14.f3 e5 15.d5 Ne8 16.Qd2 Nd6 17.Bh6 Nc4 18.Qg5 f6 19.Qh4 Qa5 20.f4 Nd2 21.Rfe1 Bxh6 22.Qxh6 Nxe4 23.c4 Qd2 24.h4 Qe3+ 25.Kh2 Nf2 26.Rc3 Ng4+ 27.Kh1 Qxc3 28.Qxf8+ Kxf8 29.Nxc3 exf4 30.Ne4 Re8 31.Re2 Rxe4 0-1Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-135494834916642042011-07-22T22:47:00.002-04:002011-07-22T22:51:28.777-04:00Hide the Women and Children<b>C - K<br />G/20 Owen Sound, 22.07.2011<br />D47 - Semi-Slav, Meran Variation</b><br /><br />K owned me in this game. I thought I was winning after 14.f4 and i bet i was completely losing. We'll see. <b>1.d4 e6 2.c4 d5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 c6</b> Thematic. He wanted a Meran or Anti-Meran. Because he doesn't play the Botwinnik, and the Meran has intrigued me and terrified me on both sides, i decided to play it <b>5.e3 Nbd7 6.Bd3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5 8.Bd3 Bd6</b> [Mainlines are either <i>8...a6 ; </i><br />or <i>8...Bb7 </i> but the text is playable] <b>9.0-0 0-0 10.Qc2 <br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/p/116/1166977.gif"><br /><br />a6 11.e4? </b>Wrong idea. I shouldn't have tried to open lines as i wasn't quite set to attack [<i>11.a4 b4 12.Ne4 Nxe4 13.Bxe4</i>] <b>11...e5 12.dxe5 Nxe5 13.Nxe5 Bxe5 14.f4?</b> [I didn't even look at his next move. I thought I was winning. Something like <i>14.Ne2 -- 15.f4</i> may have been the proper way to do this, as his bishop ended up very strong on d4] <b>14...Bd4+ 15.Kh1 Ng4 16.Nd1??</b> [Again, Smyslov would never have played the text. <i>16.h3</i> giving up the exchange was better <i>16...Nf2+ 17.Rxf2 Bxf2 18.e5 Qh4 19.Bxh7+ Kh8 (19...Qxh7 20.Qxf2)</i> but i have no compensation ] <b>16...Qh4</b> [<i>16...Nxh2! 17.Kxh2 Qh4#</i>] <b>17.h3??</b> [<i>17.g3</i> was much better as my queen was covering mate] <b>17...c5</b> [<i>17...Qg3 18.hxg4 Qh4#</i> an unusual mate, but if Kirk missed it the first time, not surprising he missed it the second time.] <b>18.Be2 Nf6 19.Be3</b> [<i>19.Kh2</i>] <b>19...Bb7</b> [<i>19...Bxh3 20.gxh3 (20.Bxd4 Bg4+ 21.Kg1 cxd4) 20...Qxh3+</i>] <b>20.Bxd4 Bxe4 21.Bxf6??</b> [<i>21.Bd3 Qxh3+ 22.Kg1 Qxd3 23.Qxc5</i>] <b>21...Qxh3+ 22.Kg1 Qxg2#</b> Brutal by me, opened too many lines. No sense of fear. 1-0 He laid a good beating on meCraighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-33454214918192498872011-07-18T19:40:00.003-04:002011-07-18T19:44:58.656-04:00Warmup for London tournament<b>K - C<br />G/20 Owen Sound, 18.07.2011<br />A57 - Benko Gambit<br /><br />1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5</b> I had been going through Benko's autobiography so it was natural i would try this eventually. this was a good choice for a move in a "tune-up" game for the upcoming tournament as it would get us into relatively unfamiliar positions <b>4.Bg5</b> New to me. <b>4...d6?</b> [Too passive. After playing both sides of the Tromp for years I should have suspected that <i>4...Ne4</i> was good; <br />I wanted to play <i>4...e6</i> but I was terrified about something like <i>5.d6</i>] <b>5.Nf3 e6</b> I was trying to transpose into some sort of Blumenfeld, but basically I was floating <b>6.e4 Be7 7.Qc2 bxc4 8.Bxc4 Nxd5</b> [This was fine, but realistically if I wasn't going to win a pawn I should've just closed it down with <i>8...e5</i> ] <b>9.Bxd5</b> [<i>9.exd5 Bxg5 10.dxe6 Bxe6 11.Bxe6 fxe6</i> with sharp play would have suited Kirk more] <b>9...exd5 10.Bxe7 Qxe7 11.0-0 0-0?</b> [and Fritz says I can get away with <i>11...dxe4 12.Re1 f5 13.Nc3 0-0</i> not greedy enough.] <b>12.exd5 Bg4</b> [Another way to go was <i>12...Na6</i> ] <b>13.Nbd2 Nd7 14.Rfe1 Qd8</b> [afterwards we took a quick look at <i>14...Qf6 15.Ne4 Qg6</i> amd Kirk thought that <i>16.Nh4</i> was good but after <i>16...Qh5 17.f3 (17.g3 Qxd5) 17...Qxh4 18.fxg4 Qxg4</i> it's all good] <b>15.Qe4 Nf6</b> [I liked the idea of <i>15...Bxf3 16.Qxf3 Nb6</i> instead of knight on f6 but i guess i have the same problem with the knight on e4 as i had on c4] <b>16.Qf4 Bxf3?</b> [Shouldn't have been so quick to exchange <i>16...Qd7</i> put more pressure on White as the queen does two things at once] <b>17.Qxf3 Qc7 18.Nc4 Rfe8 19.b3 a5</b> [Fritz liked forcing the action on the e-file with <i>19...Re7</i> ] <b>20.Qf4 Red8 21.Rad1 a4 22.Qe3 axb3 23.axb3 Re8</b> [<i>23...Qb7</i> put more pressure on with the rook defending. i wonder if i should've played <i>20. ...Rad8</i> instead or would i have run out of room] <b>24.Qf3 Rxe1+</b> [Again Fritz liked <i>24...Re7</i> ] <b>25.Rxe1 h6</b> to watch for backrank mates <b>26.h3 Rb8 27.Nd2 Qb7 28.Ne4 Nxe4 29.Rxe4 Qd7</b> [<i>29...Kf8</i> was better, keeping the threat on] <b>30.Qe3 Kf8</b> [I was worried about checks on the diagonals and i guess this would have done two things...attackd d5 and stopped the checks <i>30...Qf5</i> ] <b>31.Qd3 Re8 32.Rxe8+ Qxe8 33.Kf1 Qe5 34.Qe3? f6? </b>we both blunder in time pressure. i think i imagined by king being on e7 (i wanted him guarding the d-pawn not the queen) [<i>34...Qxd5</i> wins] <b>35.Qxe5 fxe5 36.Ke2 g5?</b> [I think that something like <i>36...g6</i> would have allowed me to try to get at the queenside, because he couldn't come through on f5] <b>37.Ke3 Kf7=</b> his flag fell somewhere around here. i started the clocks back up to 5 minutes and i pressed too hard and he ended up winning in blitz. so we'll call it a draw. interesting game...lots of poor decisions (as opposed to blunders) by me. nice tune up <i>½-½</i><br /><br />kirk got into time trouble but i would be happy with that game over the board. i felt like i was the one with the initiative and didn't give him very much. i didn't play perfectly, but i was happy enough with it as a warmup.Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-57279136922678715332011-06-04T23:45:00.002-04:002011-06-04T23:51:22.309-04:00G/25 w K<b>C - K [D35]<br />G/25 04.06.2011</b><br /><br />In preparation for a summer tournament we decided to get together and play a QGD G/25<b> 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 c6 5.cxd5</b> [I know I could play but he plays the Cambridge Springs and I don't like it<i> 5.Nf3</i> ] <b>5...exd5 6.e3 Be7 7.Bd3 0-0 8.Qc2 h6 9.Bh4 Be6 10.Nf3 Nbd7 11.0-0 Rc8</b> [I thought I had the exact same position as in a current correspondence game that I have but my memory is obviously faulty. <i>11...Re8 12.Bg3 Nh5 13.Be5 Bg4 14.Ne1 Nhf6 15.h3 Be6 16.f4</i> etc] <b>12.Ne5</b> [If I wanted to try something like this maybe <i>12.h3 Re8 13.Ne5 Nxe5 14.dxe5 Nd7 15.Bg3 Nc5</i>] <b>12...Nxe5 13.dxe5 Ng4</b> The first of many oversights this game...dropping a pawn <b>14.Bg3 Qc7</b> [Fritz liked <i>14...Bh4</i> better, stopping anything funny] <b>15.Qe2?</b> [<i>15.Be2!</i> was better. I didn't even look at this because I didn't realize my Bd3 was attacked; <br />After the game we looked at <i>15.Bf5 Nxe5</i> but it had the same problems] <b>15...Nxe5 16.Bc2</b> [Shoudl have put some pressure on him <i>16.Rac1</i> ] <b>16...Bd6 17.f4 Bg4!</b> Not sure if it was the best move but i definitely overlooked it <b>18.Qf2</b> [<i>18.fxe5 Bxe2 19.exd6 Qb6 20.Nxe2</i>] <b>18...Nc4 19.b3 Na3</b> Despite the material (and looming pin) I thought I was still good mainly because of this awful knight. <b>20.Bd3 Rfe8 21.Ne2?</b> [K thought that <i>21.Kh1</i> was good] <b>21...Bxe2 22.Bxe2?</b> [<i>22.Qxe2 Bc5 23.Bf2</i> etc] <b>22...Bc5 23.f5 Qb6 24.Kh1 Nc2 25.f6 Nxe3 26.Qf3 Nxf1 27.Rxf1 g6 28.Bd3 Re3 29.Qf4??</b> [Short on time I missed <i>29.Qg4!</i> saving the game as it gains me a tempo since the rook is attacked] <b>29...Rxd3 30.Qxh6 Bf8! 31.Qf4 Qd4 32.Qg5 Rd1</b> yes i got run over (badly) but it was nice to play. i'm impressed how much effort K has put into this 0-1<br /><br />any ideas on a good line v. mainlain Scandinavian? That was something else that came up in conversation...let me know :)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-26817373720839393082011-05-23T19:48:00.002-04:002011-05-23T19:50:11.854-04:00I'm flatteredI was flattered to receive this email today<br /><br /><i>Gentlemen<br /> <br />Hope you are well! I've been informed that the 10th Pan/Am Team Tournament is being organized this year, by CADAP (the South American CC zone). I'm contacting all those players who played for Canada on our two teams in the 9th Pan/Amm TT, plus have extended invitations to all those that seem to be most of our other top players and that are still relatively active. It seems the start date is some time in July, but I believe if more time is needed this will be pushed up to August or September. Also, Canada, once again has been given the opportunity to form two teams if we wish. This is in case, however, they need more teams in order to put together the event. This event will be played on the ICCF Webserver, like last time. <br /> <br />Naturally I will try to put together the strongest team(s) possible. I also realize that some of you already have heavy commitments in other events. And I understand this. If you're interested in playing, please let me know one way or the other, asap! Thanks.<br /> <br />Best wishes</i><br /><br />we'll see if anything comes of it. i'm very excited and honoured to even be mentioned. i am planning on playing a tournament with K this summer (dusting off my OTB "skillz") hopefully in London but we'll seeCraighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-85151691101143699592011-02-16T00:39:00.004-05:002011-02-16T00:43:16.109-05:002 more G/15s<b>C - K<br />C31 - King's Gambit Declined<br />G/15 Owen Sound (1), 16.02.2011</b><br /><br />We played 2 more G/15s tonight <b>1.e4 e5 2.f4 d5</b> I was hoping for this <b>3.exd5 Bc5 </b>[<i>3...e4 4.d3</i>] <b>4.d3</b> [I played the passive text, worrying about ...e4 instead of the aggressive <i>4.Nf3</i> ] <b>4...Bxg1?</b> Positional mistake. If he really wanted a pawn he could have grabbed the d-pawn with less trouble <b>5.Rxg1 Qh4+ 6.g3 Qxh2 7.Rg2 Qh1 8.Qe2 Bh3 9.Qxe5+ Ne7 10.Rf2 f6??</b> [<i>10...Bxf1</i> and Fritz doesn't mind his position after <i>11.Rxf1 Qxd5</i> of course...the knight isn't pinned when the queen moves.] <b>11.Qh5+</b> with a double attack. Not a real interesting game. <b>1-0<br /><br />K - C<br />A88 - Dutch : Leningrad Variation<br />G/15 Owen Sound (2), 16.02.2011<br /><br />1.g3</b> I figured he was ticked off so I'd try and transpose into something interesting as opposed to grinding him in a symmetrical KIA/KID <b>1...f5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 d6 4.Bg2 g6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Nf3 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.e3?</b> [Teh text was passive <i>8.Qc2</i> aiming for <i>8...-- 9.e4</i> was better] <b>8...Nbd7 9.Ng5</b> I didn't see this at all <b>9...Nb6 10.b3 h6</b> [Fritz recommended the immediate <i>10...e5</i> ]<b> 11.Nf3 Nbd7 12.Ba3 Qa5 13.Bb2 e5 14.Nh4 Kh7 15.Qc2 e4 16.Bh3 g5??</b> [I should have continued with locking down everything with <i>16...d5</i> like I had been planning, but I got impatient] <b>17.Nxf5?</b> [<i>17.Bxf5+ Kg8 (17...Kh8 18.Ng6+) 18.Be6+ Kh8 19.Ng6+</i>] <b>17...g4 18.Bg2 Qxf5 19.Nxe4 Kh8</b> avoiding all the checks [<i>19...d5</i> Fritz says would work as well <i>20.Nxf6+ Nxf6</i>]<b> 20.Rac1 Nxe4 21.Bxe4 Qa5 22.Bc3 Qd8 23.d5 c5 24.Qb2 Ne5! </b>blocking up everything <b>25.f4 gxf3 26.Rxf3 Nxf3+ 27.Bxf3 Bxc3 28.Qxc3+ Qf6</b> we both used a chunk of time but missed some big tactics <b>0-1</b><br /><br />not a particularly memorable evening of chess but we did get to play which is important...Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-36875277987739833472011-01-14T22:06:00.002-05:002011-01-14T22:12:24.015-05:002 games<b>C - K<br />C78 - Ruy Lopez<br />G/15 Owen Sound (1), 14.01.2011</b><br /><br />We played a couple of games at his house tonight (G/15) in preparation for the tourney on January 29th. <b>1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5</b> He asked for a Ruy Lopez <b>3...a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0</b> [If I had known that he was going to avoid the mainline I would have just played <i>5.d3</i> ] <b>5...Bc5 6.d3</b> [I chickened out. I shoudl have just played my usual <i>6.Nxe5</i> ] <b>6...b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.Bg5 d6 9.Nc3</b> [<i>9.Bd5</i>] <b>9...Nd4 10.Nd5</b> [Fritz thinks I should have played <i>10.Nxd4 Bxd4 11.Nd5</i>] <b>10...c6 11.Nxf6+ gxf6 12.Bh6 Re8</b> [He had the intermezzo <i>12...Nxb3</i> He should have been looking hader at this point] <b>13.Nxd4 exd4 14.Qf3 Kh8 15.Bxf7</b> for instance. And he resigned.<br /><br />Not a great game by him. I was happy enough...yes I didn't see anything, but I saw what little was there and played sensibly. <b>1-0</b><br /><br /><b>K - C<br />A40 - Owens Defense<br />G/15 Owen Sound (2), 14.01.2011</b><br /><br />In return I asked him to play <b>1.d4 e6</b> I had been thinking about playing this for a while so figured...why n ot? <b>2.e4</b> [If <i>2.c4</i> I could always transpose to a Queen's Indian. I was thikning about doing this from <i>1.e4 e6</i> and if <i>2.d4</i> then <i>b6</i> and if <i>2.Nf3</i> or other, going to a Sicilian] <b>2...b6?!</b> Unusual but I wanted to get K out of his comfort zone <b>3.c4 Bb7 4.Nc3</b> [<i>4.Qc2 Qh4</i> was in Silman's book based on a <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1112235">Korchnoi Candidates game</a> (!)] <b>4...Bb4</b> Pressure on the e-pawn <b>5.Bd3 f5 6.f3</b> and I think I'm already better <b>6...fxe4 7.fxe4 Bxe4?</b> [<i>7...Nf6</i> is better] <b>8.Qg4?</b> [and he blinked first <i>8.Bxe4 Qh4+ 9.Kf1</i> and he's better because <i>Bxc3</i> is no longer check and my rook is hanging] <b>8...Bxd3 9.Qxg7 Qf6 10.Qxf6 Nxf6 11.Bg5 Rf8</b> [<i>11...Ne4</i>] <b>12.0-0-0 Bxc4 13.Kb1 Bxc3 14.bxc3 Ne4</b> Another easy win and we had a couple beers, but neither one of us saw very much! <b>0-1</b>Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-40820360787013134582010-12-30T10:33:00.002-05:002010-12-30T10:34:52.719-05:002011 Chess Goalsit has been a busy year with the arrival of our twins in May. I have 2 goals for 2011 (chess wise) <br /><br />firstly, is to play in 2 tournaments. The first one me and K are aiming for is at the end of January (good start). If I can get an active in or something before end of year my goal will be complete<br /><br />secondly, is to get up to 2300 in correspondence. i am over 2200 but i think the next 100 points will be a lot harder than the last 100 :)<br /><br />happy new year everyone!Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-2474593701803094952010-11-28T21:36:00.003-05:002010-11-28T21:39:04.499-05:00big center QIDso me and K have decided to try and go to a chess tournament at the end of January since K is going to have a little k running around in the spring. so i've started playing less <a href="www.ddo.com">DDO</a> and more chess again :) I went through a couple of Rubinstein games and I saw an interesting transposition in the QGD<br /><br /><b>1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 b6</b> giving either the option of the Dutch or the Queen's Indian or something completely different. i tried it in blitz, for what it's worth, and it went okay. the way i play the Queen's Indian i go for the big center anyways. the idea with this though is that after 2.Nf3 e6 3.e3 b6 etc. it's something i'd normaly play. anyways, there's my theory for the month :)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-39245643497466785222010-11-17T22:17:00.003-05:002010-11-17T22:19:26.795-05:00correspondence chess masterso as of today at <a href="http://www.iccf-webchess.com">ICCF</a> i am a correspondence master<br /><br /><b>Rating Forecast Jan 2011 Rating 2206 <br />Games 67 <br />Calculation 90585 C 2189 from 63 games </b><br /><br />very exciting...now i just need to get there OTB :)<br /><br />also i've figured out how not to get upset when i start losing in blitz...if i tell myself i'm going through <b>nerdrage</b> that appears to calm me...we'll see how it goes<br /><br />hopefully more chess in the new year...i'd like to play a "real" tournament...time will tellCraighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-13095761832309618792010-09-01T22:11:00.002-04:002010-09-01T22:14:38.086-04:00hot theory and 1.e4 e5i'm quite impressed with <b> 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3 Qb6</b> as a sharp line for Black<br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/p/45/456435.gif"><br /><br />i used to play <b>3. ...dxe4 4.fxe4 e5</b> and get checkmated horrifically. Thank you <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1585006">Ivanchuk</a> for bringing it to my attention.<br /><br />Also, isn't it always a good idea to play <b>1.e4 e5 2.Nf3</b> and not <b>2.f4!</b> until they play the Petroff or the Philidor? :)<br /><br />I'm also interested in <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1293577">1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g5?!</a> as a lethal blitz weapon...can i use it v. <b>3.Bc4?</b> likely not :)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-65934072196103120212010-08-19T07:18:00.001-04:002010-08-19T07:19:11.488-04:00am i a boring player?in a fit of rage, i played about 25 3+0 games until 2am last night...and 2 players commented that i had a boring style or something along those lines (funny how when i lose no one ever comments). they said that i just exchanged everything off...i mentioned that it was 3+0 but that wasn't enough for them :) maybe i am boring...will have to look at my games...Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-46188505511393778792010-08-08T09:04:00.002-04:002010-08-08T09:10:05.429-04:00Tournament in September?K mentioned the idea of going to play an Active tournament in September. I am the new parent of a set of twins who were born in May and K has a baby on the way due in March 2011, so there is the chorus of "last chance for a long time". Critics will note that I haven't played a tournament since 2008 even with no kids. In any case, I think this will actually happen.<br /><br />Which leads to the inevitable question of "What to play?" Since playing Correspondence my knowledge is deeper than it is wide, and playing my tax bracket at a rated tournament it would have to be wide. I'm toying with the idea of playing <b>1.g3</b> as White and the King's Indian and Modern as Black. It's active...not much time to refute...and I've become relatively battle hardened as these have been my blitz openings (more or less) since I read <a href="http://cschess.blogspot.com/2008/07/volume-1-completed.html">Suttle's books</a><br /><br />i`m sure i will flip flop...if i`m playing in a section where there will be people rated lower than me, i could always play 1.e4, Sicilian. I will likely play King`s INdian v. everything else. In any case...more to come (hopefully!)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-2507979634923472262010-07-19T22:46:00.003-04:002010-07-19T22:50:01.810-04:00A correspondence game I'm happy withhere's a game v. a strong opponent in ICCF that i'm happy that my prep stood up<br /><br /><b>NN (C's rating + 400) - C<br />Slovenia (2) ICCF 2010 <br /><br />1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.Nf3 Nd7 7.h4 h6 8.h5 Bh7 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 Qc7 11.Rh4 e6 12.Bf4 Bd6 13.Bxd6 Qxd6 14.Ne4 Qe7 15.Qa3 Qxa3 16.bxa3 </b><br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/p311/r3k1nr_pp1n1pp1_2p1p2p_7P_3PN2R_P4N2_P1P2PP1_R3K3.gif"><br /><br />he had played this position in a previous game and I hadn't intended to play the Caro-Kann in this tournament, but I thought that, despite the fact that White has a *huge* score in this line, with the queens off Black had to be as good if not better.<br /><br /><b>16. ...Ke7 </b><br /><br />of course around this time the Anand-Topalov game took place where Anand had the doubled a-pawns and won a nice game and i was second guessing my positional judgement. <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1581333">Anand vs Topalov, 2010</a><br /><br /><b>17.Rb1 b6 18.Ne5 Nxe5 19.dxe5 f6 20.Nd2 fxe5 21.Rg4 g5 22.hxg6 h5 23.Rc4 c5 24.Nf3 Kf6 25.Re4 Ne7 26.Nxe5 Rhd8 27.Rb3 Rd4 28.Rf3+ Nf5 29.Rff4 Rd5 30.Nd3 Rg8 31.Rf3 Rd4 ½-½</b><br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/1617/6r1_p7_1p2pkP1_2p2n1p_3rR3_P2N1R2_P1P2PP1_4K3.gif"><br /><br />i held it pretty easily and may have even been better in the final position. he was the correspondence champion of Poland a couple of years ago so I was very happy with this game.Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-6270496220139403182010-04-15T22:04:00.002-04:002010-04-15T22:08:11.259-04:00draw v. a SIM<b>C - NN<br />D14 <br />Slovenia's 15 years of ICCF (2) 2010 <br /><br />1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 a6 </b>is going to an exchange slav here so bad? unfortunately i can't get any of the Bb5 lines where there is play, but I am outrated by 400 points.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/p112/rnbqkb1r_1p2pppp_p1p2n2_3p4_2PP4_2N2N2_PP2PPPP_R1BQKB1R.gif"><br /><br /><b>5.cxd5 cxd5 6.Bf4 Nc6 7.Rc1</b> [A finesse because if <i>7.e3 Bg4</i> actually works] <b>7...Bf5 8.e3 Rc8 9.Be2 e6 10.0-0 Bd6 11.Bxd6 Qxd6 12.Na4 0-0 13.Nc5 Rc7 14.Qb3 Qe7 15.Rc3 Bg4 16.Rfc1 </b><br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/p511/5rk1_1pr1qppp_p1n1pn2_2Np4_3P2b1_1QR1PN2_PP2BPPP_2R3K1.gif"><br /><br />i wonder if i shouldn't have played sharper. i was going for equality and trying to follow <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1489379">Khenkin vs Karjakin, 2008</a> Khenkin ended up drawing. <br /><br /><b>16...e5 17.dxe5 Nxe5 18.Nxe5 Bxe2 19.Na4 Rfc8 20.Rxc7 Rxc7 21.Rxc7 Qxc7 22.Qc3 Bc4 23.Nxc4 dxc4 </b><br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/4611/6k1_1pq2ppp_p4n2_8_N1p5_2Q1P3_PP3PPP_6K1.gif"><br /><br />transforming the IQP into a 3 v. 2 on the queenside. i thought if his king was a little closer he'd have some winning chances. luckily i was wrong :) <br /><br /><b>24.Qd4 Nd7 25.Nc3 b5 26.b3 =</b> and i offered a draw which he took ½-½ not a real glorious game but hey it was a titled player. it's a very strong tournament where i'm outrated by almost 400 points in every game...we'll see if i surprise some people. ir is cowardly to play the slav exchange, but hey if he just would've played a semi-slav the best i could've had was the QGD Exchange :)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-348261595587584842010-04-11T11:07:00.004-04:002010-04-11T11:16:18.040-04:00Chessbase 8 and self-improvementI am showing my age ;) but I still use Chessbase 8 for my chess database. One of my favourite features is the Dossier where it shows your repertoire and what the percentages are and what your performance rating is. Last year for instance it showed that I scored 18% with <b>1.Nf3 d5 2.g3</b> (rated purely on games from 2001). i had played 1.g3 the odd time so I decided that if, over the year i got either <b>1.g3 d5</b> or <b>1.Nf3 d5</b> i would go for the King's Indian Attack just to raise my score. And I did :) So in the interest of scientific research I decided to do the same thing...this is from my personal database of over 11000 correspondence, OTB, and blitz games.<br /><br />My lowest two as white are two of my most hated lines as White : <br /><br /><b>1.e4 e5 2.f4 d5 3.exd5 e4</b> and <b>1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.Qg4</b><br /><br />(in the interest of putting some positivity my best numbers are against <b>1.e4 e5 2.d4 d6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6</b>)<br /><br />As Black my best is surprisingly the Queen's Indian <b>1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6</b> and my worst is the Colle <b>1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.e3</b><br /><br />maybe for 2010 I'll go back to playing 1.d4 d5...i enjoy the Queen's Gambit Accepted, the Tarrasch and the Semi-Slav. And if I happen to beat some Colle's too...so be it :)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-12259169341400360282010-03-03T18:05:00.002-05:002010-03-03T18:15:53.603-05:00Slovenia's 15 years at ICCFi'm playing in my first Norm tournament. granted it's correspondence not OTB chess, but here it is. Starts March 30, 2010. I need 6.5/10 for a norm which will be quite the performance I think. i'm quite outclassed and am taking on 2 SIMs and one IM. will be interesting.<br /><br />Slovenia's 15 Years Membership of ICCF - Semif. 13 TD Pheby, Ian M. <br />Category 5 SIM=7 IM=6½ LGM=4½ LM=2½ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Score SB R Place <br />1 GER 85172 Laube, Bernd 2376 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />2 SWE 451180 Colin, Sonny 2322 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />3 GER 83546 Starke, Heiko 2365 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />4 NED 370381 Panman, Henryk J. 2361 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />5 SLO 480115 Jemec, Viktor 2376 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />6 GER 81252 SM Sielaff, Rudolf 2456 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />7 POL 429125 Slawinski, Tomasz 2470 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />8 DEN 150184 SM Nørrelykke, Svend G. J. 2408 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />9 POL 421428 Szymanski, Robert 2325 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />10 CAN 90585 C 2012 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br />11 ENG 211154 IM Shaw, Sidney S. 2398 . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 10 1 <br /><br />since the first round of this tournament i have only lost 3 games in ICCF. (8 wins, 3 losses, 12 draws) but the losses have been in the King's Indian and a Trompowsky where I grabbed a pawn prematurely and got beaten quite badly. The King's Indian losses were quite bad...i bet i get quite a few 1.d4s :) It is going to be fun. I have enrolled K as my "second" we'll see how it goes.Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-73345809404455064392010-01-23T21:54:00.003-05:002010-01-23T22:01:49.593-05:00Fischer's 60 Memorable Games<img src="http://www.chessgames.com/portraits/robertjamesfischer.jpg"><br /><br />Today I finished Fischer's 60 Memorable Games, 2008 edition, redone by Batsford in algebraic with no editorial changes. Fabulous book...highly recommended.<br /><br />Here's one of my favourite games from it...there were a lot of fabulous games, Byrne-Fischer, etc. but here's one v. Smyslov that I quite liked as it gave me a new idea as White in the Lopez if, for instance, the guy plays a line i'm not too fond of<br /><br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1008422"><br /><br /><b>Fischer - Smyslov<br />Capablanca Memorial 1965<br />C77 - Ruy Lopez</b></a><br /><br />1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 Be7<br />7. Nbd2 O-O 8. Nf1 b5 9. Bb3 d5 10. Qe2 dxe4 11. dxe4 Be6<br />12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. Ng3 Qd7 14. O-O Rad8 15. a4 Qd3 16. Qxd3<br />Rxd3 17. axb5 axb5 18. Ra6 Rd6 19. Kh1 Nd7 20. Be3 Rd8 21. h3<br />h6 22. Rfa1 Ndb8 23. Ra8 Rd1+ 24. Kh2 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Nd7 26. b4<br />Kf7 27. Nf1 Bd6 28. g3 Nf6 29. N1d2 Ke7 30. Ra6 Nb8 31. Ra5 c6<br />32. Kg2 Nbd7 33. Kf1 Rc8 34. Ne1 Ne8 35. Nd3 Nc7 36. c4 bxc4<br />37. Nxc4 Nb5 38. Ra6 Kf6 39. Bc1 Bb8 40. Bb2 c5 41. Nb6 Nxb6<br />42. Rxb6 c4 43. Nc5 c3 1-0<br /><br />the concept of playing d3, Nbd2, Nf1 before castling is a great one! How often when playing the White side of a closed Lopez, could you have used the rook on f1 (behind the mobile f-pawn) instead of on e1?<br /><br />Next book is Benko...this could take years ladies and gentlemen...lots of games and me and Mrs. C are going to be parents in May to twins!Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-22519275938506936132009-09-13T14:41:00.003-04:002009-09-13T14:43:24.157-04:00pawn pushingi showed my brother a couple of games that i have recently won (blitz, correspondence etc) and he mentioned that a lot of my nice wins involved pawn breaks. i have never made a special effort to do that (except on the queenside when the situation presents itself) but it's interesting to have someone else look at your games now and then.Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-15065676659721987862009-08-09T23:06:00.000-04:002009-08-09T23:13:31.253-04:00How to play the English Opening (Karpov)<img src="http://img.amazon.ca/images/I/51kj22HXxtL._SL500_AA240_.jpg"><br /><br />When we were in London a few months ago my lovely wife picked up this great book by Karpov for me. It is 30 games annotated by him, mostly on the King's English but also has a great section on the Hedgehog. The games are instructive, and many are quite spectacular. I have learned alot about the English and already some of the lessons learned in the games of the 12th World Champion (and others) have been used by me. <br /><br />Here is one of the most spectacular<br /><br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1069169">Karpov-Topalov 1994</a><br /><br /><b><br /><br />Karpov - Topalov, Linares 1994<br /><br />1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nf3 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Bc5<br />7. Nb3 Be7 8. Nc3 O-O 9. O-O d6 10. Bf4 Nh5 11. e3 Nxf4<br />12. exf4 Bd7 13. Qd2 Qb8 14. Rfe1 g6 15. h4 a6 16. h5 b5<br />17. hxg6 hxg6 18. Nc5 dxc5 19. Qxd7 Rc8 20. Rxe6 Ra7 21. Rxg6+<br />fxg6 22. Qe6+ Kg7 23. Bxc6 Rd8 24. cxb5 Bf6 25. Ne4 Bd4<br />26. bxa6 Qb6 27. Rd1 Qxa6 28. Rxd4 Rxd4 29. Qf6+ Kg8 30. Qxg6+<br />Kf8 31. Qe8+ Kg7 32. Qe5+ Kg8 33. Nf6+ Kf7 34. Be8+ Kf8<br />35. Qxc5+ Qd6 36. Qxa7 Qxf6 37. Bh5 Rd2 38. b3 Rb2 39. Kg2 1-0<br /><br /></b><br /><br />We were in Ottawa a couple of weeks ago and stopped at <a href="http://www.chess-math.org">Chess and Math</a> and picked up <b>Fischer's 60 Memorable Games</b>...the 2008 edition in algebraic and unadulterated :) I'm gonna fly through this one...i'm feeling my urge to play chess coming back, maybe I'll get a tournament in during the year 2009. Cross your fingers! I've been playing all sorts of things as White...I started the English because I felt that <i>1.g3 d5</i> was strong for Black :) As Black I'm mostly playing the Caro again, but I will be trying out the hedgehog v. the English and I've partially returned to the Nimzo. I suspect after playing over Fischer's games I will be playing the Najdorf and KID again :) We'll seeCraighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-41830807508521036462009-03-01T09:01:00.002-05:002009-03-01T09:08:05.351-05:00Winning Pawn Structures - Alexander Baburin<img src = "http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41EVYK9GWDL._SL500_AA240_.jpg"><br /><br />This is a good book on playing both sides of the IQP. There was some issues between Baburin and the publisher and for a while Baburin even advised people not to buy this book, but I believe it has been resolved. There are some interesting games. One idea that definitely stuck in my head was attacking the IQP by moving the knight from f3, then instead of pushing the f-pawn (after being brought up playing all kinds of 1.e4 e5 gambits and the KID) moving the bishop to f3 and attacking the long diagonal that way. it sounds silly, but i had never thought about playing like that before. funny what "thinking" does for you<br /><br />in any case, highly recommended! next post won't be for a (long) while, i'm dusting off Kasparov Volume 2 - Euwe, Smyslov, Botwinnik, Tal.Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-22612207233341484932009-01-17T23:35:00.003-05:002009-01-17T23:47:14.290-05:00Volume 2 finished (finally)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Me23BfHqlHOvyK0syByvvMTjjtPYT3EyGMTdHaJLmlXasim7gqfava6qluWHSYMbGkqPSRfx5n6cWdMCnBA8BG7D16mbxRd7YOIxCrxFChBdEmJTh0Esvy9CXiYb99-a74zNhQ/s1600-h/suttles_vol2.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 199px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Me23BfHqlHOvyK0syByvvMTjjtPYT3EyGMTdHaJLmlXasim7gqfava6qluWHSYMbGkqPSRfx5n6cWdMCnBA8BG7D16mbxRd7YOIxCrxFChBdEmJTh0Esvy9CXiYb99-a74zNhQ/s320/suttles_vol2.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292488766837281074" /></a><br /><br />2 down one to go (but not immediately i need something different). i did enjoy this version quite a bit. going through his <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=a42">Averbakh</a> games inspired me to try and save two tempi on the King's Indian by either playing the Leningrad Dutch or the Averbakh. I also learned about defending tough positions. If nothing else, Suttles was a fighter. The other nice thing is that, because this includes all his games, good, bad and ugly, it's okay to get run over playing these king fianchetto games. Case in point<br /><br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1135995"><br />Gordon - Suttles</a><br /><br />1.d4 d6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 Nd7 5.Nf3 e5 6.Be2 Ne7 7.d5 O-O<br />8.g4 h6 9.Rg1 Nf6 10.h3 c6 11.Be3 cxd5 12.cxd5 g5 13.Qd2 Ng6<br />14.h4 Nxg4 15.hxg5 Nxe3 16.fxe3 hxg5 17.Nxg5 Bh6 18.Nf3 Kg7<br />19.Bd3 Bd7 20.O-O-O Rc8 21.Kb1 Rh8 22.Rdf1 Bh3 23.Re1 a6<br />24.Ne2 Qf6 25.Rg3 Bd7 26.Rf1 b5 27.Rgg1 Qd8 28.Ng3 Kf8 29.Qf2<br />Qe7 30.Nf5 Bxf5 31.exf5 e4 32.fxg6 exd3 33.Nd4 Ke8 34.gxf7+<br />Kd7 35.Qf5+ Kc7 36.Qe6 Bg5 37.Rxg5 Qxg5 38.Rc1+ Kb7 39.Qd7+<br />Kb6 40.Qxd6+ Kb7 41.Qd7+ Kb6 42.Qe6+ Kb7 43.Rxc8 1-0<br /><br />These things happen :) Again, highly recommended book.Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-21213139420933288342009-01-02T22:44:00.002-05:002009-01-02T22:48:17.628-05:00First loss of 2009 :)<b>K - C<br />Game 25 Owen Sound, 02.01.2009<br />E97 - King's Indian : Bayonet Attack<br /><br />1.e4 g6 </b> [I almost played the Sicilian <i>1...c5</i> but then I remembered he played <i>2.c3</i> Maybe next time :)] <b>2.d4 d6 3.c4</b> Very nice <b>3...Nf6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.Be2 0-0 6.Nf3</b> [I really thought he was going to play <i>6.Bg5</i> ] <b>6...e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.d5 Ne7 9.b4 Nh5 10.Re1 f5 11.Ng5 Nf6 12.Bf3 c6 13.Ba3 a5?</b> [<i>13. ...cxd5; </i><br />or even <i>13...h6 14.Ne6 Bxe6</i> was fine. Instead of thinking of Bxe6 as a developing move, i thought of it as a "victory" for K because he was happy with this position] <b>14.dxc6 bxc6?</b> [I didn't really look at <i>14...Nxc6</i> although this was good as I could block off the d-file] <b>15.b5 c5</b> [<i>15...Ne8</i> was about the only move not to lose a pawn and it's ugly; <br />my idea was along the lines of <i>15...h6 16.Nh3 g5 17.-- etc. 17...g4</i> Of course with the d-pawn hanging it would never get to that] <b>16.exf5 Rb8 17.fxg6 h6?</b> not a great post-opening by me <b>18.Nf7! Rxf7 19.gxf7+ Kxf7 20.Rxe5</b> [<i>20.Bxc5</i> may have been cleaner] <b>20...Ng4 21.Rxe7+</b> [<i>21.Re4 Bxc3 22.Rc1</i>] <b>21...Qxe7 22.Bxg4 Bxc3 23.Qf3+ Qf6 24.Bh5+</b> i missed this <b>24...Kf8 25.Re1 Bf5 26.Rd1 Be5 27.g4 Be6 28.Qxf6+ Bxf6 29.Rxd6 Ke7 30.Bxc5</b> Nicely played game by K. He overwhelmed me and didn't allow me back into the game at all. 1-0Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-4839489524654365972008-12-25T08:34:00.002-05:002008-12-25T08:44:42.597-05:00Merry Christmas!Same as every year this time I'm going to talk about 2009 and give my "Game of 2008" and "Worst Game of 2008"<br /><br />I didn't play very much rated chess this year, but when I did play it was of high quality (for me). I would like to play some more this year. In 2009, I'm going to talk K into playing some more and bringing back the King's Gambit or the Scotch Gambit. Players at my level can't defend so why not make them?<br /><br /><b> Game of the Year </b><br /><br />I went over my games this morning and I had some fun games in 2008. My favourite though, for strength of opponent was the Panov v. MS in the Active Tournament in Kitchener, despite the error on move 31.<br /><br /><b>C - MS<br />B13 - Panov<br />Active Kitchener, ON (3), 06.09.2008<br /><br />1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Nf3 Bg4 7.Be3 e6 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Be2 Bd6 10.0-0 0-0 11.a3 a6 12.h3 Bh5 13.Rc1 Rc8 14.Na4 Re8 15.Nc5 Bxc5 16.dxc5 Ne4 17.Re1 Ng3 18.Bxa6 bxa6 19.fxg3 d4 20.Bf4 Rxe1+ 21.Qxe1 Bxf3 22.gxf3 Qd5 23.Qe4 Qxe4 24.fxe4 f6 25.Kf2 Kf7 26.b4 Ne5 27.Bxe5 fxe5 28.Ke2 Ke6 29.Kd3 Rf8 30.Ke2 g6 31.Rf1 Rb8 32.Kd3 a5 33.Kc4 axb4 34.axb4 Rd8 35.b5 d3 36.b6 d2 37.Rd1 Rd4+ 38.Kb5 Kd7 39.c6+ Kc8 40.Kc5 Kb8 41.Rf1 42.Rf8+ Rd8 43.b7+ Kb8 44.Rxd8+ </b><br />"The MS game showed mature play on your part considering it was an active. Nicely played endgame." (HJ) 1-0<br /><br />The worst game of the year was probably my first loss v. K in our match. He played quite well, but I played terribly...no plan and he manhandled me...although the same could be said of the last game of the match where he transposed a c3-sicilian into a French Advance and I fell apart<br /><br /><b>C - K <br />D36 - QGD : Exchange<br />Match Owen Sound, ON (1), 03.05.2008<br /><br />1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 c6 6.Qc2 Be7 7.e3 g6 8.Bd3 0-0 9.Nge2 Nh5 10.Bxe7 Qxe7 11.Ng3 Nxg3 12.hxg3 Bg4 13.Ne2 Nd7 14.f3 Qxe3 15.fxg4 Rfe8 16.Qd2 Qxg3+ 17.Kd1 Qxg4 18.Kc2 Nf6 19.Raf1 Ne4 20.Qh6 Ng5 21.Kc3 c5 22.Rf4 cxd4+ 23.Rxd4 Rac8+ 24.Kd2 Rxe2+ 25.Bxe2 Qxd4+ 26.Ke1 Rc1+ 0-1</b>Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973200.post-61432902106974086342008-09-07T07:28:00.009-04:002008-09-07T20:16:11.331-04:00KW Active 2008I played 4 round of the Kitchener Active yesterday and score 2/4. leave any comments please! (too many Caros) i am glad i got another Panov after completely mishandling the position in round one. the guy in the first round was rated about 100 points lower than me, the second guy was around the same, the last two were experts in "normal" chess, but only about 300-400 points higher than me in active<br /><br /><b><br />C - SS<br />Active Kitchener, ON (1), 06.09.2008<br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=B13">B13 - Caro-Kann : Panov Variation</a></b><br /><br />This is the tournament I've played in the most over the years. It's a one day active in a city about an hour and a half from where I live. My opponent was a 13 year old kid. <b>1.e4</b> [I think if I could do it all over again I would've played <i>1.g3</i> and tried to mix it up a bit] <b>1...c6</b> What 13 year old kid plays the Caro-Kann? Come on! <b>2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3 dxc4!?</b> Generally speaking Black should wait until I've used a tempo developing my light-square bishop before doing this. <b>6.Bxc4 e6 7.Nf3 Be7</b> Of course playing it this way like a QGD and sadding me with the IQP isn't terrible either. [I generally develop my bishop here <i>7...Bb4</i> ; <br />or <i>7...Bd6</i> ] <b>8.0-0 0-0 9.Be3</b> [If I would've thought for a second I would've played something like <i>9.Qe2</i> allowing me to play <i>9...-- 10.Rd1 -- 11.Be3</i> or somewhere else <i>11...-- 12.Rac1</i> and be able to just play a "normal" IQP position. My mind was blank and watch what I decided on instead] <b>9...Nbd7 10.Qc2?</b> Start of my bad plans. Not sure why I put my queen on the only open file. [<i>10.Qe2</i> was playable again, with ideas similar to above] <b>10...Nb6 11.Bd3 h6 12.Rad1</b> Wrong rook [<i>12.Rfd1 -- 13.Rac1</i> and then move my queen should've been my plan] <b>12...Nbd5 13.h3?</b> [<i>13.Nxd5;</i> <br />or if i wanted to move a pawn <i>13.a3</i> ] <b>13...Nb4!</b> Nice move <b>14.Qe2 Nxd3 15.Rxd3?</b> [again <i>15.Qxd3</i> is better. unless i was trying to get the other rook to the c-file. my plans were muddled and i didn't see much of what he was doing] <b>15...b6 16.Rd2</b> [Threatening <i>16.-- Ba6</i>] <b>16...Bb7 17.Rfd1</b> Okay great! I've got a setup now (for better or worse), doubled rooks on the d-file, open up the file come up the middle it's gonna be great. <b>17...Rc8 18.a3?</b> [admitting my mistake with <i>18.Rc1</i> was better] <b>18...Nd5</b> [<i>18...Bxa3</i> was simple enough and then I have to start calculating lines like <i>19.Ra1 (19.bxa3 Rxc3) 19. ...Bxb2 20.Rxb2 Rxc3 21.Rxa7</i> and I'm down material. I saw 18. ...Bxa3 during the game right after I moved it and I realized I had to hunker down and dig my heels in.] <b>19.Nxd5 Qxd5</b> Now I'm in big trouble because of my toing and froing. He has opened up the c-file and has complete control. In addition, I'm stuck with my stupid knight not able to move against his two bishops because of mate on g2. I tried to hunker down <b>20.Qf1 Rfd8 21.Rc1 Bf6 22.Rdc2</b> [Maybe just <i>22.Rxc8</i> was better] <b>22...Rxc2 23.Rxc2 Rc8?</b> giving away most of his advantage [<i>23...Qf5</i> and pressuring my d-pawn (and rook) was better] <b>24.Rxc8+ Bxc8 25.b4</b> Trying to stake out some space [<i>25.Qc1</i> was better <i>25...Bb7 26.Qc7</i> and get on with it.] <b>25...Bb7 26.Qc1 Qc6?</b> Again trading off pieces helps me <b>27.Qxc6 Bxc6 28.Ne5 Bxe5?</b> Now it's tough for him because he gets rid of my IQP and makes it opposite coloured bishops. We were in some time pressure here, so let's see if Fritz finds some flaws in my endgame "technique" [<i>28...Bd5</i> was a better move] <b>29.dxe5 Kf8 30.f4 Be4 31.Kf2</b> Trying to get the active king. My plan was to try and win on the kingside because my bishop could take care of my part of the queenside <b>31...Ke7 32.g4 Kd7 33.Kg3 Bg6 34.h4 h5!</b> This was a good move by him. Taking care of everything <b>35.gxh5</b> [I could've played <i>35.a4</i> here because his bishop was on the other side but I think it's still a draw] <b>35...Bxh5 36.Kf2 Kc6 37.Bc1 b5 38.Ke3 Kd5 39.Bb2 g6 40.Bc1 Bg4 41.Bb2=</b> I kept my composure and defended a tough position, but didn't get much play at all as White. ½-½<br /><br /><b>JD - C<br />Active Kitchener, ON (2), 06.09.2008<br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=A85">A85 - Dutch Defense</a></b><br /><br />I'm a control freak in chess...I want to impose my will on the position. After my opponent took it to me (when I was White) last game, I decided I was going to play a little more aggressively this round. <b>1.c4 f5</b> I was going to play the King's Indian against 1.d4 this tournament, but the Dutch is okay against 1.c4 because not only does it takes up space, but also White can't play a lot of the gambit lines having moved his c-pawn already. <b>2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6</b> Not as strong without White playing g3 <b>4.Bf4 d6 5.Nf3 Bg7 6.Bg3</b> [<i>6.e3</i> first was probably better. Although he did suck me in] <b>6...Nh5</b> [Fritz likes <i>6...Ne4</i> better. My idea was that I thought that either he had to move his h-pawn or else I would play ...f4 and win material. I know he wanted me to trade off his bishop and open the h-file, but with him playing h3 (or h4) that wasn't a possibility. Of course I missed that 7.e3 stopped ...f4. I got a little nervous that I was completely chess blind. Also my idea of not losing tempos by jumping my knight all around have gone out the window <i>7.e3 c5</i>] <b>7.e3</b> [<i>7.Bh4 h6 8.e3 g5 9.Nd2 Nf6 10.Bg3</i> is okay for White. I'm not going to castle into that mess am I?] <b>7...Nxg3 8.hxg3 e5</b> [<i>8...Nc6</i> first was likely better. <i>9.Qb3 e5 10.0-0-0 e4 11.Nd2</i> but he still had good pressure] <b>9.Be2</b> [<i>9.dxe5 dxe5 10.Qxd8+ Kxd8</i> was okay in my books. If i don't kingside castle, he has no attack.] <b>9...e4</b> [<i>9...Nc6 10.d5 Ne7</i>] <b>10.Nd2 Nd7</b> [I either had to fight back on the kingside <i>10...h5</i> ; <br /><i>10...c5</i> or the center. I should've been trying to get him to push his d-pawn to activate my dark-square bishop] <b>11.g4 Nf6 12.gxf5 Bxf5</b> [I know that "every Russian schoolboy knows that you capture back with the g-pawn" but the holes were getting bigger in my position <i>12...gxf5</i> ] <b>13.Qc2</b> [I thought he was just going to play <i>13.g4</i> and run over me] <b>13...Qd7</b> wanted to stop g4. I had already mentally gambitted the e-pawn. <b>14.Ndxe4 Nxe4 15.Nxe4 0-0</b> [Fritz liked <i>15...0-0-0</i> but without trying to work on the f-pawn, I was just a pawn down] <b>16.Bd3 Rae8 17.Ng5 Bxd3 18.Qxd3 Qg4</b> Now it starts getting a little messy <b>19.Nxh7 Qxg2</b> [<i>19...Rf5!</i> was better, threatening to pick off the knight] <b>20.0-0-0 Rxf2 21.Rdg1 Qe4</b> This is all I had. I knew with the "two hogs on the seventh" I should be able to draw <b>22.Qxe4 Rxe4 23.Rxg6</b> [The text gives a draw but <i>23.Re1? Rg2</i> and I'm better. His pieces are overloaded and his knight is the worst piece on the board. Was that pawn worth it?] <b>23...Rxe3 24.Ng5</b> [I was worried about him trying <i>24.Rhg1 Kxh7 (24...Ree2 25.Rxg7+ Kh8 26.Nf6 Rc2+=) 25.Rxg7+ Kh6 26.Rxc7</i> and he's better] <b>24...Ree2 25.Ne6 Rc2+ 26.Kd1 Rcd2+</b> [<i>26...Rfd2+ 27.Ke1</i> Fritz liked <i>27...Kf7 28.Rxg7+ Kxe6 29.b3 Rxa2</i> but that's a lot to hope for after defending for the better part of the hour...better part of two hours counting last game] <b>27.Ke1 Rde2+ 28.Kd1 Rd2+ 29.Ke1 Rde2+= ½-½</b><br /><br /><b>C - MS <br />Active Kitchener, ON (3), 06.09.2008<br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=B13">B13 - Caro-Kann : Panov Variation</a></b><br /><br />Okay so I've played basically terribly the first two games and still ended up with two hard fought draws. I knew I could play better. I got paired with the second highest rated guy in the tournament. <b>1.e4 c6</b> On the inside I was happy about this. I had thought about everything I had done wrong in the first round and decided to play the IQP by the book, rooks on the c- and d-file, play to push the pawn, etc. <b>2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6</b> Personally I hate this line. I always feel like he's gonna pick off the d-pawn. <b>6.Nf3</b> [Maybe I should avoid the pin and just play <i>6.Bg5</i> but even still <i>6...dxc4 7.Bxc4 (7.d5 Ne5 8.Qd4 Nd3+ 9.Bxd3 cxd3 10.Qxd3</i> is okay too. It's got good pedigree too, going all the way back to <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1031825">Botwinnik-Flohr match 1933</a>) <i>7...Nxd4 8.Nf3 Nxf3+ 9.Qxf3 Qc7 10.Bb5+ Bd7 11.0-0</i> is not an easy line to find if you've never seen it. Maybe i will look at 6.Bg5 further] <b>6...Bg4 7.Be3 e6 8.cxd5?!</b> Taking the starch out of the position [<i>8.h3</i> or; <br /><i>8.Be2</i>] <b>8...exd5?</b> [If he played <i>8...Nxd5</i> he would have been better] <b>9.Be2</b> [Could've tried <i>9.h3</i> here too] <b>9...Bd6</b> [<i>9...Qb6</i> would have been pretty annoying] <b>10.0-0 0-0 11.a3</b> Trying to start up a minority attack <b>11...a6 12.h3 Bh5 13.Rc1 Rc8 14.Na4</b> My idea is to trade off the dark-squared bishop for my knight, give him the IQP and give me a queenside majority <b>14...Re8 15.Nc5 Bxc5?</b> [A positional error. Moving the queen was better, although after <i>15...Qb6 16.b4</i> i would be happy with my position] <b>16.dxc5 Ne4 17.Re1</b> [Played becuase of variations like <i>17.-- d4 18.Nxd4 Bxe2 19.Qxe2</i> (Of course <i>19.Nxe2</i> is playable, but just the idea of the queen being overloaded because of the piece on e2 ) <i>19...Nxd4</i>] <b>17...Ng3? 18.Bxa6!</b> winning a pawn [His idea was <i>18.fxg3 Rxe3 19.Kf2</i> and he's good...again with pressure on the piece on e2. I thought about the tactic that my opponent missed in round one when i played 18.Bxa6] <b>18...bxa6</b> Now I've got 3 v. 1 on the queenside. The rest should basically take care of itself. <b>19.fxg3 d4 20.Bf4 Rxe1+ 21.Qxe1 Bxf3 22.gxf3 Qd5 23.Qe4 Qxe4</b> [I thought he would have done better to keep the pieces on with something like <i>23...Qb3</i> ] <b>24.fxe4 f6</b> [Something like <i>24...Re8 25.Re1 f5</i> would've put some pressure on my position] <b>25.Kf2 Kf7 26.b4 Ne5 27.Bxe5</b> Even though this protected his passer, I figured that the 3 v. 1 would take care of everything. <b>27...fxe5 28.Ke2 Ke6 29.Kd3 Rf8 30.Ke2</b> Oops 29.Kd3 was a mistake <b>30...g6 31.Rf1?? Rb8??</b> [I thought this was trouble but he didn't look at it <i>31...d3+ 32.Ke1 d2+ 33.Ke2 Rxf1 34.Kxf1</i> I would've been ticked and beaten] <b>32.Kd3 a5 33.Kc4 axb4 34.axb4 Rd8 35.b5 d3 36.b6 d2 37.Rd1 Rd4+ 38.Kb5</b> [<i>38.Kc3</i> and just getting rid of the d-pawn was probably cleaner] <b>38...Kd7 39.c6+ Kc8 40.Kc5 Kb8 <br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/2167/1k6_7p_1PP3p1_2K1p3_3rP3_6PP_3p4_3R4.gif"><br /><br />41.Rf1!</b> [I thought 41.Rf1 was a great move, but it turns out that <i>41.Ra1</i> was mate <i>41...d1Q 42.c7+ Kb7 43.Ra7+ Kc8 44.Ra8+ Kd7 45.c8Q+ Ke7 46.Qf8+ Ke6 47.Re8+ Kd7 48.Re7#</i> I was happy enough with 41.Rf1 anyways] <b>41...Kc8</b> [<i>41...d1Q 42.Rf8+ Rd8 43.c7+ Kc8 44.Rxd8+ Qxd8 45.cxd8Q+ Kxd8</i>] <b>42.Rf8+ Rd8 43.b7+ Kb8 44.Rxd8+ </b>He tried to take my rook with his pawn, not realizing he hadn't had time to promote. unfortunately, he had that d-pawn move, but i was still happy with the game. it was a nice win v. a strong opponent and i had a nice finish to it<b>1-0</b><br /><br /><b>DR - C<br />Active Kitchener, ON (4), 06.09.2008<br /><a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=B12">B12 - Caro-Kann : Advance</a><br /><br />1.e4 c6</b> [I was gonna try something different against him, but I saw in round one he played the exchange Lopez against <i>1...e5</i> and I didn't want to take on a stronger player in that line] <b>2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Ne7 6.0-0 Nd7</b> The Karpov knights. <b>7.b3!? c5 8.c4</b> I think this is too ambitious a plan. <b>8...dxc4 9.Bxc4 Nc6</b> [<i>9...cxd4 10.Qxd4 (10.Nxd4 Nxe5) 10...Nc6</i> would've worked as well.] <b>10.Ba3? Qa5</b> [<i>10...Bg4 11.dxc5 (11.d5 Ncxe5 12.Nbd2 Nxc4 13.bxc4) 11...Ncxe5</i> His e-pawn was weak; <br />Giving up my castling could've worked as well <i>10...cxd4 11.Bxf8 Kxf8 12.Nxd4 Ndxe5 13.Nxf5 Qxd1 14.Rxd1 exf5</i>] <b>11.Bb2 cxd4 12.Nxd4 Nxd4</b> [Could I have grabbed a pawn? It's tough, but I guess it works of the unprotected bishop <i>12...Qxe5 13.Re1 (13.Nb5 Qxb2 14.Nc7+ Kd8 15.Nxa8 Qxa1; 13.Nxc6 Qxb2) 13...Qf6 14.Bb5 Bc5 15.Bxc6 bxc6 16.Nxe6 Bxf2+ 17.Kxf2 Qxb2+ 18.Re2 Qxa1</i> oh man it's ugly] <b>13.Qxd4 Bc5 14.Qd2 Bb4?</b> [After having the position ugly and him having lots of weaknesses, I was too ambitious to play for equality just with <i>14...Qxd2 15.Nxd2 Ke7</i> etc.] <b>15.Qe2 0-0 16.a3 Be7 17.Nd2 Rfe8?</b> [I had grandiose ideas with overprotecting e6 so i could push ...f6 and get rid of the e-pawn, but why would I? isn't there a saying about the threat being stronger than the execution? <i>17...Rfd8</i> was better ] <b>18.b4 Qb6 19.Nb3 a6</b> [<i>19...Rad8</i> would be better so if the position continued as it did, my rook wouldn't be stuck where he was] <b>20.Rfd1 Nf8?!</b> [Playing over too many Suttles games. <i>20...Rad8</i> was better. Again I had idea of overprotecting e6 for no good reason] <b>21.Bd4 Qc7 22.Rac1 Qb8</b><br /><br /><img src="http://www.chessgames.com/fen/p211/rq2rnk1_1p2bppp_p3p3_4Pb2_1PBB4_PN6_4QPPP_2RR2K1.gif"><br /><br /> This deserves a diagram and not for a good reason. I'm squeezed. The only thing I could see that wasn't bad was me playing ...b5, trading off light square bishops, and letting my queen get some air on the light squares. <b>23.Bb6 Bd8</b> [<i>23...Bg5</i> would be okay putting some pressure on the c1-square, as that rook is probably his best piece. Any exchanges would make me a little easier to defend <i>24.Be3 Bxe3 25.Qxe3</i> and so on] <b>24.Bc5 b5?</b> [I played out of order <i>24...Bc7 25.f4 b5</i> for instance <i>26.Bd3 Bxd3 27.Qxd3</i> and again I'm short on space, but it's playable] <b>25.Bd6 Bc7??</b> all excited about trading on d3 and missing the pin. [<i>25...Qb6 26.Bd3 Bxd3 27.Rxd3</i>] <b>26.Bxc7</b> Not the best end to the tournament...i made some bad decisions but all in all I didn't play so badly. I defended hard in the two games, i made the most of the tactical chances in the third game and then i was just outclassed in this game which isn't the end of the world. 1-0Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08888637708599072141noreply@blogger.com1