tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41487101805810379092024-03-12T23:28:24.855+00:00Knight_Tour ChessChess blog for amateur playersTed Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.comBlogger69125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-91604479349841456902020-01-19T18:01:00.000+00:002020-01-19T18:01:10.763+00:004th International Chess Festival Rome part 2After the depressing first four rounds, I began to settle down and do better. In the first game, the player didn't know the line I played in the Two Knights and blundered straight away.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1994) -
Nanni,Sergio (1610) [C56]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (5), 11.12.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.e5 Bb4+?? </b><br />
Not sure what he saw here, but maybe he didn't expect me to play c3?<br />
<b>6.c3 dxc3 7.bxc3 Qe7?
8.0-0 0-0 9.exf6 gxf6 10.cxb4 Ne5 11.Bb3 d6 12.Bb2 Bg4 13.Nbd2 c6 14.h3 Be6
15.Nxe5 dxe5 16.Bxe6 Qxe6 17.Qg4+ Qxg4 18.hxg4 Rad8 19.Ne4 Kg7 20.f4 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br /><br />
The next game didn't feel so badly played, but the computer dislikes a lot of our moves.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Simeoni,Matteo
(1794) - Cross,Ted (1994) [B33]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (6), 12.12.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Nd5 Nxd5
8.exd5 Nb8 9.c4 Be7 10.Be2 0-0 11.0-0 a6 12.Nc3 Nd7 13.Be3 f5 14.f4 Kh8?!</b><br />
I didn't know this opening line particularly well, so I made a lot of less than perfect moves. Fortunately the same can be said about my opponent.<br />
<b></b>[>=14...Bf6
15.Qd2 exf4 16.Bxf4 Ne5=]<br />
<b>15.Rc1 b6?! </b><br />
[>=15...exf4 16.Bxf4 Bg5
17.Bxg5 Qxg5 18.Qd4 Ne5=]<br />
<b>16.Na4 Rb8 17.Qc2?! </b><br />
[>=17.b4 exf4 18.Bxf4
b5 19.Nb2 g5 20.Be3=]<br />
<b>17...Nc5?! </b><br />
[>=17...b5 18.cxb5 axb5 19.Nc3 exf4
20.Bxf4 b4=/+]<br />
<b>18.fxe5?! </b><br />
[>=18.Nc3=]<br />
<b>18...dxe5 19.Nxc5 bxc5
20.Rcd1?! </b><br />
[>=20.Bd2=/+]<br />
<b>20...Bd6 21.Kh1?! </b><br />
[>=21.Rde1=/+]<br />
<b>21...Qf6 </b><br />
[>=21...Qe7 22.Bc1 a5-/+]<br />
<b>22.Bg1?! </b><br />
[>=22.b3-/+]<br />
<b>22...f4?! </b><br />
[>=22...e4-/+]<br />
<b>23.Bd3 e4 </b><br />
[>=23...Bf5 24.Bxf5 Qxf5 25.Qxf5 Rxf5-/+]<br />
<b>24.Bxe4 Rxb2
25.Qd3 Bg4 </b><br />
[25...Rxa2!?]<br />
<b>26.Rd2 Rfb8 27.Rxb2 Rxb2 28.Bf3 Bxf3 29.Qxf3
Rxa2 30.Qe4? </b><br />
[30.Re1 Kg8 31.Re6 Qd8 32.Qb3 Rd2=]<br />
<b>30...g5 </b><br />
[>=30...a5
31.Qe8+ Qf8 32.Qxf8+ Bxf8 33.Rxf4 Kg8=/+]<br />
<b>31.Qe8+ Qf8 32.Qxf8+?! </b><br />
[>=32.Qe4=]<br />
<b>32...Bxf8 33.Re1? </b><br />
[33.h4! Rc2 34.Rd1 Bd6 35.Ra1 a5 36.Rxa5 Rc1 37.hxg5
Be5 38.Kh2 f3+ 39.g3 Rc2+ 40.Kh3 f2 41.Bxf2 Rxf2 42.Rxc5 Rd2=]<br />
<b>33...Kg7
34.Re5 h6 </b><br />
[34...Kf6 35.Re6+ Kf5 36.Re8 Bd6 37.Re6 Bb8-+ 38.Bxc5? Ra1+
39.Bg1 Ba7-+]<br />
<b>35.h3 a5 </b><br />
[>=35...Ra1-+]<br />
<b>36.Re6 Kf7 37.Rc6 Rc2 38.d6
Ke6 39.Ra6 </b><br />
[39.Rxc5 a4! 40.Ra5 Rxc4 41.Bc5 Rc1+ 42.Kh2 f3 43.gxf3 Rxc5-+;
39.Bxc5 Bg7 40.Rc8 Bf6-+]<br />
<b>39...Rxc4 40.Rxa5 Bxd6 41.Ra6 Rc1 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br /><br />
<div>
I felt a lot better after winning two in a row. If I could just win out the rest of my games then I could even hope to finish among the top spots. But then see what happened...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<h3>
Salvato,Giuseppe
(1710) - Cross,Ted (1994) [B22]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (7), 13.12.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.d4 e6 5.Nf3 Nc6? </b><br />
Okay, so I don't know this line very well and could have gotten into trouble early. Luckily he decided to stick to the standard lines.<br />
[5...cxd4]<br />
<b>6.Bc4 </b><br />
[>=6.c4
Ndb4 7.dxc5! a5 8.Nc3 Bxc5 9.Bf4+/-]<br />
<b>6...cxd4 7.cxd4 d6 8.0-0 dxe5?! </b><br />
[>=8...Be7]<br />
<b>9.dxe5 Be7 10.Nc3?! </b><br />
This was about the only slight mistake my opponent made in this game. He was just 13 years old, and you can forget about that low rating. He was clearly skyrocketing upward and that rating meant nothing. He went undefeated and won clear first place in this tournament, gaining more than 200 rating points!<br />
[10.Qe2+/=]<br />
<b>10...Nxc3 11.bxc3 Qxd1 12.Rxd1 0-0
13.Be3 b6 14.Bb5 Na5 15.Nd4 Bb7 16.Nb3 Nxb3? </b><br />
I never had any chance of winning this game throughout, but I was at least drawing it. This move made it much harder for me.<br />
[16...Bc6! 17.Ba6 Rfb8 18.Rab1
Nb7=]<br />
<b>17.axb3 Rfd8 18.Rxd8+ Bxd8 19.Rd1 a6 20.Be2 b5 21.c4 Bc6 22.cxb5 axb5
23.f4= Kf8 24.Rc1 Bd7 25.Bf3 Rc8? </b><br />
[25...Ra2=]<br />
<b>26.Rxc8 Bxc8 27.Bc6 b4?! </b><br />
[27...Ba6
28.Bc5+ Kg8+/-]<br />
<b>28.Kf2 </b><br />
[28.Bc5+ Be7 29.Bd6+-]<br />
<b>28...Be7 29.Kf3 Ba6
30.Bb6 f6 31.Ke4 Bf1?? </b><br />
Even at this stage I still could have held the draw. I needed to play more energetically in the center.<br />
[31...Kf7 32.Kd4 g5 33.fxg5 fxe5+ 34.Kxe5 Bxg5
35.Be4 h6 36.Kd4 Be7 37.Bc5 e5+ 38.Kd5 Bb7+ 39.Kxe5 Bxe4 40.Bxe7 Bc2=]<br />
<b>32.Kd4
Kf7 33.Bc5 fxe5+ 34.fxe5 Bxc5+ 35.Kxc5 Kg6 36.Kd6 Kf7 37.Bd7 Bxg2 38.Bxe6+ Kf8
39.Bc4 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
I didn't yet know how great this kid would do, winning the rest of his games to take clear first place, but I saw how methodical he was against me and knew he was far better than his rating. Still, I felt terrible enough at losing this to withdraw at this point. I hope I'll do better next year.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-34530515839763010202020-01-18T18:00:00.001+00:002020-01-18T18:00:37.043+00:004th International Chess Festival Rome part 1After moving from Nassau to Rome this summer, December was when I played my first chess tournament here. I figured I'd be a bit rusty but hoped I'd manage to do well anyway. In the end it didn't turn out well, but there were some mitigating factors. The playing site was pretty nice. Quite a few grandmasters played in the master's section, such as Sergei Tiviakov. I played in the Under 2200 section.<br />
<br />
Round one went well, as I played a typical Giuoco Pianno opening and my opponent simply blundered in an even position.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1994) -
Palmucci,Lorenzo (1637) [C54]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (1), 03.03.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+ 7.Bd2 Nxe4
8.Bxb4 Nxb4 9.Bxf7+ Kxf7 10.Qb3+ d5 11.Qxb4 Re8 12.0-0 Kg8 13.Nc3 Nf6 14.Rfe1
c6 15.h3 a5 16.Qb3 Rb8 17.Ne5 </b>[>=17.Rxe8+ Qxe8 18.Ne5 Bf5 19.Re1+/=]<br />
<b>17...Be6
18.Re3 c5 19.Qd1 Qb6?? 20.Na4 Qb5? 21.Nxc5 Bf5? 22.Rb3 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
His queen had a few ways to get trapped there near the end and he fell into one of them, but he was already lost anyhow from the first mistake.<br />
<br />
I was fortunate in round 2. My opponent played a line I didn't know and I began to go astray. Just as my position was getting bad, he offered a draw.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Di Lazzaro,Gabriele
(1827) - Cross,Ted (1994) [A80]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (2), 09.12.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<br />
<b>1.d4 f5 2.Bg5 Nf6 3.Bxf6 exf6 4.e3 d5 5.c4 c6 6.Bd3 Be6 7.b3 Bb4+ 8.Nd2
Qa5?</b><br />
<b></b>[8...f4! 9.a3 <i>(9.exf4? dxc4-+) </i>9...Ba5 10.Ne2 fxe3 11.fxe3 Qe7
12.Qc2 Nd7 13.0-0 Bf7=]<br />
<b>9.Ne2 Nd7 10.Qc2 g6 11.a3 Bd6? </b><br />
[11...dxc4
12.bxc4 Nb6 13.c5 Nd5 14.Rb1 Bxd2+ 15.Qxd2 Qxd2+ 16.Kxd2 0-0-0+/-]<br />
<b>12.c5 Be7
13.b4 Qc7 14.h4 Kf7? </b><br />
[>=14...h5]<br />
<b>15.Nf4 b5? </b><br />
[>=15...Rag8]<br />
<b>16.Nb3 </b><br />
[>=16.a4+-]<br />
<b>16...a6 17.Ke2 1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
Round 3 is when I saw my rust, making several dumb mistakes that threw away a clear win.<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1994) -
Luigi,Rinaldo (1771) [B33]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (3), 10.12.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Bg5 a6 8.Na3
b5 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.Nd5 Be7? 11.Bd3 Rb8 12.c3 Be6 13.Nc2 Bxd5?+- 14.exd5 Na5
15.Qg4?! </b><br />
[>=15.Nb4+-]<br />
<b>15...Kf8 16.0-0 </b><br />
[>=16.Qh5 Nc4 17.Rb1 Rg8
18.0-0 f5 19.Nb4 Rb6 20.Bxc4 bxc4 21.Qxf5+-]<br />
<b>16...Qc8 17.Qxc8+ </b><br />
[>=17.Qh5+-]<br />
<b>17...Rxc8 18.Ne3 Nc4 19.Rfc1?? </b><br />
I didn't miss that the pawn was hanging on b2. I saw it. But then I kept analyzing other things for a long time and ended up forgetting about it when I played my move!<br />
[19.Bxc4 bxc4 20.b4 cxb3 21.axb3 Rxc3
22.Rxa6 Rc8 23.b4+-]<br />
<b>19...Nxe3? </b><br />
He didn't take it. I figured I'd have enough compensation for rough equality, and the computer agrees.<br />
[19...Nxb2 20.Bf1 Na4=]<br />
<b>20.fxe3 Kg7
21.a4 </b><br />
[>=21.Kf2+/-]<br />
<b>21...Rc5 22.e4 Rb8 23.axb5 axb5 24.Ra7 Bd8 25.Rd7
Bb6 26.Kf1 b4 27.Rxd6 bxc3 28.Rxc3 Ra5 29.Rb3 Ra1+ 30.Ke2 Re1+? 31.Kxe1 Ba5+
32.Kd1? </b><br />
I didn't take long enough here and overlooked an easy win. I glanced at the correct Rc3 but thought it dropped everything after he played Rxb2. I failed to notice that my bishop covered the c2 square.<br />
[32.Rc3 Rxb2 33.Rdc6+-]<br />
<b>32...Rxb3 33.Kc2 Rb8 34.Rc6 Bd8 35.Ba6
Kf8 36.Rc8?! Rxc8+ 37.Bxc8 Ke7 38.Kc3 Kd6 39.Kc4 Bb6 40.h4 Bf2 41.h5 h6 42.Bf5
Bb6 43.Kb5 Bd4 44.b3 Ba7 45.Ka6 Bc5 46.Kb5 Ba7 47.b4 Bd4 48.Ka6 Kc7 49.g4 </b><br />
[>=49.b5
Be3 50.Bg6 Bd4 51.Bxf7 Be3 52.Be8! Bc5 53.b6+ Kb8 54.Bd7 Bd4 55.Be6 Bc5 56.Kb5
Bf8 57.Kc6 Bb4 58.b7 Be7 59.g4 Ba3 60.Bc8 Bb4 61.d6+-]<br />
<b>49...Be3 50.Bg6 Bd4
51.Bxf7 Be3 52.Bg6 </b><br />
[52.b5 Bd4 53.Be8! Bc5 54.b6+ Bxb6 <i>(54...Kb8 55.Kb5+-)
</i>55.d6+ Kxd6 56.Kxb6+-]<br />
<b>52...Bd4 53.Bf5 Be3 54.Be6 Bd4 55.Bf7 Be3 56.b5
Bc5 57.b6+?? </b><br />
This is the really depressing end to the game. I miscalculated and thought I was winning. I was but only with Be8 to cover the c6 square.<br />
[57.Be8! Kd8 58.b6 Kc8 59.Kb5 Bf8 60.Kc6+-]<br />
<b>57...Bxb6
58.d6+ Kc6 59.Bd5+ Kc5 60.Kb7 Ba5 61.d7 Kd6 62.Kc8 Ke7 63.Bc6 Bd8 64.Bb5
1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
How depressing to draw a completely winning game. Two draws in a row wasn't a good way to start the event. I think this contributed to what happened next.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cavatorta,Fosco
(1812) - Cross,Ted (1994) [B50]<br />
4th International Chess Festival Rome (4), 10.12.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.c3 Nf6 3.d3 Nc6 4.Nf3 g6 5.Be2 Bg7 6.0-0 d6 7.Nbd2 e5 8.a3 a5
9.a4 0-0 10.Nc4 Be6 11.Na3 h6 12.Nb5 d5 13.Qc2 Rc8 </b><br />
[>=13...d4=/+]<br />
<b>14.Bd2
Nh5 15.Qc1 Kh7 16.h3 Qd7 17.Nh2 Nf4? </b><br />
I had played the opening fairly well and gotten an advantage. Now, however, I looked long and hard at the position and didn't like the idea of playing back to f6. It felt passive and I thought it might cost me most of my edge. The computer disagrees and says black is still much better after the correct Nf6. My move sacrifices a pawn for what I hoped would be more activity and the bishop pair.<br />
[17...Nf6-/+]<br />
<b>18.Bxf4 exf4 19.Qxf4
Be5? </b><br />
This move seemed obvious but turned out not to be so good. Playing d4 would have been equal.<br />
[>=19...d4~/=]<br />
<b>20.Qe3 d4 21.Qd2 g5? </b><br />
[>=21...f5 22.f4 Bb8
23.e5 g5 24.Bf3 gxf4 25.Nd6 Bxd6 26.exd6 Qxd6=]<br />
<b>22.Ng4 Bg7 23.c4?! </b><br />
Several times throughout this part of the game white makes mistakes that give me equality, but I fail to capitalize on them.<br />
[>=23.f4
gxf4 24.Rxf4 f5 25.exf5 Bxf5 26.Raf1 Rcd8 27.Nh2+/-]<br />
<b>23...b6? </b><br />
[>=23...f5
24.exf5 Bxf5=]<br />
<b>24.f4 gxf4 25.Qxf4 f5 26.exf5 Rxf5? </b><br />
[>=26...Bxf5
27.Qd6 Nb4=]<br />
<b>27.Qd6 Rcf8? </b><br />
[27...Qxd6 28.Nxd6 Rxf1+ 29.Rxf1 Rf8+/-]<br />
<b>28.Bf3 </b><br />
After this I'm simply lost. The bishop pair just couldn't do enough to generate counterplay.<br />
<b>28...h5 29.Be4 Kg8 30.Bxf5 Bxf5 31.Qxd7 Bxd7 32.Rxf8+ Kxf8 33.Nf2 Ne5 34.Rd1 Bh6
35.Kf1 Bc6 36.b3 Be3 37.Nd6 Bd7 38.Ke2 Ke7 39.Nfe4 Ng6 40.Nb5 Bc6 41.Na3 Nf4+
42.Kf3 Ne6 43.h4 Bh6 44.Nc2 Bd7 45.Rf1 Nf4 46.Ne1 Bg4+ 47.Kg3 Ne2+ 48.Kh2 Bf4+
49.g3 Be5 50.Nf3 Bg7 51.Nfg5 Be5 52.Rf7+ Kd8 53.Rb7 Nc1 54.Nf7+ Kc8 55.Nxe5
Kxb7 56.Nxg4 Nxd3 57.Ngf2 Ne5 58.g4 hxg4 59.Kg3 Kc7 60.Nxg4 Nf7 61.Kf4 Kd8
62.Kf5 Ke8 63.Ne5 Nh8 64.Kf6 Kf8 65.Ng6+ Kg8 66.h5 Nf7 67.Ne5 Nd8 68.Ng5 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
I seriously though about dropping out at this point. I had expected to do better against such opposition, yet I had a single win to go with two draws and a loss, and I was dropping quite a few rating points already. I figured I was in bad playing shape and would only drop more if I kept going.<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-16219881666826977442019-04-20T03:12:00.001+00:002019-04-20T03:12:58.241+00:00Article Published on Chessabase.comI'm really proud that I got my first article published on the largest chess news site in the world, Chessbase.com. I've been published in Chess Life in the US before, but Chessbase has a global audience!<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL3QU_yFbFM7ARa9FzONUU1vgZGNYZXeW9E2k-2e1KFFk7ujNsbWXHXaawRcap6JWUZgBB1XSrWAclk6oyJwYF5HGv1oLpw0tXbFwb4YdxWgTpONLUpQ3PSuaCzKiAJYhire59i-6XrYE/s1600/Nathan+Smith+photo+by+Gurth+Smith.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL3QU_yFbFM7ARa9FzONUU1vgZGNYZXeW9E2k-2e1KFFk7ujNsbWXHXaawRcap6JWUZgBB1XSrWAclk6oyJwYF5HGv1oLpw0tXbFwb4YdxWgTpONLUpQ3PSuaCzKiAJYhire59i-6XrYE/s640/Nathan+Smith+photo+by+Gurth+Smith.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nathan Smith, photo by Gurth Smith</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<a href="https://en.chessbase.com/post/focus-on-bahamas?fbclid=IwAR0pM6D7NxMZKzlknBAQzvZiekdYDVR4wm5jPJt3hm3ULJave4yfQskD_KA">https://en.chessbase.com/post/focus-on-bahamas?fbclid=IwAR0pM6D7NxMZKzlknBAQzvZiekdYDVR4wm5jPJt3hm3ULJave4yfQskD_KA</a>Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-90803648621171025022019-03-09T20:25:00.001+00:002019-09-25T10:51:40.769+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2019 final<br />
Despite my bleak Saturday, I felt pretty confident Sunday morning. Though my opponents were by rating supposed to be easier than those the day before, I hadn't been able to beat Daijah Johnson in last year's event, only giving up a draw to her, and I had also had a quick draw with Philip Hanna to help seal first place last year. But I needed to win both games today to have a shot at first place in this year's tournament.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1998) -
Hanna,Philip (1761) [B99]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (10), 03.03.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Be7 8.Qf3
Qc7 9.0-0-0 Nbd7 10.g4 h6 </b><b>11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Rg1? </b><br />
I'm not so familiar with this particular line with h6, so my move gives black the edge. [12.h4 Qb6 13.Nb3 Be7 14.Kb1
Nc5 15.g5 Bd7 16.f5 hxg5 17.hxg5 0-0-0 18.g6+/=]<br />
<b>12...g5 13.Kb1? </b><br />
And here I just moved way too quickly without even examining the board. I didn't even see he could take on f4 until after I had moved my king. Suddenly I knew I had given black a strong advantage and would need to fight desperately to get back into the game. [13.f5
Ne5 14.Qh3 Nc6=/+]<br />
<b>13...gxf4 14.a3 Ne5? </b><br />
I felt so lucky that he played this and let me have the pawn back. True, missing the f pawn still hurts me since the e pawn needed its support, but now I knew I'd have a fighting chance. [14...Qb6 15.Nde2 Ke7 16.Rg2
Qe3-/+]<br />
<b>15.Qxf4 Bg5 16.Qg3 Ng6 17.Bd3 Bf4?! </b><br />
This just places the bishop wrong and gives me a slight edge.<br />
<b>18.Qf2 Qe7? </b><br />
This was a big mistake. It lines the queen up with the king on the file and allows tactical tricks. [18...Bd7+/=]<br />
<b>19.Rge1 </b><br />
I saw the tactical ideas but didn't realize I could play Nf5 directly. [19.Nf5! exf5 20.Nd5 Qh4 21.Qxh4 Nxh4 22.exf5 h5 23.gxh5+-]<br />
<b>19...Bd7? </b><br />
My move had been a tad slow, so black could have gained equality if he could have seen this line. [19...Qh4
20.Qf1 Be5 21.Nf3 Qf6 22.Na4 Rb8 23.Nxe5 Qxf1 24.Bxf1 Nxe5 25.Rxd6 Ke7 26.Rb6=]<br />
<b>20.Nf5! Qf8 21.Nh4? </b><br />
The computer's line here is one few humans would play all the way through. [21.Qb6! Bc6 22.e5 Bxe5 23.Be4 Rc8 24.Bxc6+ bxc6
25.Rxe5 Nxe5 26.Nxd6+ Ke7 27.Nde4+-]<br />
<b>21...Be5 22.Ne2?! </b><br />
[>=22.Nxg6
fxg6 23.Qb6=]<br />
<b>22...0-0-0? </b><br />
Castling queenside is often bad in the Najdorf Sicilian, and that proves to be the case here, where black is suddenly lost. [22...Nxh4 23.Qxh4 b5=/+]<br />
<b>23.Nf3 f6? </b><br />
Black was already in big trouble, but this makes it easier for white. [23...Qe7+/-]<br />
<b>24.Qb6 </b><br />
After this, the tactics all fall into place and it's over quickly.<br />
<b>24...Qe7 25.Ned4 Bxd4 26.Nxd4 Ne5 27.Re3 Nc6 28.Bxa6 1-0</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Philip is a promising young player and I expect he'll be one of the best Bahamian players soon. My final round opponent was Daijah Johnson, who had upset me last year with a draw with the black pieces. I actually felt more confident against her playing black myself, because I felt I'd be able to draw her into an opening that she would be unfamiliar with.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj2RTqzEnm4G1mPwXA5gmcYO2dvZ76AlW7Pe0hCZcmm4oQU8DOlwjAhn-P_V5pok9JO4mgzIPZgJrG0PWFeTx7F02wUm5w9iDUMBl3X2u1VEBjXEuHdePLRhowahf68BIrkYkmS3si9-AR/s1600/Daijah+Johnson.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj2RTqzEnm4G1mPwXA5gmcYO2dvZ76AlW7Pe0hCZcmm4oQU8DOlwjAhn-P_V5pok9JO4mgzIPZgJrG0PWFeTx7F02wUm5w9iDUMBl3X2u1VEBjXEuHdePLRhowahf68BIrkYkmS3si9-AR/s640/Daijah+Johnson.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Gurth Smith</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3>
Johnson,Daijah
(1435) - Cross,Ted (1998) [A88]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (11), 03.03.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<br />
<b>1.d4 f5 </b><br />
I hadn't known how Daijah would open, but I was happy to see d4, since I guessed that she would be unfamiliar with the Dutch Defense.<br />
<b>2.c4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.g3 0-0 6.Bg2 d6 7.0-0 c6 8.Qc2 Qc7
9.c5?! </b><br />
This was her first deviation from opening theory. It's not good, because it prevents the proper use of her d pawn.<br />
<b>9...dxc5 10.dxc5 </b><br />
She still could have played for a slight edge if she had seen Bf4 here. [>=10.Bf4 Qd7 11.Qb3+ Kh8 12.Rfd1+/=]<br />
<b>10...e5
11.e4 Na6 12.Be3?! </b><br />
Playing b4 here due to the tactical trick against black's king would have been enough for equality. [>=12.b4=]<br />
<b>12...Ng4 13.Nd1?! </b><br />
The knight on d1 blocks white's further development. [>=13.exf5
gxf5 14.Nh4 f4 15.Bd2 Nxc5 16.Rae1 Ne6=/+]<br />
<b>13...Re8?! </b><br />
A short time later I was wishing this rook was back on the f file, so this move couldn't have been correct. [>=13...Nxe3
14.Nxe3 Kh8=/+]<br />
<b>14.h3? </b><br />
Again b4 could have given white equality. [>=14.b4=]<br />
<b>14...Nxe3 15.fxe3 Qe7 16.b4 </b><br />
Finally b4, but it's too late here and black has a strong advantage.<br />
<b>16...fxe4
17.Nd2 Nxb4 18.Qb3+ Nd5 19.Nxe4 Be6 20.Nd6 Reb8 </b><br />
I think my move is just fine, because what the computer suggests seems crazy and beyond what any human would play. My move allows me to undermine the knight on d6 by playing b6. [20...e4! 21.Nxe8 Rxe8
22.Rb1 Nc3 23.Qxb7 Nxb1 24.Qxb1 Bd5-+]<br />
<b>21.e4 Nf4 22.Qf3 Nxg2 23.Qxg2 b6 </b><br />
The knight is undermined and has nowhere to go.<br />
<b>24.Qc2 bxc5 25.Nc4 Bxh3 26.Rf2 Rf8 27.Nde3 Rxf2 28.Qxf2 Be6 29.Rc1 Rf8 30.Qe2
Bh6 31.Nxe5 </b><br />
Drops a piece, but it was over anyway. This just made it quicker.<br />
<b>31...Qg5 32.Kg2 Qxe5 33.Rh1 Bxe3 34.Qxe3 Qb2+ 35.Kg1 Bc4 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
If FM Carver Moncur had won his last round game, I would have only tied for first, but he lost, giving me the title for the third straight year. And I got to keep the big trophy! I'll miss playing in The Bahamas. There is a tremendous group of players here.<br />
<br />
<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-34438991869703887612019-03-07T02:39:00.001+00:002019-03-07T02:44:03.910+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2019 part 3I had about as good a start as I could have hoped for with four and a half points out of five, but now I had to face to top Bahamian players in a row in one day. The first, Kendrick Knowles, was the Bahamas National Champion and had an even record against me--three wins apiece along with one draw. I felt I was stronger than Kendrick, but he brought out a bad quality in me that, of course, is my own fault. Kendrick has really good tactical vision, but he moves too quickly. He often spots interesting tactics and goes for them quickly without necessarily looking more deeply. The problem is that when he moves so fast, I tend to mimic him and fall into the same trap. I knew I should be slowing down and analyzing more, but somehow I can't seem to force myself to do it.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6SGcyukwYuiCh8VRtH1DWCgm1zEPJFspn39k78hu5VVU2HXo813Y_0Wtxc9tACa-qPw2F_F4R4grJQ2MkzZxjAF0YuL1QgOzh4rmnhGwJ7uwE2nwZKV0S96knq1gfcIZ8VOsSxMrWITcj/s1600/IMG_6163.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6SGcyukwYuiCh8VRtH1DWCgm1zEPJFspn39k78hu5VVU2HXo813Y_0Wtxc9tACa-qPw2F_F4R4grJQ2MkzZxjAF0YuL1QgOzh4rmnhGwJ7uwE2nwZKV0S96knq1gfcIZ8VOsSxMrWITcj/s640/IMG_6163.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Gurth Smith</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Knowles,Kendrick
(1809) - Cross,Ted (1998) [A88]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (7), 02.03.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.Nf3 f5 2.d4 Nf6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.0-0 0-0 6.c4 d6 7.Nc3 c6 8.b3 a5
9.Bb2 Na6 10.e3 </b><b>Qc7 11.Qe2 </b><br />
Here is where Kendrick played something I hadn't seen in my preparations. It isn't the best move in the position, so it gives black at least equality, if not a minuscule edge.<br />
<b>11...e5 12.dxe5 dxe5 13.Rfd1 Nc5 14.Ba3 Nfd7 </b><br />
Slightly better would have been [>=14...b6
15.Na4 Nfd7=]<br />
<b>15.Na4 </b><br />
I felt this was a small mistake due to tactical reasons.<br />
<b>15...Nxa4 </b><br />
And this is the small tactic, going ahead and allowing him to take my rook, because I have a fork of his queen and rook in return.<br />
<b>16.Bxf8 Nc3 17.Qc2? </b><br />
Then Kendrick made it worse by moving the queen to a poor square. [>=17.Qe1 Nxd1 18.Bxg7
Nxf2 19.Bxe5 Nh3+ 20.Bxh3 Nxe5=]<br />
<b>17...Kxf8?? </b><br />
Here is when that aforementioned weakness reached out and smacked me in the face. I spent pretty much no time at all after he moved before playing this terrible blunder. I had looked at the correct move of taking his rook with my knight and then winning a pawn by taking on e3 (which is why his queen move to c2 was a mistake), and I had seen that it was good for me. But I noticed that I had a 'totally winning' idea of taking the bishop with the king instead and then skewering his queen, and when his knight came to d4, playing c5 against the pinned knight. It would have taken me just a few moments of looking more closely at it to see that it fails miserably to his knight fork of my king and queen! Literally just a few seconds invested in looking at it and I would have dismissed my stupid idea and played the correct knight takes rook. [17...Nxd1 18.Bxg7 Nxe3
19.Qc3 Kxg7 20.Qxe3 e4-/+]<br />
<b>18.Qxc3 e4 19.Nd4 Ne5 </b><br />
I was pretty demoralized at having to play this rather than c5, but there was nothing else I could do.<br />
<b>20.c5 Qe7 21.Rac1 Nd3
22.Rc2 Nb4 23.Rcd2 Nd3 </b><br />
At least I could force the win of a pawn, which was some minor compensation.<br />
<b>24.Qc4 Qxc5 25.Qxc5+ Nxc5 26.Bf1 Bf6 27.Rc2 Na6?! </b><br />
[27...Nd7+/=]<br />
<b>28.Nxc6? </b><br />
Here is where Kendrick's habit of moving too quickly bit him. He saw this tactic and went for it very quickly without looking more deeply at it, or at other better moves. [28.Bxa6 Rxa6 29.Nb5+/-]<br />
<b>28...bxc6 29.Rxc6 Be7 30.a3? </b><br />
I was feeling much better now, thinking that I could possibly survive this. I actually thought he would trade the rook for two pieces here and simply be up a pawn. [30.Rdc1
Bb7 31.Rb6 Bc8 32.Rxc8+ Rxc8 33.Rxa6 Rc2 34.Rxa5 Bb4+/-]<br />
<b>30...Bb7 31.Rb6 Ra7
32.b4 axb4 33.axb4 Nc7 34.Rd7 Bd5?? </b><br />
I moved too quickly again, feeling that I was out of hot water, and failed to look more deeply at the tactics available to white. I could have had equality with Bc8. [34...Bc8 35.Rd1 <i>(35.Rb8 Ra8 36.Rxa8
Nxa8 37.Ra7 Nb6=) </i>35...Be6=]<br />
<b>35.Rb8+ Kf7 36.Rc8 </b><br />
Naturally Kendrick found the correct sequence to win a piece, and the game was essentially over now. I was going down to my first loss.<br />
<b>36...Ke6 37.Rcxc7 Rxc7
38.Rxc7 Bxb4 39.Rxh7 Be7 40.h4 Kf6 41.Rh8 Kf7 42.Rc8 Bf8 43.Bc4 Bxc4 44.Rxc4
Bh6 45.Kg2 Kf6 46.Rc6+ Kg7 47.Kh3 g5 48.h5 Kh7 49.Rf6 f4 50.Kg4 1-0</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
I was really depressed after this, thinking I had blown my shot at winning the tournament again. And I had to play black again in the next round against another strong player, and I didn't feel I was going to do well. This one Saturday was turning my whole event around in the wrong direction.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-nNUBuwzdcULAeWCeHdAE2bY2rZs11GCI9GfUhMLrjb3dWidq0ODtZvP_-AQIc-zAHgjdXQgzikKJts-NhaXjUzoQmtLcMGpglTU-5544KNzDHDQpAQhL8QJeiHoDXaskmztmVMTi9TJ4/s1600/Franklyn+Gibson.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-nNUBuwzdcULAeWCeHdAE2bY2rZs11GCI9GfUhMLrjb3dWidq0ODtZvP_-AQIc-zAHgjdXQgzikKJts-NhaXjUzoQmtLcMGpglTU-5544KNzDHDQpAQhL8QJeiHoDXaskmztmVMTi9TJ4/s640/Franklyn+Gibson.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Gurth Smith</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Franklyn Gibson is actually the highest-rated Bahamian player, though he had a bit of rust due to not playing a lot for quite a while. He played very well against me, though, perhaps aided by my demoralized state. Neither of us played the opening particularly well, with lots of slight inaccuracies by both of us.<br />
<h3>
Gibson,Franklyn
(1892) - Cross,Ted (1998) [B23]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (9), 02.03.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 e6 3.f4 </b><br />
I have used the Grand Prix attack as white a number of times, including in the win against Cox two rounds ago, but I don't think anyone had ever played it against me in tournament chess before. I had to think quite some time before I played my second move, because I couldn't recall which of black's lines I felt was best for black.<br />
<b>3...d5 4.e5?! </b><br />
I knew the lines pretty well and had never seen this move, so I assumed it was less than stellar.<br />
<b>4...a6 </b><br />
The computer likes Nh6, though I'm not sure I understand the point exactly, at least not at this stage. The computer knows better than me, of course. [>=4...Nh6]<br />
<b>5.a4 Nc6 6.Nf3
g6 </b><br />
[>=6...b6]<br />
<b>7.d4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Qb6?! </b><br />
My plan here wasn't so great. [8...Bb4 9.Be3 Nge7=]<br />
<b>9.Nce2
Bd7 10.c3 Bg7 </b><br />
[>=10...Nh6]<br />
<b>11.Qb3 Qc7 12.Be3?! Nge7?! </b><br />
I didn't see the line the computer likes, and I have to admit it looks a LOT better for black than what I played. [12...Na5
13.Qd1 f6! 14.Nf3 Nc4 15.exf6 Nxf6-/+]<br />
<b>13.Nxc6 Bxc6?! </b><br />
I'm not sure now why I took with the bishop. Looking at it right now, the pawn capture clearly looks better. [>=13...bxc6]<br />
<b>14.Bb6?!
Qd7 15.Nd4 0-0 </b><br />
The computer's g5 move never even entered my mind. [15...g5!=]<br />
<b>16.Bc5 Rfe8 17.Bxe7?! </b><br />
[17.Bd3+/=]<br />
<b>17...Qxe7
18.Qa3 Qxa3 </b><br />
[>=18...Qc7=/+]<br />
<b>19.Rxa3 Bf8 20.Ra1 Bc5 21.Bd3 Kg7 22.Kd2
Rec8 23.Rhe1 Rc7 24.b4 Bxd4?! </b><br />
I knew that by pawn structure I was getting into a troublesome endgame. [24...Bb6=]<br />
<b>25.cxd4 Rac8 26.Rec1 Bd7
27.Rc5 </b><br />
This was a really good move by Frank, and I thought I was going to have to go through contortions to escape the coming mess.<br />
<b>27...Kf8 28.a5 Ke7 29.g4 Bc6 30.f5 gxf5 </b><br />
[>=30...exf5]<br />
<b>31.gxf5 Rg8?! </b><br />
I really should not have allowed white to play his pawn to f6, as it is a terrible endgame after that. [31...f6+/-]<br />
<b>32.Re1?! </b><br />
[32.Rac1! Kd7 33.b5 axb5 34.Bxb5+-]<br />
<b>32...Rcc8?!</b><br />
<b></b>[32...exf5 33.Bxf5 Rg5 34.Rf1 f6 35.b5! axb5 36.a6 bxa6 37.exf6+ Kf7
38.Bb1+/-]<br />
<b>33.f6+? </b><br />
[33.Ke3+/-]<br />
<b>33...Kd7 34.Re2 h6 35.Kc3 Rg1 36.Re3?! </b><br />
I missed several drawing chances here. [>=36.Rb2 h5 37.Be2 h4 38.Kb3 Ra1=]<br />
<b>36...Rh8?! </b><br />
[36...Rcg8= 37.Rh3
Ra1=]<br />
<b>37.b5 axb5 38.Bxb5 Rc1+ 39.Kb4 Rd1 40.Rd3 Rb1+ 41.Rb3 Rd1+- </b><br />
This 'perpetual attack' really shouldn't have worked. White is winning here if he just plays [42. a6 Rb8 43. Ka3! and it's pretty much over for black. I was very lucky that Frank offered the draw.<br />
<b>1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
So, this one depressing Saturday twisted my previously good tournament into a flaming wreck. I was lucky in some of the other results, though, and I was now tied with Carver and Kendrick for first place with six points each (I had gained one point due to a player having withdrawn). I had theoretically easier pairings the next day, so there was a good chance if I could just play a tad better that I could at least guarantee a tie for first place.</div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-1572483325843203462019-03-05T22:29:00.000+00:002019-03-05T22:29:43.420+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2019 part 2My next game was against a young talent, Nathan Smith. He was just 13 when we played, though his birthday was later in the week. I'm always nervous about playing young people, because often their ratings don't reflect their actual playing strength. They can be inconsistent, but sometimes they show their power. Just watch how, despite one opening inaccuracy, Nathan basically outplays me through most of the game.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI3YBBuch8Z_rFJCFNU5HYEE3id8pKBj3zhQaKUrImkoXIa050BmGcOrBM9NgVZqyMmrl9FCv_Hjrvmc-tgQDeArQoWNtMZVtK5A3lHHMliuSmPHsnoTSrdHMJs3NAmlPLd5lyCdJbcL1e/s1600/Nathan+Smith.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI3YBBuch8Z_rFJCFNU5HYEE3id8pKBj3zhQaKUrImkoXIa050BmGcOrBM9NgVZqyMmrl9FCv_Hjrvmc-tgQDeArQoWNtMZVtK5A3lHHMliuSmPHsnoTSrdHMJs3NAmlPLd5lyCdJbcL1e/s640/Nathan+Smith.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Gurth Smith</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Smith,Nathan (1603)
- Cross,Ted (1998) [B33]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (5), 24.02.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Nd5 </b><br />
After the recent world championship match, I wonder if we should call this the Caruana variation? It has been around a long time, but it was the first time I recall seeing it in the title match.<br />
<b>7...Nxd5
8.Qxd5? </b><br />
Here Nathan shows that he didn't know the opening line, which of course is to take with the pawn. This move gives black some tempi, though I managed to not follow up correctly and squandered anything it gave me.<br />
<b>8...a6 9.Na3 Be6 10.Qd1 Be7? </b><br />
And just like that, with one normal-looking move, I lose my edge and we're back at equality. The move the computer likes isn't a natural one to find, so I'm not surprised I didn't see it. [10...Qh4 11.Bd3 d5 12.exd5 Bxd5 13.0-0
Be7 14.Be3 Rd8 15.f3 Nb4-/+]<br />
<b>11.Bc4 Qd7?! </b><br />
There are a lot of minor inaccuracies in this game, due to us being humans in a difficult position for humans to understand. [>=11...0-0]<br />
<b>12.Be3 0-0
13.0-0 b5 14.Bd5 Rac8?! </b><br />
This inaccuracy changes the evaluation from a minuscule black edge to a small white one. I don't really understand the computer's preference for Bf6. I assume it is to allow the knight to come back to e7, but the rook would still need to move from a8 first. [>=14...Bf6]<br />
<b>15.c4! </b><br />
This move was the first moment when I began to worry that I was letting the position slip away from equality.<br />
<b>15...b4?! </b><br />
My response is normally fairly typical in this opening, but the computer didn't like it this time. [15...Bxd5
16.cxd5 Nb8 17.Nc2 f5 18.exf5 Rxf5+/=]<br />
<b>16.Nc2 a5 17.Bb6?! </b><br />
Now the computer dislikes one of Nathan's moves. [>=17.Qd3+/=]<br />
<b>17...Bd8 </b><br />
[17...Rb8! 18.Be3= <i>(18.Bxc6?? Qxc6 19.Bxa5 Qxc4-/+) </i>]<br />
<b>18.Bxd8
Rcxd8?! </b><br />
As I said, a lot of tiny inaccuracies, but that is common in such complex positions. You'll generally see that the computer lines are not at all intuitive. [>=18...Bxd5 19.Qxd5 Rfxd8 20.Qd2 Nb8 21.b3 Qb7 22.Rae1 Na6+/=]<br />
<b>19.Ne3?! </b><br />
[>=19.b3+/=]<br />
<b>19...Ne7?! </b><br />
This one, though, is one I should have seen and played. The d4 square is crying out for a knight. [>=19...Nd4]<br />
<b>20.Bxe6?! </b><br />
[>=20.b3]<br />
<b>20...fxe6 21.Rc1 Qc6 22.Qg4 Rf6 23.Qg5 </b><br />
A clever move. It threatens Knight to g4 and my rook can't go back to protect the knight on e7 because of knight to h6.<br />
<b>23...Qb7?! </b><br />
[23...h6 24.Qg4 Ng6=]<br />
<b>24.c5
Rg6 25.Qh4 d5? </b><br />
I saw the perpetual attack on his queen with the rook and briefly considered going for it. But I needed to win this game badly, so it was worth it to risk losing. I certainly wasn't happy allowing that passed c pawn though, but there was no other way to play on for a win. [25...Rh6 26.Qg5 Rg6=]<br />
<b>26.exd5?</b><br />
Luckily neither of us saw the following tactic to win a pawn. [26.Ng4! Qc7
27.Nxe5+/-]<br />
<b>26...exd5 27.Nf5 Nc6 28.Nd6 Qe7?! </b><br />
I can honestly say I don't comprehend the computer's preference of Qa6. [>=28...Qa6 29.f3 Rf8=]<br />
<b>29.Qxe7 Nxe7 30.Rfd1 </b><br />
[>=30.Rfe1 Re6 31.f4 Nc6 32.Rcd1 d4+/=]<br />
<b>30...d4?! </b><br />
Here the computer suggestion is a logical one, but I just didn't see it. [>=30...Re6 31.f3 g6=]<br />
<b>31.Kh1?! </b><br />
[>=31.Re1 Nc6 32.Re4 Re6 33.f4
Rf8 34.fxe5+/=]<br />
<b>31...Nd5?! </b><br />
Yep, I knew that Nc6 was the more rational move...if I was content to just draw the game. My move offers more tactical possibilities, which is what I needed to try to win. [31...Nc6=]<br />
<b>32.Nb7 Rf8 33.Rd2 a4 34.c6? </b><br />
I didn't fully grasp that this was a mistake at the time. [>=34.g3=]<br />
<b>34...Rc8 </b><br />
And here is why. Actually, I saw the move Nc3 but gave it only a cursory look. It looked fascinating, but I assumed there was a flaw I was overlooking and I didn't want to risk losing when I had a solid continuation. Still, it would have been fun to have played Nc3. [34...Nc3!! 35.Na5 <i>(35.bxc3? bxc3 36.Rdd1 Rxc6 37.Na5 Rc7-+)
</i>35...Nxa2 36.Rc5 e4! 37.h3 <i>(37.Rxd4? e3 38.f3 Re6 39.Rd1 e2 40.Re1 b3-+)
</i>37...d3 38.Kh2 Re6=/+]<br />
<b>35.Rc5?? </b><br />
I expected Na5, which seems to peter out to a drawn endgame. Poor Nathan overlooked his back rank weakness. [35.Na5 Rd6 36.Rc5 Ne7 37.g3 Nxc6
38.b3 a3 39.Kg2 Kf7 40.Nxc6 Rcxc6 41.Rxe5 d3 42.Kf3 Rc2 43.Ke3 Rb2=]<br />
<b>35...Rgxc6
36.Rdc2 Rxc5 </b><br />
My move is fine and completely winning, but the computer likes it's more clever move. [36...d3!]<br />
<b>37.Rxc5 Rxc5 38.Nxc5 a3 39.Nd3 e4 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
What a relief to survive that one! The first weekend finished well for me with three wins and a draw. But now there came three of the highest-rated opponents in a row.<br />
<br />
My next opponent is one I dread playing. I call him a grinder, because he never goes down easily. It's always a protracted battle. He had a dreadful tournament result this time, but my game against him showed his mettle and I had to really struggle to pull it out.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1998) -
Cox,Valentine (1872) [B23]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (6), 27.02.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bb5 a6 </b><br />
I don't think a6 can be very good. White wants to trade the bishop for the knight at some point anyway, and the pawn being on a6 doesn't typically add anything for black in the types of positions that follow, so I think it is a wasted tempo.<br />
<b>6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.0-0 e6 8.d3
Ne7 9.Qe1 0-0 10.Qh4 f5 11.Be3 b6 12.Rae1 </b><br />
While my move isn't that bad, the rook is more at home on d1 instead. [>=12.Rad1]<br />
<b>12...Ra7! </b><br />
I give this move an exclamation point because this rook basically holds black's position together throughout most of my attack. I kept ruing that it was there.<br />
<b>13.Kh1 Bd7 14.Rg1 Nc8 15.Qf2 </b><br />
[>=15.Qg3 c4 16.exf5 exf5 17.Rd1+/-]<br />
<b>15...Nd6
16.e5 Nb5 17.Ne2 </b><br />
I was so intent on attacking on the kingside that I didn't really even look at queenside possibilities, to be honest. [17.Na4! Rb7 18.c4 Nc7 19.b4+-]<br />
<b>17...Nc7 18.b4 </b><br />
Though I had to play this queenside move, because it simply wins a pawn.<br />
<b>18...Nd5
19.bxc5 Nxe3 20.Qxe3 b5 21.g4!? </b><br />
I was in attack mode, so forget about queenside moves! [>=21.a4+-]<br />
<b>21...fxg4? </b><br />
This mistake gives white a basically winning game. [21...Be8
22.a4 a5 23.c4 bxc4 24.dxc4 Rb7 25.gxf5 exf5 26.Rd1 Qe7 27.Rd6+-]<br />
<b>22.Rxg4
Qa5 23.Reg1 </b><br />
I decided to simply abandon the queenside and go all-in on my kingside attack. I knew that if I failed I would probably lose, unless I could come up with a perpetual.<br />
<b>23...Qxa2 24.h4? </b><br />
My move changes the evaluation from 'winning' to merely a strong white edge. [24.Ng5! Rf5 25.R4g2+-]<br />
<b>24...Be8 25.Ned4 Qd5
26.Kh2?! </b><br />
I so wanted to get my king out of the pin that I missed a lovely tactical sequence. [26.h5! Qxc5 27.hxg6 hxg6 28.Ng5 Qd5+ 29.Kh2 Re7 30.Qh3+-]<br />
<b>26...Qxc5
27.h5 Rd7 28.c3?? </b><br />
I made a bad mistake here, going from nearly winning to equality. <span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">[28.Qe4 Qd5 29.Qxd5
exd5 30.hxg6 hxg6 31.Ne6 Rf5 32.Rh4 Re7 33.Nfd4 Rf8 <i>(33...Rh5 34.Rxh5 gxh5
35.f5+-; 33...Rff7 34.Rxg6+-) </i>34.Nxf8+-]</span><br />
<b>28...Qd5? </b><br />
Luckily Cox didn't go in for taking the pawn. [28...Qxc3 29.hxg6 h6 30.Qe4 Re7
31.R4g2 c5 32.Nxe6 Rxe6 33.Qd5 Kh8 34.Qxe6 Qxd3 35.Qg4 Qe4= 36.Re1 Qxf4+
37.Qxf4 Rxf4 38.Kg3 Rf5 39.e6 c4 40.Ra2 Bxg6 41.Nh4 Rg5+ 42.Kh3 Bh5 43.e7 Be8
44.Rxa6 Kg8 45.Rf1 Re5 46.Kg3 Rxe7 47.Nf5 Rb7 48.Ra8 Be5+ 49.Kg4 Rb8 50.Ra7 Kh8
51.Nxh6 Bg7 52.Nf5 Bf8 53.Kf4=]<br />
<b>29.hxg6?? </b><br />
Another big mistake for me, though it certainly looked fine over the board. The computer's idea of Qe2 to support a c4 push is very clever and hard to see. [29.Qe2! Rb7 <i>(29...c5?
30.c4! Qa8 31.Nxe6+-) </i>30.hxg6 h6 31.c4 bxc4 32.dxc4 Qd7 33.Rd1 c5 34.Nb5
Qe7 35.Nd6 Rb4 36.Qe3+/=]<br />
<b>29...Bxg6? </b><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cox plays the natural move, but he had the unusual h5 push, which leads to equality. [29...h5! 30.R4g2 c5
31.Ne2 Qxd3 32.Qf2 Qc4 <i>(32...Qd5 33.Qg3=) </i>33.Qh4 Bh6 34.Ng5 Bxg5 35.Qxg5
Rg7 36.Qxh5=]</span><br />
<b>30.Ng5 Bf5 31.Rh4! c5 </b>[31...h6 32.Ne4 Kh8 33.Qg3 c5
34.Nxf5 exf5 35.Nf6 Rxf6 36.exf6 Bf8 37.Qg6 Qf7 38.Qxf5+-] <b>32.Nxf5 Rxf5
33.Nxh7! </b><br />
Once I got in Nxh7 I finally felt like I was winning.<br />
<b>33...Kf7 34.Qg3 </b><br />
I like my move a lot, and it's much easier to see than the computer's suggestion. [34.Ng5+ Ke8 35.Ne4 Bf8 36.Rg3 b4 37.cxb4+-]<br />
<b>34...Ke8
35.Nf6+ Rxf6 36.exf6 Bf8 37.Qg6+ Rf7 </b><br />
It was over anyway, but this move allows me to finish quickly with a cute tactical sequence. [37...Kd8 38.Rh8 Qd6 39.Qe4 Kc7
40.Rgg8+-]<br />
<b>38.Rh7 Qd7 39.Re1 b4 40.Rxf7 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
It was a relief to get by Cox successfully and move to 4.5 out of 5. Now I had a Saturday ahead of me with two really tough opponents.<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-2358590163706326202019-03-04T17:00:00.001+00:002019-03-04T17:07:08.891+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2019 part 1Recently the only chess I have been playing is the annual Old Fort Bay Invitational, since it is the best organized tournament I have ever seen. I had won the first two iterations, and the organizers promised I could keep the big trophy if I could win it a third time. Would I be able to?<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1998) -
Whyms,Chappell (1557) [B19]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (2), 23.02.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c6 </b><br />
I have always liked facing the Caro-Kann, as I seem to do well against it for some reason.<br />
<b>2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.h4 h6 7.Nf3 Nd7 8.Bd3
Bxd3 9.Qxd3 e6 10.Bf4 Qa5+ 11.Bd2 Bb4</b><br />
This was the first new move for me. I had always seen black play the queen back to c7. This move seems like a loss of time to me.<br />
<b>12.c3 Be7 13.0-0</b><br />
<b></b>Perhaps my choice to castle kingside is a bit odd, with the weakening due to the pawn on h4. The computer prefers some rather strange-looking moves that I don't think a human would play, especially the Nh5 move. [13.c4 Qc7 14.Nh5
0-0-0 15.Bc3 Kb8 16.0-0-0 Ngf6 17.Nxf6 Bxf6=]<br />
<b>13...Ngf6 14.Rfe1 0-0 15.Nf5</b><br />
This was a dangerous choice. I probably should have opted to keep more material on the board and play for complications over the long term. I suspected Chappell would choose to go into the endgame. It was dangerous because I get only the barest of advantages--a pawn majority on the queenside and a bishop against a knight. That's not necessarily enough to win, and I really needed to win this game to kick off the event.<br />
<b>15... Qxf5 16.Qxf5 exf5 17.Rxe7 Rfe8 18.Rae1 Rxe7 19.Rxe7 Re8 20.Rxe8+ Nxe8 </b><br />
So this was pretty much forced, and here is the endgame I mentioned. Not so simple to win.<br />
<b>21.Kf1
Kf8 22.Ke2 Ke7 23.Bf4 Nef6 24.Ne5 Ke6 </b><br />
I was happy he didn't play the knight to d5, as I felt that made it harder. [24...Nd5 25.Bh2+/=]<br />
<b>25.Nxd7 Nxd7
26.Kd3 h5 27.c4 a6 28.g3 b5 29.b3 a5? </b><br />
Black's queenside pawn expansion is wrong and makes my job much easier. Better was for him to sit back and force me to develop a plan.<br />
<b>30.Bc7 </b><br />
I didn't notice the quicker idea here of d5+, but it's not a big deal since the plan I did see works fine. [30.d5+! cxd5 31.cxb5+-]<br />
<b>30...a4
31.bxa4 bxa4 32.Kc3 Nf6 33.f3 </b><br />
Better was to go straight after the a pawn, but I hadn't wanted to give black any counterplay at all if I could help it. [>=33.Kb4 Ne4 34.Kxa4 Nxf2 35.Ka5 Kd7
36.Kb6 Nd1 37.c5 Nc3 38.Kb7 g5 <i>(38...Nxa2 39.Ba5 Nc1 40.d5+-) </i>39.hxg5
Nd5 40.Bd6 f4 41.Bxf4+-]<br />
<b>33...Ne8? </b><br />
It's hard to see this line, but here was black's shot at making a win difficult for me. [33...Nh7! 34.Kb4 g5 35.Kxa4 Kd7
36.Bb8 f4 37.Kb4 Kc8 38.Bd6 Kd7 39.c5 fxg3 40.Bxg3 gxh4 41.Bxh4 Kc8 42.a4 Nf8
43.d5 cxd5 44.c6 Ne6 45.Bg3 h4 46.Bxh4 Kc7 47.Kb5 Nd4+ 48.Kc5 Ne6+ 49.Kxd5 Nf4+
50.Ke4 Ng6 51.Bg5 Kxc6 52.Kf5 Nf8 53.Be7 Nd7 54.Ke4 Nb6 55.a5 Nd7 56.Bb4+/=]<br />
<b>34.Bf4
g6 35.Kb4 f6 36.Kxa4 Kd7 37.Kb4 Ng7 38.d5 cxd5 39.cxd5 Ne8 40.Kc5 Nc7 41.Bxc7
Kxc7 42.f4 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
It's always good to start well in any chess event! This goes especially so when I had what I consider my toughest test in the very next round. Black against the sole Fide Master of the Bahamas is never going to be easy. Below is a pic of me playing Carver in round 2.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOvwwMFtTvvUCWROAXPgslw8HSHeXJjmyxl0PSyfyLWWwDFLowGIOL9dDhwYlyheIhAhRwrU4P9vSzQ9BVKxiJcbm8ef0nqmfoWiXgjXd8TgVF4iVmVSIYA3QCIA1qh4f-1wZ1TsPbYgP3/s1600/Old+Fort+Bay+Invitational+round+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOvwwMFtTvvUCWROAXPgslw8HSHeXJjmyxl0PSyfyLWWwDFLowGIOL9dDhwYlyheIhAhRwrU4P9vSzQ9BVKxiJcbm8ef0nqmfoWiXgjXd8TgVF4iVmVSIYA3QCIA1qh4f-1wZ1TsPbYgP3/s640/Old+Fort+Bay+Invitational+round+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Gurth Smith</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3>
Moncur,FM Cecil
(1826) - Cross,Ted (1998) [D87]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (3), 23.02.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<b>1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 </b><br />
I haven't played the Gruenfeld in many years, and even back then I only played it a couple of times. I chose it this time to avoid Carver's preparation, plus I liked the line he played in the Olympiad this year and thought it could give me a tiny edge or at least a type of equality that I felt was playable for me. I liked the idea of having done computer prep in the line while Carver wouldn't have had the same opportunity.<br />
<b>4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 c5 8.Ne2
Nc6 9.Be3 0-0 10.h4 </b><br />
This was the line Carver played in the Olympiad, and I liked all the lines I saw in my preparation.<br />
<b>10...cxd4 11.cxd4 Qa5+ 12.Kf1 h5 </b><br />
This was my deviation from the game Carver played in the Olympiad.<br />
<b>13.Qb3?! </b><br />
The computer never showed me this move, so I had to assume it wasn't the best.<br />
<b>13...Qb4?! </b><br />
However, I failed to fully understand the reason why it wasn't great. I did briefly look at moving the queen back to threaten knight to a5, but it felt wrong to me somehow. But it was correct. [13...Qd8
14.Qd1 Na5 15.Bd3=]<br />
<b>14.Rd1 Qxb3 15.Bxb3 Na5 16.Bd5? </b><br />
This was a waste of time that just gives black some free development. [16.Ba4 Nc4 17.Bc1
a6 18.f3 b5 19.Bb3 Bd7=]<br />
<b>16...e6 17.Bb3 Nxb3 18.axb3 Rd8 </b><br />
Not a bad move, but not the best either. The rook really wants to be on c8, so it was best to develop the bishop first. [>=18...Bd7
19.f3 Rfc8 20.Kf2 a5 21.Rd2 b5=/+]<br />
<b>19.f3 Bd7 20.Kf2 a5 21.Bg5 Rdc8 22.Rc1 b5
23.Rxc8+ Rxc8 24.Rc1 Rxc1 </b><br />
The computer says I could have had a significant advantage here with [24...a4 25.Rxc8+ Bxc8 26.Bc1 Ba6 27.b4 f5 28.g3
Bb7 29.Ke3-/+]<br />
<b>25.Bxc1 Kf8 </b><br />
And again here with [25...a4 26.bxa4 bxa4 27.Ke3 Bf8 28.Nc3 Be7
29.g3 f6-/+]<br />
<b>26.Ke1 Ke7 27.Kd1 Bc6 28.Kc2 b4 29.Be3 Kd6 30.Kd2 Bb5=/+ </b><br />
I offered the draw because I knew the advantage I had was very minimal here, and I didn't see any clear plan to actually win the game without taking risks I wasn't prepared to take. Getting by my most feared opponent as black with a draw was completely acceptable to me.<br />
<b>1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
What a fascinating game round 3 turned out to be!<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1998) -
Karelina,Polina (1678) [C54]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (4), 24.02.2019<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 e5 </b><br />
Already we see something new. Polina has always played the Pirc, so I suspected she had opted to book up on lines she had seen in my database games. I just didn't know which lines yet.<br />
<b>2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 </b><br />
But now I knew! The Giuoco Piano. See, my database games all show me playing the ultrasolid 7. Bd2 line, because that is what I have taken to playing over the last thirty years.<br />
<b>4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+ 7.Nc3 </b><br />
So I threw Polina a curveball by playing this crazy line that I used to play more than thirty years ago. I knew she may not have looked at the lines, and playing a highly tactical variation with no prior knowledge is dangerous. I have to give her credit for how well she did.<br />
<b>7...Nxe4
8.0-0 Nxc3?! </b><br />
Now this is a known mistake. The reason I gave up playing this line is because after the correct 8...Bxc3, there is a long line where black ends up better. [>=8...Bxc3 9.d5 Bf6 10.Re1 Ne7 11.Rxe4 d6 with a wild game
that if played perfectly should favor black in the end.]<br />
<b>9.bxc3 Bxc3? </b><br />
Here is the first true mistake, though. Black could still gain close to equality with [9...d5
10.cxb4 dxc4 11.Re1+ Ne7 12.Qa4+ Bd7 13.b5 0-0 14.Qxc4=]<br />
<b>10.Qb3 </b><br />
I was aware that Ba3 immediately is considered to be even stronger, but I simply couldn't remember all the lines, so I chose the line that still wins and is generally easier to remember. [10.Ba3!
d5 <b>a) </b>10...d6 11.Rc1 Ba5 <i>(11...Bb4 12.Bxb4 Nxb4 13.Qe1+ Qe7
14.Qxb4+-) </i>12.Qa4 Bd7 <i>(12...a6 13.Bd5+-; 12...0-0 13.d5+-) </i>13.d5 Ne5
14.Qxa5 Nxf3+ 15.gxf3 0-0 16.Kh1+-; <b>b) </b>10...Bxa1 11.Re1+ Ne7 12.Bxe7
Qxe7 13.Rxe7+ Kxe7 14.Qxa1+-; 11.Bb5 Bxa1 12.Re1+ Be6 13.Qc2 Qd7 <i>(13...Qf6
14.Bxc6+ Kd8 15.Bxb7 Rb8 16.Bxd5+-) </i>14.Ne5 Bxd4 15.Nxd7 Kxd7 16.Rc1+-]<br />
<b>10...Bxd4 </b><br />
A good choice by Polina. Taking the rook leads to quick disaster, plus I had more trouble remembering the complicated lines in this variation. [10...Bxa1 11.Bxf7+ Kf8 12.Bg5 Ne7 13.Ne5 Bxd4 14.Bg6 d5 15.Qf3+ Bf5
16.Bxf5 Bxe5 17.Be6+ Bf6 18.Bxf6+-]<br />
<b>11.Bxf7+ Kf8 12.Bg5?! </b><br />
See what thirty years will do to your memory. I just couldn't recall the lines. White should win easily here, but instead I made it much harder than it needed to be. [12.Bh5 d5 <i>(12...g6
13.Nxd4 Nxd4 14.Qb4+ Kf7 15.Qxd4 gxh5 16.Bb2 Rg8 17.Qd5+ Kg6 18.Rae1+-) </i>13.Nxd4
Nxd4 14.Qb4+ Qd6 15.Qxd4+-]<br />
<b>12...Bf6 13.Rae1 Ne7 14.Re2?! </b><br />
My slight inaccuracies don't throw away the win, luckily, but they do make it progressively harder. [14.Bh5 d5
15.Re3 Ng6 16.Rfe1 Bd7 17.Bxf6 gxf6 18.Nh4 Ne5 19.Rxe5 fxe5 20.Qf3+ Kg7 21.Qg3+
Kf8 22.Re3 e4 23.Qf4+ Ke7 24.Qe5+ Be6 25.Bg4 Qd7 26.Bxe6 Qxe6 27.Nf5+ Kd7
28.Qg7++-]<br />
<b>14...d5 15.Rfe1? </b><br />
Now I make a real mistake that turns this into a difficult endgame. I didn't think I had the time to play what the computer says is the right move. [15.Bh5+-]<br />
<b>15...Kxf7 16.Bxf6?! </b><br />
I missed that taking with the rook on e7 right away would lead to a better version of the endgame. [16.Rxe7+!
Qxe7 17.Rxe7+ Kxe7 18.Qxd5 Re8 19.h3+/-]<br />
<b>16...gxf6 17.Rxe7+ Qxe7 18.Rxe7+
Kxe7 19.Qxd5 c6 20.Qe4+ Kf7 21.h3 Be6 22.Qf4 </b><br />
I hit upon the correct plan!<br />
<b>22...Rad8? </b><br />
This mistake makes my job a bit easier. [22...Rhg8 23.Qc7+ Ke8
24.Nd4 Bd7 25.Qxb7 Rc8+-]<br />
<b>23.Ng5+ Ke7 24.Qb4+ </b><br />
I know that Polina saw the knight check on g5, but I believe she missed this follow up.<br />
<b>24...Rd6 </b><br />
Avoiding giving up the exchange doesn't help. <span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">[24...Kd7 25.Qxb7+
Kd6 26.Ne4+ Ke5 27.f3 Rhf8 28.Qc7+ Kf5 29.Qxh7++-] </span><br />
<b>25.Ne4 Rhd8 26.Nxd6 Rxd6
27.Qxb7+ Rd7 28.Qxc6 Bxa2 29.Qe4+ Kd8 30.Qa8+ </b><br />
I didn't notice the simplicity of Qf3 here. Black is amazingly helpless. [>=30.Qf3] My line was fine but takes more time.<br />
<b>30...Ke7
31.Qh8 Bb1 32.Qg7+ Ke6 33.Qg4+ Bf5 34.Qc4+ Kd6 35.g4 Be6 36.Qb4+ Kd5 37.f4 Rc7
38.f5 Bc8 39.Qa5+ Kd6 40.Kf2 Bd7 41.Ke3 Bc6 42.Kd4 Bg2 43.h4 </b><br />
I'm winning anyway, but what an amazing move there was here! [43.g5!! fxg5
44.Qa2]<br />
<b>43...Bf1 44.Qd5+ Ke7 45.Qe6+ Kd8 46.Qxf6+ Kc8 47.Qe6+ Kb7 48.f6 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
Not recalling my old lines was worrisome, and Polina played very well, so it was great to grind it out successfully.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-15021219239343165772019-01-14T02:56:00.001+00:002019-03-04T16:07:28.930+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2018 part 4The next game ended up not really being a game. I was playing black against a player who was doing well in the event, having gone undefeated through the first eight rounds. I knew if I pushed I could probably win, but was it worth the effort when I could seal up first place without really risking anything? It was the third round of the day also. Two games in a day is tiring, but three is exhausting. I figured it could be better for the next day to get some rest.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Hanna Jr.,Philip
(1699) - Cross,Ted (1991) [C10]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (9), 10.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 e6 </b><br />
I almost never player the French, having done so just once previously, but I wanted to avoid any preparation on his part.<br />
<b>2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nd7 5.Nf3 Ngf6 6.Nxf6+ Nxf6 7.Bd3 c5
8.dxc5 Bxc5 9.0-0 0-0 10.Bg5 Qb6?! </b>[10...b6 11.Qe2 Bb7 12.Rad1 Qc7 13.Bxf6
gxf6 14.Be4 Rfd8 15.Bxb7 Qxb7=]<br />
Up to his last move I had looked at all this in my preparation, but here I forgot the proper move and got it mixed up with a different line. I figured I hadn't played correctly, so I took this moment to offer the draw.<br />
<b>1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
I knew I would push for a win in the next game, since it was my last with white. My opponent was the current Bahamas national champion, so he wouldn't be easy to beat.<br />
<br />
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1991) -
Small,Byron (1712) [C55]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (10), 11.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.0-0 d6 6.h3 Na5 7.Bb3 Nxb3 8.axb3
h6 9.Re1 0-0 10.d4 exd4 11.Qxd4 a6 12.Nc3 c6 13.Bf4 Be6 14.Re2 d5 </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">I really dislike these types of positions. I find it difficult to come up with a good plan. It's hard to win these kinds of games...you have to be really patient and wait for your opponent to blunder, or perhaps even take risks in order to play for a win.</span><br />
<b>15.Rae1?! </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[15.exd5
Nxd5 16.Nxd5=]</span><br />
<b>15...Re8 </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[>=15...c5 16.Qd1 d4 17.Rd2 Qb6 18.Nd5 Bxd5
19.exd5 Nxd5=/+]</span><br />
<b>16.exd5 cxd5 17.Ne5 Rc8 18.Nd3 Qd7 19.Bh2 Bf5 20.Nf4?! </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[20.Bg3=]</span><br />
<b>20...Bd6?! </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[>=20...Bc5 21.Qd2 Rxe2 22.Rxe2 d4 23.Na2 Ne4 24.Qe1 Bd6
25.Nd3=/+]</span><br />
<b>21.Nfxd5 Bxh2+?! </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[>=21...Nxd5 22.Nxd5 Rxe2 23.Rxe2 Rxc2
24.Rxc2 Bxc2 25.Nf6+ gxf6 26.Bxd6=]</span><br />
<b>22.Kxh2 Nxd5 23.Nxd5 Rxe2 24.Rxe2 Re8
25.Rxe8+ Qxe8 26.c4 Qe4 27.Qxe4 Bxe4 </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">Okay, so I come to an endgame up a pawn, but it isn't so simple to actually win it.</span><br />
<b>28.Ne3 f5 29.f3 Bd3 30.g3 Kf7 31.b4 Ke6
32.f4 g5 33.Kg2 gxf4 34.gxf4 Kf6 35.Kg3 Kf7 36.c5 Ke6 37.Kf3 Kf7 38.h4 h5? </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">I breathed a sigh of relief here. I needed to bring my king over to the queen side if I wanted to make progress, but I was afraid to do so while he had a path with his king through h5 to attack my kingside pawns. With this mistake he sealed off that route and freed up my king to roam.</span><br />
<b>39.Kf2 Ke6 40.Ke1 Be4 41.Kd2 Kd7 42.Kc3 Kc6 43.Kd4 </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[43.Nc4!? Kd5 44.Nd6+-]</span><br />
<b>43...Kb5
44.Kc3? </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">[44.Nc4 Kxb4 45.Nd6 Bc2 46.Nxb7 Kb5 47.Nd6+ Kc6 48.b4+-]</span><br />
<b>44...b6
45.Nc4?? </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">I struggled to see the tactics correctly here, and this mistake could have cost me the win. [45.Kd4! Kxb4 <i>(45...bxc5+ 46.bxc5 Kc6 47.Ke5 Kxc5 48.Nxf5+-) </i>46.cxb6
Ka5 47.Nxf5 Bf3 48.Kc5+-]</span><br />
<b>45...bxc5 46.Nd6+ Kc6 47.Nxe4 fxe4 48.bxc5 Kxc5
49.f5 Kd5 50.f6 Ke6 51.Kd4 Kxf6 52.Kxe4 Ke6?? </b><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;">All of this was pretty much forced, and here he could have drawn with the simple a5.[52...a5=] </span><br />
<b>53.Kf4 Kf6
54.b4 Kg6 55.Ke5 Kg7 56.Kf5 Kh6 57.Kf6 Kh7 58.Kg5 Kg7 59.Kxh5 Kh7 60.Kg5 Kg7
61.Kf5 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
So, I was fortunate to get that last necessary victory and I knew I had first place sealed up now. So the only question in the final round was whether my opponent would want to fight it out or not, because I didn't need to.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Gibson,Franklyn
(1900) - Cross,Ted (1991) [A36]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (11), 11.03.2018<o:p></o:p></span></h3>
1.c4 g6 2.g3 Bg7 3.Bg2 c5 4.Nc3 Nc6 5.d3 Nf6 6.e4 d6 7.Nge2 0-0 8.0-0 e5
9.h3 Nd4 10.f4 Ne8 1/2-1/2<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div>
And so that wrapped it up. I scored an undefeated eight points from ten and won first place for the second year in a row.</div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-82704898089964907412019-01-03T13:30:00.000+00:002019-01-03T13:30:02.890+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2018 part 3This next game made me nervous for the same reason as my third round game--having beaten top rivals I now had to face one of the lower-ranked opponents, and that always feels like a trap game (as the third round ended up being). I steeled myself to play as solidly as possible.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1991) -
Whyms,Chappell (1616) [B48]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (6), 07.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6
3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Qc7 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be3 a6 7.a3 Nf6 8.Be2 Nxd4 9.Bxd4 </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>b5?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">He chose a variation that I was unfamiliar with, so it's lucky for me that he erred first. [9...d6] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>10.0-0? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Although my move isn't bad, per se, it allows black equality in a position where I could have taken a strong advantage. [>=10.e5
Nd5 11.Nxd5 exd5 12.Qd2 Bc5 13.0-0-0 Bb7 14.Rhe1+/-] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>10...Bd6 11.g3 Bb7
12.Bf3 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">My move is fine. The computer's suggestion only leads to a slight advantage anyway. [12.Bxb5 Nxe4 13.Nxe4 Bxe4 14.Ba4 0-0 15.Bxg7 Kxg7 16.Qd4+ Be5
17.Qxe4 Bxb2 18.Rab1 Qe5 19.Qxe5+ Bxe5 20.Bxd7+/=] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>12...Be5 13.Bg2 Rc8
14.Rc1 0-0 15.f4 Bxd4+ 16.Qxd4 d5 17.e5 Nd7 18.Ne2 Qb6 19.Rfd1 Rc7 20.c3 Rfc8
21.Kf2 a5 22.Qxb6 Nxb6 23.Nd4 Ba6 24.Bf1 Nc4?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[>=24...Rb8] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>25.Rc2 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I missed the ideas behind b3. [25.b3!
Nb6 <i>(25...Nxa3 26.Ra1+-) </i>26.a4 Kf8 27.axb5 Bb7 28.Ra1 Rxc3 29.Rxa5+-] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>25...a4
26.Bxc4 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">The computer doesn't like my move, but I think it underestimates how bad the black bishop becomes, trapped behind its wall of pawns.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>26...Rxc4 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Black definitely makes it worse with this move. [26...dxc4 27.Rcd2+/-; 26...bxc4 27.g4+/=] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>27.Ke3 Kf8 28.g4
Ke7 29.f5 Rb8? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now white is flat-out winning. [29...exf5 30.gxf5 Re8 31.Rf2 Bc8 32.Kd2+/-] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>30.Rf2 Rcc8
31.fxe6 fxe6 32.Rdf1 b4 33.Rf7+ Ke8 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">It's lost either way. [33...Kd8 34.Nxe6+ Ke8 35.Nxg7+ Kd8
36.R1f6] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>34.Rf8+ 1-0</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">It was a relief to get by the 'trap game' intact! The next game was also a bit of a potential trap game, though against a stronger player. I had beaten him twice last year in this event, but I knew I would have to be accurate to do so again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Joseph,Elton (1811)
- Cross,Ted (1991) [A00]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (7), 10.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.g3 g6 2.Bg2 Bg7 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.b3</b><br />
Well, he sure chose an unusual opening variation against me!<br />
<b>4... d5 5.e3 c5 6.Bb2 0-0 7.Nge2 e5 8.0-0 Nc6
9.d4 </b><br />
It feels like a reversed King's Indian, and I'm not a KID player at all.<br />
<b>9...cxd4 10.exd4 exd4 </b><br />
I originally meant to play the correct move, e4, but then I thought I saw a tactic that wasn't quite there. [>=10...e4 11.Qd2 Re8 12.Rfe1 Bg4-/+]<br />
<b>11.Nxd4
Nxd4 12.Qxd4 Ne4 13.Qd3 Bf5 14.Na4 Nxf2? </b><br />
It could have turned out well for me had I seen this absurdly long computer line. [14...Bxb2 15.Nxb2 Qf6 16.Na4 Ng5
17.Qxd5 Rad8 18.Qc5 Nh3+ 19.Kh1 Rd2 20.Nc3 Rfd8 21.Rae1 Rxc2 22.Nd5 Rxc5
23.Nxf6+ Kg7 24.g4 Bd3 25.Ne4 Bxf1 26.Bxf1 Nxf2+ 27.Nxf2 Rc2-/+]<br />
<b>15.Qxd5
Nh3+ 16.Kh1 Qxd5 17.Bxd5 Bxb2 </b><br />
[17...Rad8 18.Bxb7 Rd2 <i>(18...Bxc2 19.Bg2
Ng5 20.Kg1=) </i>19.Bxg7 Kxg7 20.c4 Re8 21.Rae1 Rxe1 22.Rxe1 Rxa2~~]<br />
<b>18.Nxb2
Bxc2 19.Rac1 Bf5 20.Bxb7 Rae8 21.Bf3?! </b><br />
It would have been all equal if not for this error. [21.Rce1=]<br />
<b>21...Ng5 22.g4 Nxf3 </b><br />
[22...Bc8!-/+]<br />
<b>23.gxf5 Re2 </b><br />
[23...Nxh2! 24.Rf4 Re2 25.Nd3 g5-/+]<br />
<b>24.Rxf3 Rxb2 25.fxg6
fxg6? </b><br />
I simply hallucinated here, totally missing that his other rook could hit me and win a pawn with check. [25...hxg6 26.a4 Rd8-/+]<br />
<b>26.Rxf8+ Kxf8 27.Rc8+ Kg7 28.Rc7+ Kh6
29.Rxa7 Kg5 30.h4+?? </b><br />
White makes a terrible mistake. [30.Rxh7 Rxa2 31.b4 Rb2 32.Rb7 Kf4 33.Kg1 g5 34.b5 Kf3
35.Rf7+ Ke4 36.Rb7 Kf3=]<br />
<b>30...Kg4? </b><br />
But I was so demoralized over what I had done on move 25 that I spent exactly zero time on my response and immediately played Kg4. White offered a draw and I accepted without even asking him to show his move. [30...Kxh4 31.Kg1 <i>(31.Rxh7+ Kg3-+)
</i>31...h5-+]<br />
<b>1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
So, my pattern in this event so far was to play well against my biggest rivals and then play fairly poorly against the tail enders. Well, I had one of my biggest rivals ahead in the next round, so it wouldn't be so bad if that pattern held up for now!<br />
<br />
Kendrick had 'stolen' the national championship away from me last year, and he was the only player in the Bahamas with a plus score against me, so needless to say, I was nervous.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1991) -
Knowles,Kendrick (1827) [B35]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (8), 10.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 g6 </b><br />
He had played the Center Counter each time with black previously.<br />
<b>2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c5 4.Nf3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nc6 6.Be3 Nf6 7.f3 0-0 8.Bc4
Qa5 9.Qd2 </b><b>Nxd4 10.Bxd4 Qb4 </b><br />
When he played this move, I thought I had messed up and was in trouble. It took me quite a long time to realize that I was fine.<br />
<b>11.Qd3 Qxb2?? </b><br />
Lucky for me he didn't see that the pawn was poisoned. [11...d5
12.Bxd5 Nxd5 13.Bxg7 Kxg7 14.exd5 Bf5 15.Qd2 Qxb2 16.Rb1 Qa3 17.g4 Bd7 18.Rxb7
Rac8 19.Qd4+ Kg8 20.Kd2 Rfd8~/=]<br />
<b>12.Nd5 Nxd5 13.Bxb2 Bxb2 14.Rb1 Nf4 15.Qd2
Be5 16.0-0 d6 17.g3 Nh5 18.f4 Bf6 19.f5 g5 20.a4 h6 21.a5 Ng7 22.Rb3 Ne8
23.Rfb1 Kg7 24.Bd5 Be5 25.Bxb7 Bxb7 26.Rxb7 Nf6 27.Qd3 Rac8 28.R1b3 a6 29.Rxe7
Rc5 30.Rbb7 Rxa5 31.Qb3 d5 32.Rxe5 1-0</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
It is rarely easy to beat Kendrick, so it was nice to have one turn my way quickly. And this victory put me in the driver's seat for winning the event with 6 points out of 7 games (there was a bye for each person in the event due to the number of players).<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span>Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-39391218712036612902019-01-02T14:00:00.000+00:002019-01-02T14:00:07.577+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2018 part 2So, having begun the event by beating two of my toughest opponents, I now got to play white against the lowest-rated player in the event. I typically have no trouble beating 1400-level players, so this was a sobering experience. I didn't take her lightly, since I was nervous about messing up, but the truth is that she chose a terrific line to play against me, since it isn't one I like or know well, and she also played very well.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1991) -
Johnson,Daijah (1441) [B32]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (4), 04.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6
3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e5 5.Nb5 d6 6.c4 a6 7.N5c3 Nf6 8.Bg5?! </span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">See, already I show that I don't know this position. My move takes it from a standard minimal white edge to a tiny black edge. [8.Be2] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>8...Be7 9.Na3?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">And I follow up my last poor move by overlooking a tactical idea. Lucky for me she didn't see it either.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>9...0-0 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9...Nxe4!
10.Bxe7 Nxc3 11.Bxd8 Nxd1 12.Rxd1 Kxd8 13.Rxd6+ Ke7 14.Rd2=/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>10.Nc2?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I spent a lot of this opening making substandard moves! Not a good plan against a lower-rated opponent that I really need to beat. [>=10.Bxf6
Bxf6=] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>10...Be6 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again the Ne4 tactic was available and again we both missed it. [10...Nxe4! 11.Bxe7 Nxc3 12.Bxd8 Nxd1 13.Bc7 Nxb2
14.Bxd6 Rd8 15.c5-/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>11.Ne3?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">My fourth poor move in a row. [11.Bd3=] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>11...h6 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11...Nxe4
12.Bxe7 Nxc3 13.Qxd6 Nxe7 14.Qxd8 Rfxd8 15.bxc3-/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Ncd5
Bxd5 14.exd5?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Another bad move gives black a solid edge. [>=14.Nxd5 Qa5+ 15.Qd2=] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>14...Nd4 15.Nc2?? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I was simply oblivious to the Qa5 tactics, though I saw them right as I took my hand off the knight, and I knew I was in trouble and would be lucky not to lose the game. [15.Bd3
Qa5+ 16.Qd2 Qxd2+ 17.Kxd2=/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>15...Nxc2+? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">What huge relief! I felt like I had a new lease on life. [15...Qa5+ 16.b4 Nxc2+ 17.Qxc2
Qxb4+ 18.Qd2 a5-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>16.Qxc2 Rc8 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">This slight inaccuracy on her part drops her advantage from significant to a small one. [>=16...e4 17.Rb1 Rc8 18.Be2 Qa5+
19.Qd2 Qxa2 20.0-0-/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>17.Bd3?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[17.Be2=/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>17...b5 18.0-0 g6?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[18...e4
19.Be2 Qa5-/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>19.Qe2 bxc4 20.Bxc4 a5 21.Rac1 Bg7 22.Bb5 Qb6 23.a4 Rc5
24.Bc6 e4 25.Qxe4 Qxb2 26.Rxc5 dxc5 27.d6 Qe5 28.d7 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I still had my chances to win this game, but it involved playing highly accurate move orders, which given how poorly I had been playing so far was not something very likely to happen. [>=28.Qxe5 Bxe5
29.d7 Rb8 30.Bb5 Bf6 31.Re1 Kg7 32.Re8 Rd8 33.Kf1 c4 34.Ke2 h5 35.f4 Kh6 36.g3
c3 37.Kd3 g5 38.Re4 gxf4 39.Rxf4 Kg7 40.Rf5 h4 41.g4 Rh8 42.h3 Kg6 43.Kc2 Kg7
44.g5 Bd8 45.Kxc3+-] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>28...Qxe4 29.Bxe4 Bf6 30.Bc6 c4 31.Rc1 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">And once again another long computer line that supposedly wins for me. [31.Re1 c3
32.Bb5 Rd8 33.Kf1 h5 34.Re8+ Kg7 35.Ke2 Kh6 36.Kd3 Kg5 37.g3 h4 38.Re4 hxg3
39.fxg3 Kh6 40.Rc4 Kg7 41.h4 Kf8 42.Ke4 Ke7 43.Kd5 Kf8 44.Kd6 Be7+ 45.Kc7 Bf6
46.g4+-]</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>31...Rb8 32.Bb5 c3 33.Kf1 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">And again. [33.Re1 Kg7 34.Re8 Rd8 35.Re4 Rb8
36.Rc4 Rd8 37.g3 g5 38.Kg2 Kg6 39.g4 h5 40.h3 hxg4 41.hxg4 Kg7 42.Kf3 Rh8
43.Ke2 Rd8 44.Rc8 Kf8 45.Kd3 Ke7 46.Ke4 Ke6 47.Rc6+ Ke7 48.Rc5 Ke6 49.Rc8 Ke7
50.Kf5+-] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>33...Kf8 34.Ke2 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">And one final time before it turns into a dead draw. [34.Re1 Be7 35.Re2 g5 36.g4 Rd8 37.Ke1 Bf6
38.h3 Kg8 39.Re8+ Kg7 40.Ke2 h5 41.Kd3 Kg6 42.Kc2 Kh6 43.Re4 Kg6 44.Rc4 hxg4
45.hxg4 Kg7 46.Rc8 Rh8 47.Kb3 Rd8 48.f3 Kf8 49.Kc4 Ke7 50.Kd5 Bg7 51.Ke4 Bf6 52.Kf5
Bg7 53.Rc4 Bh8 54.Kxg5+-] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>34...Ke7 35.Kd3 Rb6 36.Re1+ Re6 37.Rxe6+ Kxe6
38.Bc4+ Ke7 39.d8Q+ Kxd8 40.Bxf7 g5 41.Bb3 Kc7 42.Kc4 Kc6 43.Bc2 Be5 44.Be4+
Kb6 45.h3 h5 46.g3 h4 47.gxh4 gxh4 48.Kd5 Bg7 49.f4 Kc7 50.Ke6 Kb6 51.f5 Kc5
52.f6 Bf8 53.Bc2 Kb4 54.Kd5 Ka3 55.Kc4 Kb2 56.Kd3 Bd6 57.Bd1 1/2-1/2</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">On the one hand, it was a relief to not lose this after playing so terribly, but it was also a big let down to draw against the lowest player in the field, and one so many rating points lower than me. I was hoping to start regaining lost rating points, and this dealt a crushing blow to that hope.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">After this stinging rebuke, my reward was to have black against the Bahamas' best player, FM Cecil 'Carver' Moncur. I had lost with black each time I had played him in the past, so I was feeling determined but not very confident.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Moncur,FM Cecil
(1901) - Cross,Ted (1991) [A88]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (5), 04.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.d4 f5 </b><br />
I changed up the opening, having played a Queen's Gambit each of the first two times I had played black against Carver.<br />
<b>2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.b3 0-0 6.Bb2 d6 7.0-0 c6 8.c4 a5
9.Nc3 Qc7 10.Rc1 Na6 11.d5 e5 </b><br />
Nothing wrong with my move. Nc5 is just another good alternative. [11...Nc5]<br />
<b>12.dxe6 Bxe6 13.Ng5 Bc8 14.e3
h6 15.Nf3 Nc5 16.Nh4 g5 17.Nf3 Nfe4 </b><br />
While there may be nothing technically wrong with white's plan over the past few moves, I was happy that he allowed me to expand on the kingside. Yes, it could turn out badly for me as it weakens my king's position, yet this attack against the kingside often represents black's only real chance to play for a win in this opening, barring white allowing a tactic along the long bishop diagonal.<br />
<b>18.Qc2 Nxc3 19.Bxc3 Ne4 </b>[19...Bxc3
20.Qxc3 Qg7 21.Qd2 Rf6 22.Nd4 f4 23.exf4 gxf4 24.Kh1 fxg3 25.fxg3 Bd7+/=] <b>20.Bxg7
Qxg7 </b><br />
This next phase of the game revolves around black trying not to lose the weak d6 pawn while trying to find a way to play f4.<br />
<b>21.Rfd1 Bd7 22.Nd4 Rae8 23.Ne2 Rf6 24.Nc3 Nc5 25.Rd4?! </b><br />
White falters at last, and I'm proud that I realized it and played correctly. [25.a3+/=]<br />
<b>25...f4! </b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK8ispqXug6Pznzi0otKyESvb7_DV8kfamy2PBjJQJ88R82DXSJxGG-hqXsG09-Iu9mKNENTvAOMfWK0CRt7qP2rg6-OKmt_W1N_UbnS7evE5oVHdkdXmMoHwun_iFEkbJ3yP2H0sfdaiw/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="793" data-original-width="796" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK8ispqXug6Pznzi0otKyESvb7_DV8kfamy2PBjJQJ88R82DXSJxGG-hqXsG09-Iu9mKNENTvAOMfWK0CRt7qP2rg6-OKmt_W1N_UbnS7evE5oVHdkdXmMoHwun_iFEkbJ3yP2H0sfdaiw/s320/Capture.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<b>26.exf4 gxf4 27.Qd1 </b><br />
White makes things worse by placing his queen on the back rank with his king. [>=27.Qd2 f3 28.Bf1 Qe7 <i>(28...Qg5) </i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">29.Rd1 Kg7 30.Qb2 </span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">(30.Rxd6?
Qxd6 31.Qxd6 Rxd6 32.Rxd6 Re1 33.Rd1 Rxd1 34.Nxd1 Bf5 35.h4 Bc2 36.Nc3 Kf6=/+) </i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">30...Bf5
31.a3 Qe5=</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">; 27.Rxf4? Rxf4 28.gxf4 Bh3 29.f3 Nd3!]</span><br />
<b>27...f3 </b><br />
[27...fxg3 28.hxg3 Ref8 29.Rc2=]<br />
<b>28.Bh1?? </b><br />
But here is the move that lost the game for white. He was hoping to collect the pawn on f3, but his bishop simply had to come to f1 to stop the coming tactics. [28.Bf1 Qg5 29.h4 Qe5 30.Qd2=]<br />
<b>28...Rfe6 29.Ne4 Nxe4 30.Bxf3 Nxg3! </b><br />
My move is definitely the human move and is just fine. The computer tactics just make my mind whirl. [30...Ng5
31.Rd3 Qb2 32.Kf1 Rf6 33.g4 Bxg4-+]<br />
<b>31.Rg4 Re1+ 32.Kg2 Bxg4 33.Qxd6 Bxf3+
34.Kxf3 Rf8+ 35.Kg2 0-1</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
This was the best feeling, finally getting a win with black against my main rival. I now sat in first place with three and a half from four, with just the one blip of a draw that I should never have given up. I finished the first weekend quite happy with my performance.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span>Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-30831575444830852302019-01-01T04:32:00.003+00:002019-01-01T04:32:58.953+00:00Old Fort Bay Invitational 2018 part 1 2017 saw the first edition of a new invitational chess tournament in The Bahamas. It was an honor to be invited, and an even nicer honor to win that inaugural event. They changed the name for the second edition this year, now calling it the Old Fort Bay Invitational, Old Fort Bay being the nice neighborhood community that is hosting the event. Last year the event was a double round-robin with the best six players in The Bahamas, and I won with seven wins and three losses. This year it was changed to a single round-robin with eleven players, so still ten rounds, but only facing each player once. It's nerve-wracking to try to repeat a victory, since it's never something that is going to be easy. Ironically, my first round opponent this year was my final round opponent last year.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1991) -
Karelina,Polina (1809) [B07]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (1), 03.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 d6 </b><br />
No surprise, she has played the Pirc with black each time I have played her.<br />
<b>2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6 4.f4</b><br />
I changed my opening from my previous three games against her, having played f3 in those games and going for f4 this time.<br />
<b>4... Qa5 5.Bd3 e5 6.Nf3 exd4 7.Nxd4 g6 8.Be3
Bg7 9.h3 Nbd7 10.a3 Qc7 11.Qf3 Nc5 12.0-0-0 b5?? </b><br />
She overlooked a tactic that I'm very familiar with in similar Sicilian positions.<br />
<b>13.Bxb5</b><br />
<b></b>My move is fine, though apparent it's even stronger to play [13.Ndxb5 cxb5
14.Nxb5 Qa5 15.Bxc5 dxc5 16.e5+-]<br />
<b>13...Bd7</b><br />
She tried to decline the tactic, but she failed to notice that this move did nothing to prevent it. I was just as surprised as she was that I could go ahead and capture the second pawn.<br />
<b> 14.Bxc6 </b><br />
I like my move better, but the computer prefers [14.e5 dxe5 15.fxe5
Nd5 16.Nxc6 Nxc3 17.bxc3+-]<br />
<b>14...Bxc6 15.Ndb5 Bxb5 16.Nxb5 Qc6 17.Nxd6+ Ke7
18.e5 </b><br />
While the computer likes another line better, it isn't an easy for for a human to understand, while my line is simple. [18.Bxc5 Qxc5 19.Qb3 Rhf8 20.Qb7+ Ke6 21.f5+ Ke5 22.Rhf1+-]<br />
<b>18...Qxf3
19.exf6+ Bxf6 20.gxf3 Ne6 21.f5 Ng5 22.f4 Nf3 23.Bc5 Bg7 24.Rhf1 Nh4 25.Rfe1+
1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br /><br />
Polina is a talented young player and never easy to play against, so it was a relief to get this early win to start off the event. The second round wasn't going to get any easier, though. I had to play against Valentine Cox, who took second place last year. To win against him is always a long grind, and I had to have the black pieces against him.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cox,Valentine
(1856) - Cross,Ted (1991) [B45]<br />
Old Fort Bay Invitational Nassau (2), 03.03.2018<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">I don't play the e6 Sicilian, but I was concerned about his preparation and decided to take the game into unprepared waters early.</span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> 3.d4
cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Be3 a6 8.Nd4 Qc7 9.Nb3 b5 10.a3 Be7
11.Be2 0-0 12.0-0 Bb7 </span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I don't know this opening variation very well, so I was making it up as I went along and hoping that my opponent was in the same boat. [12...Ne5=/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>13.f4 Rfd8 14.Bf3 Bf8 15.Qd2 d5 16.Qf2? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">How lucky I was that he faltered first...and that I saw it! Because I nearly didn't see it. I kept looking at all the lines where his bishop comes to b6 and I thought I was in trouble. Then I finally noticed the tactics that made d4 work for me. [16.e5 d4
17.exf6 dxe3 18.Qxe3 gxf6=] </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc91eyiLp6w3n6AaeRuVhvYUmozcnLZWHfGcAslPnHYTNy7EbQN5xw4iOgDtnveywf_eD1sApiPl3QuhXX0VcCMzBxAtqozuuXYG23L3Cam6QPbmTVKima_GeiBSgypWwrMbtWP19it-Ip/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="804" data-original-width="793" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc91eyiLp6w3n6AaeRuVhvYUmozcnLZWHfGcAslPnHYTNy7EbQN5xw4iOgDtnveywf_eD1sApiPl3QuhXX0VcCMzBxAtqozuuXYG23L3Cam6QPbmTVKima_GeiBSgypWwrMbtWP19it-Ip/s320/Capture.JPG" width="315" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>16...d4! 17.Nxd4 Nxd4 18.Kh1 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">And the move worked due to the skewer available against white's king and queen. [18.Bxd4 Rxd4
19.Qxd4 Bc5] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>18...Nxf3 19.gxf3 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[19.Bb6?! Qxf4 20.g3 Nxe4 21.gxf4 Nxf2+
22.Rxf2 Rd7-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>19...Rd7 20.Rg1 Rc8 21.Qh4 Ne8 22.Rg3 Qd8 23.Qh5 Rxc3!? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Okay, so there was no need to make it harder by giving back the exchange, but I was getting nervous and thought this would make my life easier. [23...g6-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>24.bxc3 Rd1+ 25.Rg1 Rxa1 26.Rxa1 g6?!</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b></b>All right, I didn't see the line that the computer likes here, and frankly I'm not sure how many humans would have seen it all. [26...f5! 27.exf5 Nf6 28.Qh3 Qc7
29.Bd2 exf5 30.Qg3 Bxa3-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>27.Qg4 Bg7 28.Qg1 Bxc3 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">All these f5 lines that the computer likes didn't appeal to me at the time, since they felt </span>weakening<span style="font-size: 12pt;">. [>=28...f5 29.Bb6
Qc8 30.Rd1 fxe4-+] </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>29.Rd1 Qa8?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">The computer's preferred line here is, well, very computerish. [29...Qc7 30.Bb6 Qc6 31.Rd8 Bf6 32.Rb8
Be7-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>30.Rd3 Ba5 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">And again the computer suggests a line that I can't imagine a human playing. [>=30...Bf6 31.Bb6 Qb8 32.Qe3 h6-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>31.Qd1? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">The fact that the computer suggestions are all fairly incomprehensible to me shows just how hard this position was to judge by human players. [31.Qg5
Bc6 32.Qc5-/+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>31...Nf6 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">The computer just loves the f5 moves. [>=31...f5 32.Kg1 fxe4 33.Rd7 exf3 34.Re7
Nf6-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>32.f5? exf5 33.Rd6 Bxe4 34.Kg2 Ng4 35.Bg1 Bc6 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[>=35...Bc7
36.Rd2 Bb7-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>36.Kg3 Bc7 37.fxg4 Bh1 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I wish I had seen the Bd5 idea. It is so elegant. [37...Bd5!] </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKShtb3iTH4powMMG6n3hnZYXTLG8ufjquT4bbkM2hKiX0xdzT-bWZTkEwi1oJruFBcrymo9IiXRrcyeNdntepHapHaW3a3vN0mnpGHHUzwaIKsVy72zdJ5RbNidTKXGsFjCLURtF2C-v/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="793" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKShtb3iTH4powMMG6n3hnZYXTLG8ufjquT4bbkM2hKiX0xdzT-bWZTkEwi1oJruFBcrymo9IiXRrcyeNdntepHapHaW3a3vN0mnpGHHUzwaIKsVy72zdJ5RbNidTKXGsFjCLURtF2C-v/s320/Capture.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>38.Kh4 Bf3? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">My move isn't really that bad. It's just that the h6 move traps the white king nicely. [38...h6
39.Be3 Qg2 40.Rd2 g5+ 41.Bxg5 hxg5+ 42.Kxg5 Qe4-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>39.Qd4 Bxd6? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again, my move doesn't throw anything away, but there is a stronger move in [39...Qf8] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>40.Qxd6 Bxg4?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[40...h6-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>41.Be3 </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[41.Bd4 h6 42.Qf6 g5+ 43.Kg3
Qf3#] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>41...Qe8 42.Bf2 Be2?! </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[42...h6 43.Kg3 Qe2 44.Qd3 f4+ 45.Kg2 Qe6-+] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>43.Kg5 Qf8 44.Qf6 h6+ 45.Kh4 g5+ 46.Kh3 Bg4+ </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I overlooked the shorter forced mate, but my move was easily winning as well. [46...Bf1+ 47.Kg3 Qb8+
48.Kf3 Qf4#] </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>47.Kg2 Qa8+ 0-1</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I was so happy. Having started the event against two of my strongest competitors, I went 2-0. Successfully putting such powerful opponents in the rearview mirror is a huge relief. Now I just had to keep up the pressure against the rest of the field.</span><br />
<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-27612120708836143002018-09-21T03:00:00.000+00:002018-09-21T03:00:08.565+00:00Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 part 4So after racing to a lead in the tournament after the first half, I began to falter and lost two in a row. I was still in first place, but I needed to turn things around quick. Now I was facing FM Carver Moncur, who had beaten me in round 4.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOs9gS32bTn5PD6NRfThoPHXcmm4BhKMleAW6RsD2PMlmRStzuqaSP2fGhVnARc9U4SdAnuTYje9_f-qGxo3bj1Ly_Mvff8HpdkrhQIFPU4St3aXePqaKTU61BeMdvLnvfFcfhSkyQnEMe/s1600/FM+Cecil+Moncur+vs+Cross.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOs9gS32bTn5PD6NRfThoPHXcmm4BhKMleAW6RsD2PMlmRStzuqaSP2fGhVnARc9U4SdAnuTYje9_f-qGxo3bj1Ly_Mvff8HpdkrhQIFPU4St3aXePqaKTU61BeMdvLnvfFcfhSkyQnEMe/s400/FM+Cecil+Moncur+vs+Cross.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Critical match-up with trophy behind us</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1995) -
Moncur,FM Cecil (1876) [B23]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (9), 12.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 </b><br />
Not sure why I chose the Sicilian Grand Prix attack, except that I'm sure I wanted to get out of any special preparation Carver had done.<br />
<b>3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bb5 Nd4 6.0-0 Nxb5 7.Nxb5 d5 8.exd5
a6 9.Nc3 Nf6 10.d4 Nxd5 11.dxc5 Nxc3 12.Qxd8+ Kxd8 13.bxc3 Bxc3 14.Rb1 Kc7
15.Rb3 Bg7 </b><br />
There hasn't been much to say because this has all been theory, headed toward an interesting endgame that I had studied previously. The question was could I remember it all?<br />
<b>16.Bd2 Rb8? </b><br />
[16...Be6 17.Ba5+ Kc6 18.Rb6+ Kxc5 19.Nd2 Rhd8 <i>(19...Rhc8?
20.Rd1 Bf5 21.c3 Bc2 22.Rc1 Bf5 23.h3 h5 24.c4+-) </i>20.Rd1 Rd4~~ 21.c4 Bxc4
22.Rxb7 Rc8 23.Rc1 Kc6 24.Rxe7 Bf8 25.Re3 Kb5 26.Nb3 Rd5=/+]<br />
<b>17.Ba5+ </b><br />
GM Renier Gonzalez was analyzing the game afterward and preferred [17.Rb6!?]<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdJYI-e_EDH5lGRUyq40wDTDvq1WY81qUIOU0b8kZKK6YlL4ejAj5qJ6Jk2gWRZJsko932PNesCzwESom1EKqt-4wNrfn22ciJLhZGGV-WqvlgBeVaGxoroQ4JbLmvd_pRMQAGPtdpz8F/s1600/Me+with+GM+Renier+Gonzalez2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1504" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdJYI-e_EDH5lGRUyq40wDTDvq1WY81qUIOU0b8kZKK6YlL4ejAj5qJ6Jk2gWRZJsko932PNesCzwESom1EKqt-4wNrfn22ciJLhZGGV-WqvlgBeVaGxoroQ4JbLmvd_pRMQAGPtdpz8F/s320/Me+with+GM+Renier+Gonzalez2.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with GM Renier Gonzalez</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<b>17...Kc6 18.Rb6+ Kxc5 19.Rd1?? </b><br />
Here is where I mixed up my line. I knew about Nd2 but played too quickly, and the instant I played it I saw that Bg4 ruins it for me. I got truly lucky that my opponent had a moment of blindness next move. [19.Nd2 Bg4 20.Nb3+ Kd5 21.c4+ Ke4
22.Re1+ Kd3 23.Rxe7 Rhe8 24.Rxf7 Bc3 25.h3 Bf5 26.g4 Re1+ 27.Kf2 Re2+ 28.Kg3
Re3+ 29.Kh4 Be6 30.Nc5++-]<br />
<b>19...Bc3?? </b><br />
Wow, what a mistake to make just when could have grabbed the advantage. [19...Bg4 20.Rb3 b5-/+]<br />
<b>20.Bxc3
Kxb6 21.Bxh8 f6 22.Rd8 Kc7 23.Rg8 b5 24.Rg7 Kd6 25.Rxh7 Bf5 26.Nd4 Be4 27.Rh3
e5?? </b><br />
He overlooked the skewer of his king and rook. [27...Kd5 28.c3 b4 29.Ne2 Bf5 30.Rh7 a5 31.Kf2 Rc8 32.h3 bxc3 33.g4
Bd3 34.Nc1 Be4 35.Bg7 c2 36.g5 Ke6 37.gxf6 exf6 38.Rh8 Rc4 39.Rf8 Bf5 40.Ke3
Rc3+ 41.Kd2 Rxh3 42.Rxf6+ Ke7 43.Ra6 Rf3 44.Rxa5 Rxf4 45.Kc3 g5 46.Bh6 Rf3+
47.Kb2 g4 48.Ne2+-]<br />
<b>28.Bxf6 exf4 29.Ra3 Rb6 30.Bg5 </b>[30.Bd8] <b>30...Ke5
31.c3 Rd6 32.Ne2 Rd1+ 33.Kf2 f3 34.gxf3 Bb7 35.Rb3 Bd5 36.Ra3 Bb7 37.Be3 Rh1
38.Bf4+ Kf5 39.Ng3+ 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
It felt good not just to get back on track but to beat the toughest opponent. Now I just needed to finish off the tournament well. There was only one person who could catch me, if I lost.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Karelina,Polina
(1681) - Cross,Ted (1995) [B25]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (10), 12.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.f4 e6 </b><br />
The second Sicilian Grand Prix in a row! I knew Polina played it, so this is what I prepared for.<br />
<b>7.Nf3 Nge7 8.0-0 0-0
9.Be3 b6 10.Qd2 d5 </b><br />
This was all preparation for me. Her next move was new, so I suddenly had to think.<br />
<b>11.Nd1 dxe4 </b><br />
I have a tendency to simplify too often. [11...d4 12.Bf2 e5=/+]<br />
<b>12.dxe4 Qxd2
13.Bxd2 Bb7 </b><br />
[13...Ba6 14.Re1 e5=]<br />
<b>14.e5 Rad8 15.a3?</b><br />
<b></b>You'll see over the next few moves that the same tactic was available over and over again, and both of us missed it each time. [15.Rf2=]<br />
<b>15...Rd7?! </b><br />
[15...Nxe5! 16.fxe5 Bxf3-+]<br />
<b>16.Nc3? </b><br />
[16.Re1]<br />
<b>16...a6? </b><br />
[16...Nxe5
17.Nxe5 Bxe5 18.fxe5 Bxg2 19.Rf2 Bc6-/+]<br />
<b>17.Ne4? </b><br />
[17.Be3=]<br />
<b>17...Nd4!? </b><br />
[17...Nxe5! 18.Nxe5 Bxe5 19.fxe5 Bxe4 20.Bxe4 Rxd2-/+]<br />
<b>18.Nxd4 Bxe4? </b><br />
[>=18...Rxd4
19.Nf6+ Bxf6 20.exf6 Rxd2 21.Bxb7 Nf5 22.Bxa6 Rxc2 23.Rf2 Rxf2 24.Kxf2 Nd6=/+]<br />
<b>19.Nxe6?? </b><br />
Lucky for me that Polina didn't see how to keep me from winning the piece. [19.Bxe4 Rxd4 20.Bd3 Rd7+/=]<br />
<b>19...fxe6 </b><br />
The computer likes Bg2 better, but I could see my line led to a fairly easy win. [19...Bxg2 20.Nxf8 Rxd2
21.Rad1 Rxd1 22.Rxd1 Bf3-+]<br />
<b>20.Bxe4 Rxd2 21.Bd3 b5 </b><br />
[21...g5! 22.fxg5
Rxf1+ 23.Rxf1 Bxe5 24.Re1 Bd4+-+]<br />
<b>22.b3 Rc8 </b>[22...g5] <b>23.a4 c4
24.bxc4 bxc4 25.Be4 Nd5 26.Rfd1 Rxd1+ </b><br />
[26...c3-+]<br />
<b>27.Rxd1 Nc3 28.Re1
Nxe4 29.Rxe4 Bf8 30.Rd4? Bc5 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
It felt so good to win both games on the final day and take first place with 7/10.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHAjDfUSsHJGw3ZDkJOrGqXB5w1tKtbBRtsR4p0EN-0EtE9ltVRHzLa-uovdqspCEsREL_Qpcoknik0iH0-FSoqOax8925ACDwiVYl-g5HupF7bzJ62ksATphljrvGSuh8r3ZbLQu7ffX/s1600/first+place+trophy+with+gm+renier+gonzalez+and+sponsor+Orjan+Lindroth.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHAjDfUSsHJGw3ZDkJOrGqXB5w1tKtbBRtsR4p0EN-0EtE9ltVRHzLa-uovdqspCEsREL_Qpcoknik0iH0-FSoqOax8925ACDwiVYl-g5HupF7bzJ62ksATphljrvGSuh8r3ZbLQu7ffX/s400/first+place+trophy+with+gm+renier+gonzalez+and+sponsor+Orjan+Lindroth.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With GM Gonzalez and the sponsor Mr. Lindroth</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b>
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-61737449393927984722018-09-16T17:38:00.000+00:002018-09-16T17:38:30.305+00:00Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 part 3I finished the first half of the 2017 Nassau Cup Invitational with 4/5, but could I play well enough in the second half to win first place? Since it was a double round robin, I would be playing the same players over again but with colors reversed.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Joseph,Elton (1808)
- Cross,Ted (1995) [D35]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (6), 11.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 Nbd7 6.Nxd5??</b><br />
Lucky way to begin the second half of the event. My opponent falls for an ancient trap right in the opening. I dislike playing the Queen's Gambit as black, but I wasn't feeling confident about my Dutch at the time.<br />
<b>6...Nxd5 7.Bxd8
Bb4+ 8.Qd2 Bxd2+</b><br />
Taking the bishop on d8 may be a touch better, but it's a winning position no matter what here.<br />
<b>9.Kxd2 Kxd8 10.e4 N5f6 11.e5 Nd5 12.Bc4 N7b6 13.Bb3 Be6 14.Ne2
Ke7 15.Rac1 c6 16.h3 Rhd8 17.f4 h5 18.Rhf1 g6 19.Ng3 Nc7 20.Bxe6 Nxe6 21.f5
Nxd4 22.Ke3 h4 23.fxg6 fxg6</b><br />
<b></b>My move is just fine, though the computer likes the following a shade more. [23...hxg3 24.Rxf7+ Ke6 25.Ke4 Nd7 26.Rcf1
c5-+]<br />
<b>24.Ne4 Nf5+ 25.Kf4 Rd4 26.Kf3 Rxe4 27.Kxe4 Ng3+ 28.Ke3 Nd5+ 29.Kd2
Nxf1+ 30.Rxf1 Rf8 31.Re1 Rf2+ 32.Kd3 Rxb2 33.Re4 Rxa2 34.Rxh4 Rxg2 35.Rh7+ Ke6
36.Rxb7 Kxe5 37.Rxa7 Rg3+ 38.Kd2 Rxh3 39.Ra6 Kd6 40.Ke2 Rh7 41.Ra8 Rg7 42.Kf3
g5 43.Rd8+ Kc7 44.Ra8 Kb7 45.Ra1 g4+ 46.Kg3 c5 47.Rc1 Kc6 48.Re1 c4 49.Rc1 Kc5
0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
So that was a nice way to begin the second half.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1995) -
Cox,Valentine (1846) [B96]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (7), 11.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 a6 5.Nc3 Nf6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Be7</b><br />
I know the nuances of the standard Nbd7 far better, so this was a good choice to force me to have to think and try to be accurate.<br />
<b>8.Qf3
Qc7 9.0-0-0 Bd7 10.Bd3 Nc6 11.Nxc6 Bxc6 12.Rhe1 b5 13.Ne2?!</b><br />
<b></b>I wanted to reposition my knight to the better d4 square, but the computer prefers [13.Kb1 Bb7
14.a3+/=]<br />
<b>13...Rc8 14.Nd4 Bb7 15.Qe2?!</b><br />
<b></b>[>=15.Kb1+/=]<br />
<b>15...0-0
16.Kb1 d5? 17.Bxf6 dxe4 </b><br />
[17...Bxf6 18.e5 Be7 19.Bxh7+ Kxh7 20.Qh5+ Kg8
21.Rd3 f6 22.Rg3+-]<br />
<b>18.Be5 exd3 19.Rxd3 Qa5?! </b><br />
[19...Qc5 20.Nb3 Qb6 21.f5
f6 22.Bd4 Qc6 23.Na5 Qxg2 24.Nxb7 Qxb7 25.fxe6 Rc7+/-]<br />
<b>20.Nb3 </b><br />
Can't blame me for missing the tactical shot here. It isn't easy to see. [20.Bxg7!!
Kxg7 21.Qe5+ f6 22.Qxe6 Kh8 <i>(22...Rce8 23.Nf5+ Kh8 24.Nxe7 Bc8 25.Qe2+-) </i>23.Qxe7
Rf7 24.Qe3+-]<br />
<b>20...Qb6 21.Rg3? </b><br />
I was struggling to understand the position and find a good plan. [21.f5 f6 22.Bd4 Qc6 23.Na5 Qxg2 24.Nxb7
Qxb7 25.fxe6 Rc7 26.Qg4 g6 27.Rg1+/-]<br />
<b>21...g6= 22.Rd3? </b><br />
[22.Bd4 Qc7 23.f5
Bd5 24.Qd2 Rfd8 25.fxg6 fxg6 26.Qd3 Bf8 27.Be5 Qd7 28.Nd4=]<br />
<b>22...Bd5
23.Nd2?! Qc6 24.c3? </b><br />
[24.Rc3 Qb7 25.Ne4 f5 26.Rxc8 Rxc8 27.Nf6+ Bxf6 28.Bxf6
Be4 29.Rc1 b4 30.b3 a5 31.Bb2=]<br />
<b>24...b4! 25.Ka1?! </b><br />
[25.c4 Bxc4 26.Nxc4
Qxc4 27.b3 Qb5 28.Bb2-/+]<br />
<b>25...bxc3 26.Bxc3 Rfe8 27.Rg3?? </b><br />
Just horrible, missing an obvious skewer [27.g3 Qb5
28.Qe3-/+]<br />
<b>27...Bh4 28.Rh1? Qa4 29.b3 Bxb3 30.Nxb3 Bxg3 31.Qe5 Rxc3 32.Qxc3
Bxf4 33.Rf1 Bh6 34.Qf3 Bg7+ 35.Kb1 Qd7 36.Rd1 Qb5 37.Rf1 Qf5+ 38.Qxf5 gxf5
39.h3 Rd8 40.g4 fxg4 41.hxg4 Rd5 42.Rf4 a5 43.Ra4 Bc3 44.Kc2 Be1 45.a3 Kg7
46.Re4 Bh4 47.a4 Be7 48.Rc4 Bb4 49.Re4 h5 50.gxh5 Rxh5 51.Nd4 Rh2+ 52.Kb3 Rh3+
53.Kc2 Ra3 54.Nxe6+ fxe6 55.Rxe6 Rxa4 </b><br />
This is what I was playing on for, a chance to sacrifice the knight for enough material to give me a chance to do something, anything in the endgame to cheapo my way to a draw.<br />
<b>56.Rc6 Kf7 57.Ra6 Ra3 58.Kb2 Rh3 59.Rb6
Ke7 60.Ra6 Kd7 61.Rb6 Kc7 62.Ra6 Kb7 63.Rg6 Rc3 64.Rg5 Kb6 65.Rg6+ Kb5 66.Rg5+
Ka4 67.Rh5 Rg3 68.Rh2 Rb3+ 69.Ka2 Rd3 70.Kb1 Ba3 71.Ka2 Bb4 72.Kb1 Rd1+ 73.Kc2
Ra1 74.Kb2 Ra3 75.Rh4 Rc3 76.Rg4 Rc5 77.Rh4 Kb5 78.Rh3 a4 79.Rf3 Rd5 80.Rh3
Rd2+ 81.Kc1 a3? </b><br />
And this was the type of mistake I was after.<br />
<b>82.Rxa3 Kc4 </b><br />
Unfortunately, even though I got my cheapo and reached a bishop and rook versus rook endgame, the particular positioning of the pieces here makes it fairly easy for my opponent to still win.<br />
<b>83.Rh3 Bc3 84.Rh7 Rf2 85.Rc7+ Kd3 86.Rd7+ Bd4
87.Kb1 Rb2+ 88.Kc1 Ra2 89.Rb7 Ra1+ 90.Rb1 Ra2 91.Rb7 </b><br />
[91.Rb5] would have given me more of a chance to slip out of the noose my opponent played wrong.<br />
<b>91...Rf2
92.Rb3+ Bc3 93.Kb1 Rf1+ 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Okay, so another loss. You always want to right the ship after such a loss and not start spiraling downward. Would I be able to do it?<br />
<br />
<h3>
Knowles,Kendrick
(1891) - Cross,Ted (1995) [E61]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (8), 11.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.c4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.e3 Nf6 </b><br />
I have never studied the English deeply enough to develop a standard set of lines to use. I pretty much make it up as I go along, which can get me into trouble, of course. [5...e6; 5...e5]<br />
<b>6.Nge2
0-0 7.d4 cxd4 8.exd4 d6 9.0-0 e6?! </b><br />
See, it's not so easy to find the best lines when you don't have them memorized. [9...Bf5 10.h3 h5 11.Be3 Qd7=]<br />
<b>10.b3
a6 11.Bb2 Qa5?! 12.d5 exd5 13.Nxd5 Nxd5 14.Bxg7 Kxg7 15.Bxd5 Qc7?! </b><br />
Here you can see that I'm in for a long, hard struggle to save the game. Material is even, but white is fully developed and has an obvious target on d6 to aim at. [>=15...Bh3
16.Re1 Rfe8 17.Qc1+/=]<br />
<b>16.Qd2 Be6 17.Rac1 Rad8 18.Rfe1 Rfe8 19.Nf4 Bc8
20.Qc3+ Kg8 21.Qf6 Ne5 22.Qg5?! </b><br />
A slight inaccuracy on white's part allows me to alleviate some of the pressure. [22.Bg2 Be6 23.h3+/-]<br />
<b>22...Qe7 23.Qxe7
Rxe7 24.Rcd1?! </b><br />
[24.Bg2+/-]<br />
<b>24...b6?! </b><br />
White made a small error on his move, but I failed to see how to take advantage of it. [>=24...Bg4 25.Ra1 Nf3+
26.Bxf3 Rxe1+ 27.Rxe1 Bxf3 28.Re3 Bc6=]<br />
<b>25.Kg2 Kf8 26.Re3 Ng4 27.Rxe7 Kxe7
28.Re1+ Kf8 29.h3 Nf6 30.Bc6 Bd7 31.Bb7 a5 </b><br />
[31...Rb8! 32.Bf3 g5 33.Nd5 Nxd5
34.Bxd5 b5 35.g4+/=]<br />
<b>32.Rd1 Be6?!</b><br />
[32...Ke7+/=]<br />
<b>33.Bd5?! Bxd5+
34.Nxd5 Nxd5 35.Rxd5 Ke7 36.Rb5 Rb8= </b><br />
Now the endgame is equal, however it is far easier for white to play. Black has to keep his rook active enough to hold the draw, as well as not make any more mistakes.<br />
<b>37.Kf3 Kd7 38.g4 h6 39.h4 Kc6 40.g5 hxg5
41.hxg5 Re8 42.a3 Re1 43.a4 Re6 44.Kg4 f5+? 45.gxf6 Rxf6 46.f4 Re6?! </b><br />
I miss several paths to the draw over the remaining moves. [46...Kc7
47.Kg5 Rf8 48.Rd5 Kd7 49.Rd4 Ke6 50.Kxg6 Rg8+ 51.Kh5 Rg3=]<br />
<b>47.Kg5 Kc7 48.Rd5
Kc6 49.Rd3 Kc5 50.Rh3 Kb4 51.Rh6 Kxb3 </b><br />
[51...Re1 52.Rxg6 Kxb3 53.Rxd6 Kxc4=]<br />
<b>52.Rxg6 Rxg6+?? </b><br />
[52...Re1=]<br />
<b>53.Kxg6 Kxa4 54.f5 Kb3 55.f6 a4 56.f7 a3
57.f8Q Kxc4 58.Qxd6 Kb3 59.Qxb6+ Kc2 60.Qc5+ Kb3 61.Qc1 Ka2 62.Kf5 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Depressing to be in first place and then lose two games in a row. Other players were closing in on my first place standing, and if I couldn't find a way to stop the bleeding, the ending of the event would be a painful one for me.Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-43488843959235219192018-08-19T04:30:00.000+00:002018-08-19T04:30:37.842+00:00Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 part 2After starting day one 3-0, I hoped to continue my good fortune into day two, but it wan't to be. Playing FM Cecil 'Carver' Moncur with black is never fun. He had beaten me thus in the national championships a couple months earlier, so I knew going in it would be tough.I prepared hard and it seemed like it was working out for me at first.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Moncur,FM Cecil
(1876) - Cross,Ted (1995) [D36]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (4), 05.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 Be7 6.Qc2 c6 7.Nc3 g6 8.e3
Bf5 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 Nbd7 11.Bh6 Ng4 12.Bg7 Rg8 13.Be5 Ngxe5 14.Nxe5 Nxe5
15.dxe5 Qc7</b><br />
Believe it or not, I had had this position on my board during my preparation, but after Carver played his next move, I couldn't remember the line. I'm not a fan of the Queen's Gambit, but this line had felt like my best shot at trying to beat Carver, so I had worked hard at it in my prep.<br />
<b>16.f4 0-0-0</b><br />
<b></b>Castling isn't bad, but the better way to play it was [16...f6 17.e4 fxe5 18.exd5 0-0-0 19.0-0-0 exf4
20.Qc4 Bd6 21.dxc6 Qxc6 22.Qxc6+ bxc6-/+]<br />
<b>17.0-0-0 h6?</b><br />
<b></b>Here is where I went astray and lose my advantage. This pawn move haunts me the rest of the game. Better was still [17...f6-/+]<br />
<b>18.g3
Kb8 19.Kb1 f6 20.exf6 Bxf6 21.Rhe1?!</b><br />
The computer doesn't like this move, preferring e4, leading to equality.<br />
<b>21... Qg7?!</b><br />
Leads only to equality. Playing g5 leaves black with a slight edge.<br />
<b>22.Qc2 Rge8 </b><br />
Again g5 was the better move. [>=22...g5 23.f5 Rge8
24.e4 Qe7 25.a4 a6=]<br />
<b>23.e4 Bxc3 24.Qxc3 Qxc3 25.bxc3 dxe4 26.Rxd8+ Rxd8
27.Rxe4 Rd7?</b><br />
<b></b>Reaching this endgame, I needed to assess it better. It is equal, but it's easier for white to play. I had a choice between active rook play or passive, and I chose the latter...wrongly. [27...Rd2 28.Re6 Rxh2 29.Rxg6 h5 30.f5 Kc7 31.Rg7+ Kb6 32.Rh7
Rg2 33.Rxh5 Rxg3 34.Kc2 a5=]<br />
<b>28.Kc2 Rg7?! </b><br />
Here is where I strayed down the path of passivity. Kc7 still offered equality. [>=28...Kc7]<br />
<b>29.Re8+ Kc7
30.Rh8 h5 31.Re8 Kd6 </b><br />
My move isn't a mistake, per se, but there was an easier route to a draw. [>=31...g5=]<br />
<b>32.Re5 b6 </b><br />
Again my move is okay but there was a simpler drawing route. [32...Re7 33.Rg5 <i>(33.Rxe7?!
Kxe7 34.h3 Ke6 35.g4 hxg4 36.hxg4 Kd5 37.Kd3 b5=) </i>33...Re2+ 34.Kb3 Rxh2
35.Rxg6+ Kc5 36.Rg5+ Kd6=]<br />
<b>33.Kd3 c5?? </b><br />
And then I blow it. It may be hard to see, but this was my last moment to activate my rook enough to be able to draw. [33...Rf7 34.Rg5 Rf6=]<br />
<b>34.Rg5
Ke6 35.f5+ Kf6 36.Rxg6+ Rxg6 37.fxg6 Kxg6 38.Kc4 Kg5 39.h3 a6 40.Kd5 Kf5 41.Kc6
Ke4 42.g4 hxg4 43.hxg4 Kd3 44.Kxb6 c4 45.g5 Kxc3 46.g6 Kb2 47.g7 c3 48.g8Q c2
49.Qb3+ 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
Well, that was a distressing way to start day two of the tournament, especially after my preparation had worked so well to earn me an edge with the black pieces. I could still finish the first half of the tournament with four out of five if I could win the second game of the day.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1995) -
Karelina,Polina (1681) [B07]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (5), 05.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 d6 </b><br />
Paulina always plays the Pirc, so it's easy to look at these lines, but she always varies it a little, so it's hard to nail down any particular strategy.<br />
<b>2.d4 Nf6 3.f3 e5 4.d5 Be7 5.c4 a5 6.Nc3 Na6 7.Nge2 0-0 8.Be3 Nd7
9.Qd2 Ndc5 10.g4 c6 11.Ng3 cxd5 12.cxd5 Bd7 13.Bxa6?! </b><br />
I had a comfortable edge here, so this plan of trading the bishop and castling was just wrong. [13.Nf5+/=]<br />
<b>13...Nxa6
14.0-0?! </b><br />
[14.Nf5 b5 15.h4 b4 16.Nd1 Bxf5 17.gxf5 Rc8 <i>(17...Bxh4+? 18.Kf1
g5 19.Bf2 Bxf2 20.Nxf2 Nc5 21.Ng4 f6 22.Kf2+/=) </i>]<br />
<b>14...Rc8 </b><br />
[>=14...g6=]<br />
<b>15.Nf5 Bxf5?! </b><br />
I was happy to get the open g file. [15...b5 16.Kh1 Re8 17.Rac1+/=]<br />
<b>16.gxf5 Nc5 17.Kh1 Qd7
18.Rg1 </b><br />
My move is fine and more human. The computer shows a tactic leading to a larger edge. [18.Bh6! f6 <i>(18...gxh6 19.Qxh6 Kh8 20.Rg1 Rg8 21.f6 Nd3 22.Rg7+-)
</i>19.Rg1 Rf7 20.Qe2 Na4 21.Nb5 Bd8 22.Be3 Bb6 23.Bxb6 Nxb6 24.a4+/-]<br />
<b>18...Kh8
19.Rg2!? </b><br />
The computer likes my move, but I think I prefer the rook to go to g3. [>=19.Rg3]<br />
<b>19...b5 20.Rag1 Rg8 21.Rg3 b4 </b><br />
[21...g6 22.Nd1
a4 23.R3g2 Bf6 24.Bh6+/=]<br />
<b>22.Nd1 Bf6 23.Qg2 </b><br />
[23.Nf2 Qe7 24.Ng4 Bh4
25.Rh3+-]<br />
<b>23...Nd3 24.Rh3 g6?? </b><br />
[24...Rgd8 25.Qg4 Qe8 26.Nf2 Nf4 27.Bxf4
exf4 28.e5 Bxe5 29.Ne4 Qg8 30.Ng5 Bf6 <i>(30...h6?? 31.Rxh6+ gxh6 32.Qh5 Qf8
33.Nxf7+ Qxf7 34.Qxf7+-) </i>31.Nxh7 Qxh7 32.Rxh7+ Kxh7 33.Qh3+ Kg8 34.Qh6 Kf8
35.Qh8+ Ke7 36.Re1+ Kd7 37.Qh5 Rf8 38.Qg4 Rh8 39.Qg1 Rc5 40.Rc1 Rhc8 41.Rxc5
Rxc5 42.Qf2 Be5 43.Kg2 Ke7 44.Kh3 Rxd5 45.a4 bxa3 46.bxa3 Rc5 47.a4+/-]<br />
<b>25.Rxh7+
Kxh7 26.Qh3+ Kg7 27.Qh6# 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
So, while I wasn't happy dropping a game to Carver, I had to be fairly happy going four out of five through the first half of the tournament. I was in first place and just hoped to continue playing well through the second weekend.<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-91585441256652938262018-04-29T22:08:00.002+00:002018-04-30T02:21:17.370+00:00Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 part 1A new sponsor suddenly appeared in The Bahamas -- the real estate developer Orjan Lindroth. This is a terrific development for Bahamas chess and I hope it continues for a long time. This invitation came out of the blue, and I was happy to accept. The best six players in The Bahamas were invited to play a double round robin with a first prize of $1000. With so many good players, I was nervous since I had showed my rust in both of my first tournaments here and had lost a lot of rating points. Getting off to a good start was a must.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3uywfIuqxpkL23m3tFL4vRg1lTuWO0_3L4CjpY39oKaXYaEEkMSCxWlqaNjOAHVK_1ONu9_y8ccOlZ76RmVxsjAsq6-ii528LVdkRxTBPU6BEagq1aXrMKlZKQFHmoI-XRj7FDixZtPk-/s1600/Ted+Cross+vs+Elton+Joseph.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3uywfIuqxpkL23m3tFL4vRg1lTuWO0_3L4CjpY39oKaXYaEEkMSCxWlqaNjOAHVK_1ONu9_y8ccOlZ76RmVxsjAsq6-ii528LVdkRxTBPU6BEagq1aXrMKlZKQFHmoI-XRj7FDixZtPk-/s400/Ted+Cross+vs+Elton+Joseph.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing Elton Joseph in round 1. Photo by Andre White</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (1995) -
Joseph,Elton (1808) [B57]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (1), 04.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bc4 e5 7.Nf3 Be6 8.Qe2
Be7 9.Bg5 0-0 10.0-0-0 a6 11.Kb1 Qc7 12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Nd5 Qd8 14.Nxf6+</b><br />
<b></b>This Sicilian opening felt pretty standard until now. I had thought I was winning a pawn and played Nf6 almost immediately, only to realize it didn't work. So better was [14.Qd2+/=]<br />
<b>14...Qxf6 15.Bxe6 Qxe6 16.Nd2?!</b><br />
<b></b>This move gives black equality. Better was [16.Rd2 Rfd8 17.Rhd1 Rac8
18.Qe3+/=]<br />
<b>16...d5?!</b><br />
<b></b>Black misses the equalizing move [16...Rac8=]<br />
<b>17.exd5 Qxd5 18.Ne4 Nd4 19.c3
Qxa2+?</b><br />
<b></b>Black doesn't realize how dangerous this line is for his knight. Better was [19...f5 20.Ng5 Qxg2 21.cxd4 Qxg5 22.dxe5+/=]<br />
<b>20.Kxa2 Nxe2
21.g3 Rfd8 22.Rxd8+ Rxd8 23.Re1 f5 24.Nc5 Rd2 25.Kb1?</b><br />
<b></b>I overlooked the tactics available to black here. Correct was [25.Ka1 Rc2 26.Kb1
Rd2 27.Nb3 Nxc3+ 28.bxc3 Rxf2 29.Rxe5+/-]<br />
<b>25...Rd5?</b><br />
<b></b>Luckily black didn't see the tactic either. [25...e4! 26.Nxb7 <i>(26.Nb3?
Nxc3+ 27.bxc3 Rxf2 28.c4 Kf7 29.c5 Ke6 30.Na5 Kd5 31.Nxb7 Kc6 32.Nd8+ Kxc5
33.Ne6+ Kd5 34.Nxg7 Ke5 35.Kc1=) </i>] Now the rest of the game was simply a matter of not messing up.<br />
<b>26.Nb3 Rb5 27.Kc2 Nxc3 28.bxc3 e4
29.Rd1 Kf7 30.c4 Rb6 31.c5 Rb5 32.Rd7+ Kf6 33.Rd6+ Ke7 34.Rb6 Kd7 35.Rxb5 axb5
36.Kc3 g5 37.Nd4 f4 38.Nxb5 e3 39.fxe3 fxg3 40.hxg3 h5 41.Nd4 h4 42.Nf3 hxg3
43.Nxg5 g2 44.Nf3 Ke7 45.e4 Kd7 46.Kd3 Kc6 47.Kd4 Kc7 48.Ke5 Kc6 49.Kf6 Kxc5
50.e5 Kd5 51.e6 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
It felt great to start off the tournament with a win.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cox,Valentine
(1846) - Cross,Ted (1995) [B92]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (2), 04.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3
Be6 9.Qd2 Nbd7 10.0-0-0 0-0 11.f3 b5 12.g4 Nb6 13.g5 Nh5 14.Nd5 Nxd5 15.exd5
Bf5 16.Na5 Bd7?!</b><br />
<b></b>Gives white a little edge, when it could have remained equal with [16...f6 17.Nc6 Qd7 18.gxf6 Nxf6=]<br />
<b>17.Rhg1 g6 18.Bd3
Ng7?</b><br />
<b></b>I allow white a strong attack. Still equal was [18...Qc7=]<br />
<b>19.Be4 f5 20.gxf6 Bxf6 21.Nc6 Qc7 22.Bg5?!</b><br />
<b></b>White gives up some of his edge. [22.Kb1+/-]<br />
<b>22...Nf5?</b><br />
<b></b>And I make things worse instead of better! [22...Bf5 23.Bh6+/=]<br />
<b>23.Bxf6 </b><br />
Each of us keeps missing the best moves, but to be fair, in positions with lots of options it isn't always easy to understand the very best move. [23.h4!+-]<br />
<b>23...Rxf6
24.Qg5?</b><br />
<b></b>Now black may be even a tiny bit better. White was still nearly winning after [24.h4 Raf8 25.h5 Be8 26.hxg6 Bxg6+/-]<br />
<b>24...Raf8 25.h4 R8f7 </b><br />
More accurate was [25...Kg7
26.h5 h6 27.Qd2 g5=/+]<br />
<b>26.h5?!</b><br />
<b></b>This allows me to seal up the kingside. [26.f4=]<br />
<b>26...h6 27.Qd2 g5 28.f4 exf4
29.Qxf4 Nd4!?</b><br />
<b></b>Not a terrible idea, but it leads only to equality, while I could have retained a slight advantage with [29...Qb6! 30.Rde1 Kg7=/+]<br />
<b>30.Qe3 Nxc6 31.dxc6 Bxc6 32.Bg6
Rf8 33.Qb3+ d5 34.Kb1 Qf4?! </b><br />
I develop a bad plan. Two other moves were better: [34...Rf3 35.c3 R3f6 36.Rge1 Qd6 37.Be4
Kg7 38.Bxd5 Be8-/+; 34...Qd6=/+]<br />
<b>35.Rge1 Qc4??</b><br />
<b></b>And here is where my bad plan goes completely astray, giving white a bid advantage. [35...Qd6=/+]<br />
<b>36.Qe3
Qg4 37.Qe7?</b><br />
<b></b>White fails to spot the winning idea. [37.Qc5! a5 38.Rc1 d4 39.Re7 Rf1 40.Bh7+ Kh8 41.Qe5+ R1f6
42.Bg6+-]<br />
<b>37...Qd7 38.Qa3 </b>[38.Qxd7? Bxd7 39.Rxd5 Rf1 40.Rdd1 Rxe1
41.Rxe1 Bf5-/+] <b>38...Qd6?! </b><br />
I failed to see the equalizing idea of [38...d4! 39.Qc5 Qd5=]<br />
<b>39.Qxa6 Qc5 40.Qa5
Ra8 41.Qc7 Qa7 42.Qxa7? </b><br />
I was so relieved to see this! [42.Qe5 Raf8 43.a3+/-]<br />
<b>42...Rxa7 43.Rd4 Kf8
44.a3 Re7 45.Rxe7? </b><br />
Black's advantage builds. [45.Rg1=/+]<br />
<b>45...Kxe7 46.Rb4 Rf4?</b><br />
<b></b>Not such a good idea, allowing drawing chances. [46...Rf1+
47.Ka2 Bd7 48.Bd3 Rf2 49.Bxb5 Be6! 50.Bd3 g4 51.Rb7+ Kf6 52.Rh7 d4+ 53.b3 Kg5
54.Re7 Bf5 55.Bxf5 Rxf5-+]<br />
<b>47.Kc1?? </b><br />
Luckily white didn't see the right path. [47.Rxf4 gxf4 48.Kc1 Kd6 49.Kd2 Ke5
50.Kd3=]<br />
<b>47...Rxb4 48.axb4 Be8 </b><br />
More accurate was [48...Kf6]<br />
<b>49.Bd3 Kd6 </b><br />
Again, more accurate was [49...Kf6
50.Be2 Kf5 51.Kd2 g4 52.Ke3 d4+-+]<br />
<b>50.Kd2 Ke5 </b><br />
I could also have played [50...Bxh5]<br />
<b>51.Ke3 d4+
52.Kf2 Kf4? </b><br />
Trying hard to throw away the win. [52...Bxh5-+]<br />
<b>53.Bg6 Bc6 54.c3 Ke5 55.Bd3 Be8 56.Kg3? </b><br />
White goes astray. [56.Bg6
dxc3 57.bxc3 Bxg6 58.hxg6 Kf6 59.c4 bxc4 60.b5 c3 61.Ke2 g4 62.b6=]<br />
<b>56...Bxh5
57.Bxb5 Bg6 58.cxd4+ Kxd4 59.Be2??</b><br />
<b></b>White had a path to a draw still with [59.Kg4! Bf7 60.Be2 Ke5 61.b5 Kd6 62.Bf3
Kc5 63.Kf5 Kxb5 64.Kf6 Be8 65.Kg7 h5 66.Kf8=]<br />
<b>59...Bf5? </b><br />
It's an ugly game! We trade mistakes. [59...h5-+]<br />
<b>60.Bf1?? </b><br />
And the final big mistake. [60.b5 Kc5 61.b4+ Kb6 62.Kf2=]<br />
<b>60...h5 61.Be2 h4+ 62.Kf3 g4+? </b><br />
More accurate was [62...Ke5!-+]<br />
<b>63.Kf2? </b><br />
White makes it easier on me. [63.Kf4 g3 64.Bf1 Bd7-+]<br />
<b>63...g3+ 64.Kg1 h3 65.Bf1 h2+ 66.Kh1
Be4+ 67.Bg2 Bxg2+ 68.Kxg2 Kc4 69.b5 Kxb5 70.b4 Kxb4 71.Kh1 Kc4 72.Kg2 Kd3
73.Kh1 Ke3 74.Kg2 h1Q+ 75.Kxh1 Kf3 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
What a relief to survive that and even pull out a victory! I had to thank my lucky stars.<br />
<br />
Now, being white against Kendrick Knowles is no picnic, as anyone would know if they had seen my last two events, where he played the center counter against me and won both games. So having just been very shaky in round 2, I was extra nervous going into this one.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (1995) -
Knowles,Kendrick (1891) [B01]<br />
Nassau Cup Invitational 2017 Nassau (3), 04.03.2017<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<br />
<b>1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Nf6 3.Bb5+ Bd7 4.Be2</b><br />
So, this was my change from the last time we played, hoping that I could be in preparation more so than him.<br />
<b>4... Nxd5 5.d4 c6?! </b><br />
He goes a little astray right away. The main line here goes [5...Bf5 6.Nf3 e6
7.0-0 Be7]<br />
<b>6.c4 Nf6 7.Nc3 g6 8.Nf3 Bg7 9.0-0 0-0 10.Re1 Na6 11.Ne5 Be6
12.Be3 </b><br />
White would have a large edge after [12.Bf4+/-]<br />
<b>12...Qc8 13.a3</b><br />
<b></b>The right path was [13.d5! Bf5 14.dxc6 Ne4
15.Nd5 Re8 16.cxb7 Qxb7 17.Nd3+/-]<br />
<b>13...Nc7 14.Qc2?!</b><br />
<b></b>[14.Qb3]<br />
<b>14...Rd8
15.Rad1 Nce8?! </b><br />
Black could have minimized white's edge with [15...Ng4 16.Bxg4 Bxg4 17.Nxg4 Qxg4 18.h3 Qd7 19.a4+/=]<br />
<b>16.Qb3</b><br />
<b></b>A little better was [16.h3+/=]<br />
<b>16...Nd6 17.d5! Bd7?</b><br />
<b></b>[17...cxd5 18.cxd5 Bg4 19.f3
Bd7+/=]<br />
<b>18.dxc6!? </b><br />
I looked at the right move but missed all the nuances. [18.c5! Nf5 19.dxc6 Bxc6 <i>(19...Be6 20.Rxd8+ Qxd8
21.Bc4 Bxc4 22.Qxc4+-) </i>20.Nxf7+-]<br />
<b>18...bxc6 19.c5 Be6 20.Qa4 Nf5 21.Nxc6 </b><br />
My move isn't bad, but even better was [21.Rxd8+ Qxd8 22.Nxc6 Bd7 23.Nxd8 Bxa4 24.Nxf7+-]<br />
<b>21...Rxd1
22.Rxd1 Qc7? </b><br />
Now white's advantage becomes huge. [22...Bd7 23.Bb5 Bxc6 24.Bxc6 Nxe3 25.fxe3 Rb8 26.Qxa7 Bh6 <i>(26...Rxb2
27.Qxe7 Rb8 28.Bf3+-) </i>27.Kh1 Bxe3 28.h3+/-]<br />
<b>23.Bf4! Qb7 24.b4! Rc8
25.Bf3?! </b><br />
I missed his Nh4 idea. Better was [25.Na5! Ne4 <i>(25...Qa8 26.Bf3+-) </i>26.Nxb7 Nxc3 27.Qa6+-]<br />
<b>25...Nh4
26.Ne5 </b><br />
Better was [26.b5! Nxf3+ 27.gxf3+-]<br />
<b>26...Nxf3+ 27.Nxf3 Nd5? </b><br />
[27...Bd7
28.Qa5+/-]<br />
<b>28.c6! Rxc6 29.Nxd5 Bxd5 30.Rxd5 Rc1+ 31.Rd1 Qd7 32.Qxd7 1-0</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Three games in one day was tough, but I couldn't have started better, winning all three!<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-10756540636984269672018-04-23T01:21:00.001+00:002018-04-23T01:27:07.265+00:00Bahamas National Championship 2016 - part 2The second half of the 2016 Bahamas National Championship started well with a win as black against WCM Polina Karelina. I decided against showing the game because it was full of small mistakes without having good educational moments. So, after four of six rounds, I was in clear first place with 3.5 out of four. In fact, I could win the national title with a single draw out of the last two rounds!<br />
<br />
That's a terribly stressful position to be in, even if it's a good one. I was happy and figured that I would win it. I started poorly, though, blundering badly against FM Cecil Moncur, another game so ugly as not to be worth examining. So that left the final round against Kendrick Knowles, a half point behind me in second place. I was white and a draw was all I needed.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL_EP-7QGKZXKtPyGCAy8H6JDnh8G4z8jvK8sP_8HYF3wXP8g_19YWX-bU4ennFbznpRX7TWYAM4TRVCkneKUbc3Mqu3TqTZTEszIW04Y9H0L_3guH0rXIqtq4ptF4GDS6xQ9TA3SDCx0V/s1600/Bahamas+National+Champion+Kendrick+Knowles+vs+Ted+Cross+in+round+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL_EP-7QGKZXKtPyGCAy8H6JDnh8G4z8jvK8sP_8HYF3wXP8g_19YWX-bU4ennFbznpRX7TWYAM4TRVCkneKUbc3Mqu3TqTZTEszIW04Y9H0L_3guH0rXIqtq4ptF4GDS6xQ9TA3SDCx0V/s400/Bahamas+National+Champion+Kendrick+Knowles+vs+Ted+Cross+in+round+3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">CM Kendrick Knowles, photo by Andre White</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br />Cross,Ted (2031) -
Knowles,Kendrick (1846) [B01]<br />
2016 Bahamas National Championship Nassau (6), 27.11.2016<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Nf6 3.Bb5+</b><br />
In the Fall Classic I had lost with white against Kendrick, so I decided to prepare a sideline of the center counter to see if it could help me.<br />
<b>3... Bd7 4.Bc4 Bg4 5.f3 Bc8 6.Nc3 Nbd7 7.Ne4 Nb6
8.Nxf6+ exf6 9.Bb3 Nxd5 10.Ne2 Bb4 11.c3 Ba5 12.d4 0-0 13.0-0 Re8 14.Qd3 Ne7
15.Bf4</b><br />
<b></b>All of this was pretty normal and I could be happy with how it went. Nothing terribly wrong with my move, though the computer prefers [15.Ng3]<br />
<b>15...Ng6 16.Bg3 c5 17.Rfe1 Bb6 18.Rad1</b><br />
<b></b>Again not a mistake, but slightly better was [18.Kh1]<br />
<b>18...Ne5
19.Qd2 cxd4 20.Nxd4 Bf5 21.Kh1 Bg6 22.Bc2?!</b><br />
<b></b>Now this was an inaccuracy, turning the position from a slight edge for white to a minuscule edge to black. Better was [22.Nb5 Qxd2 23.Rxd2 Rad8
24.Nd6 Bc5 25.Red1 Bxd6 26.Rxd6 Rxd6 27.Rxd6 h5 28.Ba4 Re7 29.Bb5+/=]<br />
<b>22...Nc4
23.Rxe8+ Qxe8 24.Qc1 Bxd4?!</b><br />
<b></b>This gives the edge back to me. Black could have retained a slight edge with [24...Qe3 25.Qb1 Rd8 26.Re1=/+]<br />
<b>25.Rxd4
Qe2 26.Bxg6 hxg6</b><br />
I thought the block of four pawns on black's kingside was interesting. And I couldn't imagine losing this, so I was feeling confident that I was going to win the national championship.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKcSDbAUd-NkAnnIzXgfyjbC6lm6pcPvgj1glLpMd71cKoMUw-yhyphenhyphenI7LRUX86iavO23sQkLG4u8DvkxYVxL-DyH5uFLtn3U8ouxSW32jf9rUFhHBRxxnLOHUJZKliCed37syzxdYoX9Pot/s1600/Pos962968578.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="808" data-original-width="808" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKcSDbAUd-NkAnnIzXgfyjbC6lm6pcPvgj1glLpMd71cKoMUw-yhyphenhyphenI7LRUX86iavO23sQkLG4u8DvkxYVxL-DyH5uFLtn3U8ouxSW32jf9rUFhHBRxxnLOHUJZKliCed37syzxdYoX9Pot/s320/Pos962968578.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<b>27.b3 Ne3 28.Rd2 Qb5?!</b><br />
<b></b>Black could have kept it to a slight white edge with [28...Qf1+ 29.Qxf1 Nxf1 30.Rd7 Nxg3+
31.hxg3 b5 32.Rc7 f5 33.Kg1 a6 34.Kf2+/=]<br />
<b>29.c4 Qh5?</b><br />
<b></b>[29...Qa5
30.Bf2 Nf5 31.a4+/=]<br />
<b>30.Bf2?!</b><br />
<b></b>The computer's suggested improvement isn't an easy one to play over the board. [30.Bf4! Nf5 31.g4 Qh3 32.gxf5 Qxf3+
33.Kg1 gxf5 34.Bg3 Qe3+ 35.Bf2 Qg5+ 36.Kh1 Re8 37.Qd1 f4 38.Rd7 Qg6 39.h3 b6
40.Kh2+-]<br />
<b>30...Nf5</b><br />
<b></b>The computer's suggestion is a strange one that I don't think many humans would play. [30...Qg5 31.g4 Qf4 32.Bxe3 Qxf3+ 33.Rg2 Re8
34.Bf2+/-]<br />
<b>31.g4</b><br />
I knew full well that winning the piece here wasn't going to make the finish easy with that wall of pawns ready to roll down the board, but I figured I could manage it.<br />
<b>31... Qh3 32.gxf5 Qxf3+ 33.Kg1 Re8 34.Qd1</b><br />
<b></b>I did know that trading the pawn was probably more accurate, but I wanted to trade off the rooks badly. [34.fxg6 Qg4+
35.Bg3+-]<br />
<b>34...Qxf5 35.Rd8</b><br />
<b></b>Same as before, there's a more accurate move but I wanted to trade the rooks. [35.Bxa7 Qg5+ 36.Kh1+-]<br />
<b>35...Rxd8
36.Qxd8+ Kh7 37.Qd2</b><br />
<b></b>My move isn't terrible, but Qd1 would have kept black's queen out of the first rank. [37.Qd1+-]<br />
<b>37...Qb1+ 38.Be1 g5 39.Kf1 Kg6
40.Kf2 f5 41.Qe2 f4 42.Kf3 Kf5 43.h3 b6 44.Kf2</b><br />
<b></b>Okay, so here I missed a clear way to force the win, but in my defense, I had a plan in mind here and was intent on carrying it out. [44.b4! a6 45.c5 bxc5
46.bxc5 Qb7+ 47.Kf2 Qc6 48.Bb4+-]<br />
<b>44...f6 45.Kf3 g6 46.Kf2</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgklQ8jRHiJ6KZ9BVn-tvZQyn_AOYo4isc3-BR0eacM5Lik9uL1rzbNtpV4pOegSLlgksc7mKLSf2GE4e-fRv_K04fXKN-KyfEB5I00uaR43WpenVsKCJ1SoP4DLlQFB00JWiIK4pIgUkMt/s1600/Pos962968578.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="808" data-original-width="808" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgklQ8jRHiJ6KZ9BVn-tvZQyn_AOYo4isc3-BR0eacM5Lik9uL1rzbNtpV4pOegSLlgksc7mKLSf2GE4e-fRv_K04fXKN-KyfEB5I00uaR43WpenVsKCJ1SoP4DLlQFB00JWiIK4pIgUkMt/s320/Pos962968578.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<b></b>This is the same as before, where I could have played b4 for a clearly winning game. My last few moves look like I'm just wasting time, but actually I had noticed that I could get black into zugzwang, and that is why I was doing this. I thought that forcing his queen to have to come to e4 would make it easy for me. Notice now how his king and pawns can no longer move, so my plan worked. [46.b4!+- a6
47.c5 bxc5 48.bxc5 Qb7+ 49.Kf2 Qc6 50.Qg4+ Ke5 51.Bc3+ Kd5 52.Qg2+ Kxc5
53.Qxc6+ Kxc6 54.Bxf6+-]<br />
<b>46...Qe4 47.Qxe4+?</b><br />
<b></b>I call this a mistake because it made my work harder, though I'm still winning. I did look at the correct line with Qg4+, but I couldn't see deeply enough over the board. I saw up to 49. Qe3+ and was worried it gave black too much counterplay. [47.Qg4+ Ke5 48.Bc3+ Kd6
49.Bxf6 Qe3+ 50.Kg2 Qd2+ 51.Kg1 Qxa2 52.Qd1+ Ke6 53.Bxg5+-]<br />
<b>47...Kxe4
48.Bc3?</b><br />
<b></b>I kept making my life harder than it needed to be. Here is a good example of when one should take the time to just ask, 'Where is the best spot on the board to place my piece?' The clear answer to that is the bishop should go to b8 to threaten the pawns and at the same time help hold off the kingside steamrollers. The easy answer then was [48.Bb4! f5 49.Bd6 g4 50.hxg4 fxg4 51.Bb8 g3+ 52.Kg2 a6 53.Bc7 b5
54.c5+-]<br />
<b>48...f5 49.b4?</b><br />
<b></b>This bad move makes the win much harder to see. [49.Bb4 g4 50.hxg4 fxg4 51.Bd6+-]<br />
<b>49...g4
50.hxg4??</b><br />
<b></b>And I failed to see it. The only way to still win was [50.h4! f3 51.Kf1 f4 52.Bb2 g3 53.c5 bxc5 54.bxc5 Kd5 55.Bc1+-]<br />
<b>50...fxg4
51.a4 g3+ 52.Kg2 Ke3 53.Bd2+??</b><br />
<b></b>Remember, I would have won the Bahamas national championship even with a draw and I had that until this hallucination. I thought I was blockading his pawns and would win with my passed pawn. I completely missed the simple idea of him playing g2 followed by Ke2. [53.Kf1 f3 54.Be1 Kd4 55.Bxg3 Kxc4 56.Be1 g5
57.a5 g4 58.Kf2 bxa5 59.bxa5 a6 60.Kg3 Kd3 61.Bf2 Ke2 62.Bb6 Ke1=]<br />
<b>53...Kxd2
54.Kf3 g2 55.Kxg2 Ke2 56.c5 f3+ 57.Kg3 f2 58.c6 f1Q 59.b5 g5 60.Kg4 Qf4+ 61.Kh5
Kf3 0-1</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
Now that was a depressing way to finish a national championship tournament! I clearly led the event to the point where I needed but one draw in the final two rounds, then proceeded to lose both games and end up in second place.Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-33841855975116522642018-04-21T20:30:00.002+00:002018-04-21T20:33:11.272+00:00Bahamas National Championship 2016 - part 1<br />
Of course this was the first time I ever got to play in a national championship, given that in most countries a player of my level couldn't get anywhere close to it, not to mention that usually a country only allows one of their own citizens to win the title. The Bahamas has a small enough chess community that they allow outsiders the chance to win. I thought it would be a fascinating footnote to add to my chess 'career'.<br />
<br />
Strangely, most of those who qualified for the championships didn't show up to play in them, so there were only four of us playing and thus a double-round robin of six games.<br />
<br />
One always wants to start well, and in the last tournament I had messed up the first time I had played white against WCM Polina Karelina and only drew, so this first round was a chance to rectify that result.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6VgkX8MGYnKB5lTxiJCEiFZ4uwIZi-ziWAYI9Nq6qTZZ9gPwA0lg7Jn0xQ59q_O8Gy6Q0ltY77zRxBcob9Q0Psu45sd2xAQ8JbovgZ8UACvNeDC12nOQgOC9eAES11NmnC9qXWK0_idQ/s1600/Playing+against+Polina+Karelina1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6VgkX8MGYnKB5lTxiJCEiFZ4uwIZi-ziWAYI9Nq6qTZZ9gPwA0lg7Jn0xQ59q_O8Gy6Q0ltY77zRxBcob9Q0Psu45sd2xAQ8JbovgZ8UACvNeDC12nOQgOC9eAES11NmnC9qXWK0_idQ/s400/Playing+against+Polina+Karelina1.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by Andre White. Playing against Polina Karlina.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Cross,Ted (2031) -
Karelina,Polina (1650) [B07]<br />
2016 Bahamas National Championship Nassau (1), 19.11.2016<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.f3 e5 4.d5 Be7 5.c4 c6 6.Be3 0-0 7.Nc3 a5 8.Nge2 Bd7
9.g4 Na6 10.Ng3 cxd5</b><br />
Polina is young and talented and shooting up the rating list (just a year after this tournament she is already threatening to hit 1900), but thus far she sticks to her same opening lines, making it easier for me to prepare. She will mix up the lines, so I always end up on my own fairly soon, and this was the point where I was out of my preparation in this game.<br />
<b>11.cxd5 Ne8 12.Qd2 Nec7 13.Be2?!</b><br />
<b></b>This move gives away most of white's advantage. Far better was 13.Nf5 with a strong edge for white.<br />
<b>13...b5</b><br />
<b></b>Not a bad move, but slightly better was 13...g6 14.f4 exf4
15.Bxf4 b5 16.0-0 b4 17.Nd1+/=<br />
<b>14.0-0</b><br />
<b></b>A little more accurate was 14.Nf5 b4 15.Nd1+/=<br />
<b>14...b4
15.Nd1 Bb5?</b><br />
15... g6 would have been equal.<br />
<b> 16.Nf5 Bd7 17.Nf2 Bxf5 18.gxf5 Nc5 19.Kh1 Kh8 20.Rg1</b><br />
<b></b>Nothing wrong with my move, though the computer slightly prefers 20.Ng4
Nd7 21.a3 bxa3 22.Rxa3+/-<br />
<b>20...Ne8 21.Nd3 Rc8 22.Rac1 Nxd3 23.Bxd3 Rxc1
24.Qxc1 Nf6 25.Qc6 Qa8?</b><br />
<b></b>Now I am winning, as it's impossible for black to hold all the weak pawns. Even without this mistake I had felt during the game that I was winning by this point. The computer thinks that with long, hard defense black could have held white to a small edge [25...g6 26.Bb6 Qb8 27.fxg6 fxg6 28.Bc7 Qc8 29.Kg2
Rg8 30.Bxa5 Qf8 31.Qc2 g5 32.Bxb4 g4 33.Kh1 gxf3 34.Rxg8+ Qxg8 35.Qf2 Qg4
36.Qg3 Qh5 37.Be1+/=]<br />
<b>26.Rc1 h6 27.Kg2 Nh5 28.Qxa8 Rxa8 29.Rc7 Bg5 30.Bxg5
hxg5 31.Bc4 Nf6 32.Rxf7 g4 33.Rc7 gxf3+ 34.Kxf3 Kg8 35.Rc6 Ne8 36.Bb5 Rb8
37.Ba4 Kf7 38.Ra6 Rc8 39.Rxa5 g6 40.Ra7+</b><br />
<b></b>[40.Bd7!]<br />
<b>40...Kf6 41.Bxe8 Rxe8
42.fxg6 Kxg6 43.Ra6 Rf8+ 44.Kg3 Rf6</b><br />
<b></b>[44...Rf4 45.Rxd6+ Kf7 46.h4 Rxe4
47.h5+-]<br />
<b>45.Rb6 Kh5 46.Rxb4 1-0</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
So, it was a good way to begin the championships. The next round made me nervous, as I had to face the top Bahamian player, FIDE Master Cecil 'Carver' Moncur. I hadn't met him before and wondered just how underrated he might be given his title (gained in the Olympiads).<br />
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (2031) -
Moncur,FM Cecil (1894) [B45]<br />
2016 Bahamas National Championship Nassau (2), 19.11.2016<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Ndb5 Bb4 7.a3 Bxc3+
8.Nxc3 d5 9.exd5 exd5 10.Bd3 0-0 11.0-0 d4 12.Ne2 Qd6?!</b><br />
<b></b>I was able to relax a bit since he played a line I knew somewhat well. Qd6 was the first new move for me. [12...Bg4 13.Bg5
Qd6 14.Qd2 Bxe2 15.Bf4 Qd5 16.Bxe2+/=]<br />
<b>13.Bf4 </b><br />
My move is the most common, but the computer prefers 13.c3!+/=<br />
<b>13...Qd5
14.Re1</b><br />
<b></b>This move allows black equality, so better was 14.Ng3 Ne5 15.Bxe5 Qxe5 16.h3+/=<br />
<b>14...Bg4</b><br />
<b></b>Luckily black didn't see the path to equality and allowed me to regain my slight edge. [14...Bf5
15.Bg3 Bxd3 16.Qxd3=]<br />
<b>15.f3 Be6 16.Bg3 Nh5 17.Be4 Qc5 18.Bf2 Qb5?!</b><br />
<b></b>I had a strong edge here no matter what, but this move grants me a nearly winning position. [18...Rad8
19.Bxc6+/-]<br />
<b>19.Nxd4 Nxd4 20.Qxd4 Nf6 21.Bd3 Qg5?</b><br />
This blunder allows me to trap his queen and thus force the win of the exchange as well as damaging black's pawn structure.<br />
<b> 22.Re5 Qh6 23.Be3 Rfd8
24.Qxd8+ Rxd8 25.Bxh6 gxh6 26.Rd1 Kh8 27.Kf2 h5 28.Ke1</b><br />
<b></b>My move was about trying to trade off the rooks, while more accurate was 28.Ra5 a6
29.Rc5+-<br />
<b>28...Rg8 29.Rd2 h4 30.h3 a6 31.Be4 Nxe4 32.Rxe4 Bf5 33.Rxh4</b><br />
<b></b>I went after the less important pawn, so better was 33.Re7+-<br />
<b>33...Re8+ 34.Kd1 Rc8 35.Rhd4 Kg7 36.c3 Be6 37.Rf2 b5 38.g4 a5 39.f4 a4 40.f5
Bb3+ 41.Kd2 Bc4 42.Rf3</b><br />
<b></b>Knowing that I was winning made me play very cautiously, so I had lots of better ways to proceed throughout this endgame. [42.Ke3 h6 43.Rfd2+-]<br />
<b>42...Rc5 43.h4 h5
44.g5 Re5 45.f6+</b><br />
<b></b>[45.Rf2+-]<br />
<b>45...Kg6 46.Rxc4!?</b><br />
<b></b>I sacced the exchange back because I felt the endgame should be fairly straightforward to win. And it wasn't so bad, but perhaps it was better to hold on to the rook. [46.Rd8! Re2+
47.Kd1 Re5 <i>(47...Rxb2 48.Rg8+ Kh7 49.Rg7+ Kh8 50.Re3 Be6 51.Kc1 Rf2
52.Rd3+-) </i>48.Rg8+ Kh7 49.Rg7+ Kh8 50.Rf4+-]<br />
<b>46...bxc4 47.Rf4 Rd5+ 48.Rd4
Rc5 49.Ke3 Re5+ 50.Re4 Rc5 51.Kd4 Rb5 52.Re2 Rf5 53.Rh2</b><br />
A bit passive, forcing me to be more accurate to finish things off, while easier would have been 53.Ke4<br />
<b>53...Rf4+
54.Kc5 Kf5 55.Kd6 Re4 56.Kc5 Rf4 57.Kb4 Kg4 58.Rg2+ Kh3 59.Rg1 Kxh4 60.g6 fxg6
61.Rxg6 Kh3 62.Kc5 h4 63.Kd6 Kh2 64.Ke7 Re4+ 65.Kf8 h3 66.f7 Kh1 67.Kg8 Rf4
68.f8Q h2 69.Qa8+ 1-0</b><br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
It felt so great to get a first victory against the best Bahamian player and start the championships 2-0. But now in round three I had to play Kendrick Knowles, and I knew from experience how difficult he would be.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Knowles,Kendrick
(1846) - Cross,Ted (2031) [A05]<br />
2016 Bahamas National Championship Nassau (3), 20.11.2016<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<b>1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d3 d6 4.g3 g6 5.Bg2 Bg7 6.Nbd2 Nf6 7.0-0 0-0 8.h3 h6
9.c3 e5 10.Re1 Be6 11.Nf1 Qd7 12.Kh2 Rfe8?!=</b><br />
<b></b>I had played the opening on instinct rather than any real knowledge of how it should go, and I gained a tiny edge by this point, but my move messes it up and allows equality. Better was [12...d5 13.exd5 Nxd5
14.Ne3 g5 15.a3 Rad8 16.Nxd5 Bxd5 17.b4 f5-/+]<br />
<b>13.Be3?!</b><br />
<b></b>Fortunately for me he didn't find the move for equality [13.Ne3=]<br />
<b>13...Qe7</b><br />
These types of positions are tough if you don't happen to know the opening lines well, so it's no surprise that we keep making small inaccuracies. Slightly better here was 13... b6.<br />
<b>14.Qd2 Kh7 15.g4 g5?</b><br />
<b></b>This was a real mistake, going from a significant edge for black to a small edge for white. [15...d5 16.Qc2 d4 17.Bd2 a5-/+]<br />
<b>16.Ng3 Rad8
17.Qc2 Rh8?</b><br />
<b></b>17...Kg8 would have brought me equality here.<br />
<b>18.Rad1</b><br />
<b></b>White missed his shot with [18.d4! cxd4 19.cxd4 Nb4 20.Qc3 a5
21.d5+/-]<br />
<b>18...Kg8 19.Nf5 Bxf5 20.gxf5 d5?!</b><br />
<b></b>I'm still trying to play for a win. Safer was to play for equality with 20...Nh5<br />
<b>21.exd5
Nxd5 22.Nd2 Nxe3?</b><br />
<b></b>This is a very complex position, so not so surprising that I would make this mistake. [22...Qc7=]<br />
<b>23.Rxe3?!</b><br />
<b></b>And white returns the favor. [23.fxe3+/-]<br />
<b>23...f6?!</b><br />
<b></b>And back and forth we go with our slight inaccuracies. [23...Qd7 24.Qa4 Ne7 25.Qxd7 Rxd7 26.f6 Bxf6 27.Ne4=]<br />
<b>24.Qb3+ Kh7
25.Bxc6 bxc6 26.Nc4?</b><br />
<b></b>26.Ne4 gives white a strong edge.<br />
<b>26...Qd7 27.Rd2?!</b><br />
<b></b>White could have had equality with [27.Rf3 h5
28.Rh1 Qd5 29.Nd2=]. Now black gets a big edge.<br />
<b>27...Qxf5 28.Qa3 Rd7</b><br />
<b></b>My move is logical and not bad, but even better was [28...h5! 29.Qxa7 g4
30.Rg3 Rd7 31.Qxc5 Bh6 32.hxg4 hxg4 33.Ne3 Qe6 34.Kg1 f5 35.Rg2 Bf4-/+]<br />
<b>29.Qxc5
Rhd8?!</b><br />
<b></b>During the game I felt this was the way to a nearly winning advantage. Turns out it was better to play [29...Qe6=/+]<br />
<b>30.d4</b><br />
<b></b>[30.Qxc6=]<br />
<b>30...Qf4+</b><br />
<b></b>A better winning try was [30...g4]<br />
<b>31.Kg2 g4 32.Qxc6 gxh3+ 33.Kxh3 Rd5 34.Rg3!</b><br />
I had still felt I was winning until this strong defensive move.<br />
<b>34... exd4 35.Rxd4
Rxd4</b><br />
<b></b>Other tries don't work any better [35...Rh5+ 36.Kg2 Rxd4 37.cxd4 Qh4 38.Kg1 <i>(38.Kf3 Qh1+ 39.Rg2 Qd1+
40.Ke3 Rh3+ 41.Rg3 Qe1+ 42.Kd3 Rxg3+ 43.fxg3 Qxg3+ 44.Ne3 f5=; 38.Kf1 Qxd4
39.Ne3=) </i>38...Qxd4 39.Ne3 Qxb2=]<br />
<b>36.cxd4 Rxd4 37.Qb7 Qf5+ 38.Kg2 Rd7?!</b><br />
<b></b>I underestimated the danger of white's two queenside pawns in the coming endgame and didn't play accurately enough for a simple draw. [38...Qe4+
39.Qxe4+ Rxe4 40.b3 Re2 41.a3 h5=]<br />
<b>39.Qf3 Qxf3+ 40.Kxf3 Rd3+?!</b><br />
<b></b>[40...Bf8=]<br />
<b>41.Ke4 Rxg3?! 42.fxg3 Kg6 43.b4 Bf8?</b><br />
<b></b>I'm really trying hard to find a way to lose this. [43...f5+ 44.Kf4 Kf6 45.b5 Ke6
46.a4 Bd4=]<br />
<b>44.a3?</b><br />
<b></b>[44.b5 Bc5 45.a4 f5+ 46.Kd5 Bf2 47.a5 Kf6 48.a6+-]<br />
<b>44...Kg5
45.Ne3 Bd6 46.Nf5 Bf8 47.Ne3 Bd6 48.Kf3 f5 49.Nc4 Bc7 50.a4 h5 51.a5 a6 52.Nb6
f4??</b><br />
<b></b>Just when I had finally ensured I could get a draw I played this howler of a move. [52...Bd6 53.b5 axb5 54.Nd7 b4 55.a6 b3 56.a7 b2 57.a8Q b1Q 58.Qg8+
Kh6 59.Qe6+ Kg7 60.Qxd6 Qf1+ 61.Ke3 Qe1+ 62.Kd4 Qd2+ 63.Ke5 Qxd6+ 64.Kxd6 Kg6
65.Ke5 Kg5=]<br />
<b>53.gxf4+</b><br />
<b></b>Thank goodness he didn't see the easiest way to win! [53.Nd7! fxg3 54.b5+-]<br />
<b>53...Bxf4 54.Nd5??</b><br />
<b></b>And then here he threw the win away for good. [54.Nd7!+-]<br />
<b>54...Bd6 55.b5 axb5 56.a6 Bc5 57.Nf4 Bb6 58.Ne6+ Kf5 59.Nc7 1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
So, I got lucky in this last game, and what a relief. I finished the first half of the tournament in first place with 2.5/3.<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-12839578423153149882018-04-07T19:13:00.000+00:002018-04-07T19:13:49.414+00:00First Tournament in Bahamas - The Fall Classic<br />
After two years of not being able to play chess while in Baku, Azerbaijan, we moved to Nassau, Bahamas in August 2016. The Bahamas has a small but passionate chess community, small enough that I essentially have to play the same few players again and again each tournament. They are underrated here due to the incestuous nature of only beating up on each other and not being able to pull in outside rating points--at least until an outsider like me shows up.<br />
<br />
My rust showed in the first couple tournaments I played here, though I definitely improved by the third and fourth. Here I'll go through a couple moments from my first tournament in the Bahamas, called The Fall Classic. I played in it because it was a qualifier for the Bahamas National Championships.<br />
<br />
There were only four players, so it was a double-round robin quad of six games. I swept the two games against the lowest-rated player easily enough, so it was the encounters with the other two players--some of the strongest Bahamian players--that told the tale of this tournament.<br />
<br />
In round two I played for the first time against the talented Kendrick Knowles, and I lost with white after one simple mistake. Like I said, these players are underrated. A good example of this is the Bahamian player Carver Moncur, who has an 1800-range rating but has a legitimate FM title, earned in the Olympiads.<br />
<br />
Having lost the first game to Kendrick, when I encountered him again, I really wanted to make up for the loss and beat him, though given the way the first game had gone, I was really nervous.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Knowles,Kendrick
(1846) - Cross,Ted (2031) [D11]<br />
Fall Classic 2016 Nassau (5), 29.10.2016<br /><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<b>1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4 Nf6 4.g3 Bg4 5.Bg2 e6 6.0-0 Bxf3 </b><br />
I played this unusual variation on purpose, to try to unbalance things. I knew that meant giving white an edge, but it also meant it could give me more chances to win in the long run.<br />
<b>7.Bxf3 Be7 8.Qb3
Qb6 9.Nd2 Nbd7 10.c5 Qa6?!</b><br />
Again I choose to play to win. Equal would have been 10...Qxb3 11.axb3 0-0 12.b4 Bd8= but that didn't suit my aims.<br />
<b>11.Qc2</b><br />
<b></b>White would retain a small edge after 11.Qc3 b6 12.b4 0-0 13.Bb2+/=.<br />
<b>11...e5 12.dxe5 Nxe5 13.e3?</b><br />
<b></b>And white finally makes a mistake, losing a pawn. Equal was 13.b4
Nxf3+ 14.Nxf3 0-0=.<br />
<b>13...Nxf3+ 14.Nxf3 Qb5 15.Bd2?!</b><br />
<b></b>Slightly better was 15.b4 Qxb4
16.Rb1 Qxc5 17.Qxc5 Bxc5 18.Rxb7 0-0 though black retains a small edge.<br />
<b>15...Qxc5 16.Qf5 0-0 17.Rfc1 Qd6 18.Bc3
Ne4 19.Be5 Qe6 20.Qh5 g6 21.Qh6 f6 22.Bc7 </b><b>Rac8
23.Nd4 Qf7 24.Ba5 f5 25.f3??</b><br />
Black had a nearly winning advantage at this point, but this mistake ends the game quickly.<br />
<b>25...Bg5 26.Qh3 Bxe3+ 27.Kg2 Bxd4 28.fxe4 Bxb2 29.Rab1
Bxc1 30.Rxc1 fxe4 31.Kg1 Qf2+ 32.Kh1 Qf3+ 33.Kg1 Qe3+ 0-1</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
I had but one game left to play after that gratifying win, and if I won it I would have tied with Kendrick for first place in this event. I played against WCM Polina Karelina, whom I had beaten with the black pieces in round 3. This one went all my way until I played too quickly and threw the win away with one bad mistake.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF4cfZOZ96EQlbkVSs4qhel3F5_KjFHFhWSwOUdd_H4LNjtDWwCVaU_3LmYxAWGFA_Rs3JoVHVcawiKl9AYLU45G4TUIC26ilNDJSOHMmty8khOOGFeVb2TyWG3XL6chOdbkg-gypMtepR/s1600/Playing+in+the+Fall+Classic+2016+in+Nassau.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF4cfZOZ96EQlbkVSs4qhel3F5_KjFHFhWSwOUdd_H4LNjtDWwCVaU_3LmYxAWGFA_Rs3JoVHVcawiKl9AYLU45G4TUIC26ilNDJSOHMmty8khOOGFeVb2TyWG3XL6chOdbkg-gypMtepR/s400/Playing+in+the+Fall+Classic+2016+in+Nassau.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing Polina in the Fall Classic. Photo by Andre White.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h3>
Cross,Ted (2031) - Karolina,Polina (1650)
[B07]<br />
Fall Classic 2016 Nassau (6), 30.10.2016<br /><o:p></o:p></h3>
<br />
<br />
<b>1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.f3 Nbd7 4.Nc3 </b><b>e5 5.Nge2 Be7 6.Be3 0-0 7.Qd2 c6
8.0-0-0</b><br />
<b></b>It was better to get Ng3 in straightaway rather than castle. [8.Ng3 exd4 <i>(8...b5 9.Nf5 b4 10.Ne2 d5 11.Neg3 dxe4 12.fxe4
Re8 13.0-0-0 a5 14.Kb1 Bf8 15.dxe5 Rxe5 16.Bd4 Re8 17.Qg5 Kh8 18.Bc4 h6
19.Qf4+-) </i>9.Bxd4 b5 10.Nf5 Ne5 11.Nxe7+ Qxe7 12.a3+/=]<br />
<b>8...b5 9.Ng3 b4
10.Nce2 a5 11.Nf5 Nb6?</b><br />
<b></b>While black normally likes to make this move, it wasn't right at this moment when too much was loose in the black position. [11...d5 12.Bf2 dxe4 13.Qg5 g6 14.dxe5 Nd5 15.Nxe7+
Qxe7 16.Qxe7 Nxe7 17.fxe4 Nxe5 18.h3 Re8 19.Nd4+/-]<br />
<b>12.Neg3</b><br />
<b></b>I didn't punish it as quickly as I could have with [12.Nxe7+!
Qxe7 13.dxe5 Nfd7 14.Qxd6 Qxd6 15.exd6+-]<br />
<b>12...g6?</b><br />
<b></b>Things are already dire for black, but this just made it worse. [>=12...Bxf5
13.Nxf5 Nfd7 14.dxe5 dxe5 15.Nxe7+ Qxe7 16.Qd6 Qxd6 17.Rxd6 Rfc8 18.g3 Rc7
19.b3 a4 20.Kb1 Kf8 21.Bh3 Ke8 22.Rhd1+-]<br />
<b>13.dxe5 gxf5?!</b><br />
<b></b>[13...Nfd7
14.Nxe7+ Qxe7 15.Qxd6+-]<br />
<b>14.exf6?</b><br />
<b></b>White is still winning here, but there was a stronger combination with [14.Bxb6! Qxb6 15.Qg5+ Kh8 16.exf6 Rg8
17.fxe7 Rxg5 18.e8Q+ Rg8 19.Qxf7+-; or even 14.exd6 Na4 15.dxe7 Qxe7 16.exf5 Nd5 17.Bd4
Qh4 18.Re1+-]<br />
<b>14...Bxf6 15.Qxd6</b><br />
<b></b>It's not so bad to seek simplification like this, but it was much better to play [15.Nh5 Na4 16.Nxf6+ Qxf6 17.Bd4
Qe7 18.Qh6 f6 19.Bc4+ Kh8 20.Rhe1 Qg7 21.Qxg7+ Kxg7 22.Bf2+-]<br />
<b>15...Na4
16.Qxd8 Rxd8 17.Rxd8+ Bxd8 18.Nxf5?!</b><br />
<b></b>Nothing is so wrong with the move chosen, except that it was my beginning of a bad plan, not looking deeply enough into black's potential counterplay against my king. I felt the game was essentially over, so didn't take my time. Better was [18.exf5 Bf6 19.c3 Be5 <i>(19...bxc3?!
20.b3 Nb2 21.Ne4 Be5 22.g4 a4 23.b4 a3 24.f4 Bg7 25.Kc2 Bb7 26.Bc5 Rd8
27.Kb3+-) </i>20.Bd4 Bf4+ 21.Kc2 bxc3 22.b3 c5 23.Bf6 Nb6 24.Bb5+-]<br />
<b>18...Bf6
19.Bd4??</b><br />
<b></b>And here is where I blew it. Badly enough that I even wondered if I might lose at first, though I settled down and looked deeply at the resulting position and found that I should survive. Truth be told, I instantly felt I had screwed up and failed to even examine the most obvious way to retain a large advantage. [19.b3 Nc3 20.g4 a4 21.bxa4 Rxa4 22.Bc4 Be6 23.e5 Bd8 <i>(23...Bxe5
24.Ne7+ Kf8 25.Nxc6 Bf6 26.Bxe6 fxe6 27.Bc5+ Kf7 28.Kd2 Nd5 29.Rb1 Bc3+ 30.Kd3
Nf4+ 31.Kc4 Rxa2 32.Bxb4 Bf6 33.Kb3 Ra6 34.Na5+-) </i>24.Nd6 Bxc4 25.Nxc4 b3
26.a3 Rxc4 27.cxb3 Nd5+ 28.bxc4 Nxe3 29.f4 Nxc4 30.a4 Kg7 31.Rd1+-]<br />
<b>19...Bg5+
20.Kb1</b><br />
<b></b>Here is where I failed to see the right way to keep my big edge, with 20.Be3! My move gives away almost all advantage.<br />
<b>20...Bxf5 21.exf5 Rd8 22.c3 bxc3?!</b><br />
<b></b>[22...c5 23.Bb5 cxd4 24.Bxa4
bxc3 25.h4 Bf6 26.Bb5 Rb8 27.a4 Rc8=]<br />
<b>23.Bxc3?</b><br />
<b></b>Now I could have gotten back a large advantage by taking with the pawn, but it wasn't so easy to understand the nuances of this position during the live game. [23.bxc3 Rb8+
(23...c5 24.Be5 Rd1+ <i>(24...f6? 25.h4 Bd2 26.Bxf6 Rb8+ 27.Kc2 Rb2+ 28.Kd3+-) </i>25.Kc2
Rc1+ 26.Kb3 Nb6 27.f4 Be7 28.f6 Bf8 29.g3 a4+ 30.Kb2 Re1 31.Kc2 a3 32.Rg1 Nd5
33.Kd2 Ra1 34.Ke2 Rxa2+ 35.Kf3 Rb2 36.Ba6 Nxc3 37.Ra1 c4 38.Bxc4 Rxh2 39.Rc1
Na4 40.Bd4+-) 24.Kc2 Rb2+ 25.Kd3 Rxa2 26.g3 Be7 27.f6 Bf8 28.f4 Nb2+ 29.Ke4 Ra1
30.c4 Re1+ 31.Kf5 Nxc4 32.Bg2 Rxh1 33.Bxh1 c5 34.Bc3 a4 35.Ke4 Nb6 36.Kd3+/=]<br />
<b>23...Rd1+
24.Kc2 Rc1+ 25.Kd3 Nxc3 26.bxc3 Kg7 27.g4 Ra1 28.h4 Bf4 29.Ke4 </b><b>Bd6 30.g5 f6 31.c4?</b><br />
<b></b>I threw away all remaining chances to win with this move. The computer says white retains good winning chances with 31.f4!, though it would be a tough grind to actually find the right way through all the variations.<br />
<b>31...Rxa2 32.Bd3 Rh2
33.Rxh2 Bxh2 34.f4 h5 35.Bc2 Bg3 36.Ba4 Bxh4 37.g6 c5 38.Bd1 Bf2 39.Bxh5 a4
40.Bd1 a3 41.Bb3 Be1 42.Kd5 Bf2 43.Ba2 Bd4 44.Ke4 1/2-1/2</b><o:p></o:p><br />
<b><br /></b>
You can see by these two example games that I was clearly rusty and not at my best. My games in the Bahamas get progressively stronger as I shake the rust off over the next few tournaments.<br />
<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-70150605312558262872018-03-15T18:32:00.002+00:002018-03-15T18:35:52.042+00:001st Place in Old Fort Bay Invitational 2018It has been a long time since I have posted on here, primarily because I haven't played any chess since last year's victory at the Nassau Cup Invitational. I should have put up blog posts about the games I have played since coming to the Bahamas, and hopefully I will do so fairly soon.<br />
<br />
A year after winning the inaugural event, I played in its new incarnation, now called the Old Fort Bay Invitational. It is truly a great event, and I am so grateful for the terrific original sponsors, along with the new sponsors who have grown the prize fund to $4000 this year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5awtz-U6av1RMWd7u_hOsex4tVJzWsTwMNho4rrN-2e_oQTY5LN9UvXUl9gjo6j2AdtBjF5XjTV5RpvM-yHOHBvDNygbfxWHjx_xC5hOKC5NzMMDLI0_ZMLNXtsB_PUaUlriqN8ifKNtS/s1600/thumbnail_image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5awtz-U6av1RMWd7u_hOsex4tVJzWsTwMNho4rrN-2e_oQTY5LN9UvXUl9gjo6j2AdtBjF5XjTV5RpvM-yHOHBvDNygbfxWHjx_xC5hOKC5NzMMDLI0_ZMLNXtsB_PUaUlriqN8ifKNtS/s320/thumbnail_image.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Andre White</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I was very nervous going in, because I hadn't played any chess since this same event last year. I had wanted to play more chess, but for some reason Bahamas chess decided to run most of their events at a faster time control this past year, and I don't like faster time controls. Luckily, this event is in the standard FIDE time control.<br />
<br />
Last year I won with 7/10, that being seven wins and three losses. This year I did even better with 8/10 and no losses. That's six wins and four draws. The competition was tough, so I'm really proud to escape unscathed. Like I said, I'll try to come out with some posts in the near future showing games from here in the Bahamas, especially since some of these games were really instructive.Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-77982484140140920632017-03-15T01:52:00.001+00:002017-03-15T01:52:24.854+00:001st Place in Nassau Cup Invitational Chess Championship 2017What a fantastic result I had in chess these past two weeks! A new sponsor has taken interest in trying to strengthen Bahamian chess and organized the inaugural Nassau Cup Invitational Chess Championship at the beautiful Old Fort Bay Club on the west side of New Providence island. All the top players from the Bahamas were there, and to show just how tough the field played against each other, the national champion Kendrick Knowles finished in next to last place.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapGudPGyeTAaXycNUsAQ8-JgJ4o-PiC-hrvZ6iFJTjeaOECGViRKLsSwOsvrVl5GxdZHEPymbiwfTMn9R7nZ1I3lYydwSM5Bw-wiuLWvqgMSpR0Q3SiU0_0fXbrxPjvEjIB5JFlHgalI/s1600/1st+Nassau+Cup+Invitational.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapGudPGyeTAaXycNUsAQ8-JgJ4o-PiC-hrvZ6iFJTjeaOECGViRKLsSwOsvrVl5GxdZHEPymbiwfTMn9R7nZ1I3lYydwSM5Bw-wiuLWvqgMSpR0Q3SiU0_0fXbrxPjvEjIB5JFlHgalI/s320/1st+Nassau+Cup+Invitational.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
I started very well with three straight wins. I had a tough loss in the fourth round to FIDE master Cecil 'Carver' Moncur, where I should have drawn the endgame but played it too passively. Then I won the next game to finish the first weekend with four out of five points.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdwN8mBp98O7NUITUzrpoOVqRgWNoLIuSqnbGW32FtG6ZI4wcrXjrTSQvT36_TVqGYOf9YlwsyCYZ5xkRRrERBRc9l_hXLS5fs8ftSdOTzYWl_guETkv35UbwkILQY8Fym6Ymik6jeCo0/s1600/Bahamas+National+Champion+Kendrick+Knowles+vs+Ted+Cross+in+round+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdwN8mBp98O7NUITUzrpoOVqRgWNoLIuSqnbGW32FtG6ZI4wcrXjrTSQvT36_TVqGYOf9YlwsyCYZ5xkRRrERBRc9l_hXLS5fs8ftSdOTzYWl_guETkv35UbwkILQY8Fym6Ymik6jeCo0/s320/Bahamas+National+Champion+Kendrick+Knowles+vs+Ted+Cross+in+round+3.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beating Bahamas National Champion Knowles in round 3</td></tr>
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I started the following weekend well, too, with a win over CM Elton Joseph to move to five out of six, but then I hit a slump by pushing too hard. I lost two games in a row where in each of them if I didn't push so hard I could have drawn. I was still in first place due to how hard everyone was battling, but now it was by only a half a point over FM Moncur. But in the next round I handily beat FM Moncur to nearly put it away, and I finished it off with a win in the final round to complete the event with seven out of ten and clear first place.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSl5X-48ZmPHHXS4qAWPH_deMnoYLtDl5CemZr5X79fUkxlRj61tdjglbgCT_Y4TDxKYHd-4BMFPscmjX8EgCRnloElkjBZWmFQSaQNLGzNnrw9pR6Kg-W5fuhoNwtn3sAQySc4lweKGA/s1600/FM+Cecil+Moncur+vs+Cross.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSl5X-48ZmPHHXS4qAWPH_deMnoYLtDl5CemZr5X79fUkxlRj61tdjglbgCT_Y4TDxKYHd-4BMFPscmjX8EgCRnloElkjBZWmFQSaQNLGzNnrw9pR6Kg-W5fuhoNwtn3sAQySc4lweKGA/s320/FM+Cecil+Moncur+vs+Cross.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beating FM Moncur in the penultimate round</td></tr>
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On the final weekend, Cuban Grandmaster Renier Gonzalez was a special guest and watched all the games and analyzed with the players between rounds.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY_DhgGf8wtlgkzyezfyPfGCpQF3WsiKphPY9UwGUr4Ak1HFwzki-uSw_yjrNRFLiv7kMI5LWt1Eh1kdiGKYRYH5VzO1N2EV6w9mzdTMlWDyKt5HgSv57UYHR_wX_0bZYmAQj-s2AKeGU/s1600/Me+with+GM+Renier+Gonzalez2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY_DhgGf8wtlgkzyezfyPfGCpQF3WsiKphPY9UwGUr4Ak1HFwzki-uSw_yjrNRFLiv7kMI5LWt1Eh1kdiGKYRYH5VzO1N2EV6w9mzdTMlWDyKt5HgSv57UYHR_wX_0bZYmAQj-s2AKeGU/s320/Me+with+GM+Renier+Gonzalez2.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Grandmaster Renier Gonzalez of Cuba</td></tr>
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Even former US Secretary of the Treasury Nicholas Brady stopped by to watch for a bit! This was the biggest prize I have ever won before, and it was in a gorgeous setting. I couldn't be happier except if I had just not lost those three games.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjclg-Q6uFrvALyx0C4gfV30TWodG5yX20sSY2o1y09F8mptC1n-nUegZxaGlsPPSLjSxyQGB_rJSKpSV2t2CdIjHH0COJkGGiqKRjyMFUBCHHxnPl84EejxLYk-2YLjDckdYkIWbjRkPA/s1600/first+place+trophy+with+gm+renier+gonzalez+and+sponsor.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjclg-Q6uFrvALyx0C4gfV30TWodG5yX20sSY2o1y09F8mptC1n-nUegZxaGlsPPSLjSxyQGB_rJSKpSV2t2CdIjHH0COJkGGiqKRjyMFUBCHHxnPl84EejxLYk-2YLjDckdYkIWbjRkPA/s320/first+place+trophy+with+gm+renier+gonzalez+and+sponsor.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandmaster Gonzalez, me, and the sponsor</td></tr>
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<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-78982196968180514972017-02-18T03:57:00.000+00:002018-03-15T19:08:34.672+00:00Playing an IM with a brand new openingThis next game happened in round 6 of the 2014 Budapest Spring Chess Festival. It is long and has some really crazy twists to the story. First, when I looked at the white repertoire of IM Szalanczy, I realized pretty quickly that I had no hope if I played my standard Sicilian as black. He was just too good with white, even doing very well against GMs. I couldn't find any weaknesses, plus he played so many different variations that I couldn't even try to prepare for any specific one.<br />
<br />
That left me in a quandary, because I only play the Sicilian as black. Isn't it insane to try a brand-new opening for the first time against an International Master? How could I hope to survive such a thing?<br />
<br />
Well, one thing I noticed when I went through his games in the database was that in one particular line of the French he had only played against it three times, and he hadn't won any of those games. I'm not fond of the French and it has so many complications, but I did like this one particular variation. So I studied it like crazy for hours and hoped he wouldn't vary. I got lucky. He played right into it. Let's see how it went.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUZajzlO2buzVq2IijPqNiVY_eh-L5N2kzUMcM_9zMQPY0k6RL9cdYJ1tTsBYFGvsS51xX-8LkVlth67ouVtia8IrXATclLEa0zgQm0Yvs-WKQ7jOIydBplFsuSrfUN3xpiu9alMQlJgZQ/s1600/emil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUZajzlO2buzVq2IijPqNiVY_eh-L5N2kzUMcM_9zMQPY0k6RL9cdYJ1tTsBYFGvsS51xX-8LkVlth67ouVtia8IrXATclLEa0zgQm0Yvs-WKQ7jOIydBplFsuSrfUN3xpiu9alMQlJgZQ/s400/emil.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">IM Emil Szalanczy (hunonchess.com)</td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Szalanczy,IM Emil (2240) - Cross,Ted (2034) [C18]</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Budapest Spring Chess
Festival Budapest (6), 19.03.2014</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">1.e4 e6
2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Qa5 7.Bd2 Qa4</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">This was it, the line of the Winawer French that I was hoping for!</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">8.Qb1 Nc6 </span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">[8...c4]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">But here already I managed to forget the correct way to play it. I needed to play c4 right away. Luckily he didn't punish me, which he could have done with </span></span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">9.Bb5 Qa5 10.dxc5 Nge7.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">9.Nf3 </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">c4
10.g3 Nge7</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I knew the correct move here was Bd7, but I suddenly became afraid that if he took the pawn on b7 I wouldn't remember how to punish it properly. </span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[10...Bd7
11.Bg2 </span><i style="font-family: "FigurineCB AriesSP", sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">(11.Qxb7? Rb8 12.Qc7 Nge7 13.Be2 Qa6 14.0–0 Rb7 15.Qd6 Nf5 16.Qc5 Rb5
17.Bxc4 dxc4 18.Qxc4 Na5–+) </i><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">11...0–0–0]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">11.Bh3 b6
12.0–0 Bd7 13.Nh4 0–0–0 14.Qb2 Rde8 15.Rae1 Rhg8 16.Bg4 Nf5</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">This may look odd, but while looking over all the GM games in this line, I saw that pretty much the only way black gets any play at all is by making this knight move at the proper time and trying to get some counterplay. Not saying I made it at the right time, but I made the offer and he refused it.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">17.Ng2 </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[¹17.Nxf5
exf5 18.Bh5 Be6]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">17...g6
18.h4 h5 19.Bf3</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">By refusing to take the knight on f5, white essentially allowed me to create a fortress that is very hard to break down. In fact, it looked so difficult that shortly white decided to sac an exchange!</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[¹19.Bxf5
exf5 20.Nf4 Be6±]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">19...Nfe7
20.Nf4 Rd8 21.Nh3 Be8 22.Bg2 Nf5 23.Ng5 Rd7 24.Nh7 Rh8 25.Nf6</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">I was very unhappy that I had allowed him to bring this knight to f6 where it could strangle my position. I took the time to get rid of it, but that meant allowing a pawn to throttle me on f6 instead. Still the fortress is hard to do anything against.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">25...Rb7 26.Ra1 Nfe7
27.Rfb1 Bd7 28.Qc1 Ng8 29.Bf4 Nxf6 30.exf6 Re8</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">So now white decides he isn't going to get anywhere without desperate measures, so he sacs an exchange. As long as my pawn chains don't break down, the only route into my position is via e5, and there just isn't enough there for white to do anything.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">31.Rb4 Nxb4 32.axb4 Qc6</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">32...Qb5!
33.Qa3 Bc6 is what the computer says, but I struggle to understand it. My best guess is that the computer believes black can win by stuffing white's bishops with the pawn wall, while breaking through on the queenside.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">33.Qe3</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The computer doesn't like white's move and thinks he gets equality with 33.Ra6!
e5 34.Bxe5 Bf5=. Now comes a long maneuvering battle where white tries to find some way to break down the fortress and fails.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">33...b5
34.Qe5 a6 35.Ra5 Kd8 36.Kf1 Bc8 37.Ke2 Bd7 38.Kd2 Bc8 39.Bf3 Rh8 40.Ra1 Bd7
41.Qg5 Bc8 42.Re1 Bd7 43.Ra1 Bc8 44.Be2 Rb6 45.Rh1 Re8 46.Be5 Rh8 47.Qe3 Rb7
48.Bf4 Ra7 49.Ra1 Ra8 50.Bh6 Kc7 51.Bg7 Re8 52.Qh6?!</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">I knew full well that white was playing absurd moves like this only to try to goad me into doing something, anything other than simply maintaining the fortress.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">52...Bd7</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">So I could have punished him here with 52...Qd6!
53.Qe3 e5 54.dxe5 Rxe5 55.Bf8 Qxf6 56.Qc5+ Kd7™–+. Frankly, though, look at the position. Over the board it looks a bit scary, so I did look at trying to break out using my extra exchange, but each time I felt it was dangerous, so I decided to play it safe and simply keep up the fortress.</span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">53.Qe3 Kb7
54.Bh6 Rh8</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Here again I had a hard-to-fully-see line to push for a win. 54...Qb6
55.Qe5 a5 56.bxa5 Rxa5 57.Rxa5 Qxa5 58.Qd6 Bc6 59.f3 b4 60.Qxb4+ <i>(60.cxb4
Qa1 61.Qc5 Ba4 62.Bd1 Rc8 63.Qa5 Qxd4+–+) </i>60...Qxb4 61.cxb4 e5 62.Be3 exd4
63.Bxd4 Bd7 64.c3 Kc6µ</span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">55.Bf4
Rae8 56.Bf3 Ra8 57.Qe5 Rhe8 58.Qg5 Rh8 59.Be5 Rae8 60.Qf4 Bc8 61.Bd6 Rd8 62.Be7
Rde8 63.Qg5 Qd7 64.Bc5 Qc6 65.Re1 Qd7 66.Re5 Kc6 67.Bg2 Bb7 68.Qf4 Qd8 69.Bf3
Qd7 70.Bg2 Qd8 71.f3 Qd7 72.Ke2 Qd8 73.Kf2 Qd7 74.Kg1 Qd8 75.Kh2 Qd7 76.Bh3 Bc8
77.Qg5 Bb7 78.Re1 Bc8 79.Bg2 Bb7 80.g4?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">As with his earlier exchange sacrifice, white gets tired of trying to get anywhere and pushes a bit too hard.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">80...hxg4</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Perhaps a slightly better try at </span><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">punishing</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"> him was ¹80...Qc7+ 81.Re5 </span></span><i style="font-family: "FigurineCB AriesSP", sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">(81.Kh3
Rh7 82.Qe5 hxg4+ 83.fxg4 Reh8–+) </i><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">81...Bc8 82.Kg3 Bd7 83.Qf4 hxg4 84.fxg4
Kb7 85.Bf3 Reg8 86.g5 Bc6.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">81.fxg4
Qc7+ 82.Re5 Rh7 83.Kg1 Qd7 84.Re3 Bc8 85.Kf2 Reh8 86.Rh3 Re8 87.Bf3 Qc7 88.Qe5
Bd7</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I knew when he played the queen to e5 that my chance to win was by taking it, but I looked and looked and just couldn't see deeply enough, so again I decided to keep the draw in hand. [88...Qxe5
89.dxe5 a5 90.h5 gxh5 91.gxh5 a4 92.Be3 Bb7 93.Rh1 Ra8 94.Ra1 Kd7 95.h6 Bc6
96.Be2 Rah8 97.Rg1 Kd8 98.Ke1 Rxh6 99.Bxh6 Rxh6–+]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">89.Be7
Reh8 90.Qg5 Kb7 91.Kg2 Bc6 92.Rh1 Kc8 </span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[92...Ra8µ] </span><b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">93.Bc5 Re8
94.h5 gxh5 95.Rxh5 Rhh8 96.Qe5 Kd7</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The computer prefers 96...Qxe5 97.dxe5 Reg8 98.Kf2 Kc7
99.Bd4 Kd7 100.Bd1 Bb7 101.Bf3= and says black is better, but I think it just doesn't understand fortress positions.</span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">97.Rg5 Rh7</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">[97...Qxe5
98.dxe5 Rh7 99.Rg7 Rxg7 100.fxg7 Rg8 101.Bf8 Ke8 102.g5 Rxf8 103.gxf8Q+ Kxf8
104.Kg3=]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">98.Kg3
Reh8 99.Rg7 Qxe5+ 100.dxe5 Rxg7?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I thought this was clearly the right way to play, because I didn't see that sacrificing a pawn here would actually be better for me. </span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[100...d4! 101.Bxc6+ Kxc6 102.cxd4
Kd5 103.Kf3 c3! 104.Kf4 Rh2 105.Rxf7 Rf2+ 106.Kg5 Rxc2 107.Rc7 Rf2 108.Kg6 c2
109.Bb6 a5! 110.Bxa5 Rh1 111.Rc5+ Ke4 112.f7 c1Q 113.Rxc1 Rxc1 114.Bd8 Rc8
115.Bf6 Rfc2–+] Now that's a hard line to see!</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">101.fxg7
Rg8 102.Bf8 Ke8 103.Kf4 Rxf8</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">This is why I played this line, believing that I could give back the exchange to go into an endgame up a pawn. I had no idea what a weird resource was available to white. Can you imagine a position where taking a free rook with a pawn with check is wrong? Well here it is!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">104.gxf8Q+?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Who could have thought this was a mistake? Check out the amazing double-exclam move white had here! And on move 104 no less.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">104.Kg5!! Rg8 <i>(104...Ke7
105.gxf8Q+ Kxf8 106.Kf6+–) </i>105.Kf6 Rxg7 106.Kxg7 Ke7 107.g5 Bd7 108.Bh5 Be8
109.Kg8+–</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">104...Kxf8
105.g5 Ke7 106.Bh5 Be8 107.Ke3 Kd7 108.Kd4 Kc6 109.Bf3 Kb6 110.Bg4 Kc6 </span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[110...Bd7=]</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> I overlooked his tactic here or I would have played Bd7. I could tell that the spectators and IM Szalanczy thought I had blown it and was lost. To be honest, I thought I had as well, but I took a long time after 111.g6 and examined the position deeply and realized it was still a draw.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">111.g6
fxg6 112.Bxe6 g5 113.Bxd5+ Kc7 114.Be4 Bd7 115.Kc5 Be6 116.Kd4 Kb6 117.Bd5 Bf5</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">Even taking the bishop is still a draw, though during the game I felt that taking the pawn on c2 was a must.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">[117...Bxd5
118.Kxd5 g4 119.e6 Kc7 120.Ke4 Kd6 121.Kf4 Kxe6 122.Kxg4=]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">118.e6
Bxc2 119.Ke5</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Nothing white does here makes any progress.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[119.e7
Bg6 120.Be6 Be8 121.Bf5 a5 122.bxa5+ Kxa5 123.Kc5 Ka4 124.Bc2+ Ka3 125.Bd1 Kb2
126.Kb4 Kc1 127.Be2 Kd2 128.Bg4 Kc2=; 119.Bf3 Bg6 120.Kd5 a5 121.bxa5+ Kxa5
122.e7 Ka4 123.Be4 Be8=]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">119...Bg6
120.Kf6 Be8 121.Kxg5 a5 122.bxa5+ Kxa5 123.Kf6 b4 124.cxb4+ Kxb4 125.Ke7 Bh5</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">½–½</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">I was really proud of this result, amazed that I could play a totally new opening for me against an IM and survive.</span></span></div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-29004580889693242862016-12-26T04:08:00.000+00:002016-12-26T04:17:14.229+00:00Budapest Spring chess Festival 2014 part 1The next time I played chess was a full year later in the next edition of the Budapest Spring Chess Festival. It was a mixed bag, with one really memorable game, and a continued failed experiment with the Sicilian Grand Prix.<br />
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After a fairly simple win in round one, I tried out a different Sicilian than I usually play. I played it decently, with only one early move where I clearly didn't understand the line.<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Bitran,Daniel (2133) - Cross,Ted (2034) [B99]<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Budapest Spring Chess
Festival Budapest (2), 15.03.2014</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">1.e4 c5
2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Be7 8.Qf3 Qc7 9.0–0–0 Nbd7
10.g4 b5 11.a3 Bb7?!</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> Here is where I clearly didn't know the line, where Rb8 would have been equal, while my move leads to a small edge for white if he plays correctly.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">12.Bd3?!</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> Which he didn't, thankfully. </span><b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.g5 Bxd4 14.Rxd4 0–0²]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">12...Nc5
13.Rhe1 Rc8 14.Kb1 Qb6 15.Qe2 b4! 16.axb4 Qxb4 17.Bxf6 Bxf6 18.e5 dxe5 19.fxe5
Be7</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> I had played well to this point and had a significant advantage. Be7 here still leaves me with an edge, though Bh4 was stronger. </span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">[¹19...Bh4 20.Rf1 0–0–+]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">20.Rf1?! </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> White gives me an opportunity to gain a winning advantage. </span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">[¹20.Ne4 0–0µ]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">20...Nxd3?!
</span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">[¹20...Rb8
21.Na2 Qb6 22.Bc4 0–0 23.b3 h6–+]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> Which I promptly fail to see. Luckily I still have a nice edge.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">21.Rxd3
0–0 22.Ne4 Bxe4?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> But here I blow most of my advantage. I'd have been winning with </span><b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">[22...Bd5! 23.Nd2 Rb8 24.N4b3 a5 25.Rd4 Qb7–+]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">23.Qxe4
Bc5?!</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Now I let white get equality, while I'd still have a large edge with [23...Rc4!
24.Rfd1 h6µ]</span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">24.c3 Qa4
25.Rh3 g6 </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The computer thinks g6 is fine but says a tiny fraction better is [¹25...h6
26.g5 Rb8 27.Rf2 Qd1+ 28.Ka2 Bxd4 29.cxd4 Rb4 30.gxh6 Rxd4 31.Qb7 <i>(31.Qg2 g6
32.Qb7 Qa4+ 33.Ra3 Qc4+µ) </i>31...Ra4+ 32.Ra3 Rxa3+ 33.Kxa3 Qa1+ 34.Kb3 gxh6µ]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span><b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">26.Qf4
f5??</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">And I blow everything, giving white a winning game. The right way to play was [26...Rb8!
27.Rf2 <i>(27.Qh6?? Rxb2+ 28.Kxb2 Ba3+ 29.Ka2 Bc1+–+) </i>27...Rb7 28.Rc2 Rfb8
29.Rf3 Bxd4 30.Qxd4 Qxd4 31.cxd4 Rb4³]</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> Now it's just easy for white.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">27.exf6
Qd7 28.Rd3 Rce8 29.Qe4 Qd5 30.Qxd5 exd5 31.Nb3 Bd6 32.Rxd5 Bxh2 33.g5 Re5 34.Rxe5
Bxe5 35.Nc5 Bd6 36.Ne6 Rf7 37.Nd8<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">1–0</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">So that was painful, to do so well in a new line only to throw it away with one bad move. The next round saw me continue my experimentation with the Grand Prix Sicilian. I was playing an International Master, so maybe I'd have been better off sticking to my normal opening.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cross,Ted (2034) - Pirisi,IM Gabor (2258) [B23]<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Budapest Spring Chess
Festival Budapest (3), 16.03.2014</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">1.e4 c5
2.Nc3 g6 3.f4 Bg7 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.Bb5 Nd4 6.0–0 Nxb5 7.Nxb5 a6 8.Nc3 b5 9.d3 d6
10.Qe1 b4 11.Ne2 Nf6 12.h3 0–0 13.Qh4 e6 14.f5 exf5</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">Fourteen moves in and I'm doing fine. I had been studying a book by GM Perelshteyn, and though I didn't know it at the time here I was exactly following a Perelshteyn game. Only on the next move the GM played correctly while I went astray.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">15.Bh6? </span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">[15.exf5
Nh5 <i>(15...Re8; 15...Nd5) </i>16.Bg5 Bf6? (16...f6 17.fxg6 fxg5 <i>(17...hxg6
18.Bd2 f5 19.Qc4+ Kh8 20.Nf4 Nxf4 21.Qxf4±) </i>18.gxh7+ Kh8 19.Qxh5 Qe8
20.Qxe8 Rxe8 21.Rae1±) 17.g4!? <i>(17.Ng3 h6 18.fxg6 fxg6 19.Nxh5 gxh5 20.Bxf6
Rxf6 21.Qxh5±) </i>17...Bxg5 18.Nxg5 h6 19.f6 hxg5 20.Qxg5 Re8? <i>(20...Ng7!
21.Rae1 c4 22.Ng3 Ra7 23.Qe3 Rd7 24.fxg7 Kxg7 25.dxc4±) </i>21.gxh5 Re5 22.Qg2
Ra7 23.hxg6 fxg6 24.Qxg6+ Kh8 25.Ng3 Qg8 26.Qxg8+ Kxg8 27.h4 d5 28.Rf4 Rh7
29.a3 bxa3 30.Rxa3 Kf7 31.Ra5 d4 32.b4 Rh6 33.Ne4 Bb7 34.Nd6+ 1–0 Perelshteyn,E
(2360)-Montalvo,A (2235)/Mermaid Beach 1997/EXT 2001]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">15...Nh5
16.Bxg7 Qxh4 17.Nxh4 Nxg7 18.Ng3?!</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I'm in trouble no matter what, but slightly better was [18.exf5 Bxf5 <i>(18...Nxf5
19.Nxf5 Bxf5 20.Ng3 Be6 21.Ne4 Rfd8 22.Rae1µ) </i>19.Ng3 Be6 20.Ne4 Ne8 21.a3µ]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">18...f4
19.Ne2 g5 20.Nf3 h6 21.Rae1 Bb7 22.g3 fxg3 23.Nxg3 f5 24.exf5 Nxf5 25.Nxf5 Rxf5
26.Nd2 Rxf1+ 27.Rxf1 Kg7 28.Re1 Kf6 29.Ne4+ Bxe4 30.Rxe4 d5 31.Re2 Ra7 32.Re8
Re7 33.Rc8 Re2 34.Rxc5 Ke5</span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZte8BFxJGJynyHbF7CZTIrvPZE6Ql80U7ThdWiryyRHYkwaaHVflZv9-t895VmJjf8EWmQ6W9rZeFMCcQcuK5_riXTzMcPgAFUbx7g3SNva2__zuow4_uKOrNvOOPu-ESMC4kMeDu7Pl/s1600/Pos967134875.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZte8BFxJGJynyHbF7CZTIrvPZE6Ql80U7ThdWiryyRHYkwaaHVflZv9-t895VmJjf8EWmQ6W9rZeFMCcQcuK5_riXTzMcPgAFUbx7g3SNva2__zuow4_uKOrNvOOPu-ESMC4kMeDu7Pl/s320/Pos967134875.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">After all this fairly straightforward maneuvering, I actually dared to think I might be able to save the game at this point. The computer laughs at my naive thinking! I failed to understand how deadly black's kingside pawns would be.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">35.c4?</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Even the better [35.a3 b3 36.cxb3 Re3 37.Kg2 Rxd3
38.b4 Rd2+ 39.Kf3 h5–+] fails.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">35...Rxb2
36.Rxd5+ Kf4 37.Ra5 Kg3 38.Kf1 Kf3 39.Kg1 h5 40.c5 g4 41.hxg4 hxg4 42.c6 Rb1+<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">0–1</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">So after a win followed by two losses in a row, I needed to get back on track quick. My next opponent was a Swede that I had played in the same tournament in 2003.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Pesola,Jyrki
(1863) - Cross,Ted (2034) [B98]<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Budapest Spring Chess
Festival Budapest (4), 17.03.2014</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">1.e4 c5
2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Again I try the Najdorf Sicilian even after my loss two rounds previously.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b> 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 h6 8.Bh4 Be7 9.Qf3 Nbd7
10.0–0–0 Qc7 11.Bf2 b5 12.Bd3 Bb7 13.a3 Nc5 14.Rhe1 Rc8 15.Qe2 Qa5</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I had played the opening well, gaining a slight edge to this point,and now my opponent gave me a dangerous opportunity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b>16.Qd2?</b></span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b> e5?</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b></b></span><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Which I failed to see. Best was [16...b4!
17.axb4 Qa1+ 18.Nb1 Ncxe4 19.Qe2 0–0µ]</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">17.Nf5?</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Luckily for me he messed up for a second move in a row, and this time I didn't let the chance escape me! [17.fxe5
Ng4 <i>(17...dxe5 18.Nf5 b4 19.Bxc5 bxc3 20.Nxg7+ Kf8 21.Bxe7+ Kxe7 22.Qf2
cxb2+ 23.Kxb2 Rc3 24.Nf5+ Kf8 25.Ra1²) </i>18.exd6 <i>(18.Kb1 Nxd3 19.cxd3 dxe5
20.Nf5 Bxa3 21.bxa3 Qxa3 22.Na2 g6 23.Ne3 Qb3+ 24.Qb2 Qxb2+ 25.Kxb2 Nxf2 26.Rd2
Nxd3+ 27.Rxd3 Bxe4 28.Rd6 Ke7 29.Rxa6 Rhd8 30.Re2÷) </i>18...Bg5 19.Be3 Nxe3
20.Rxe3 0–0 21.Rde1 Rce8 22.Qf2 b4 23.axb4 Qxb4 24.Nf5 Nxd3+ 25.cxd3 g6 26.Ne7+
Kh7µ]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">17...b4
18.Nd5??</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Even without his blunder here he was lost [18.fxe5
bxc3 19.Qxc3 Qxc3 20.bxc3 Nxd3+ 21.cxd3 dxe5 22.Nxe7 Kxe7–+]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">18...Nb3+</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">0–1</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="font-family: "figurinecb ariessp" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I'll get to the really memorable game that I mentioned above in the next post.</span></div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-63722677870061009602016-12-14T03:42:00.001+00:002016-12-14T03:42:58.215+00:00Budapest Spring Chess Festival 2013 part 2After the disaster of round 4 it took me some time to settle down and play decently again. In round five I played fast and carelessly and was punished for it, losing from a winning position. In round six I played against a nice Iranian lady, and though I didn't play flawlessly, I did manage to play well enough to get back in the win column.<br />
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[Event "Budapest Spring Chess Festival"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Site "Budapest"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Date "2013.03.23"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Round "6"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[White "Cross, Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Black "Allahverdi, Maryam"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Result "1-0"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[ECO "C50"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[WhiteElo "2041"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[BlackElo "1807"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Annotator "Cross,Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[PlyCount "111"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventDate "2013.03.18"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventType "swiss"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventRounds "9"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventCountry "HUN"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Be7 5. c3 d3 6. Qb3
Na5 7. Bxf7+ Kf8 8. </b><b>Qa4 Kxf7 9. Qxa5 d6 10. O-O</b></div>
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This was the first tournament in which I attempted this opening, so I wasn't very familiar with the variations. Castling was my instinct more than anything, though I did look at the more correct 10. Qd5+ Be6 11. Qxd3 with a huge edge.</div>
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<b>10... Nf6 11. Qb5 Re8 12. Qxd3 h6 13. Re1 Ng4 14. Bf4 Bf6 15. Nbd2 Ne5 16.
Nxe5+?!</b></div>
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I'm naturally possessive of my bishops, so it's normal that I would play this, but it's a mistake that lets most of my advantage dwindle away. Much better was simply 16. Bxe5 dxe5 17. Qe2.</div>
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<b>16... dxe5 17. Qxd8 Rxd8 18. Be3 b5?!</b></div>
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This move gives white back the edge.</div>
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<b>19. a4 c6 20. Red1 a6 21. axb5 cxb5 22. Nb3
Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Be7 24. Bc5</b></div>
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While my move isn't bad, it's 'bad' in the sense that allowing opposite colored bishops gives black too much hope to hold on, and I didn't need to allow that. Better was 24. Na5 Be6
25. Nc6 Bf6 26. Ra1 with a big advantage.</div>
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<b>24... Be6 25. Bxe7 Bxb3 26. Rd7 Ke8 27. Rb7 Be6 28. Bd6
Bd7 29. Rb8+</b></div>
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I wanted to reduce material, though again this isn't necessarily the wisest choice in an opposite colored bishop ending, even up two pawns. 29. Bxe5! Bc6 30. Rxg7 Bxe4 31. f3 Bd5 32. Rh7 and white is winning.</div>
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<b>29...
Rxb8 30. Bxb8 Kf7 31. Bxe5 Bc6 32. f3 g6 33. h4 h5 34. Kf2 Ke6 35. Bf4 a5 36.
Bd2 a4 37. Ke3 Kf6 38. Kd4 Ke6 39. g3 Bd7 40. Bg5 Bc6 41. Bd8 Bd7 42. Bb6 Bc6
43. Ke3 Bd7 44. Kf4 Bc6 </b><b>45. Bd4 Bd7 46. Kg5 Be8 47. g4 Bf7</b></div>
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Lots of maneuvering, since that's what the position dictates. I can be slightly inaccurate in places, because the position is one where I can pretty much do what I want, moving back and forth until I figure out the right plan of action. 47... hxg4 48. fxg4
Bf7 49. h5 gxh5 50. gxh5 Bg8 51. h6 Bh7 52. Kf4 Kd6 53. Bg7 Ke6 54. Ke3 Kd6
55. Kd4 Bg8 56. e5+ Kc6 57. Bf8 Kd7 58. Kc5 and white wins.</div>
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<b>48. Kh6 Be8 49. gxh5 gxh5 50. f4 Kd6 51. f5 Ke7 52.
Kg7 Bf7 53. e5 Be8 54. Bc5+ Kd7 55. Kf8 Kd8 56. Be7+ 1-0</b></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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With a couple hiccups in the tournament making it less than wonderful for me, I at least finished with three and a half out of four at the end, wrapping it up with this nice victory over a FIDE master (though admittedly one whose rating has taken a beating as he has aged).<br />
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[Event "Budapest Spring Chess Festival"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Site "Budapest"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Date "2013.03.27"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Round "9"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[White "Cross, Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Black "Letay, FM Gyula"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Result "1-0"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[ECO "B99"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[WhiteElo "2041"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[BlackElo "1967"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Annotator "Cross,Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[PlyCount "117"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventDate "2013.03.18"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventType "swiss"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventRounds "9"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventCountry "HUN"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6.
Bg5 e6 7. f4 Nbd7 8. Qf3 </b><b>Be7 9. O-O-O Qc7 10. g4 b5 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12. f5 Ne5 13.
Qh3 b4</b></div>
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I haven't made any comments yet because all of this is a standard opening line, and one that I have played all my chess playing life. But this last move 13... b4 is only the second-most played variation here, far behind the standard 13... 0-0. My database shows white's winning percentage go from 47.5% after the castle move to 82% when b4 is played. That's a huge difference.</div>
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<b>14. Nce2 Nc6 15. fxe6 fxe6 16. Qh5+ Kd8 17. Qf7 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 e5 19. Nf5</b></div>
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There's nothing wrong with my move, though even stronger is 19. Qd5! Ra7 (19... Bb7 $2 20. Ne6+ Kc8 21. Nxc7 Bxd5 22. Nxd5) 20. Nc6+ and an easy win.</div>
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<b>19... Bxf5 20. gxf5 Rc8 21. Bd3 a5 22. Rhg1</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbeaolqyLDTmpk4s5-WDvml2ubOGiowTaiMCBw_Sbsp-9SVJfVauEqqXdV-qSIk4z_IgjJ4HODvtnEf2U3t62FZqdOAGMw3fdlYcJ03Q9e9Ec4y6olZoTry-Neu6GeDdZgi8NTWA6eJXn5/s1600/Pos1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbeaolqyLDTmpk4s5-WDvml2ubOGiowTaiMCBw_Sbsp-9SVJfVauEqqXdV-qSIk4z_IgjJ4HODvtnEf2U3t62FZqdOAGMw3fdlYcJ03Q9e9Ec4y6olZoTry-Neu6GeDdZgi8NTWA6eJXn5/s320/Pos1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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What a lovely position, at least from the standpoint of anyone who loves the Sicilian as white! Total domination of the white squares and the one open file. And though there are opposite colored bishops, white's is a good bishop while black's is clearly very bad.</div>
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<b>22... Qc5 23. Rg7 Re8 24. Rdg1</b></div>
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I fell too much in love with that open file. While my position is still dominating, this move changes the evaluation from 'winning' to just a 'very large advantage'. The better human move would be 24. b3, while the best move is one only a computer could love: 24. Rd2! and black is simply stifled.</div>
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<b>24...
Kc7 25. Qe6?!</b></div>
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This move looks nice, and at the time I thought keeping the queens on the board was more dangerous for black, but it was the right time to trade them off. 25. Qc4! White still has a large advantage, though. It's actually pretty hard for white to mess this position up!</div>
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<b>25... Kb6 26. R7g2 a4 27. Qd5?</b></div>
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And yet here I go and try to do just that! </div>
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<b>27... Qe3+?</b></div>
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Luckily for me my opponent thought the queen trade was bad for him! After 27... Qxd5
28. exd5 Bf8 29. Re1 Bh6+ 30. Kd1 white has lost all advantage.</div>
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<b>28. Kb1 Rc5?!</b></div>
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Black could have kept damage to a minimum with 28... Qc5, though white retains an advantage after 29. Qe6 a3 30. Rd1.</div>
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<b>29. Qf7 Rcc8 30. Rd1 Qc5
31. Rg7 a3 32. Qd5?!</b></div>
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Sigh. I'm really trying hard to mess things up on that d5 square. After the correct 32. Qb3! just try to find a plan for black.</div>
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<b>32... axb2?</b></div>
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And black really, really doesn't want to trade queens and get back into the game! 32... Qxd5 33. exd5 h5 34. Rh7 and white's edge is minimal.</div>
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<b>33. Qxc5+ dxc5 34. Bc4 h6?</b></div>
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Okay so white was already winning, but this move just overlooks the threats white has against black's pieces.</div>
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<b>35. Rd7 Rc7 36. Rxc7 Kxc7 37. Bb5 Kd8 38. Bxe8 Kxe8 39. Rg6 c4 40. Kxb2 Kd7
41. c3 Kc6 42. Rxh6 Kc5 43. Rh7 Bd8 44. Rd7 bxc3+ 45. Kxc3</b></div>
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Black plays on in a hopeless position, hoping for a miracle. More accurate here was to give black's bishop no counterplay at all with 45. Kc2! Bb6 46.
h4 Kc6 47. h5!</div>
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<b>45... Ba5+ 46. Kc2 Be1 47. Rh7</b></div>
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Better here to stifle all counterplay with 47. Rd1! Bh4 48. Kc3!</div>
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<b>47... Kd4 48. Rh6 Kxe4 49. Rxf6
Bh4 50. Rc6 Kd5</b></div>
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If 50... Kxf5 then 51. a4 wins easily.</div>
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51. Rh6 Bg5 52. Rg6 Bf4 53. h4 e4 54. f6 e3</div>
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If 54... Ke6 55.
f7+ Kxf7 56. Rg4 and it's over.</div>
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<b>55. f7 e2 56. f8=Q e1=N+</b></div>
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If 56... e1=Q 57. Qxf4 or better yet 57. Qf7+.</div>
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<b>57. Kd1
Nd3 58. Qd8+ Ke4 59. Re6+ 1-0</b></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
</div>
It was nice to finish this tournament on a high note. I had no idea at the time that I wouldn't play again for a full year, in the next annual version of this same event.<br />
<br />Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-37051646499419901752016-12-04T16:47:00.000+00:002016-12-05T19:25:00.308+00:00Budapest Spring Chess Festival 2013 part 1I have a fondness for the Budapest Spring Chess Festival, since back in 2003 it was the tournament in which I first earned my FIDE rating. Now ten years later I was back to play in it again. The first round I had a fairly standard win against a lower-rated player, not really worth seeing, and the second round I played the Grand Prix attack for the second time (see my <a href="http://knight-tour-chess.blogspot.com/2016/11/returning-to-chess.html">previous post</a>), this time against an FM and I didn't make any huge mistakes, but I was slowly outplayed. I considered showing it to you, but I just couldn't find much of interest in it. I certainly failed to improve on my use of the Grand Prix, as I performed miserably with it over both this tournament and the next one.<br />
<br />
Instead I'll show you this third round game, again against a master. It was the first time I tried playing the Leningrad Dutch. I had played the Stonewall for many years when I was younger, and I didn't like the types of positions I got from it, so I had long considered switching over to the Leningrad.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Event "Budapest Spring Chess Festival"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Site "Budapest"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Date "2013.03.20"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Round "3"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[White "Zentai, Peter"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Black "Cross, Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Result "1/2-1/2"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[ECO "A88"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[WhiteElo "2269"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[BlackElo "2041"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Annotator "Cross,Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[PlyCount "93"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventDate "2013.03.18"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventType "swiss"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventRounds "9"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventCountry "HUN"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>1. d4 f5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. g3 g6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. O-O O-O 6. c4
d6 7. Nc3 c6 8. Qc2 </b><b>Na6 9. a3 Qc7</b></div>
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While the 'usual' move here is 9... Qe8, the database shows me that black performs much better in this Qc7 line.</div>
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<b>10. b4 e5
11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Bb2</b></div>
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Playing this move leaves black with a slight advantage. It was better for white to go ahead with 12. e4 himself. If the next phase of the game has few comments, it's because both sides played solidly, with no mistakes, and the computer rarely offers up anything much better than what we chose.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>12... e4 13. Nd4 Qf7 14. Na4 Be6 15. Rac1 Rac8 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17.
Nb3 b6 18. c5 b5 19. Nc3 </b><b>Nc7 20. e3 Ng4 21. Ne2 Ne5 22. Bxe5 Bxe5 23. Rd2 Nd5 24.
Nbd4 g5 25. Nc3 Nxc3 </b><b>26. Qxc3 Be6 27. Qc2 Bd5 28. Qd1 Kh8 29. f4 gxf4 30. gxf4
Bxd4 31. Rxd4 Rg8 32. </b><b>Qc2 Rg7 33. Rd2 Rcg8 34. Kh1 Qf6 35. Qc3?!</b></div>
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The first real mistake of the game!</div>
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<b>35... Qh4</b></div>
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I failed to take advantage of it. Black would have a large advantage after 35...
Qxc3 36. Rxc3 a5 37. Rc1 axb4 38. axb4 Ra7. Now the game turns equal and peters out to a draw.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>36. Qe5 Rf8 37. Rg1 Qf6 38. Qxf6
Rxf6 39. Bf1 a6 40. Rg3 Rfg6 41. Kg2 Rd7 42. Kf2 Be6 43. Ke1 Rxd2 44. Kxd2 Kg7
45. Kc3 Kf6 46. Be2 Rh6 47. Rg2 1/2-1/2</b></div>
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While it wasn't a highly exciting game, playing a new opening against a master strength player is tough, so doing well and even having a chance to gain a large edge at one point gave me confidence that I could play the Leningrad with decent results.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The next round was one that should have been a triumph for me, but turned into a nightmare with one of the biggest hallucinations of my life. I was playing against a 2100-level player and I felt this was the make or break point in the tournament. I wanted to get a statement win, a confidence builder, and the way I played it should have worked out. Instead it left me devastated.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Event "Budapest Spring Chess Festival"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Site "Budapest"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Date "2013.03.21"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Round "4"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[White "Cross, Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Black "Marjanovics, Gyorgy"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Result "0-1"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[ECO "C54"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[WhiteElo "2041"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[BlackElo "2116"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Annotator "Cross,Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[PlyCount "122"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[EventDate "2013.03.18"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventType "swiss"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventRounds "9"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventCountry "HUN"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5</b></div>
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My opponent switches the opening over to a giuoco piano.</div>
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<b>5. c3 Nf6 6.
cxd4 Bb4+ 7. Bd2 Nxe4 8. Bxb4 Nxb4 9. Bxf7+ Kxf7 10. Qb3+ d5 11. Qxb4 Rf8 12. O-O
Kg8 13. Qb3</b></div>
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I knew this line fairly well, and with this last move and the next I repositioned my queen, since I didn't want it imprisoned by black's wall of pawns. I knew this sort of position would entail lots of slow maneuvering.</div>
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<b>13... c6 14. Qe3 Qf6 15. Nc3 Bf5 16. Ne5 Rad8 17. f3 Nd6 18. b3 Bc8 19.
Rae1 Rfe8 20. Qd2 Nf5 </b><b>21. f4 Nd6 22. g4 Qh4 23. Qf2 Qh3?!</b></div>
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My opponent makes the first mistake of the game. He needed to trade the queens. Now white gets a decent advantage.</div>
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<b>24. Re3 Qh6 25. Kg2 Qf6 26. Rh3</b></div>
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I was trying to carefully probe black's position to see if anything would crack. Better was 26. f5, which of course I saw, but I felt at the time that it was too early.</div>
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<b>26... Re7 27. Qc2 g6 28. Rg3 Rf8
29. Rff3 Kh8 30. Rh3 Kg7 31. Rf2?</b></div>
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My first mistake. Luckily black didn't see the correct way to punish it.</div>
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<b>31...Nf7?!</b></div>
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Black could have had a significant edge after 31... h5! 32. f5 Qg5 33. Rg3 h4
34. f6+ Rxf6 35. Rxf6 Qxf6 36. Rf3 Qg5 37. h3 Bf5 38. Qf2 Be4 39. Nxe4 dxe4 40.
Re3, and though this isn't close to lost yet for white, it sure isn't easy to try to salvage.</div>
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<b>32. Rhf3 Ree8 33. h3 Nd8 34. Nd1 Ne6 35. Qd2 Kh8 36. Ne3 Ng7 37.
h4 h5?</b></div>
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I had a large advantage no matter what black played here, but playing h5 turned the position into a decisive edge for white.</div>
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<b>38. f5! gxf5 39. gxf5 Rg8 40. Rg3</b></div>
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There's nothing wrong with my move, though the computer likes 40. Kf1 even more.</div>
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<b>40... Nxf5?</b></div>
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White's advantage was already winning, but now it grows huge.</div>
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<b>41. Nxf5 Bxf5</b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjF9DCaNel2pjFAdwIzNKuabYEyWtjOu1VX2w0reqD2ND95QO-0si66AnBOhY3Qze6QKkyrQYy9qBc4eDfOJpA2nc63y6tHdmCbHdKGwvgy9T3cqwMfy5U6j-lvWfA7Hv_0MAwCxteF4kU/s1600/Pos1698838796.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjF9DCaNel2pjFAdwIzNKuabYEyWtjOu1VX2w0reqD2ND95QO-0si66AnBOhY3Qze6QKkyrQYy9qBc4eDfOJpA2nc63y6tHdmCbHdKGwvgy9T3cqwMfy5U6j-lvWfA7Hv_0MAwCxteF4kU/s320/Pos1698838796.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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I knew this was the critical moment of the game. I felt it. And what is worse is that the very first idea I examined was the correct one--42. Nf7+!. I saw most of the lines after this move and felt strongly that it had to be winning. Ironically, it was following the instructions of so many chess manuals that steered me wrong here. They always said that you shouldn't just see the first winning line and go for it, but instead look for something even better. So after spending a decent amount of time examining the correct move, I decided to see if there was something more correct, and here is where I hallucinated. I looked at the combination of queen, knight, and the rook on the g file and thought I saw a smothered mate. And I so clearly saw this hallucination that I didn't even bother to take a breath and look it over carefully. I just reached out and played the worst move of my life.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>42. Qh6+??</b></div>
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The way to win was 42. Nf7+! Kh7 (if 42... Qxf7 43. Qh6+ Qh7 44.
Qf6+ Rg7 45. Rxf5 (I had seen this far in my analysis and was certain this was a win for white) Ree7 46. Qf8+ Rg8 47. Kf2 Reg7 48. Qf6 a6 49. Rgg5 and it is over.) 43.
Ng5+ Kh8 (and in this line this was as far as I saw in my analysis, and again I'm pretty sure that once I did get this far I would have found the right plan) 44. Qd1! Rg6 (44... Be4+ 45. Kg1) (or 44... Bg4 45. Rxf6 Bxd1 46. Nf7+
Kh7 47. Rh6#) 45. Qxh5+ Kg7 46. Rxf5 Qxf5 47. Qh7+ Kf8 48. Rf3 and again it's all over.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>42...
Qxh6 43. Nf7+</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
There was no point in me playing on, but I was in total shock at what had happened and just needed some time to mentally torture myself.</div>
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<b>43... Kh7 44. Nxh6 Be4+ 45. Kh2 Rxg3 46. Kxg3 Kxh6 47. Rf7 Rg8+ 48. Kf4
Rg7 49. Rf6+ Bg6 50. Rd6 Re7 51. Kf3 a5 52. a3 Kg7 53. b4 axb4 54. axb4 Kh6
55. b5 Re4 56. b6 Rxd4 </b><b>57. Rd7 Rxh4 58. Rxb7 Rb4 59. Rb8 Kg5 60. b7 c5 61. Rd8
Be4+ 0-1</b></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<br /></div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4148710180581037909.post-56587064819037742792016-12-02T22:46:00.000+00:002016-12-03T04:16:50.581+00:00First Saturday FM-A Budapest in May 2011I had only a mediocre return to chess after more than two years away, but I got better toward the end of the event, and I won both round 10 and 11 fairly smoothly.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Event "First Saturday FM-A"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Site "Budapest"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Date "2011.11.14"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Round "10"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[White "Jamalia, Natalie"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Black "Cross, Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Result "0-1"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[ECO "B33"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[WhiteElo "1984"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[BlackElo "2058"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Annotator "Cross,Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[PlyCount "70"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[EventDate "2011.11.14"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventType "tourn"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventRounds "11"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventCountry "HUN"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e5 6.
Ndb5 d6 7. Bg5 a6 8.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>Na3 b5 9. Nd5 Be7 10. Bxf6 Bxf6 11. c3 O-O 12. Nc2 Bg5</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
I have always enjoyed the wild craziness of this opening, and I play it from both sides! All of this is standard for this variation so far.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>13. Nce3 Ne7 14. Bd3 Rb8 15. O-O g6 16. Nxe7+ Qxe7 17. Nd5 Qa7 18. Kh1 Be6 19. Bc2
Qb7 20. Nb4?!</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
The opening had drifted to a slight edge for black, and this was the first little mistake for either side. It simply wastes a tempo for white and let's black have a trade that I desired anyway. Better was 20. a3 with just a slight black edge.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>20... a5 21. Nd5 Bxd5 22. exd5 Rfc8 23. Qg4
Bh6 24. Qh4 Bg7 25.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b>Rad1 Rc5 26. f4 Rxd5!?</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
Nothing wrong with this plan, though more accurate is 26... b4 with a more distinct advantage for black.</div>
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<b>27. Rxd5</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
Giving more chances is 27. f5 Rxd1 28. Rxd1 d5 29. Bb3 d4 30. Rf1 Kh8 though black retains an edge.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>27...
Qxd5 28. Bb3 Qd3 29. Rd1 Qe2 30. Qe7 Rf8 31. fxe5 Bxe5 32. Qh4 a4 33. Re1 Qxb2
34. Bd5 Qxc3 35. Rf1 Qd3 0-1</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p>I followed up this straightforward win with one that was fun, especially since it was the first time I was trying a new opening.</o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Event "First Saturday FM-A"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Site "Budapest"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Date "2011.11.15"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Round "11"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[White "Cross, Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Black "Makrai, Peter"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[Result "1-0"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[ECO "B23"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[WhiteElo "2058"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[BlackElo "1812"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[Annotator "Cross,Ted"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[PlyCount "91"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[EventDate "2011.11.15"]<o:p></o:p></div>
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[EventType "tourn"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[EventRounds "11"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
[EventCountry "HUN"]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 e6 3. f4 d5 4. Nf3 d4 5. Ne2 Nf6 6. d3 Nc6 7. c3</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
This was my first time trying the Grand Prix Attack. My move here isn't bad, though the database statistics prefer 7. g3 Be7 8. Bg2 O-O 9. O-O.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>7... Qb6</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
This seems to be a novelty, at least in my database, and the computer seems to think it isn't bad.</div>
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<b>8. g3 h5</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
But this feels a bit optimistic and white now has a slight edge. Better is to just develop with 8... Be7.<br />
<b>9.
h3 Be7 10. Bg2 Bd7 11. O-O Bd8?</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
Black makes the first mistake in a complicated middle game, and follows it up with another one next move.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>12. Ne5 Qc7?</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
While this is a mistake, black's position was already difficult.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. cxd4 Be7 15. Be3 O-O-O?</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
And one more mistake to seal the deal.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>16. Rc1</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
Not bad, but the computer likes 16. Qc2 even more.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>16... Kb8 17.
f5 Qa5 18. fxe6 fxe6 19. Qb3 Bd7 20. dxc5 Ka8 21. d4 h4 22. Bg5</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
More accurate is 22. Nf4! e5
23. Ng6 Rhe8 24. Nxe5 with a dominating position.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>22... Ng8 23. gxh4 Bxg5 24. hxg5 e5 25. Rf7 Qa6 26.
Rcf1</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
About this point I began to play cautiously, knowing my position was winning and not wanting to allow counterplay. Here the computer prefers 26. d5 Qxe2 27. c6 bxc6 28. dxc6 Bxc6 29. Rxc6 Qd1+ 30. Qxd1 Rxd1+ 31.
Kh2 Nf6 32. Rcc7 though I'm wary during games of allowing what looks like more counterplay options.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>26... Bb5</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
If 26... Be6 then 27. d5 is best, though I had planned to play 27. Rf8 Ne7 28. Rxh8 Rxh8
29. d5 which is just fine.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>27. R1f2</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
Again being cautious. Stronger is 27. Nc3 Bxf1 28. Bxf1
Qc6 29. Nd5.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>27... Bc4 28. Rf8 Ne7 29. Qf3 Rhxf8 30. Qxf8 Nc6 31. Qf3</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
One more time with the overcautious play. Much better is 31. Qxg7 Bxe2 32. d5 Nb8 33. Qxe5 Bb5 34. Qf6 Qa5 35. e5.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>31... exd4
32. Nf4 d3 33. Nd5</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
It's hard not to win at this point, but more accurate was 33. b3! Ne5 34. Qe3 Bg8 35. Nd5 and total domination.</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b>33... Bxd5 34. exd5
Nb4 35. d6 Nc6 36. Rd2 Qc4 37. Qe3 Qc1+ 38. Kh2 Nd4 39. Qxd3 Nf5 40. Qd5 Rb8 41.
Rf2 g6 42. d7 Qxg5 43. c6 Qg3+ 44. Kg1 Qc7 45. cxb7+ Rxb7 46. Qxb7+ 1-0</b></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<o:p>
</o:p></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<br /></div>
Ted Crosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com0