Phobetor's Blog
Welcome to my blog! This blog mostly contains the more interesting games I played, either over the board in competitions or tournaments, or online on sites like the Internet Chess Club. Usually the game comes with a story about why the game was interesting or what we can learn from that game, and I always add annotations and analysis to the games.
Although I try to check my annotations and analysis of the games with an engine, sometimes an error slips in, so if you think I made a mistake or you don't understand something, just say it! Just reply to the blog post in question, and I'll usually answer the question the same day or within a few days. And of course other feedback is welcome as well!
I also have a series called "Magnificent Puzzles" where I post beautiful chess compositions. These are usually "miniatures" (compositions with only few pieces on the board) with unexpected beautiful solutions. These can be as old as from 1920, and stalemates and underpromotions are not uncommon in these puzzles.
I hope you'll enjoy reading the blog posts, since, well, that's why I write them :)
Submitted by
on Sun Jan 11, 2009 9:57am.
Ok, I admit it, just like with my previous blog post the title of this post may be a little misleading. I will tell you in advance that this post is NOT a refutation of the Najdorf, nor a claim for a guaranteed advantage in the Najdorf. This post ... Read more »
Submitted by
on Wed Jan 7, 2009 8:44am.
No, this post is not about a catholic father with a busy day at the church! Instead, this post is about a white bishop on the chess board, who was given so many tasks by his coach that he couldn't fulfill all of them.Below is a game I played today... Read more »
Submitted by
on Mon Jan 5, 2009 12:22pm.
For almost two years I played the Scandinavian (1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5) as black, which taught me two important things. Not only did I learn how to play the opening best as black and what the plans and strategies are for black, but also did I learn... Read more »
Submitted by
on Wed Dec 31, 2008 7:40am.
The "Greek Gift sacrifice" is a term for a bishop sacrifice on h7 for white (or h2 for black). This is then usually accompanied by Nf3-g5+ and Qh5 with mate threats. Such sacrifices usually work and occur when white has a d4-e5 pawn centre and bla... Read more »
Submitted by
on Thu Dec 25, 2008 4:25pm.
The Marshall Attack (info) is a sharp variation in the Ruy Lopez where black sacrifices a pawn with a strong attack compensating for it. I've been experimenting with it lately, but unfortunately not all of my opponents play the main line Ruy Lopez... Read more »
Submitted by
on Thu Oct 2, 2008 5:18pm.
Below is a game I played on the Internet Chess Club (ICC) tonight, in the so-called 5-minute pool. My opponent was an IM (nickname QvC) so I expected a tough game, but the game was over in 17 moves, with a forced mate on move 20!
Read more »
Submitted by
on Fri Aug 29, 2008 6:17am.
Most people think material is very important in chess. Obviously, if you have less pieces, in general you have a worse position. Especially if you are more than a queen down... But chess isn't just about material. It's also about how active the pi... Read more »
Submitted by
on Wed Aug 27, 2008 1:43pm.
In a recent game I played, I encountered a French opening and answered it with the French Advance. After the inclusion of the moves a2-a3 and a7-a5, black was practically unable to accept the Milner-Barry gambit, which is very risky for black, but... Read more »
Submitted by
on Wed Aug 27, 2008 1:09pm.
Last weekend I played in a chess tournament in my region, and in the first round I played against a player rated roughly 2050. After 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 I was very frustrated when he played 2... Nf6 which should really be forbidden . Since I didn't li... Read more »
Submitted by
on Sun Mar 30, 2008 2:34pm.
Below is a game I played a long time ago. At the time I surely wasn't a great player, but my opponent was even worse. In the opening I gambited a pawn to quickly get an attack against him (and hopefully crush him in less than 20 moves), and indeed... Read more »