2009 Foxwoods Open: Hunted Like a Fox in the Woods
Submitted by
on Sat, 04/11/2009 at 11:11pm.
It's been raining on the resort here at Foxwoods today, and apparently raining on my tournament parade, as well.
Round 6: I was paired with the talented, national scholastic all-star FIDE Master (FM) Daniel Yaeger (2383). My highest rated opponent of the tournament and perhaps most intimidating name to see across from mine on the pairing chart, Daniel is known to be a ferociously strong player. I managed to outplay him in the opening, and by move 18 I had a winning advantage. Unfortunately, I mixed up the tactical variations I had calculated, pushed too hard to push my advantage through too quickly, and made a quick careless move which ultimately hung a piece.
1.Nf3
I play to develop a piece first and foremost, and wait on Black's reply to decide which pawn I would like to thrust into the center.
1...c5
Now 2.e4 would transpose the game into a Sicilian Defense. However, I knew Daniel to be an experienced Sicilian player and did not seek to enter a battle in his main stomping grounds.
2.c4
We now have a Symmetrical English Opening. In which my main goal will be to stop black from getting a ...d7-d5 push in.
2...Nc6 3.Nc3 g6
Daniel chooses to avoid the Four Knights English, which tends to favor White slightly.
4.g3
it almost looks as if I am trying to copy Black's moves, but my real intention here is to place my bishop on the g2-square where it will help control the long diagonal from h1–to-a8 -- included on that diagonal, the all-important d5-square!
4...Bg7 5.Bg2 e5!?
I have always found this to be a popular line of play amongst scholastic players of my generation. The c5-d6-e5 pawn setup, along with a fianchettoed dark-square bishop has always seemed to be the trendy thing. I, myself, have never been a fan of it.
6.0–0 Nge7 7.d3
This move further locks down control of the light-squares along that big h1–a8 diagonal. Also, it provides my dark-square bishop with room to breathe.
7...0–0 8.Ne1!?
A strange-looking retreat! However, it makes sense when taken in context with our overall plan -- control d5! This knight clears the way for the bishop to scope out the diagonal. The knight is not looking to just sit passively by, though. It is going on a journey to help with guard d5 as well! The plan is for the knight to jump to c2 and e3, where I will then have two knights, a pawn, and my bishop guarding the key square.
8...d6 9.Nc2
The knight continues its trek. Why is the d5-square so important, anyway? Well, if Black can find a way to safely play a pawn to d5, then he not only frees space for the pieces in his own camp, but also takes a big step towards eliminating White's control of the center of the board. More freedom + better center control = a very happy Black.
9...a6
Seeing how stubborn White is being about the d5-square, Black switches gears and aims to pick apart White's center control from the other side. Namely, ...b7-b5 will be his new tool for assassinating the White c4-pawn.
10.a3
White whistles and innocently says "I'm not copying you!"
10...Rb8 Getting the rook in back to help support the b-pawn's advancement.
11.Rb1
*continues whistling*
11...b5
Black: "Haha! At last! I have you now! Couldn't stop that, could you!?"
12.b4
White: "Hahahaha!"
Black: "??"
12...cxb4?!
I believe this may be the wrong way to capture, but White is probably looking at a small advantage anyway. After 12...bxc4 13.dxc4 White would have a half-open d-file, rock-solid control of the d5-square, a target in the form of a backward d-pawn, and an overly hyphenated move commentary. I'm not sure what kind of point evaluation a computer would apply to the last part, but it should hold weight in any human calculation.
13.Nxb4
With the d5-square strongly supplanted and under his control, White is now free use his c2-knight in other ways. Here I decide to plant it on b4, intending a new target along the half-open file -- Black's adventurous b5-pawn.
13...Nxb4 14.Rxb4
Still keeping the b-file open for rook activity. Notice now that Black's b-pawn is pinned to the rook on b8. Black can no longer capture my c4-pawn.
14...Bd7
Black has to protect his b5-pawn with all of his might.
15.cxb5 axb5
Now the b5-pawn is also isolated. Black's larger pieces will be forever assigned to baby-sitting duties. Not a pleasing task for the Royal Army.
16.Qb3
White brings the queen in for rear support in the assualt on the b5-pawn. Once that pawn is disposed of, White will be left with his own passed pawn on the outer edge. It will be very difficult for Black to stop this passed pawn from marching to the end of the board, especially because --let's not forget-- White still has his bishop scoping out the very square the pawn would be promoting on, a8.
16...Qa5
The mighty Black queen now clocks in for her baby-sitting shift.
17.Bd2
White gets his other bishop off the back row and opens the line for his final rook to make its way to the b-file.
17...Nc6
Black tries desperately to chase White out. My rook, it would seem, has nowhere good to run to, so I simply decide to eliminate the Black knight, instead. Unfortunately, at this juncture I missed a fantastic and complex tactic to obliterate the Black defenses.
18.Bxc6
Instead of this, the incredible 18.Rxb5! works to put the final screws on Black. After Black tries 18...Nd4, when both queens are now attacked, White can play the shocking 19.Qxf7+!! Now Black has two possibilities:19...Rxf7 20.Rxa5 Nb3 looks like it is forking White's rook and bishop, and that Black could win a piece. However, 21.Rb1! and Black's knight is pinned to his b8-rook! Black is then down two pawns and is dead lost.Alternatively, 19...Kxf7 20.Rxa5, and now 20...Nb3 21.Ra7! Nxd2 22.Rxd7+ Ke8 (if 22...Kg8 23.Rd1, and White is again up two pawns) 23.Rxg7! Nxf1 24.Bc6+ Kd8 25.Kxf1, White has two extra pawns in addition to a knight and bishop combo that dominates Black's rook. A truly fantastic line, and I am not sure I blame myself for missing it.
18...Bxc6 19.Rb1
White's final piece enters the fray. I now threaten to play 20.Nxb5! Bxb5 21.Rxb5 when the queen cannot capture the bishop on d2, because of Rb5xb8, and Black's try of 21...Rxb5 22.Bxa5! Rxb3 23.Rxb3 leaves White with his desired outside passed pawn and a completely won position.
19...Ra8
Left without any hope for rescuing the orphaned b5-pawn, Black abandons it and attempts a counter-assault on the White a3-pawn.
20.Nxb5??
Now, after such care and dedication to building up a devastating attack on the b5-pawn, I too hastily capture it and blunder everything away! Mixing up my earlier variation, in which Black was penalized for trying to capture the bishop on d2, I moved forward poisoned with the thought that my bishop was safe. In this position, however, without Black's rook sitting on the vulnerable b8-square any longer, my bishop is indeed hanging, and I am now losing a piece. The simple move, 20.Bc1, relocating the bishop to a safe square and protecting the a3-pawn, would have left White with a winning advantage.
20...Bxb5
One fast, careless move, and White is now completely lost. Let this be a lesson, kiddies. Don't make fast moves. And like so many other things in life that relate to chess, one should always look twice before crossing a busy intersection.
21.Rxb5 Qxd2
White is now down a piece with no hope of recovering it. Feeling a bit disheartened, White resigns. 0–1
This result left me with the very same 2.5 points I had been sitting on two rounds earlier in the event, with both games being horribly botched positions against my strongest opponents of the event.
Round 7 came and greeted me with a sideways smile. I was paired up with none other than well-recognized coach and author, and perhaps world's most famous chess dad, FIDE Master (FM) Sunil Weeramantry (2235). A prominent Junior player in years past, Sunil is especially known for his book, "Book Lessons of a Chess Coach", from which I have even taught at times; and most known as father of Grand Master (GM), and current 2nd highest rated US player, Hikaru Nakamura, often considered to be one of the greatest American-born talents since Bobby Fischer.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4
White enters into the Scotch Game, revived to popularity in the past 20 years to be a common main line amongst non-grandmasters.
3...exd4 4.Bc4
White states his intentions to gambit his central pawn away freely. He is going to try and throw his pieces at Black's king as quickly as possible.
4...Bc5 5.0–0
The old Max-Lange Attack! A line I have not seen in about 7 years!
5...Nf6
I decide to walk straight into the main line with him, trying desparately to recall my childhood memories of how to play this variation.
6.e5 d5 7.exf6 dxc4 8.Re1+ Be6 9.Ng5 Qd5
The only good move for Black. 9...Qxf6 is a deadly trap, and after 10.Nxe6 fxe6 11.Qh5+ Black will lose his bishop on c5.
10.Nc3 Qf5
10...dxc3?? 11.Qxd4 hangs Black's queen, as the bishop on e6 is still pinned.
11.g4
A lesser-known, lesser-played line for White. More normal here is 11.Nce4. I was already uncertain of my memory for the main line variation, but this was certainly a line I did not know.
11...Qxf6
Theoretically better is for Black to play 11...Qg6, retreating the queen from potential harm’s way and hoping to find time to get castled.
12.Nd5
Taking advantage of the pinned e6-bishop. White now threatens the queen on g6 and the pawn on c7.
12...Qd8 13.Rxe6+!
White sacrifices the exchange in order to wreak havoc with his knights. Black rarely seems to survive such an encounter.
13...fxe6 14.Nxe6 Qd7 15.Bh6!
Amazingly, White has all three of his minor pieces en prise, but to take any of them would lead to the loss of Black's queen! 15...gxh6 16.Nf6+; 15...Qxe6 16.Nxc7+; 15...Qxd5 16.Nxc7+. My database shows one instance of 15.Bh6, between two low-ranked masters in 2003. Sunil told me after the game that he had played this move against GM Hecht back in 1970! It was published in several magazines at the time. It turns out I had I walked myself into a lion's den of Sunil's home preparation.
15...Bd6
The only move. The g7-pawn cannot be defended, so Black must try and shore up the second focal point of White's threats, the c7-pawn.
16.Nxg7+ Kd8 17.Nf6
In the 2003 game, White played 17.Qf3 instead, when Black went on to win. Sunil here uses his minor pieces to great effect and keeps my queen hopping about the minefield.
17...Qf7!?
A novelty. In Weeramantry - Heicht, 1970, Black continued with 17...Qe7 18.Qf3, when Black decided to make a run for the queenside with 18...Kc8. Sunil said that my move appears to be an improvement on GM Hecht's play.
18.Qf3 Ne5??
Here, however, I grossly overestimate the strength of White's minor pieces. I thought I was outright losing at this point, and tried aiming for a cheap shot perpetual check. Best here is 18...Be5, when White's minor pieces will have to switch to the role of defending each other.
19.Qxb7
My original intention here was to go ahead and play 19...Qxf6, with the hope that he would become greedy for the juicy looking Black rooks, playing 20.Qxa8+ Kd7 21.Qxh8 when Black has just might get away with Ne5xg4 ideas and delivering left and right hooks to the f2- and h2-squares. Rather than allowing any complication, however, White can simply skip the rooks and instead win Black's queen with 20.Bg5! Qxg5 21.Ne6+.
19...Ke7 20.f4
Now there is no chance for escape. Every street is a dead end with a burly thug waiting in the shadows.
20...Nf3+ 21.Qxf3 Kxf6 22.Re1
The first rule of attack is to eliminate the king's escape squares. White now threatens 23.g5+ Kg6 24.Qh5#
22...Qxg7 23.g5+
White avoids the hassle of taking Black's queen, which would leave Black with a rook and bishop for to compensate her majesty. Sunil's move wraps the game up nicely.
23...Kg6 24.Qe4+
Black resigns. 24...Kh5 hangs the Black queen entirely, while running the other way leads to mate with 24...Kf7 25.Qe6+ Kf8 26.Qf6+ Kg8 27.Qxg7#. 1–0