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#1.) White to move. |
# 2.) White to move. |
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# 3.) White to move. |
# 4.) White to move. |
Learning Chess (#13), by A.J. Goldsby I
First things first, I must apologize for the tardiness of this column, computer problems caused delay after delay. (Originally, I had annotated another game for this column, but it vanished ... its a fairly long story, so I hope you will understand why I choose to skip it here.)
The following positions have all been taken from recent games. The answer might be to just improve your position ... to win a pawn; or it might be a forced "mate-in-x." (Or anything in between.) No hints or clues. It would be a good idea to set up a chess board and not to move the pieces. Ideally, you should time yourself, (Say 15-30 minutes, each?); and then write down the solutions. (Analyze as deeply as you are able to, and then record your thoughts. Take extra credits, but only when it is written down!)
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#1.) White to move. |
# 2.) White to move. |
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# 3.) White to move. |
# 4.) White to move. |
Here - above - are four problems, {from recent games} the solutions (with links) will be given at the end of the lesson.
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# 5.) Black to move. |
# 6.) Black to move. |
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# 7.) Black to move. |
# 8.) Black to move. |
Here are four more problems, {from recent games} the solutions (with links) will be given at the end of the lesson.
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IF YOU WRITE DOWN YOUR SOLUTIONS, there will be a grading scale at the end of the lesson, so you can see how you did. Each problem is worth 12.5 points ... and there will be many chances for extra credit. So record your solutions, and then see how you did!
To celebrate 150 years of service to their customers, one of the oldest and most respected banks in Switzerland decided to hold a chess tournament to commemorate this achievement. Many side shows were held, there was a huge simultaneous exhibition, and several other activities as well.
In addition to the above, Garry Kasparov, Judit Polgar, Anatoly Karpov and Victor Korchnoi were scheduled to play a double-round robin 'fast-chess' tournament. (Kasparov and Karpov shared first place.)
[The
official site.]
[The TWIC report.]
[ChessBase - the
results and games; another
report - this one has many nice pictures.]
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GM Garry Kasparov - should need no introduction to any chess player ... anywhere on the planet. A real prodigy, he was the highest rated player (2851) ever. (And he sat atop the FIDE rating list for well over 20 years!!!); As a {former} World Champion; his place in history is quite secure. (Jeff Sonas ranks him as the greatest player who ever lived.) [more]
After winning Linares, 2005; Garry decided to retire ... ostensibly to pursue a career in writing and in politics. [His FIDE card.]
His
"Chess Metrics" page.
My page
on this player, it also includes a brief biography.
Is THIS
Garry Kasparov's greatest game? (Many pundits think so!) [His
chess games.]
A few career highlights are:
He won dozens of high-class, international tournaments. (His feat of winning - or at least gaining a tie for first place - in every tournament that he played in .... for nearly ten solid years ... will probably NEVER be surpassed!!!)
He
won nearly every serious match that he ever played, (25+) ...
really more than I care to count.
(The only exceptions were: his 1984-85 WCS match that was illegally
terminated by Florencio Campomanes; a World Championship Match that he
drew against Anatoly Karpov in 1987; and his one loss, to GM V. Kramnik - in
2000. I do not count the exhibition match that he lost to the computer - DB
II - as I feel it was really too short to be taken seriously. There is
also some question as to the question of possible/alleged cheating
by the Deep Blue team.)
He
was the youngest world champion ever (22) ... when he first won the title in
1985.
(When Garry won the title in 1985, he broke Tal's record,
the one that Tal achieved after he first defeated Mikhail Botvinnik in 1960. Some people credit GM R. Ponomariov for breaking this
record.
I DO NOT consider
Ponomariov's accomplishment, however admirable, to be in the same category
as the mark set by Garry Kasparov!
No one should seriously consider extremely short, "shoot-out" matches, and games
that were played at a ridiculously fast time control - and place them on
equal footing with a serious, 24-game match ... and good {solid}
chess, that was
played at classical time controls.)
He has a fairly large plus score against nearly all of the top players that he ever competed against.
His advanced the sport, art and science of chess, maybe more than any world champion ever. Further, his investigation into fields of training, psychology and computers - elevated chess to the plane that it still holds today. And he has been one of the most popular world champions of all time, winning multiple chess "Oscar's."
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GM Vicktor Kortschnoj - (more commonly spelled Korchnoi) -- is a player that also should not require any introduction. He has played better - and longer - than any player who ever lived. [more]
One of the most tenacious players ... who ever pushed a pawn, he is widely respected for his tough defense, his dislike of draws, and his overall fighting spirit. J. Sonas ranks him (easily) in the top fifteen players of all time. From 1974 to 1981, he lost three times to Karpov - these matches all eventually determined who was to be the reigning World Champion. [His FIDE card.]
His "Chess Metrics" page. My page - that tries to pay homage to this player ... it has lots of links and other info. Is THIS V. Korchnoi's greatest game? (His entry in Wikipedia.) [His chess games.]
A few career highlights are:
He starting winning tournaments back in the 1950's; in 2006, (as I write this); he just tied for first in a large open tournament. [The 9th Masters Chess Festival (open) in Banyoles, Spain. details] I estimate that he might have won close to 100 international tournaments, spanning a period of more than 55 years!! (And since the records of tournaments that he played in the old Soviet Union are incomplete, its even possible that the number could be more than 200!!)
He has won dozens of matches ... all against top-flight GM's. (30+? Perhaps even more?)
He plays nearly every opening imaginable, and has won great games on both sides of many systems.
His willingness to snatch impossible Pawns ... and then defend his position as long as is necessary to win the game ... is the stuff of true chess legends.
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Korchnoi wins Chess Festival in Banyoles |
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This
is the featured game for this month, you can replay this game HERE,
but without any annotations.
(I chose this contest for many reasons ... the contestants
involved were definitely a factor. This is also an opening that I have not
covered many times in my various web pages, and I have received several requests
that I do a page on this system.)
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Recently - to celebrate 150 years of service - the Credit Suisse Bank held a "Day of Champions" exhibition, which included - among many other activities - a giant simul and a blitz chess tournament.
What happens when
four legends of
chess get together for a little rapid play? A lot of fun, that's what!
(And you know that some interesting games were going to be played.)
1.d4 Nf6;
2.c4 e6;
3.Nf3 Bb4+; {Diagram below.}
The Bogo-Indian. [See MCO-14, page # 574.] {more}
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rnbqk2r/pppp1ppp/4pn2/8/1bPP4/5N2/PP2PPPP/RNBQKB1R w
The basic idea of this opening is to challenge White from the very start. Careless play will get White in hot water, but most GM's do not use this opening in a situation where a decisive result is required. (At the highest level, it is thought to be somewhat tame and drawish.)
4.Bd2,
The preferred response at the master level, but other moves are indeed playable.
[ The move 4.Nc3, is not necessarily bad, but might give Black a
chance to play the Nimzo-Indian, and/or double White's c-pawns.
[See any good book on the Nimzo-Indian Defense.]**************************************************************************************
Another possibility would be: 4.Nbd2 c5; 5.a3 Bxd2+; 6.Qxd2!? cxd4;
7.Qxd4 Nc6; 8.Qd6!? Ne4; 9.Qd3 d5!?;
Fritz prefers ...f7-f5 here, and it looks like a good idea to me.10.e3 0-0; 11.Qc2 Qa5+; 12.Nd2 Rd8; "~" (Probably equal.)
Black has good play here.[ See MCO-14, page # 578; column # 10, and all notes.
{Especially see note # n.} ] ]
4...a5!?;
Black tries to maintain the pressure.
[ Black normally plays 4...Qe7; in this position.
Now the Fritz "Power-Book" provides us with the following continuation:
5.g3 Nc6; 6.Bg2 Bxd2+; 7.Nbxd2 d6; 8.0-0 a5; 9.e4 e5; 10.d5 Nb8; "~"
when White normally plays 11.Ne1 here, and this can lead to very unbalanced play.GM Loek van Wely (2570) - GM Michael Adams (2660);
/ ICT, Masters Tourn. (NY Open) / New York/USA/1996. (1/2, 37 moves.)
{A tough game - that turned out to be a draw when the dust had finally settled.}[ See also MCO-14, page # 576; col. # 01, and all relevant notes. ]
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Another continuation would be:
(</=) 4...Bxd2+!?; 5.Qxd2,
The best response?(The continuation of: 5.Nbxd2 d5; 6.g3 0-0; 7.Bg2 Nbd7; 8.0-0, "+/="
also gives White an edge. )5...0-0; 6.Nc3 d5; 7.e3 Qe7; 8.Rc1 Rd8; 9.Qc2 dxc4; 10.Bxc4 c5;
11.0-0 Nc6; 12.dxc5 Qxc5; 13.Ne4!? Qe7; 14.a3 Bd7; 15.Rfd1, "+/="
with a solid plus for White.GM Lev Psakhis (2575) - GM N. Rashkovsky (2470); / National Champ. (URS-ch54)
Minsk, USSR; 1987. (34) {A tough game that was drawn before the first time control.}[ See also MCO-14, page # 576; column # 03, and all notes. ] ]
5.Nc3
b6!?;
Black decides on a fianchetto. This is perfectly playable, and it is also the preferred move at the master-plus level. Other moves, like
5...0-0; or 5...d5;
also looked to be OK for Black.
Now both sides continue to simply develop their pieces. (White then employs a strategy common to the Queen's Indian, he exchanges on d5 in order to fix Black's Pawns; and have the Bishop on b7 hemmed in by
its own foot soldiers.)
6.e3 Bb7; 7.Bd3 0-0; 8.0-0 d5!?; 9.cxd5
exd5!?;
This is the 'book' move here, yet the plan of taking with the Knight, (to avoid blocking your own Bishop); should also be investigated as well.
Thus far - both sides have played reasonably well. White has a small edge, but this is the normal outcome of any solidly played opening line.
10.a3!?,
(TN) {Diagram below.}
A reasonably solid idea, White rejects the Black Bishop before making any concrete plans. Now Black is faced with a choice:
A.) Retreat and lose a tempo; or
B.) Exchange, and give White the Bishop pair.
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rn1q1rk1/1bp2ppp/1p3n2/p2p4/1b1P4/P1NBPN2/1P1B1PPP/R2Q1RK1 b
This appears to be a new move to master-level practice, normal is Qc2 or Ne5 (for White) in this position.
[ For the move of: 10.Qc2, "+/=" see the well-played contest:
GM K. Bischoff - GM A. Yusupov; / Master Turnier (Mephisto)
Altensteig, Germany, 1993. {Draw, 1/2 in 31 total moves.} ]
10...Bd6;
Black decides to maintain the defender of his dark squares, but the capture on c3 was playable
and led to a completely different type of game.
[ After the following moves:
10...Bxc3!?; 11.Bxc3 Ba6; 12.Ne5 Qd6; 13.f3, "+/=" 13...c5;
White only has a slight edge. ]
11.Ne5, ('!')
White immediately occupies the key outpost on the e5-square. (Fritz prefers Qc2 here.)
11...c5;
12.f4,
This reinforces the e5-square. (Also playable was Nb5 here.)
12...Nc6;
13.Nb5 cxd4!?;
This frees Black's game a little bit, but also opens key lines for White.
(Maybe better was 13...Re8; which adopts a flexible, "wait-and-see" attitude here.)
14.exd4 Ne7!?;
15.f5!, {Diagram below.}
This move dramatically increases White's space advantage ... Black's pieces are denied many good squares on the King-side.
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r2q1rk1/1b2nppp/1p1b1n2/pN1pNP2/3P4/P2B4/1P1B2PP/R2Q1RK1 b
Please study this position carefully. With seemingly placid moves, White has built up an imposing position, and Black must tread very carefully from here.
15...Ne4?!;
(Maybe just - '?')
Korchnoi is looking for his usual counterplay, but after this move, Black has his Kingside shredded.
[ The only move was: >/= 15...Ba6[]; when - with perfect play -
Black might survive this position. ]
Now the tempo of the game increases substantially.
16.Bxe4! dxe4!; 17.f6! Bxe5!; {Diagram below.}
Lots of stuff going on here.
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r2q1rk1/1b2nppp/1p3P2/pN2b3/3Pp3/P7/1P1B2PP/R2Q1RK1 w
Things have reached a maximum level of tension after only 17 moves.
(Study this position carefully.)
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
White to move here.
18.dxe5!,
Korchnoi's last move set a cunning trap, but Kasparov refuses to fall for it.
[ After the following variation: </= 18.fxe7?! Qxe7; 19.dxe5 Qc5+;
(The point ... White cannot adequately defend his Knight that stranded on b5.)20.Kh1 Qxb5, "/+" the only one who can be better here ... would be Black! ]
The next few moves are pretty close to being best (or forced).
18...Ng6; 19.fxg7 Kxg7;
20.Nd6 Ba6; {Diagram below.}
Black has defended the best that he could, White's Pawn on e5 hangs, and the WR on f1 is under attack from Black's
Bishop on a6.
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r2q1r2/5pkp/bp1N2n1/p3P3/4p3/P7/1P1B2PP/R2Q1RK1 w
It appears that Kasparov may have overplayed his hand, and might have to stop and defend.
(What move would you make here?)
21.Bh6+!!,
An unexpected riposte, but the kind that we have come to expect from a Bobby Fischer or a Garry Kasparov.
[ Also good for Garry was: 21.Rf5 Qc7; 22.Bg5 h6!?; 23.Be3 Rad8; 24.Rc1 Qe7;
25.Qh5 Qh4; 26.Bxh6+ Kg8; 27.Qxh4 Nxh4; 28.Rh5 Ng6; 29.Nxe4!, "+/-"
when White is winning material. ]
21...Kg8[];
{Diagram below.}
This is completely forced. (Placing the King in the corner fails to BxR/f8! Then Black would be unable to grab
the WR on f1 in return, as then the simple NxP/f7+ forks Black's King and Queen.)
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r2q1rk1/5p1p/bp1N2nB/p3P3/4p3/P7/1P4PP/R2Q1RK1 w
An unusual position has been reached, one that is full of unresolved tensions.
(Study this position for at least five minutes. Try to figure out how Kasparov is going to win.)
[ Of course not: </= 21...Kxh6?; 22.Nf5+! Kg5; 23.Qc1+ Kg4!?;
Black can delay the mate by throwing pieces in the way, but it only temporarily
stays the execution ... it does not stop anything.24.h3+ Kh5; 25.g4#. ]
22.Rf5!,
Kasparov shows patience, and keeps the pressure on his opponent.
(Most players would have captured the Rook on f8 in this position.)
[ After the moves of: </= 22.Bxf8!? Bxf1; {counterplay?}
objectively, White still might be winning, but has allowed his
opponent a fair measure of (unnecessary) counterplay. ]
Korchnoi is in between a rock and a hard place here ... its easy to make a mistake in such situations.
22...Qh4?; {Diagram below.}
A mistake - that {unfortunately} greatly shortens this contest.
(But please bear in mind the accelerated pace of this game, i.e., "Game/Five Minute," plus an additional two-second
delay or "per-move" increment.)
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r4rk1/5p1p/bp1N2nB/p3PR2/4p2q/P7/1P4PP/R2Q2K1 w
Now study the chess board for at least a couple of minutes.
[ Black should have played the alternative move of 22...Qd7; but this would
not have saved him.For example: >/= 22...Qd7!?; 23.Qd5!! Rad8; 24.Rf6! Qc7; 25.Qxe4, "+/-"
when Fritz confirms that White's advantage is decisive. (Yet it is still much better
than what occurs in the game.)A nice trap (from here) is: 25...Qc5+; 26.Be3, QxP/e5??; when RxN+! will win
Black's Queen. ]
White to move and win.
23.Bg5, "+/-"
The great Korchnoi resigns ... (his Queen is trapped).
A marvelous game by Kasparov, who demonstrates that, despite his retirement, he has not lost his flair for finding beautiful and unexpected moves.
1 - 0
Here are the solutions, remember that each fully correct answer (first move) is worth 12.5 points. (Be on the lookout for chances to make extra credit.)
Black is two pawns ahead, and is very close to winning outright. (However the doubled pawns and the possibility of opposite-colored Bishops presents White with some chances to defend.) The move, e4! is the only real try for White. (If you found the correct first move, you get full credit.) The game continued: 27.e4! Nf6; (Black could play 27...e5!?; which is what Fritz likes. 5 extra points if you even considered this move.) 28.Bc3 Ng4?; (This is an error, two extra points if you saw this in advance. Black had to play 28...Ne8 or even 28...Nh5 here.) 29.Rg1 Nf2; 30.Rxg7+ Kf8; 31.Bf6. "+/" White was clearly better here, and went on to win. [replay]
White is two Pawns ahead ... and should win without too much difficulty. However Black does have a small threat, Ne2 is both completely forced - and quite good. (Ne2 - to stop the Black Queen from reaching the g3 square. You get full credit here, but only if you saw that Ne2 was best.) The game continued: 24.Ne2[] Bxb2; 25.Rb1 Be5; 26.Nf4 Ne7; 27.g4!, ("+/" or even "+/-"); and White went on to win. (Collect 5 extra points if you found this whole line up 27.g4. Take a partial credit of five points if you saw the threat, but your first move was instead the less effective Qe1!?) [replay]
White has an attack, take full credit if you chose Karjakin's move of g4! here. (Full credit also if you chose Ba6 or h6 on your first move ... Fritz liked these tries as well.) The game continued: 21.g4! Qe7!?; ('?!') (This might not be best, maybe Black had to take on g4 ... and pray. Five extra points if you considered 21...f5xg4 as Black's best option.) 22.Qxe7 Nxe7; 23.Ng5! Bd7; 24.Bb4, ("+/") Black is clearly better - and went on to win. Take ten points (extra credit) if you found this entire line ... without moving the pieces. [replay]
Garry has always been a player with X-RAY vision, he quickly notices the pertinent details of any position. After examining the set-up on the board for just a few seconds, he played the amazing Nf5!! (Full credit ONLY for this move! Take five points for b5, and only two points for Rde1 as your first move from the diagram.) The game continued: 24.Nf5!! gxf5; 25.exf5 Ra3!; (Give yourself five extra points, IF you found this move in advance. Take two if you considered 25...d5!? here.) 26.Ne4 d5; (Give yourself an extra 10 points -- but only if you saw the tricky 26...Rd3!; in advance, and it is written down on your answer sheet.) 27.cxd5 cxd5; 28.fxe6 fxe6; 29.Ng5 Nf6; 30.Bc5, "+/-" and White wins even more material. (Give yourself another five points {extra credit} - IF this whole line is on the piece of paper that has your answers written down on it.) [replay]
Magnus Carlsen has probably developed more rapidly than any other player in the world in the last one-to-two years, his FIDE rating has shot up from low 2500 to almost 2700. He and GM Artur Yusupov have been slugging it out {in this contest} for a while now. Now Carlsen unleashed a "corker" and played 36...Nf4!! (Full credit only for this move, take seven points if all you gave was 36...Rde8! - which also wins, but is inferior to the move actually played in the game.) The game concluded: 37.Qd6 Nh3+!; 38.Kg2 Rxd7; 39.Qxd7 Nxf2!; 40.Nf1, (Taking the Knight is a disaster, i.e., 40.KxN/f2?, QxP/g3+; 41.Ke2, Ra8!!; "-/+" etc.) 40...d3; 41.Re3 b3; 42.Qd6 b2; 43.Nd2 h6; 44.Kg1 Qf5; 45.Kh1 Nf2+; 46.Kg2 Ne4!; 47.Rxe4!? b1Q!; 48.Rf4? Qb7+!; 0-1 [replay]
White, (GM V. Korchnoi); had just played 21.h4? (Better was: >/= 21.Bc4, "+/=" when White still holds a slight edge.) Black alertly played: 21...BxP/f2+!; which wins a Pawn. (Take full credit for finding ...Bxf2+.) 22.Kf1!? (This might be dubious, the King is slightly exposed here. The best practical chance was: >/= 22...Kh2!, take 5 extra points if this is so noted on your answer sheet. If White takes on f2, B/d3 hangs after an exchange of Queens.) Now after 22...Bd4; Black went on to win the game. (Three extra points if you saw this AND that 22...Bg1; is probably the best move here for Black.) [replay]
White's last move was 11.f4!? This might be dubious, maybe even a near-2700 rated GM has to be occasionally reminded that castling is a good idea during the opening phase of a chess game. (>/= 11.0-0, "+/=") Now Black plays: 11...NxN/e5! (Full credit for this, give yourself eight points if your try was taking with the Bishop here, which is almost as good.) Now: 12.fxe5?!, [This is inferior - even downright bad. ('?') Taking with the QP was forced, you earned five extra points, if you saw this from the starting position.] Now the game continued: 12...Ng4!; 13.Nf1 Ba5+!; 14.Bc3 Bxc3+; 15.Qxc3 Qh4+!; 16.g3 Qh3; 17.Qc2, f6!; ("/+") and Black was clearly much better, and went on to win. (Grab ten extra points if this whole variation is written down on your answer sheet!) [replay]
GM
A. Dreev used to be one of the best GM's around. (Solidly in the world's
"top ten" at one point.) However, he has been badly outplayed in
this "hand-to-hand" fight on the chess board. (Was he guilty of
trying too hard to win? Maybe ... just maybe.)
Black's Queen (on d6) is attacked - this part is obvious. The only really
good move, is 37...Qd4!
(Full credit for this move, and this move only!! I guess you can give
yourself five points for 37...Qe6!?; and only three for 37...Qd8. SUBTRACT
TWENTY if you played 37...Qd7??; and missed 38.Nf6+, picking off the Queen.)
Now after 37...Qd4; Black is winning. Play continued: 38.Qh4!?
(Fritz marks this as an error, take five extra points if you saw this and
preferred the cold-blooded 38.Nf6+!, Kg7;
39.Rd1!, letting f2 and b2 go ... but at least you are not getting knocked out,
and staying in the ring - in order to be able to try and
continue the fight.) Play continued 38...Nxc1!!;
39.Nf6+, Kg7!; "-/+" and White suddenly
realized that if he grabbed Black's Queen, the Knight fork on e2 gets it
right back! And taking the pawn on h7 (39.QxP/h7+) allows 39...KxN/f6!;
winning for Black. (So it was time to
resign.) Snatch ten more bonus points if you saw all this
- without moving any pieces, (and this whole variation is written down
on your answer sheet). [replay]
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SCORING: (Remember, each correct first move is worth 12.5 points.)
If you scored less than 30 points, you are a beginner, or in need of a lot of work on your tactics. (Start solving 5-10 problems every day, see my Training Page for more details.)
If
you scored in the 31 to 49 point range, you are probably under 1600 ... but
you did OK.
(Go ahead and pat yourself on the back.)
If
you scored in the 50 to 75 point range, you are a strong player, maybe even over
1800.
(If you are not rated this high, you have the potential
to get there. Good job!)
If you got more than 80 points, congratulations! You are indeed a strong player and also a good analyst. (Probably over 2000!)
If you scored more than 100, you must be a master. If not, you are much better than your rating!!
If you got all eight initial moves correct ... and scored more than 120, you must be at least a Senior Master. (Either that, or you were using a chess program.)
Well, that's a wrap for July, 2006.
I hope you have enjoyed this month's lesson. Please contact me if you have any questions. Also, be sure to contact the webmaster here, and let him know what you think of this lesson. Thank you for your time and attention ... and I will see you next month!
Copyright © A.J. Goldsby, 2006. All rights reserved.
