This is thanks to chessgames.com's offer...

Some of the draws are interesting as well as my wins. My game against Alex wasn't good and I played badly against Duneas and the other Australian CM.

This tournament felt much more international than the Opens. Not sure why. Perhaps because it was in a sense a critical 'junction point' in world chess, I mean, part of the FIDE system leading to the World Champs...

The Opens were also in a way and of course I played (esp. in 2015) a lot of Australian, one Danish and some others....

I understand how you feel about playing a 'real game'. The main thing I think is to keep an eye out for those annoying breaks or tactics (easier said than done of course!)

I reconstructed my own game (I lost my score but I remembered most of the game, he played to checkmate) and ran it past the machines and found I really only made one error which wasn't too important. It also surprised me how quickly I played. I foresaw a lot of what happened and got him with complications. I was always several minutes ahead and in the end my opponent was down to 2 minutes but I was easily winning. I haven't played without blundering or an error for some time now! Except maybe against Ben...

Perhaps the opening didn't suit Terry Shen. The lighting wasn't so good down my end.

Are you playing in the next tournament?

It's a pity I didn' play a bit better against Duneas, the Aussie CM fellow, and even Alex. All players I feel I could have beaten or given a good go. Otherwise the other games went pretty well, draws or not. And the wins, though not spectacular were good considering....

Are you playing tomorrow? I think I'll have a bash at least at the first tournament. I might get, on average, weaker players, but sometimes that means it is better for 'getting into the groove' of playing so to speak...But I don't mean it will be easy. But at least not so crazy as ACC.

As I say, at one stage I got a terrible head ache and went for two paracetemols which brought it right. That said I couldn't see a clear way through.

Be good if you load it up. Can you mention I am now a Candidate Master? ACC paid for my fee...Helen Milligan said they do it as policy so I feel now a bit guilty not playing at ACC. But it is really tough there Paul. I might go back for say the Winter Cup there which is also tough but as I say the level is so high that right now I would be in the C Grade! And those in the C Grades aren't too bad either!! They have a lot of Russians or Russians and Ukrainians, a fellow from Czeckoslovakia, the usual battery of young Chinese, other young players such as Oliver Picken or Daniel Gong etc etc

Although what you played seems a reasonable approach to avoid theory etc.

Also they haven't got me as a Candidate Master as Stan is named.

[Event "Parkinson Cup"]
[Site "Howick Bowling Club, Auckland, NZL"]
[Date "2017.03.07"]
[EventDate "2017.02.14"]
[Round "4"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Morten, Paul"]
[Black "Welsh, James"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[Annotator "Fritz 8 (30s)"]
[PlyCount "47"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 h5 11. Bf4 Be7 12. Rad1

20. d4 is another main line about = to 20. Re1.

Good game Paul! Black needed to play 9. ... Nf5 rather than 9. ... 0-0

I've often stuffed up a game by castling.

Here is another example, although it isn't the losing move.

When I was watching the game I wondered if you would ever have Nxf7

12. ... Bd5 13. Qd3 Nh4 14. f3 Ng6 is better than what Black played.

I think that 16. ... Rad8 was an error. Better was 16....f6 He has to push away the dangerous Ns and there are 2 of them waiting to strike. 16...h6, which you mention, is preferred even more. The reason is probably that it stops Ng5.

17. ... Rxd8 is close to losing. It is a series of weak moves that lead to his downfall...lol and c5 by him wasted time.

By the time you had 18. Ng5 it looks as though you are winning or pretty good. Of course you have to find the way as you did very well. The best move Komodo gives is 18... Bb3 but White seems to be still winning. It's a worry when a flashy but dubious move like that is the best!

This is the first game of the 4 I have played at H-Pak this year that I have played the 'wrong moves' according to the computer and my own assessment.

But one error I made at the start was to castle! Instead a surprising move would have given me the advantage, that is to play for an immediate King side attack.

But after I lost a pawn I seemed to just go wrong but he was in considerable time pressure so I always knew he might fold. In fact he played a very good, even a brilliant, sacrifice that led to the position you saw.

I couldn't easily find a win for him. However with more time I might establish one as it requires a lot of end game analysis. The point is that I defended well (and he attacked well).

My opponent (Reza Amani) told me he is from Iran. Been here some time I think.

I'll post the game some time. Stan's idea of putting a rook down and even the line he suggested last night didn't lead to a win but in practice they might have given Amani a chance as the pawn on the 6th rank is always psychologically scary for Black!

I kept calmer than him. I noticed Jim was very nervous last fortnight despite that most of the game it was about = But his nerves caused him to "crack" and then I had him...lol!

I put my game through Fritz and I didn't play the opening as badly as I thought. My young opponent Hubert Januszak played very well and only went astray around move 29. See for yourself :

[Event "Parkinson Cup"]
[Site "Auckland, NZL"]
[Date "2017.03.21"]
[Round "5"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Januszak, Hubert"]
[Black "Morten, Paul"]
[ECO "A46"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[Annotator "Fritz 8 (30s)"]
[PlyCount "108"]

[Event "Winter Cup ACC 2016"]
[Site "ACC,Auckland,NZ"]
[Date "2016.10.31"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Alex Nagorski"]
[Black "Richard Taylor"]
[Result "0-1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 g6 6. e4 d6 7. Be2 Bg7 8. Be3 O-O 9. O-O Bd7 10. f3 Rc8 11. Qd2 Nxd4 12. Bxd4 Qa5 13. Rfd1 Qc7 14. Rac1 Rfe8 15. Qe3 b6 16. e5 Nh5 17. Nd5 Qb8 18. f4 Nxf4 19. exd6 Nxd5 20. cxd5 exd6 21. Rxc8 Qxc8 22. Qf3 Bxd4+ 23. Kf1 Re5 24. Rxd4 Rf5 25. Rf4 Qc1+ 26. Bd1 Rxf4
0-1

Here Bob Gibbo allowed me to get a draw from a basically lost position after he played his N to h4. He was rope-able after that: never seen him so angry. He went over and over the game showing how he was winning! Normally a very likeable man, but not in this instance as he has won the Challengers, so had chances in this tournament also:

[Event "Merv Morrison ACC 2012"]
[Site "ACC, Auckland,2012"]
[Date "2012.10.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Bob Gibbons"]
[Black "Richard Taylor"]
[Result "*"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 c5 3. Bg2 Nc6 4. O-O e5 5. d3 Be6 6. Ng5 Bg4 7. f4 h6 8. Nf3 e4 9. Ne5 Nxe5 10. fxe5 c4 11. dxe4 Qb6+ 12. Kh1 d4 13. c3 d3 14. Qa4+ Qc6 15. Qxc6+ bxc6 16. exd3 cxd3 17. Be3 Be2 18. Rf2 Ne7 19. Nd2 Ng6 20. Nc4 Be7 21. Bf1 Bxf1 22. Raxf1 Rf8 23. Rd2 Rd8 24. Rfd1 f5 25. exf6 Rxf6 26. Rxd3 Rxd3 27. Rxd3 a6 28. Bd4 Rf1+ 29. Kg2 Ra1 30. Bxg7 h5 31. a3 h4 32. e5 Bc5 33. Nd6+ Ke7 34. Nf5+ Kf7 35. e6+ Kxe6 36. Nxh4 Nxh4+ 37. gxh4 Rg1+ 38. Kh3 Rxg7 39. Rg3 Rh7 40. Rg4 Be7 41. Ra4 Kd5 42. Rxa6 Rxh4+ 43. Kg3 Rh7 44. h3 Rg7+ 45. Kf3 Rf7+ 46. Kg4 Rg7+ 47. Kf3 Rf7+ 48. Kg4 Rg7+ *

Here is Tuesday's game:

[Event "Parkinson Cup 2017"]
[Site "How-Pak,Auckland,NZ"]
[Date "2017.03.21"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Reza Amani"]
[Black "Richard Taylor"]
[Result "*"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 c5 4. O-O Nc6 5. d3 e5 6. Nbd2 Bd6 7. Ng5 h6 8. Nh3 Bg4 9. f3 Be6 10. Nf2 O-O 11. e4 d4 12. a4 a6 13. Nc4 Bxc4 14. dxc4 b5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Rxa8 Qxa8 17. cxb5 Na5 18. f4 Nd7 19. Nd3 Nc4 20. fxe5 Ncxe5 21. Nxe5 Nxe5 22. Qh5 Kh7 23. Bxh6 gxh6 24. Rf6 Qa1+ 25. Bf1 Qc1 26. Qf5+ Kg7 27. Rxd6 Qe3+ 28. Kg2 f6 29. Bd3 Rf7 30. Qc8 Qf3+ 31. Kg1 Qe3+ 32. Kg2 Qf3+ 33. Kg1 Qe3+ 34. Kg2 Qf3+ *

Here are some points. The opening was a sub line, not the main line, but a playable line. His 7. Ng5? is a mistake. I thought the game wouldn't last long. Now I played correctly but then in this position:

click for larger view

I should have played 10. ... h5! which leads almost to a win. It attacks the now disorganized K-side. I was going to play 10. ... g5 which I think is also good. My mistake was to castle here, but it is a strategic error so I am obviously still o.k. Now my plan is the more conventional one of a Q-side pawn push while his is f4 which more or less happened.

click for larger view

Here I made another error missing a fairly obvious move. That is 13. ... Bxc4? Better is, as I had planned, 13...Bc7

But then in 1 moves I played 14. ... b5? forgetting that he could take it with the a pawn! This is the first game played at H-Pak (this year) I've made such a tactical error. Of course he takes with the a pawn and simply wins a pawn.

click for larger view

Here if he had played [Event "Parkinson Cup 2017"]

20. b3 ...I had intended Ne3?? which would have been tragic [the idea is to blunt one of his attacking Bs but my B on d6 isn't in the best place and nor is my Q...in fact the main main line involves Be7 not Bd6...not critical but slightly better....]21. Bxe3 dxe3 22. Nb2! Qb8 23. Nc4 and White wins!

But he played 20. Qh5?! or perhaps !? In fact 20. c4! -- which I had seen was poss. because of the tactic of my Q being in line with the g2 B means I cant take the pawn on c4 -- is better.

click for larger view

Here is the Stanely Yee ... Tabiwa...!

Here he thought, and so did I for a few minutes, that after:

30. Qc8? [30. Qf4 seems best and it is unclear but better for White, but NOT 30. Rd8 nor was 30. b6 none of those things led to anything] Qf3+ 31. Kg1 Ng4 32. Qf5 and then the tactics mean Black can (or seems to be able to) get a draw although it is slightly better for White. It is surprising that the attack by W has gone but he does have a positional and material advantage, but I think Black can make it difficult.

And it was a real game and I was fairly calm and had a better time advantage, he was quite nervous, behind time and banging down his moves on the clock... So I think I may even have won.

But his attack beginning with 23. Bxh6! was very enterprising, brilliant in fact and gave me a shock. I had missed it.

click for larger view

From here I had to think carefully what to do and decided correctly I had to accept the sac....

I think White is winning but remember that a player has to be able to defend as well as attack and we both did well in that. He had to be careful not to get too excited and "overreach" as they say in the trade!; and seeing a possible win he got very nervous which is understandable...It was a close game although I kept ahead on the clock.