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| May-23-11 | | crawfb5: <M> Can't White then play 42. Nd4, which seems to take it from a black win to a roughly equal game? Or am I missing something? Besides, in a note to another game, Bronstein said, "I prefer a beautiful finish, not necessarily the shortest one." |
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May-23-11
 | | Fusilli: <C> You are right! (I think.) Then, the Queen's sac is the only and beautiful definition! |
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| May-23-11 | | dakgootje: Hey gentlemen!
I just ran across a puzzle [below], which I think has more-or-less 2 solutions. That is, 1 solution is obviously completely winning the other is a variation which.. I think is winning as well, but Herr Fritz says it's not. I then said it could not eval properly, and Herr Fritz did not answer - ergo I won the argument. In any case, first the puzzle itself [before I give the 1 and half solution] :) 
click for larger viewBlack to move and win. |
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May-23-11
| | Fusilli: <dak> I'd say the prosaic 1...Nb3 followed by 2...Nxc1 and 3...Bxb2 (and 4...Bxa3) should be sufficient to win. I do not see an immediate killer blow, but my tactics have been sub-par lately... BTW, I am going to play a quad tonight at the Nashville Chess Center. Three rapid games (30 min.) |
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| May-24-11 | | dakgootje: Almost -- with bxa3 instead you promote though.
However, what do you think of 1. ..Nb3 2. Rb1 Bd4+?! 3. Nxd4 cxd4 4. axb4 
click for larger viewAs you can see, white's rook can't move, nor can his bishop, nor can the king come over to help the bishop. Moreover, whites q-side pawns are not fast enough to force blacks rook off his file; e.g. 4. ..Kf7 5. c5 [getting nowhere with b5] dxc5 6. bxc5 Re7 7. c6 Ke8 8. c7 Kd7 and the chicken is in the basket. Note also that white has no k-side pawn-breaks, so he can only shuffle the king around. In the mean-time black can mop up the q-side pawns with his king [breaking them up with the a and d-pawns] and at the appropriate time bring over the rook to the c-file to win the bishop. End of game. Herr Computer has a hard time agreeing though. Suppose the idea that white is powerless is hard to grasp. ps: How did the rapid games go? |
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May-24-11
| | Fusilli: <dak> Do you mean with <1.>bxa3 I promote? Your line makes a lot of sense to me. Positional zugzwang for White. I don't think White should do c5 at all. I think he should move b5 and then Kf1-f2-f1-f2. At the appropriate time Black will go for ...d5, and White will still move his King. But I suppose bringing the King to catch the c4 wins. Ah... the rapid games. I played badly. I blundered and lost a won game in game 1 and I blundered again in game 2 and was lost but my opponent was young and lost concentration and I ended up winning. The third game I won convincingly. Overall, I am losing rating points again, continuing the long-term trend. I will post something about game 1 later. It is interesting. |
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| May-24-11 | | dakgootje: <<1.>bxa3 I promote?> Nah, then you wouldn't have almost had the problem. :) The official solution, also according to Computer, is 1. ..Nb3 2. Rb1 Nxc1 3. Rxc1 Bxb2 4. Rd1 bxa3 and the pawn can just walk through. Suppose I should've written it a bit clearer <I think he should move b5 and then Kf1-f2-f1-f2.> Computer recommended that line when I quickly looked at the line with Fritz. However, it seemed to me like black could just move his king to b6 and play a6. Open c-file is black does not take; if he does take retake with king, go to c5 and play d5. The pawn-chain can't really stand those suicide-pawns ;) Although, I suppose white should be lost whatever the exact defence. -- Shame about the rapid games. Heh, I always hate losing rating points on puzzle sites as well -- mainly because afterwards it all looks so obvious ;) The above puzzle was from that as well actually - I had missed the official solution but had calculated my alternative solution. The automated response was something like axb4 - so I could just play Nxa1 -- I suppose it would've rejected my Bd4 solution. Ah well, some kind of justice as my alternative wins as well ;) |
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May-25-11
| | Fusilli: So, I managed to botch this at the rapid tournament: Mariano Sana (2175) v. Ali Alataiwi (1741):
click for larger view1.Ke4 h4? (1...Rd8! =) 2.Kd5 h3 3.Kc6 Rc8+ (3...h2 4.b7+ Kxa7 5.Rf1  ) 4.Rc7 (4.Kb5 probably wins) Rh8: 
click for larger viewAnd, believe it or not, I failed to see 5.b7+ Kxa7 6.Rc8. I froze, the seconds ticked away, played something stupid and lost on time. |
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May-28-11
| | Fusilli: Question for the movie buffs out there. I saw <Mean Streets> last night (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070379/), and the question is: at the end, does Charlie set Johnny Boy up? Even though he is a good guy, he had reasons to... Johnny Boy had failed him over and over and now was putting him at risk by knowing about his relationship with Teresa and threatening to go to Charlie's uncle. It seems very strange that Michael and his hit man will just find them driving down the street far from the neighborhood. And Johnny Boy and Teresa do notice that Charlie is taking a strange route, which is consistent with a prearranged hit. However, Charlie gets hurt himself, and Teresa also gets hurt. The gun shots, from the left at Johnny Boy (who is sitting in the front passenger's seat) with Charlie being in the driver's seat puts Charlie at high risk (and it is worse for Teresa, who is sitting in between the two). And yet, how did Michael find them, otherwise...? |
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| Jun-08-11 | | izimbra: Hey <Fusilli>, I just noticed your post to my forum...sorry, it's been too long since I saw <Mean Streets> (and I focused more on the acting than the crime story). I came across this youtube overview of the old gangster film _Angels with Dirty Faces_: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yva... I first watched that when I was a little boy, and I cried at the end (which is kind of hinted at but not totally given away in the youtube clip). It's stylistically dated, but has a good plot and some strong acting. |
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Jun-09-11
 | | OhioChessFan: Be sure to visit my forum for the Bazna Kings 2011 Moves Prediction Contest which starts Saturday. Click on Elvis for details. |
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Jun-11-11
| | Fusilli: <Izimbra> Cool! I need to watch Angels with Dirty Faces now! It wasn't on my radar. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: Last weekend I played the U.S. Amateur South in Memphis, a 5-round Swiss, with a time control of game in 90 moves (with a 5-second delay). I was seeded first (the "amateur" part of the tournament means it is capped at 2200 USCF rating), and ended up 5th/9th, with +2=2-1, lowering my rating from 2162 to 2145. In short, another bad tournament. However, each game had interesting moments. I am going to post positions from them now. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: U.S. Amateur South, June 2011, round 1
Mariano Sana (2162) v. Michael Robertson (1765)
Position after 26.Nh4:
click for larger viewWhite is better. Black went for 26...Nxh4 27.Bxg4! (Black will temporarily win a pawn but the endgame is much better for White) Ng2+ 28.Kf2 Nxf4 29.gxf4 fxg4 
click for larger view30.Rh5!
1-0 in 46. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: U.S. Amateur South, June 2011, round 2
George Woodbury (1895) v. Mariano Sana (2162) (POST 1) This was quite an interesting game. I played an obscure pawn sacrifice that I saw when I was a kid... some things we learn as kids stick to us for the rest of our lives! See G Garcia Gonzales vs L Shamkovich, 1979. Position after 14.Bd3:
click for larger viewThe computer likes 14...Nc2+ slightly better than 14...Bc2, but I played 14...Bc2 because I found the following cool move: 15.Ra1 Bxd3 16.Qxd3
click for larger view
16...Qg5!
White chose to give up the exchange with 17.Qxd4 (the alternative was 17.Kf1 and Black gets a comfortable advantage) Qxg2 18.Ke2 Qxh1 19.Nf3 Qg2 20.d3 Qg4 21.Bf4
click for larger view
This was a crucial position. The computer says about -1, but I felt uncomfortable with my queen stranded on the kingside. I underestimated White chances and played 21...g5. After 22.Bxg5 Qxd4 23.Nxd4 the computer still says Black is better (not as better as -1 but still better enough). However, after 23...Be7 24.h4 a5? the computer still says that Black is better, but after 25.b5 it soon became clear to me that there was no way for me to get my exchange advantage to be meaningful... and that 24...a5 had been a mistake that reduced my chances of opening a file. Slowly, in fact, my position deteriorated! White became more and more dangerous pushing his d-pawn and ended up reaching a winning position. Position after 30.Rh3:
click for larger view |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: U.S. Amateur South, June 2011, round 2
George Woodbury (1895) v. Mariano Sana (2162) (POST 2) Position after 38.Ne4:
click for larger viewPosition after 46.d7:
click for larger viewPosition after 49.e6:
click for larger viewNow this is scary! (It is also, most likely, winning for White.) And I was down to one minute, but I did manage to play all the only moves--Black only has survival moves. 49...Rf8 50.Ne8 Rg4+ 51.Kh7 Rd4
click for larger viewHere the computer says 52.Kg7 although in the position at the end of the computer analysis White has K+R and Black has K and the two queenside pawns and I wonder if Black is really lost. My opponent played 52.Rxh4??
click for larger viewWith less than a minute now, I went for my original threat and played 52...Rxd7+? (question mark because it draws instead of winning, a very sudden and real possibility now) 53.exd7 Rf7+ 54.Kg6 Rxd7:
click for larger view
and presto, Black is not losing anymore and White needs to draw... which he did. With seconds left, I may have mismanaged that endgame. But, back to 52.Rxh4:
click for larger view
Black wins with 52...Rxh4+! 53.Kg7 Rf1! and White can't promote because of the mate! 54.Nf6
click for larger view
And here pretty much anything sensible that Black plays, wins. Draw in 70 or so. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: U.S. Amateur South, June 2011, round 3
Mariano Sana (2162) v. Mark Asher Friedman (1623)
My opponent was about to turn 13 and gained about 100 points in this tournament. He ended up undefeated too. He played VERY fast, and by the time he offered a draw I had 10 minutes left and he had at least 30, only because in the previous 5 moves he had decided to think a lot. I came out of the opening with some advantage. Position after 14...Qb6:
click for larger view
Here the computer says +1 or so. I actually managed to make good move after good move, keeping that advantage stable. Position after 20...Qb8:
click for larger view
I am proud of having played 21.Ra3, which is the top computer preference after crunching lines for a little while. Here's where I blew it. Position after 22...Qc7:
click for larger view
23.Ne5 keeps the advantage at +1 or so, but I played 23.Na5 and the advantage vanished on the spot. (I was too concerned about the b7 bishop controlling the long diagonal.) The new evaluation is pretty much dead even near 0.00. Position after 31.h3:
click for larger view
Here he went for 31...Nd7 32.Qe4 N7f6 and offered me a draw. I reasoned "I am 500 points over him but I did not manage to get an advantage in 30 moves, and I have 10 minutes left against his 30, and he plays fast and well". Furthermore, I could see no useful plan! I accepted the draw offer. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: U.S. Amateur South, June 2011, round 3
Mark Schuyler (1706) v. Mariano Sana (2162)
This was a tense game, with a kingside vs. queenside race to see who got to the other guy's king first. Position after 16...b5:
click for larger view
Here the computer says that White is much better, but when I "challenge" it to follow up on its main line, with me playing the moves I had in mind during the game, the position we reach ends up being White advantage, but far from decisive. For example: 17.h6 (I don't understand why this is the top computer choice! Of course I was going to play 17...g6 against it and felt that White's attack might stall) g6 18.f4 exf4 19.Bxf4 a5 20.e5 dxe5 21.Bxe5 b4 22.Ne4 c3 Analysis diagram:
click for larger view
The computer says White is better, but I feel Black's king is safe and I might be able to complicate on the queenside. He did not play 17.h6 but 17.Nh3, a human move. It followed 17...a5 18.g5 b4 19.Nb1 c3 20.bxc3 bxa3 21.Nxa3
click for larger view
Here I thought it was time to take care of the g6 threat, and I went for what I had been planning all along: to move the f-pawn forward once he had his g and h pawns aligned on the 5th rank (so as to play ...g6 against h6 and ....h6 against g6, closing both files to keep the king safe). So I played 21...f5, and the computer hates it, and gives White a big edge again after several possible choices. But I frankly don't know what the computer is "thinking". In various lines, for example, it insists on playing h6, to which I humbly submit that Black can reply with ...g6 and his king is safe. For example, the computer says 22.exf6 and after 22...Bxf6 it goes for 23.h6 g6 24.f4 and thinks White is much better. But in the game I kept trying to imagine how I would get killed if I just let him do whatever he wanted. For example, say I play on the queenside and let him do f5 and fxg6. Then ...hxg6, Qxg6+ Kh8... so? Where is the mate? When I spar with the computer sooner or later the computer "admits" that Black is dangerous on the queenside. Back to 21...f5:
click for larger view
Here he played 22.exf5 and his attack petered out. 22...Bxf5 23.f4 Nd7 24.Rdf1 e4
click for larger view
25.Bg4? (he was really short on time now) Qc5!, with enormous Black advantage now (because White no longer can respond to ...Qc5 with c4). 0-1 in 42. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: U.S. Amateur South, June 2011, round 3
Mariano Sana (2162) v. Bryan Tillis (2123)
We played a KID line that I really don't know well (even though it is quite popular!... I am just lazy), and in this position (after 10...Nfd7):
click for larger view
I came up with 11.Bg4.
My plan was to trade my light-squared bishop for either his d7 knight or his light-squared bishop, so that after ...f5 I would play the thematic f3, and I thought it made sense to get rid of my bad bishop in advance. The computer evaluates things as equal, but I wonder why this move is not a regular line... no decent player seems to have ever played it. Doesn't my reasoning make sense? Isn't it a good idea to get rid of your soon-to-be bad bishop? I don't know, I don't have that much experience defending White against the KID pawn storm... maybe the light-squared bishop is normally a good defensive piece after all. Any suggestions out there? Back to the game, one of the worst things we can do in chess, I guess, is to be inconsistent. And that's exactly what I did. Position after 14...b6:
click for larger view
Here I changed my mind and decided to prepare for f4, so I played 15.Rae1 f5 16.f4? and I was soon in deep trouble. It just doesn't work tactically. I'll skip all those middle-game pesky moves. Position after 32.Re2:
click for larger view
Pitiful situation. His bishop retreated, and my moves 34-38 were Re1, Re2, Re1, Re2, Re1. Otherwise I would have been shuttling my king back and forth between g1 and g2. Fun, eh? 0-1 in about 60. |
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Jun-12-11
| | Fusilli: Ha! Apparently I played three games in round 3! The game vs. Schuyler is round 4, and the game vs. Tillis is round 5. |
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| Jun-12-11 | | crawfb5: <Fusilli: Ha! Apparently I played three games in round 3!> That would certainly be a bad tournament for me. |
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Jun-17-11
| | Fusilli: Today's puzzle at chess.com. Pretty neat. White to play:
click for larger view |
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Jun-17-11
| | Fusilli: It's from the game J. RodrÃguez vs. W. Puntier, Santo Domingo 1990, btw. |
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| Jun-18-11 | | dakgootje: I think 1. Rxd6+ Bxd6 2. Nd4+ Qxd4 3. f5+ Ke5 4. Qg3 is mate right - or am I miscalculating? |
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Jun-18-11
| | Fusilli: <dak> Yes! Good job! |
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