User Profile: phony benoni

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Phony Benoni
Member since Feb-10-06 · Last seen Jun-11-22

Greetings, O Seeker After Knowledge! You have arrived in Dearborn, Michigan (whether you like it or not), and are reading words of wisdom from a player rated 2938--plus or minus 1000 points.
However, I've retired from serious play--not that I ever took playing chess all that seriously. You only have to look at my games to see that. These days I pursue the simple pleasures of finding games that are bizarre or just plain funny. I'd rather enjoy a game than analyze it.
For the record, my name is David Moody. This probably means nothing to you unless you're a longtime player from Michigan, though it's possible that if you attended any US Opens from 1975-1999 we might have crossed paths. Lucky you.
If you know me at all, you'll realize that most of my remarks are meant to be humorous. I do this deliberately, so that if my analysis stinks to High Heaven I can always say that I was just joking.
As you can undoubtedly tell from my sparkling wit, I'm a librarian in my spare time. Even worse, I'm a cataloger, which means I keep log books for cattle. Also, I'm not one of those extroverts who sit at the Reference Desk and help you with research. Instead, I spend all day staring at a computer screen updating and maintaining information in the library's catalog. The general public thinks Reference Librarians are dull. Reference Librarians think Catalogers are dull.
My greatest achievement in chess, other than tricking you into reading this, was probably mating with king, bishop and knight against king in a tournament game. I have to admit that this happened after an adjournment, and that I booked up like crazy before resuming. By the way, the fact I have had adjourned games shows you I've been around too long.
My funniest moment occurred when I finally got a chance to pull off a smothered mate in actual play. You know, 1.Nf7+ Kg8 2.Nh6+ Kh8 3.Qg8+ Rxg8 4.Nf7#. When I played the climactic queen check my opponent looked at the board in shocked disbelief and said, "But that's not mate! I can take the queen!"

Finally, I must confess that I once played a positional move, back around 1982. I'll try not to let that happen again.

>> Click here to see phony benoni's game collections.

   Phony Benoni has kibitzed 18634 times to chessgames [more...]

   Jun-11-22 M Blau vs Keres, 1959

Phony Benoni: Not a good recommendation for the DERLD. Out of 59 moves, White makes only three in Black's half of the board. And two of those conist of 3.Bb5 and 6.Bxc6.

   Jun-11-22 chessgames.com chessforum

Phony Benoni: Er, it's back. Karpov vs Timman, 1988

   Jun-10-22 Orlo Milo Rolo

Phony Benoni: Marco!

   Jun-10-22 Lilienthal vs Bondarevsky, 1947

Phony Benoni: Another one for you King Hunters. Black's monarch travels fron g8 to b8, then takes the Great Circle Route back to h3 before calling it a day.

   Jun-10-22 GrahamClayton chessforum

Phony Benoni: <GrahamClayton> I've posted a question for you at L T Magee vs J Holland, 1948

   Jun-10-22 L T Magee vs E L Holland, 1948

Phony Benoni: <GrahamClayton> The source you cite, <Chess Review, May 1948, p. 24>, gives Black's name as <E Holland> "Chess Life" (June 5, 1948, p. 1) has a table of results giving <E L Holland>. That form also appears in USCF rating supplements for a player fro ...

   Jun-09-22 Biographer Bistro

Phony Benoni: SkinnVer Here Among the Fold?

   Jun-09-22 Flohr vs Bondarevsky, 1947

Phony Benoni: Black's bishop makes me think of Godzilla emerging from the depths of the ocean to wreak havoc. However, in the end it's his Two Little Friends who steal the show. Well, maybe not so litt.

   Jun-06-22 W Ritson-Morry vs G T Crown, 1947

Phony Benoni: it was the last round. Rison-Morry was mired in last place. These things happen.

   Jun-06-22 W Adams vs M Kagan, 1947

Phony Benoni: Some more informztion. The game was published in <Chess Review>, March 1948, p. 23. Black's name is given as "M Kagan", and the location as "Massachusetts". There is no other game data, but I think we can now safely assume Black is <Milton Kagan>. Earlier in the ...

indicates a reply to the comment.

Living in the Past

< Earlier Kibitzing · PAGE 26 OF 914 · Later Kibitzing>
Aug-28-07		WannaBe: Kinda like them 'new' art, where they put a blank canvas on the wall. =)

Sep-03-07		Phony Benoni: <White to play> (from Ant (Computer) v Jongsma, The Hague, 1996) click for larger view Being a computer, you're not going to be happy about squeezing out a win in the endgame with your extra pawn. So what do you play?

Sep-07-07		Phony Benoni: It's the crosspin theme: <1.Bxe5+ Nxe5 2.Rb7+ Rc7 3.Qc8!>. The main alternative is 2...Kf8 3.Qf5+ Ke8 4.Qh7, when Black must begin shedding material to avoid mate.

Sep-11-07		Phony Benoni: From Saitek Brute Force (Computer) v. Michael Hoving, AEGON, 1996. Black to play. click for larger view It's not hard to recognize a typical King's Indian developing here. White is expanding on the queenside, while Black is massing his pieces on the kingside behind the e5-f5 pawn duo. Black can think about playing the ...e4 fork, but decided it might better to protect the bishop on e7 first. But after <19...Rae8??>, White eliminated the fork forever with <20.Rxe5!>. click for larger view The good news for Black is that after 20...dxe5 21.Nxe5 he wouldn't have to worry about getting his queen forked after 21...Qh6 or 21...Qg5--since 22.Nf7 would be mate, White would never get around to taking the queen. The bad news was that, since his QR was sitting on the queen's only flight square, Black had to decline White's rook and his position crumbled quickly.

Sep-12-07		Phony Benoni: Ever hear the term "Mirror Mate"? This occurs when a mated king has no pieces of either color in its immediate vicinity (the "King's Field"). Usually the term is applied to a king away from the edges of the board, so that the King's Field contains eight squares. Here's an inelegant example: click for larger view It doesn't happen much in practical play, and I have a feeling that it's often accidental when it does arise. We tend not to expect a mate without a piece or two wrapped around the king's neck. But of course, when a computer is doing the attacking, these things happen. Here's an example from Comet (Computer) v. Hoogendoorn from the AEGON Man vs. Machine event of 1996, with <White to play>: click for larger view After <45.Qf6>, the rook cannot move to safety without allowing the mirror mate by 46.Nc5. Now, White could probably get away with 45.Kxe1, but I enjoy seeing anybody going for beauty rather than brutality.

Sep-12-07		WannaBe: <Phony Benoni> So, therefore, the question then should be: 'Mirror, mirror, on the board, what is the prettiest mate of all??'

Sep-13-07		Phony Benoni: <WannaBe> The prettiest mate of all is the one you just pulled off.

Sep-18-07		Phony Benoni: From Csom v Flesch, Szombathely, 1966, <BLACK TO PLAY> click for larger view Black has an extra rook for now, but he's also in a fine mess since White wins after 14...hxg6 15.Qxg6+ Ke7 16.Bxe4 with the threat of 17.Bg5#. Can Black survive? Oh, of course he can, or I wouldn't be showing you this. But the winning move is pretty.

Sep-19-07		whiteshark: 'Starring' at the board a few more minutes and testing a lot of usual (crappy) developing moves. Then I found <14... Be2!!>, attacking Qh5, deflecting her. After 15.Qxe2 hxg6 the white's mighty attack is gone and he is still a rook down. If 15. f3, than ...Nxg3 will drive away wQ from h5.

Sep-19-07		Phony Benoni: <whiteshark> Full credit!

Sep-20-07		Phony Benoni: From Abramovic v Avshalumov, Sibenik, 1987. <WHITE TO PLAY> click for larger view 37.Bxd2 might be good enough, but there are some complications afterward. Is there something better?

Sep-25-07		Phony Benoni: Since I want to post something else without interrupting the continuity, just let me tell you to examine the consequence of 37.Qf2! and get back to me later.

Sep-25-07		Phony Benoni: One thing that I have always enjoy about chess is the opportunity for gratuitous sarcasm. A case in point: Schlenker,R - Kuenzner,F [B25] Bundesliga, 1990 <1.Nc3 c5 2.e4 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.Nh3 Bd7 7.f4 Qc8 8.Nf2 Nf6 9.0-0 Rb8 10.Be3 0-0 11.Qd2 b5 12.e5 b4 13.Nce4 Ne8 14.Rae1 Nd4 15.c3 Nf5 16.d4 Bb5 17.Nd3 Qa6 18.Nef2 bxc3 19.bxc3 cxd4 20.Bxd4 Bc4 21.Nb4 Rxb4 22.cxb4 Nxd4 23.Qxd4 dxe5 24.fxe5 Bxf1 25.Bxf1 Qxa2> click for larger view After some complications, Black's queen has grabbed a pawn deep in White's territory. As usual, White begins to chase the wayward lady, but she proves elusive. <26.Bc4 Qc2 27.Qc5 Qd2 28.Re2 Qg5 29.e6 f5 30.Kg2 Qc1 31.Nd3 Qc3 32.Nf4 Nf6 33.Re3 Qc1 34.Ne2 Qc2 35.Ba6> click for larger view Apparently tired of the chase, White tries to get the queen off by trading. But Black is in just the right mood to be sarcastic. <35...Ng4> "You want her? Go ahead and take her! See if I care!" <36.Rf3 Qa2 37.Bc4 Qc2 38.Ba6 Qe4 39.Qxe7 Ne5 40.Bb7 Qxe2+ 41.Rf2 Qb5 42.Rd2 Bf6 43.Qc7 Qxb4 44.Re2 Qb6> 0-1

Sep-26-07		Phony Benoni: Have the puzzles been a bit hard of late? Here's an easy and cute one, from Pribyl v. Enders, Budapest, 1989, with <WHITE TO PLAY> click for larger view

Sep-26-07		WannaBe: Now, that's a bit interesting... immediately you want to play 1. Kg3+, but you'd lose that g5 rook. Let me look at it some more.

Sep-26-07		WannaBe: Ah, yes, after looking deeper, I see, I see...

Sep-26-07		HFlew: That's a cute puzzle! :)

Sep-29-07		Phony Benoni: Doubled pawns can have positional drawbacks, but they can also bestow tactical opportunities. [Event "Scottish Championship"] [Site "Paisley SCO"] [Date "1988.??.??"] [EventDate "?"] [Round "?"] [Result "0-1"] [White "Thomson, Craig S M"] [Black "McKay, Roderick M"] [ECO ""] [WhiteElo ""] [BlackElo ""] <1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.Nge2 e5 7.Nd5 Nge7 8.Bg5 h6 9.Nxe7 hxg5 10.Nxc6 bxc6> click for larger view White has saddled Black with a couple of sets of doubled pawns, but he has also set up the eventual mating net. <11.c4 g4 12.Nc3 Bd7 13.Qe2 Qg5 14.Kd1 Ke7 15.f3 Rh5 16.fxg4 Bxg4 17.Bf3 Bxf3 18.Qxf3 Bh6 19.Qe2> click for larger view <19...Qxg3!> This does not get an exclamation point for being a brilliant queen sacrifice. Any move that winds up netting you two rooks and a pawn for a queen is not a sacrifice. However, "Annotate Like a Grandmaster" recommends an exclamation point for any move by the winner that makes you say "WHAT??", even for a tenth of a second. <20.hxg3 Rxh1+ 21.Kc2> Yes, if you want to get technical about it, 21.Qe1 would have cut White's losses. But then we would have missed the amusing finish, and nobody would ever have thought twice about this game. <21...Rxa1 22.b3 Rh8 23.Kb2 Rh1 24.Ka3 Rh2 25.Qf3 Rc2> click for larger view And now, we can appreciate the faultiness of White's opening play. If he tries to save the knight, he is mated after 26...Bc1+ 27.Ka4 Rxa2#, thanks to the doubled c-pawns! <26.Ka4 Rxc3 27.Qh1 Rc2> 0-1

Oct-11-07		Resignation Trap: These games are now on our database: V Sournin vs R T Black, 1923 , R T Black vs Janowski, 1923 , Kupchik vs R T Black, 1923 , M C Palmer vs M Schapiro, 1923 , Kupchik vs Janowski, 1923 , J S Morrison vs O Tenner, 1923 and V Sournin vs Ed Lasker, 1923 . I also uploaded R T Black vs A Hodges, 1923 , but due to a typo in the PGN I submitted, it doesn't play, so I'll have to dig out the correct score again. I tried to decipher Sournin-Hodges from my original source (American Chess Bulletin), but, for the life of me, I was unable to do so.

Nov-08-07		Resignation Trap: Elvy eye today?

Nov-09-07		Phony Benoni: Yup. I'm now a public television station, and look forward to becoming ketchup in 2008. It's not just today, by the way. People have been giving me the elvy eye for years after hearing my jokes.

Dec-11-07		Phony Benoni: Here's the answer to the little puzzler which I posted in the Kibitzer's Café, asking you to reconstruct a game ending in the move 5...Rh1#: <1.g4> Grob's Opening, also known as The Spike and A Bad Move. It's so bad that Death Row inmates can only score about 90% with it. <1...h5> Grob's recommened defense, which he recommended in the hope that people would play it against him. <2.Bg2> Development above everything! <2...hxg4> Patzer sees a pawn ... <3.Bxb7> Patzer grabs a pawn ... <3...Rxh2> OK, Ok. This is getting ridiculous. <4.Nh3> Oh, yeah. Development above everything. I almost forgot. <4...Bxb7> Just doing what all the great chess writers recommend: look for double attacks. click for larger view And now you get it, don't you? <5.0-0> Releasing the rook from double attack, but just slightly castling into it. <5...Rh1#> Q.E.D., which means don't trust licensed electricians trying to sell you baseball tickets.

Jan-20-08		Phony Benoni: click for larger view An attractive-looking position for Black, and indeed White resigned before Black made a move. What would it have been?

Jan-22-08		Resignation Trap: Thanks for uploading the Hollywood 1952 games. I've been uploading games from players like Saidy, Robert Byrne, Lombardy, and a few others from the 1960's as they appeared in <Chess Life> or <Chess Review>. The 1963 US Open in Chicago had 13 rounds, but not one game of them appears in http://www.chesslive.de , so I started with Lombardy's games, as he annotated all of them in <Chess Life> over several issues.

Jan-27-08		Phony Benoni: In the January 20th position, White resigned because Black forces mate after 1...Rxa3+ 2.Qxa3 Qxa3+. If 3.Kxa3 Ra6#, and declining the rook with 3.Kb1 runs into 3...Rba6 4.Rxc3 Ra1+ 5.Kb2 R6b2#. click for larger view Maybe you'll like this one instead. It's from Pesch v. Zessinger, Bundesliga, 1985. with <BLACK TO MOVE>.

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