[Event "Washington Open, Open section"]
[Site "Redmond, WA"]
[Date "2024.05.26"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Murray, David"]
[Black "Razmov, Gabriel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E17"]
[WhiteElo "1968"]
[BlackElo "1815"]
[Annotator "Gabriel Razmov"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[GameId "2064795628560442"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,62,14,19,14,-6,-15,-38,-4,-20,42,19,19,4,-2,7,15,1,15,24,19,18,7,14,3,7,30,3,23,22,28,-28,10,-5,54,55,37,42,148,123,141,81,81,81,203,-139,-126,-266,-299,-363,-385,-379,-349,-347,-320,-332,-365,-433,-363,-365,-401,-809,-823,-853,-688]} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Bg2 {White chooses the Catalan Opening, a potent system to play against the Black configuration. I decide to aim for a Queen's Indian structure instead.} b6 5. O-O Be7 (5... Bd6 6. d4 O-O) 6. b3 (6. cxd5 exd5 7. d4 O-O) 6... Bb7 7. Bb2 Nbd7 8. d4 c5 {So far both sides have tried to maintain some flexibility in their options.} 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Rc1 Re8 12. Qc2 Rc8 {With both sides having completed development, middlegame plans must now be made and put into action. Black wants to keep tension in the center and control e4, while White will try to eventually attack on the kingside.} 13. Qb1 Bf8 14. e3 g6 {Maneuvering the bishop to the long diagonal, in order to make the kingside safer.} 15. Ne5 $6 {A natural move, but it offers Black a chance for an advantage via an exchange sacrifice. I saw the option for that, but didn't appreciate how good it was for Black.} (15. Rfd1 Bg7 16. Ne1 Qe7 $14) 15... Bg7 $6 {An automatic move that misses to take advantage of the opportunity, and allows White a free hand to expand on the kingside.} (15... Nxe5 $1 {would instead seize the edge, since} 16. dxe5 Ng4 17. Rfd1 (17. Bh3 $6 {is what I was worried about but after} Nxe5 $1 (17... h5) 18. Bxe5 Rxe5 19. Bxc8 Qxc8 $17 {Black stands better due to the central control and the diagonals opening up for an attack.}) 17... Qe7 18. Nf3 Bg7 $17 {and the e5-pawn is very weak.}) 16. f4 Nxe5 $6 {Unnecessary at this point, since White doesn't threaten anything concrete: attempts at a direct attack fail, e.g.:} (16... Rc7 17. f5 $2 (17. Rfe1 h5 18. h3 Qe7) 17... Nxe5 18. dxe5 Ng4 19. f6 $2 Bh6 $17) 17. dxe5 Nd7 18. Nc4 $1 $14 dxc4 $6 {I remember playing this move very quickly, not realizing that there was another viable option. White now obtains a clear advantage.} (18... Bf8 {could be a better alternative, though White's position remains pleasant after} 19. f5 Qg5 20. Rf4 $14) 19. Bxb7 Rc7 20. Bd5 $2 {The hanging nature of White's bishop allows Black to regain some chances.} (20. Ba6 $5 {would instead create an uncomfortable situation for Black. After} cxb3 21. axb3 Qe7 22. Bc4 $16 {White is ready to attack on the kingside, and Black will have a hard time defending.}) 20... Nxe5 {A typical tactic.} (20... c3 $5 {is another strong idea that I missed. If} 21. Bxc3 Nxe5 $1 $14 {where White would have a relatively worse structure.}) 21. Rcd1 {This move puzzled me, so I spent a long time deciding between ...Rd7 and ...Nd7. As it turns out, I chose incorrectly.} (21. Bxe5 Bxe5 22. Bxc4 Bf6 $13) 21... Nd7 $2 {An error that gives White a close to winning position.} (21... Rd7 $1 {is the more active and sensible option. I cannot remember why I didn't choose this. I must have been spooked by} 22. bxc4 Ng4 23. Bxg7 Kxg7 24. Bc6 {but then after} Rxd1 25. Rxd1 Qe7 $1 26. e4 {White is only slightly better.} (26. Bxe8 $4 {would lose instantly to} Qxe3+ 27. Kh1 Qf3+ {and mate follows.})) 22. e4 $4 {A critical tactical oversight, possibly born out of choosing between several pleasant options for White. As a result, the course of the game now changes radically. Black suddenly finds themselves in the driver's seat.} (22. f5 $1 {is strongest, and would instead have given White an excellent attacking position. After} Kh8 ({or} 22... c3 23. fxg6 $16) 23. Bxg7+ (23. Bxf7 $6 c3) 23... Kxg7 24. Bxf7 {White should go on to win.}) 22... c3 $1 {Suddenly the tide has turned, and Black is the one with a large advantage.} 23. Bc1 $2 {A decisive mistake.} (23. Ba1 {looks awkward, but is far more resilient concretely, e.g.,} Bd4+ 24. Kh1 Nf6 25. Bxc3 $5 Nxd5 26. Bxd4 cxd4 27. Rxd4 Rd7 28. exd5 Rxd5 29. Re4 {where despite Black's advantage in the heavy-piece endgame White still retains practical drawing chances.}) 23... Bd4+ 24. Rxd4 {Desperation, but there is no defense for White at this point.} (24. Kh1 {loses to} Nf6 $19 {when Black wins another pawn and dominates.}) 24... cxd4 $19 25. Qd3 Nf6 26. Qxd4 Nxd5 27. exd5 Rc5 28. d6 (28. Rd1 {also loses after} c2 {with ...Re1+ or ...Rxd5 to follow.} (28... Rxd5 {is another way to win, slower perhaps, based on tactics:} 29. Qxd5 Re1+ 30. Rxe1 Qxd5 {and the c-pawn will decide shortly.})) 28... Re6 29. Ba3 Rxd6 30. Qa4 Ra5 {Now Black is up an exchange and still has the passed c-pawn on top of that.} 31. Qb4 Rd4 {This move is simplest, forcing queen trades or a win of the bishop. Given Black's material advantage, White chose to resign here. This was an interesting and at the same time humbling game, since as I analyzed it afterwards, it turned out that many positions and options that I thought were okay weren't, and vice versa.} 0-1

[Event "Washington Open, Premier U1800 section"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2024.05.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Dann, William"]
[Black "Bimod, Karthik"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B23"]
[WhiteElo "1611"]
[BlackElo "1730"]
[Annotator "Willian Dann"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[GameId "2066105704489059"]
[EventDate "2024.05.25"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,85,19,38,40,46,70,70,58,62,51,21,33,0,1,-1,34,27,25,32,40,-14,-11,0,13,15,10,63,44,73,75,37,151,162,227,220,235,194,198,202,268,241,303,303,315,327,308,295,268,285,350,266,259,256,264,256,263,245,263,258,293,262,275,282,287,282,282,228,231,242,245,280,304,297,344,341,428,487,569,519,605,612,749,544,561,548,574,539]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 d6 3. d4 $5 {This interesting line has been dubbed the Magnus Sicilian, and is my current favorite way to play these positions. This became popular after Magnus Carlsen used it to beat Wojtaszek in 2018. The plan is not to play Bb5, but to play the simple b2-b3, Bb2, O-O-O, and usually attack on the kingside. The white king is very secure in these positions, and as a bonus if black plays Nc6 the knight is misplaced as d7 is the usual Najdorf post for the queen's knight. Check out Carlsen - Wojtaszek Shamkir 2018 if you're curious about the game that served as inspiration for this line!} cxd4 4. Qxd4 Nc6 5. Qd2 Nf6 6. b3 a6 7. Bb2 e5 $2 {This plan is very slow and will allow white to take over the game} 8. O-O-O Be6 $6 {This bishop will be a target after white is able to play f4} (8... Be7 9. Kb1 O-O 10. f4 exf4 11. Nge2 $5 b5 12. Nxf4 Ne5 13. Nfd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 Bb7 {May be a safer try, but I still like white!}) 9. f4 {In hindsight this may be rushed. Kb1 is almost always a useful move to insert in these positions. There is a note later where I almost get punished for ommiting this move.} b5 $6 (9... Be7 10. Kb1 O-O $6 11. f5 Bd7 12. g4 $1 {Is a very common idea to remember when black castles kingside in these lines!} Nxg4 13. Nf3 Nf6 14. Rg1 {And white has a very strong attack for the pawn}) (9... g6 10. Kb1 Bg7 11. Nge2 O-O 12. h3 b5 13. g4 b4 14. f5 $1 bxc3 15. Nxc3 $1 (15. Qxc3 $2 Nxe4 16. Qxc6 {Takes back the material but at a huge cost!} gxf5 17. Bg2 Rc8 18. Qxa6 Qc7 {Black is now the one with a terrible attack}) 15... Bc8 16. g5 Nh5 17. f6 Nxf6 $1 (17... Bh8 18. Qxd6 {Is truly awful!}) 18. gxf6 Bxf6 19. Qxd6 {All that and I'd still prefer white.}) 10. f5 $5 (10. Nf3 $1 {Shows that black is not really making a threat to take on e4, as that opens lines in front of their king!} b4 $2 11. Nd5 Nxe4 12. Qe3 Nc3 13. Bc4 $5 Be7 (13... Nxa2+ 14. Kb1 Nc3+ 15. Bxc3 bxc3 16. fxe5 $18) 14. Bxc3 bxc3 15. fxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Bg5 {This is why everyone plays Kb1 first! We can get away with it here, amazingly.} 17. Nc7+ $1 Kf8 $1 18. Nxe6+ fxe6 19. Rhf1+ Ke8 20. Rf4 $1 Qa5 21. Kb1 $1 {Don't get mated after all that!} Qxe5 22. Qxe5 dxe5 23. Re4 {White's doing great now. My opponent and I did not come close to seeing any of this in the game, for sure.}) 10... Bc8 11. Qe1 $5 {Not allowing the b4 and takes on e4 idea while putting the queen on the same file as the king. Nd5 may still open the e file if black does not castle right now. I figured this was the best way to defend the threat, although again it may not be a threat at all!} Bb7 12. Nf3 Qc7 $2 {Fatal. This only adds force to my planned Nd5 to open the position} (12... Be7 13. g4 $1 Nxg4 14. Rg1 Nf6 15. Rxg7 {Failed easily, though}) (12... Qa5 13. Kb1 Rc8 14. Rg1 Be7 15. a3 $1 {And black is getting counterplay} (15. g4 Nb4 16. a3 Nxc2 $1 17. Kxc2 Bxe4+ {Would be a disaster!})) 13. Nd5 $1 Nxd5 14. exd5 {Because:} Ne7 15. Nxe5 $1 f6 $2 (15... dxe5 {Is the lesser evil} 16. d6 (16. Bxe5 $5 {Was my original idea before I realized the simple d6 was better} Qb6 17. d6 O-O-O $1 18. dxe7 Rxd1+ 19. Qxd1 Bxe7 {Somehow black survived only down a pawn, which I did not think was possible during the game.}) 16... Qc5 17. dxe7 Bxe7 18. Qxe5 Qxe5 19. Bxe5 {And black is still in the fight!}) 16. Nd3 Qd7 17. Nf4 O-O-O 18. g4 {The knight's job for now is to support d5 until it can stand on it's own.} Kb8 19. Bg2 Rc8 20. Ne6 Ng8 21. Bd4 Be7 22. Bf2 Nh6 23. Qe3 Ba8 {It's amazing there is no immediate mate here!} 24. h3 Nf7 25. Qb6+ Qb7 26. Qxb7+ Bxb7 27. Nxg7 Ne5 28. Kb2 Rhg8 29. Nh5 {Stopping pawn h5 treating the g3 pawn like a hook. No reason to allow black to do something.} Rc7 30. Nf4 Rd7 31. Bd4 Kc8 32. Rc1 Kb8 33. c4 bxc4 34. bxc4 Bf8 35. Bxe5 dxe5 36. Ne6 Be7 37. Rhd1 Bc8 38. c5 Rb7+ 39. Ka1 Bd8 40. d6 Bd7 41. Bxb7 Kxb7 42. Rb1+ Ka7 43. Rdc1 {Black resigns.} 1-0

[Event "Washington Open, Premier U1800 sect"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2024.05.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Gadde, Arnav"]
[Black "Nallappa, Vijay"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "1650"]
[BlackElo "1781"]
[Annotator "Arnav Gadde"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[GameId "2066105704513637"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,129,19,31,19,0,-3,-3,1,9,58,35,15,15,10,7,9,0,0,-28,-12,-18,-31,-51,-46,-72,-63,-30,-84,-98,37,27,44,30,39,29,22,37,36,31,25,19,40,-14,0,-5,-20,-30,-25,-16,-20,-20,-26,-24,-14,-14,-20,-20,0,-12,0,-20,-13,-32,0,-11,86,76,77,71,55,79,79,88,90,90,97,109,160,136,176,176,168,185,206,210,227,181,216,229,259,252,256,221,241,263,274,268,278,276,268,256,264,271,253,176,189,180,707,157,164,164,936,982,2236,29976,29977,29978,29979,29980,29981,29982,29983,29984,29985,29982,29987,29988,29989,29990,29991,29992] In the third round, I entered the game with a 2.0/2 record. Although I was aware that Vijay had secured the title in the same tournament last year, I remained determined to give my best effort. After all, every game is an opportunity to learn and grow.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e3 a6 {I chose 5.e3 over e4 because in the 5.e4 variation, my pawns appeared vulnerable.} 6. Bxc4 b5 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O {Here I felt that Vijay’s position is slightly better because his pieces look better than mine.} c5 9. Be2 {I didn’t take the pawn on c5 because I didn’t want the bishop to come out. I played Be2 because I wanted to defend my f3 knight with my bishop because I can move the queen without worrying about knight being captured and weakening my king.} Nc6 10. a3 $5 {I played this move because I wanted to go dxc5 Bxc5 and then go b4 and fianchetto my dark-squared bishop.} Qc7 $6 {I thought he just needed to move his bishop back and I will develop my bishop on the next move, but the move he played now was unexpected, and he also spent about 20 minutes on this move!} 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. b4 Rd8 13. Qc2 $6 Nxb4 $3 {I did not anticipate the 13…Nxb4 sacrifice.} 14. Nxb5 $5 Nxc2 $6 15. Nxc7+ Kd7 16. Ra2 Nxe3 $1 17. Nxe6 Kxe6 18. Bxe3 Bxe3 19. fxe3 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Rd6 21. Rb1 Rc8 {Both sides take open files. At this point it looked to me like a drawn game.} 22. Rab2 Nd5 $1 {Black is bringing the knight into the game.} 23. Kf2 Nc3 24. Rg1 {I played this move to attack the g7-pawn, bring my rook to g4, and control the fourth rank.} g6 25. Rg4 Nxe2 26. Re4+ {Throwing in a check before taking the knight. This move also controls e-file and defends the a-pawn when it moves.} Kf6 27. Kxe2 Rc3 28. a4 Rcd3 29. h4 {I made this move with the intention of preventing the opponent’s king from reaching the g5-square. Additionally, I ensured that I wouldn’t lose my pawn even if there were potential checks on the second rank.} Rd1 30. Rf4+ Kg7 31. e4 {Here I played e4 to make breathing space for my king so I can get my rook on b2 to go to the seventh rank.} R1d4 32. Rb7 {I thought of 32.e5 Rxf4 33.exd6 Rd4, but I felt it would be better with two rooks on the board.} Rf6 $6 33. Rxf6 Kxf6 34. Rb6+ Ke5 35. Rxa6 {Here the engine thought Rxa6 was an inaccuracy, but in the game my thought process was to make my opponent think for a long time as he was already down in time.} Rb4 36. Ra7 Rb2+ 37. Ke3 Rb3+ 38. Kf2 f6 $2 {38…f6 is a mistake because it loses another pawn.} 39. Kg3 {This move stops any …Kf4 threats.} Ra3 40. Re7+ $1 Kd6 41. Rxh7 Rxa4 42. Rh6 $5 {I considered the move Rg7. However, I hesitated because I anticipated that Black might check my king. If I were to move my king in response, Black could then attack my vulnerable pawn on h4. Balancing risk and reward, I opted for an alternative move.} Ra1 43. Kf4 Ke6 44. Rxg6 Ra5 45. Rg7 {I made this move with the intention of preventing the opponent’s king from advancing to the seventh rank. By restricting their king’s movement, I aimed to gain a positional advantage.} Ra1 46. h5 Rh1 47. Rh7 Rh2 48. h6 Rh5 49. Kg4 Rh1 50. f4 f5+ 51. exf5+ Kf6 52. Ra7 Rg1+ 53. Kf3 Kxf5 $6 54. Rf7+ $4 {My move was a significant error, resulting in the position now being a draw. Specifically, after 54…Ke6, the subsequent moves 55.Ra7 and 56.Rh1 failed to secure an advantage.} Ke6 55. Ra7 Kf5 $2 {Vijay’s move 55…Kf5 proved to be a critical error, granting me back an advantage. However, the optimal sequence would have been 55…Rh1, followed by 56.Kg4 and 56…Rg1+. Unfortunately, time pressure could have led to this as he was low on time.} 56. Ra5+ $1 Kg6 $6 {56…Ke6 and Black could try for a draw, but then White will play 57.Rh5 and promote his pawn.} 57. Rg5+ Rxg5 $18 {White forced simplification and will win the game.} 58. fxg5 Kh7 59. Kf4 Kg6 60. Kg4 Kh7 61. Kf5 Kg8 62. Kf6 Kh7 63. g6+ Kh8 64. g7+ Kg8 65. h7+ {In a hard-fought game lasting five intense hours, Black eventually resigned. White’s unstoppable pawn promotion (queening) left Black with no viable moves. The opening phase saw Vijay with an advantage, but as the game progressed, it reached a draw. Unfortunately for Vijay, a time pressure blunder led to his defeat. This pivotal match significantly boosted my confidence. Despite struggling in my online games and doubting my ability to defeat higher-rated opponents, this victory showed me that I could achieve anything. With a perfect score of 3.0/3, I entered the subsequent rounds. Although I secured draws against the first and second place players, a half-point bye in the final round allowed me to finish with 4.5/6 points, tying for third place overall.} 1-0

[Event "Washington Open, Open section"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2024.05.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Beck, Alec"]
[Black "Palathingal, Rafael"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2131"]
[BlackElo "1759"]
[Annotator "Rafael Palathingal"]
[PlyCount "140"]
[GameId "2066105704513638"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,140,44,26,23,20,27,-3,53,-9,24,2,12,21,4,1,34,18,8,23,26,24,24,24,32,15,40,27,46,39,48,44,38,18,0,37,15,14,30,29,41,39,39,49,34,27,28,33,49,44,43,40,48,49,56,35,46,46,45,58,51,55,86,82,77,69,75,54,90,21,92,103,42,57,35,87,79,86,71,31,36,0,83,71,73,96,67,110,86,85,85,93,69,86,89,12,93,73,93,73,105,103,101,35,4,1,1,0,0,6,0,9,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 c6 {I am planning to enter a Semi-Slav after Nc3 by playing e6.} 4. Qc2 {I have never seen this line with Qc2.} e6 {I'll just do what I usually do in the Semi-Slav.} 5. g3 Bd6 6. Bg2 Nbd7 {Following the main line of the Semi-Slav, except he has a Bishop on g2.} 7. O-O O-O 8. Nbd2 e5 {I got this move from a game of my opponent versus Nikash Vemparala where the position was similar to the position that we're in now.} 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Nxe5 Bxe5 11. cxd5 Nxd5 {With this move I'm avoiding the IQP (Isolated Queen's Pawn) .} 12. Nc4 Bf6 13. Rd1 Qe7 $1 {This is a good move because I get out of the pin, and I stop him from going Bxd5 because after cxd5,Rxd5,Be6,Rd1,Rac8 his knight on c4 is lost.} 14. e4 $1 {This is a good move because it attacks my knight on d5, it gains some space in the center, and it prepares a future Bf4 and e5 where my bishop on f6 won't be happy.} Nb6 {Offering an exchange which he shouldn't accept because he has more space, and when you have more space, you should keep more pieces on the board.} 15. Ne3 $6 {I think this move is not that good because it is not a good place for the knight, it blocks the bishop on c1 from potentially going to f4, and there is a better square from which the knight could control more squares and obstruct my pieces, d6 is that square.} (15. Nd6 $1 {This is the best move in the computer's opinion and also mine. Here is a sample line from which you can see how many good moves you have to find as black to equalize:} Be6 16. Bf4 Rad8 17. e5 Bg5 18. Bxg5 Qxg5 19. Nxb7 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Qxe5 21. Bxc6 h5 22. b3 Bg4 23. Rc1 Rc8 {now black is fine because of the counterplay against the white king and because of the pin on the c6 bishop and there are only 2 move to keep a +0.14-0.61 advantage.}) 15... Be6 16. Bd2 $6 {This is not the best place to develop the bishop, it is better to play} (16. f4 g6 17. e5 Bg7 18. b3 {and then Bb2 and the Bishop will be a good piece.}) 16... Rfd8 17. Bc3 $6 {This move allows too many trades which will help me solidify my position and get a draw.} Bxc3 18. Qxc3 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Qxd8 21. b3 Qd6 {Just waiting around in this drawn endgame, but after further analysis, I realized that the best plan was :} (21... Nd7 22. f4 f6 23. h4 Qc7 24. Kh2 Qd6 25. a4 b5 26. axb5 cxb5 27. b4 Nb6 {This was the best plan because I wouldn't have to play passive if I went for this.}) 22. f4 f6 23. Bf1 Qa3 24. Qd2 Qe7 25. Kf2 Bd7 26. Bd3 Be6 27. Kf3 Qd7 28. Qc3 Bf7 29. Bf1 Be6 {So far so good, I've still kept it to a draw.} 30. h4 f5 $2 {I don't want to just sit and wait, but I'm pushing on the side where I'm worse, the kingside, so I shouldn't push f5, I should go} (30... h6 31. g4 Qd6 32. h5 Nd7 33. Bc4 Nf8 34. f5 Bxc4 35. Qxc4+ Kh7 36. Qf7 Nd7 37. Qg6+ Kg8 38. Qe8+ Kh7 39. Qg6+ Kg8 40. Qe8+ Kh7 41. Nc4 Qd3+ 42. Kf4 Qf1+ 43. Kg3 Qd3+ 44. Kf4 b5 45. Qg6+ Kg8 46. Qe8+ Nf8 47. e5 bxc4 48. e6 cxb3 49. axb3 Qd4+ 50. Kg3 Qd6+ 51. Kf3 Qc5 52. e7 Qc3+ 53. Kf4 Qb4+ 54. Ke3 Qxb3+ 55. Kd4 Qb4+ 56. Kd3 Qd6+ {1/2-1/2 I managed to push on the queenside, but he got enough counterplay to get a draw.}) 31. exf5 Bxf5 32. Qe5 $6 {This move doesn't win the a7 pawn, he should have gone;} (32. Qa5 Be6 33. Qxa7 {He wins the pawn and maybe even the game.}) 32... Be6 33. f5 Bf7 34. g4 Nd5 35. Qb8+ Be8 36. Bc4 $6 {This move is not that good because the threat of Bxd5+ and the threat of Qxa7 can easily be solved, better would have been} (36. Qe5 Nxe3 37. Kxe3 h6 38. g5 hxg5 39. hxg5 Qd8 40. f6 Bf7 41. Bd3 gxf6 42. gxf6 Kf8 43. Be4 a5 44. Qc5+ Ke8 {This position can be held, but there are some positions where you have to be really precise to hold on to the draw as black.}) 36... b5 $1 {I deal with the threat of Qxa7, and the threat of Bxd5 or Nxd5 at the same time.} 37. Bxd5+ cxd5 38. Qe5 Bf7 $2 {This move is bad because it allows the idea of Nc2-d4-e6 with a very strong passer after Bxe6,fxe6.} 39. Qd4 $6 {This move is not that good because the queen does nothing on d4 that it doesn't do on e5 except attacking the well defended pawn on a7.} a6 {I move my pawn to a6 to solidify my pawn on b5 and then he has no way to win this endgame because I have only one weakness, the d5 pawn which can't be attacked by more than 2 pieces and it is defended by my Queen on d7 and my Bishop on f7.} 40. b4 h6 41. g5 hxg5 42. hxg5 g6 43. fxg6 {It is a clear draw now because he didn't keep his passer with f6, he went fxg6 possibly miscalculating with like 10 minutes on the clock that I can hold this endgame a pawn down.} (43. f6 {This line is only +1. 42, but it is practically very hard to play this as black.} Qh3+ 44. Kf2 Qh2+ 45. Ng2 Qd6 46. a3 Qc7 47. Nf4 Qd6 48. Kf3 {It is so hard to keep your pieces passive when you see that your opponent will keep on maneuvering in this +1.97 position which I probably couldn't hold.}) 43... Qh3+ 44. Kf2 Bxg6 45. Qxd5+ Bf7 46. Qd8+ Kh7 47. Qe7 Kg8 48. Qd8+ Kh7 49. Qd3+ Bg6 50. Qd4 Qe6 51. Nd5 $2 {Now the g5 pawn is lost, and so are the winning chances for white.} Qf5+ 52. Nf4 Qxg5 53. Qd7+ Kh8 54. Nxg6+ Qxg6 55. Qh3+ Kg8 $1 {I noticed that in the Qg3,Qxg3+,Kxg3 line I will have Kg7 with distant opposition.} (55... Kg7 {This also works, but the defense is harder because it's not a simple distant opposition position..} 56. Qg3 Qxg3+ 57. Kxg3 Kf7 58. Kf3 Ke6 59. Ke4 Kd6 60. Kd4 Kc6 61. Ke5 Kb6 62. Kd6 a5 63. a3 axb4 64. axb4 Ka6 65. Kc6 Ka7 66. Kxb5 Kb7 {and it will be a draw.}) 56. Qg3 Qxg3+ 57. Kxg3 Kg7 {The opposition is here, so no win for white.} 58. Kf4 Kf6 59. Ke4 Ke6 60. Kd4 Kd6 61. a3 Kc6 62. Ke5 Kb6 63. Kd6 a5 64. Kd5 axb4 65. axb4 Ka6 66. Kc6 Ka7 67. Kxb5 Kb7 68. Kc4 Kc6 69. Kb3 Kb5 70. Kc3 Kc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Washington Open, Open section"]
[Site "Redmond"]
[Date "2024.05.27"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Willy, Stephen"]
[Black "Hecht, Robby"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C48"]
[WhiteElo "2219"]
[BlackElo "2081"]
[Annotator "NM Stephen Willy"]
[PlyCount "37"]
[GameId "2066105704530023"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,37,41,49,11,29,21,20,8,12,0,21,36,-5,-13,5,2,-14,46,24,24,34,131,154,151,83,156,54,61,72,166,85,85,-96,475,431,905,1528,29995,29996]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bb5 {Not very interesting... or is it} Nd4 5. Bc4 Nxf3+ 6. gxf3 $5 {Why play Qxf3 when you can play gxf3} Bc5 7. d3 $6 {Rg1 was a better move order now he has some ideas with Nh5} (7. Rg1) 7... c6 8. Rg1 b5 $2 {No need to force my bishop to b3 it was better to keep ideas to play d5 with tempo} (8... g6 {Just safer and more simple in my opinion}) 9. Bb3 O-O {Here is where the fun begins $1} 10. f4 $1 {I don't need to be worried about him having some counterplay strike like d5 here with the bishop on b3 instead of c4.} Qb6 $2 {I can deal with the threat of Bxf2 very simply and now the queen also can't help with defense} (10... exf4) 11. Qf3 exf4 12. e5 {I wanted to kick the knight back and maybe have Ne4 ideas to join the attack in the future} (12. Bxf4 {Computer likes this even better because it prevents him from playing d5 like he did in the game}) 12... Re8 {I feel like there is no need to do this since the f6 knight is bad anyways and if it went to e8 at least it defends g7 and the rook defends f7.} 13. Bxf4 (13. Qxf4 {Just threatening Qxf6 is simpler I don't know why I didn't consider this super seriously} Rxe5+ {Decoy idea since my queen is defending the f2 pawn.} 14. Ne4 {And the threats on f6/f7 are too strong}) 13... d5 $1 {This was his plan with Re8 and I am lucky I haven't thrown away my advantage} 14. O-O-O Nd7 {Puzzle time $1 Find the combination I played that somehow took stockfish some time to fully understand its power.} 15. Rxg7+ $3 {No time to consolidate with Bf8 (that rhymes...)} Kxg7 16. Bh6+ $3 {King cannot take due to mate so I get my bishop in a key positon} Kh8 (16... Kxh6 17. Rg1 $1 {Not a check $1 I must cut the king from going back to the g-file and this is game over}) 17. Rg1 $1 {And this simply forces mate due to 2 key factors. 1. I control the g-file fully. 2. I control the g7 square. And both of those contribute to forced mate. (black resigns)} Bf8 {This move doesn't work due to the g-file} (17... Rg8 18. Rxg8+ Kxg8 19. Qg3+ Kh8 20. Qg7#) (17... Bxf2 18. Bg7+ $1 Kg8 19. Bf6+ $1 {If you don't defend g7 this pattern is the winning idea I saw} Bxg1 (19... Kf8 20. Rg8+ Kxg8 21. Qg4+ Kf8 22. Qg7#) 20. Qg4+ Kf8 21. Qg7#) (17... Nxe5 18. Qf6# $1) 18. Bxf8 Rxf8 (18... Nxf8 19. Qf6#) 19. Qg2 1-0

[Event "WA State Ch. Premier (40/120+30+10s)"]
[Site "Seattle"]
[Date "2023.02.20"]
[Round "9"]
[White "(WFM) Bian, Erin"]
[Black "Zhou, David"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C97"]
[WhiteElo "1994"]
[BlackElo "1963"]
[Annotator "David Zhou"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1r2r1k1/2qbbppp/5n2/2nPN3/p1p1P3/1pP3NP/PP4P1/RBBQ1R1K b - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "13"]
[GameId "2060675048657556"]
[EventDate "2023.02.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,13,-146,171,128,-35,-107,-107,-265,-299,-299,-312,-303,-303,-266,-300]} {[#]} 1... Qxe5 $1 2. Bf4 a3 $3 3. Bxe5 axb2 4. Bc2 bxa1=Q 5. Qxa1 bxc2 6. Bxb8 Rxb8 7. Rc1 Ba4 0-1

[Event "Reykjavik Open"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2024.03.20"]
[Round "8.54"]
[White "(IM) Haldorsen, Benjamin"]
[Black "Zhou, David"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B44"]
[WhiteElo "2426"]
[BlackElo "1954"]
[Annotator "David Zhou"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[GameId "2060674983617165"]
[EventDate "2024.03.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,82,29,25,47,59,65,42,52,43,51,23,48,37,37,16,16,30,41,40,26,44,46,46,93,57,52,48,48,53,28,12,5,5,60,-20,48,33,47,-12,60,43,38,38,44,40,35,26,37,50,39,41,37,25,34,28,11,-24,-17,-21,11,0,0,0,7,-12,-1,-48,0,-14,11,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0] In the 8th round, I faced my strongest opponent of the tournament, an IM with a peak rating of 2477. This was my first time playing an IM in classical time controls and to add to the challenge, I had the black pieces against a player who has assayed nearly every reasonable first move.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Bf4 $5 {My opponent delivers the first surprise of the game. He had previously played several topical lines in both the open and closed Sicilians, but I was already on my own as early as move five.} (5. Nc3 Nf6 6. Bf4 {is a similar new idea that offers White a fresh position.}) 5... Qf6 (5... Qb6 $4 6. Nb5 e5 7. Be3 Qd8 8. N1c3 a6 9. Nd5 $1 {[%cal Ge3b6] is a typical way for Black to immediately lose on the dark squares.}) (5... d6 $5 6. Nb5 (6. Nc3 e5 7. Nxc6 bxc6 $11) (6. Nb3 Nf6 $11 {A Scheveningen position with Bf4 can't be bad for Black.}) 6... e5 7. Be3 Nf6 $11) 6. Be3 Bc5 7. c3 Nge7 $5 {My move invites White to change the character of the position.} 8. Nb5 $5 {White gains a strong outpost on d6 and stifles Black's queenside development, but in exchange, gives up the e5-outpost and central pawn flexibility.} Bxe3 9. Nd6+ Kf8 10. fxe3 Ne5 (10... Ng6 11. Be2 Qe5 12. Na3 $16 {With Nac4 coming next, White retains an iron grip on d6.}) 11. Nd2 h5 $5 {A useful move that supports a later Ng4, helps activate the uncastled kingside rook, and prevents any ideas of g2-g3.} 12. N2c4 $6 {The knight will prove to be unstable on c4.} (12. Nf3 $1 Ng4 (12... N7c6 13. Be2 Nxf3+ 14. gxf3 Qh4+ 15. Kd2 $18 {is an even worse position with queens still on the board.}) (12... Nxf3+ 13. gxf3 Qh4+ 14. Kd2 Nc6 15. Kc2 Qf2+ 16. Qe2 Qxe2+ 17. Bxe2 Ke7 18. Rad1 $18 {is a very tough endgame for Black after White's doubled pawns have been fixed.}) 13. Qd2 Qh6 14. Ke2 h4 (14... Nc6 $2 15. h3 $18) 15. h3 Nf6 $132 {Black retains good counterplay on the dark squares despite White's strong outpost.}) 12... N7c6 13. Qd2 $2 (13. Be2 Nxc4 $1 (13... Qg5 $6 14. O-O (14. Qd2 Qxg2 15. O-O-O Nxc4 16. Nxc4 Qxe4 17. Qd6+ Kg8 18. h4 $1 $44 {Despite Black's two extra pawns, his path to completing development remains unclear. In the meantime, White has easy moves to increase pressure on Black's king.}) 14... f6 (14... Ke7 $2 {[%cal Gd6f5]} 15. Nf5+ $1 $18) 15. Rf4 h4 {Black will struggle to develop his queenside, but he is not without counterplay on the kingside.}) 14. Bxc4 Qh4+ $1 {provoking a weakening of the light squares and a hook for a future h5-h4 before pivoting to the queenside.} 15. g3 Qd8 16. Rf1 f6 17. Qd2 Qc7 18. O-O-O Ke7 19. Nb5 Qb8 $11 {Black's king may look vulnerable on e7, but his excellent control of the dark squares and the outpost on e5 offer him a very solid position.}) 13... Qh4+ $1 14. Kd1 {The only move. Any queen trade will allow Black to comfortably park his king on e7 and slowly develop the queenside.} Ng4 15. Kc2 (15. g3 $5 {An engine move that attempts to counter Black's main idea on the next move. However, it is difficult to weaken one's own kingside and give Black counterplay with h5-h4. The struggle remains highly dynamic after} Qg5 16. h3 b5 $1 17. hxg4 bxc4 18. Bxc4 Ne5 19. Be2 Nxg4) 15... b5 $3 {The star move of the game without which Black's queen and knight sortie would simply be beaten back with a quick Be2 and Rf1. Black's main goal is to achieve Qh4-f2 without allowing White to avoid the trade of queens.} (15... Qf2 $2 {accomplishes nothing after} 16. Be2 $18) 16. Na3 (16. Nxb5 $2 Nf2 17. g3 Qxe4+ 18. Bd3 Qxd3+ 19. Qxd3 Nxd3 20. Kxd3 d5 $1 $17) (16. g3 $5 {My opponent spent nearly 30 minutes trying to make tactics work in this line, but it would have been more effective a move prior.} Qg5 17. h4 (17. h3 Nf6 18. Na3 a6 19. Bg2 Ne5 20. Raf1 Ne8 $1 $17 {If White does not voluntarily exchange knights, Black will break the blockade with Ke7 next.}) 17... Qc5 18. b4 Nxb4+ 19. cxb4 Qc6 20. e5 bxc4 21. Bg2 Qa4+ $19 {is a sample line that my opponent was looking at that we discussed in post mortem.}) 16... Qf2 {The safe and simple approach. Black's position willl be more comfortable after queens come off.} (16... a6 $5 {leaves Black with active pieces, but allows White to keep queens on the board.}) 17. Naxb5 $6 (17. Bxb5 {It made more sense to activate White's last piece.} Nxe3+ 18. Kc1 Qxd2+ 19. Kxd2 Ng4 (19... Nxg2 $4 {Taking the pawn will lead to trouble.} 20. Raf1 f6 21. Bxc6 dxc6 22. Nxc8 Rxc8 23. Rhg1 Nh4 24. Rf4 $18) 20. Bxc6 dxc6 21. h3 Ne5 22. Nac4 $11) 17... Nxe3+ (17... Ke7 $1 {A highly-instructive move that makes clear that White has no good way to improve his position or avoid the queen trade.} 18. Be2 Nxe3+ 19. Kc1 f6 $17) 18. Kc1 Ng4 $5 (18... Qxd2+ 19. Kxd2 Ng4 20. Be2 Nge5 $15 {is also very comfortable.}) 19. Be2 Qe3 (19... Qxg2 {My opponent thought I could take this pawn, but I didn't seriously consider it as the game quickly enters far more double-edged territory.} 20. Rf1 Nce5 21. Nc7 Rb8 22. Nxe6+ dxe6 23. Nxf7 Qxf1+ 24. Bxf1 Nxf7 $1 (24... Kxf7 $2 25. h3 Nf6 26. Qf4 $18) 25. Qd4 $1 {Black's lack of coordination and weak king provide White great chances despite the nominal material deficit.}) 20. h3 Qxd2+ 21. Kxd2 Nge5 22. Ke3 (22. g3 $6 {This strategically desirable move, preventing Black from fixing the kingside pawns as weaknesses, wastes a valuable tempo and allows Black to break the blockade on d6.} Ke7 23. Rad1 a6 24. Nc7 Ra7 25. Nxc8+ Rxc8 26. Nxa6 Rca8 27. Nc5 Rxa2 $15) 22... h4 $5 23. b4 Ke7 24. Rhd1 Ba6 (24... a5 $5 {My opponent was concerned about this move, but it allows him to immediately force a repetition.} 25. Nc7 (25. Nxc8+ $6 {This attempt to play on leads to trouble.} Rhxc8 26. Nd6 Rc7 27. b5 Nd8 (27... Na7 $1 {is even more accurate, with the point that} 28. b6 {is met by} Rxc3+ 29. Kd4 Rc2 30. bxa7 Kxd6 $1 $19) 28. a4 Rb8 $19 {[%cal Gb8b6] My opponent correctly assessed in this position that his protected passer is securely blocked and that I'll soon break the blockade on d6.}) 25... Ra7 26. Ncb5 Ra8 27. Nc7 $11) 25. a4 Rh6 26. Rab1 {Freeing the c-pawn to advance.} (26. Nxa7 $5 Rxa7 27. b5 Rg6 28. Kf2 Rg3 29. bxa6 Ra8 30. Rac1 g5 $11 {It's difficult for either side to make active plans here.}) 26... Rg6 27. Kf2 Rg3 28. c4 Rb8 $1 {White is nearly in zugzwang, but both players were approaching time trouble at this point with a dozen moves to go.} 29. c5 Bb7 $6 (29... g5 $1 {This is another instructive squeezing move that highlights White's lack of active plans.}) 30. Nd4 Nxd4 {After this exchange, we were both down to less than five minutes to make the remaining ten moves.} 31. Rxd4 Ba8 32. b5 $6 Rc3 33. b6 Bc6 $2 {With only a few minutes to make time control, I miss a simple tactic to reach a technically winning endgame.} (33... axb6 $1 34. cxb6 (34. Rxb6 Rf8 $17 {or any other rook move; c5 will fall next.}) 34... Rc6 {I missed this fork, picking up a pawn.} 35. Nc4 Nxc4 36. Rxc4 Rcxb6 37. Rxb6 Rxb6 38. a5 Rb2 $19) 34. Nb5 Rxc5 $2 (34... Bxb5 $1 {Having missed the simpler win on move 33, I was unlikely to find this more hidden win.} 35. Rxb5 a6 36. Rb2 Rxc5 37. Bxa6 Nc6 $1 $19 {The point is that after the rook retreats, Rc5-a5 will force the win of one of the queenside pawns.}) 35. Nxa7 Ra5 36. Nxc6+ Nxc6 {The dust has settled and White's connected passers are firmly blockaded, however, Black has no realistic plan to apply any further pressure on them.} (36... dxc6 $1 {is another way to keep the game going. White's pawns are firmly blockaded and he must contend with ideas of Nd7 and Kd8-c8-b7, attempting to win the b-pawn. A sample line if White decides to sit still is:} 37. Rdb4 Nd7 38. Ke3 Kd8 39. Bd3 Kc8 40. Be2 Kb7 41. Bd3 Rba8 $17) 37. Rc4 Ne5 38. Rcb4 Nc6 39. Rc4 Ne5 40. Rcb4 Nc6 {Having made the time control, I realized there were no more winning chances to pursue.} 41. Rc4 Ne5 {With this draw, I ended the Reykjavik Open with my personal best rating performance to date (over 2300 against an average opposition of 2200) and the prize for third highest performance of the tournament.} (41... f6 $5 {My opponent thought that I should continue to play on without risk, but I didn't see how I would create any real play.} 42. Ke3 Ne5 43. Rcb4 Kd8 44. Kf2 {White will always have a timely check when Black tries to cross the c-file.} Kc8 45. Rc1+ Kd8 46. Rcb1 $11) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Reykjavik Open"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2024.03.21"]
[Round "9.83"]
[White "Pisan, Kai"]
[Black "Stenzel, Thomas"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E62"]
[WhiteElo "1897"]
[BlackElo "2175"]
[Annotator "Kai Pisan"]
[PlyCount "157"]
[GameId "2060675143852706"]
[EventDate "2024.03.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,157,19,25,29,-11,47,12,19,35,31,26,34,27,37,33,51,43,87,29,56,53,56,7,29,14,8,-29,3,-3,-8,-1,7,0,-20,-14,-11,-17,-24,-32,-9,-11,-6,-33,-40,-48,21,-79,-81,-87,-71,-45,-78,-75,-55,-100,-102,-119,-130,-132,-147,-164,-157,-173,-172,-172,-172,-197,-160,-182,-177,-177,-170,-150,-140,-158,-154,-154,-85,-85,-105,-123,-71,-86,-31,-33,-27,-58,-54,-99,-91,-91,-98,-93,-93,-117,-116,-311,-133,-167,-70,-102,-84,-93,-93,-88,-86,-79,-68,-75,-76,-72,-64,-67,-61,-55,-37,-67,-55,-57,-45,-51,-46,-37,-34,-37,-34,-56,-46,-48,-34,-37,-27,-51,-42,-39,-36,-27,-28,-2,0,-38,12,-27,-34,-34,56,57,341,347,352,355,352,361,363,362,366,370,366,351] Annotated by Kai Pisan. This was the last round of the Reykjavik Open tournament, held in Iceland. All the games were played with a time control of 90 minutes, 30 second increment and a special delay of 30 minutes on the 40th move. So far, I had a score of 4/8 and was gaining 20 FIDE rating points. Going into the final round I was rated 1897 and I recall my opponent being about 2100. This game was a must win for me, because I would get 33 rating and achieve 1950. This mattered for a future tournament I wanted to play in. I hope you enjoy the analysis!} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 d6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. Nc3 O-O 6. Nf3 c6 7. e4 Qa5 $5 {The first move away from my theoretical knowledge. I expected...} (7... Bg4 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Bxf3 {...with an attacking game ahead.}) 8. O-O Qh5 9. Nd2 $6 {Better was...} (9. e5 dxe5 10. Nxe5 Qxd1 11. Rxd1 {Where white has a significantly better position.}) 9... e5 10. dxe5 dxe5 11. a3 Na6 12. b4 Nc7 13. Bb2 Rd8 {I had to trade queens here and the engine agrees, giving a slight advantage to black with other moves. Previously, I hoped for black to trade and activate one of my rooks.} 14. Qxh5 Nxh5 15. Rfd1 Be6 16. b5 $6 {This is a very dubious move by me. I was trying to open up the position, but in doing so went against some of the plans in these structures. It was important to wait with something like...} (16. Bf1 {...but I was impatient.}) 16... Bh6 {The best move and causing practical problems. I was lucky I had the following sequence of moves.} 17. Nf3 f6 18. Bf1 Bf8 19. Kg2 {The struggle here was finding a plan for white. I didn't see any easy way, without conceding something to black.} Ng7 20. a4 Bf7 21. Ne1 Nge6 22. Nc2 Nd4 23. Rac1 Nce6 $15 {This position is very hard to play for white and black is better. I had come to terms with defending the position for a while.} 24. Ne3 Rd7 25. Ne2 Rad8 26. Nxd4 exd4 27. Ng4 Bg7 {Even though the position is more simplified, my pieces are still badly placed and pushed back.} 28. f3 Nc5 29. Ra1 f5 30. exf5 gxf5 31. Nf2 d3 32. Bxg7 Kxg7 33. Rac1 Rd4 $17 {My opponent is doing a great job converting the advantage and the computer is showing -2 on depth 25. This, of course, is a human game though, so he still must play accurately.} 34. bxc6 bxc6 35. Rc3 Bxc4 36. a5 R8d7 37. Nh3 Na4 38. Ra3 Nb2 39. Rd2 Rb7 40. Nf4 Kf6 41. Kf2 Ba6 42. Rc3 $17 Bc4 $2 {This move throws away most of the advantage for black and doesn't have any clear follow-up.} 43. Ke3 $2 {My move gives all the advantage back, but from a human perspective I think it's reasonable. Black is still much better.} c5 44. Nxd3 Re7+ 45. Kf2 Nxd3+ 46. Bxd3 Red7 47. Ke3 $19 {This is almost -3 and the position is simple enough to be relatively easily converted into a win for black.} Ba6 $2 {A serious mistake by black that allows Bxf5! and fighting chances for white.} 48. Bxa6 $4 {A massive blunder by me, -5 evaluation. During the game, I thought c4 was a threat and completely missed Bxf5.} Rxd2 $6 {This move still holds the advantage, but my coach pointed out when reviewing the game that the position was still complex. Although after...} (48... Re7+ $1 {...more easily converts the game.}) 49. Rxc5 Rxh2 $4 {A blunder by my opponent that brings this back and forth game to equal.} 50. Bd3 f4+ 51. gxf4 h5 52. Rc6+ Kg7 53. Rg6+ Kf8 54. Rh6 h4 55. f5 Ra2 56. Be4 Rxa5 57. Rxh4 $10 {The computer is showing a dead draw on depth 46. Practically speaking, only white has chances here. In the game, I remember thinking this was a draw and I wouldn't be able to win, so I offered two draws about ten moves apart.} Rd6 58. Rh8+ Kg7 59. Ra8 Ra1 60. Kf4 Rd7 61. Kg5 Rg1+ 62. Kf4 Kf7 63. Bc2 Rc7 64. Be4 Rd7 65. Bc2 Ke7 66. Ke5 Re1+ 67. Be4 Kf7 68. Rh8 $10 {There was lots of shuffling by both sides. I think my opponent was also struggling to realize that this wasn't winning for him.} Re7+ 69. Kf4 Kg7 70. Ra8 Rh1 71. Kg5 Rg1+ 72. Kf4 Rg2 73. Bd5 Rd2 $4 {The decisive mistake by him and the first time in the game I was much better (+5).} 74. Rg8+ Kh7 75. f6 {This position is too simple for me to mess up and I had plenty of time.} Rd4+ 76. Kg3 Rd7 77. f7 Rxf7 78. Bxf7 Rd1 (78... Rd7 {This would have been a better try by him, but ultimately the same result.}) 79. Ra8 {1-0 White wins. With this unexpected win, I gained 33 FIDE rating and got to 1950. This qualified me for a subsequent tournament's higher section. Overall, a very back and forth game that ended my tournament on a spectacular note.} 1-0

[Event "Reykjavik Open"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2024.03.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Shivika, Rohilla"]
[Black "Wong-Godfrey, Emerson"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E90"]
[WhiteElo "2003"]
[BlackElo "1799"]
[Annotator "Emerson Wong-Godfrey"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[GameId "2060675098960539"]
[EventDate "2024.03.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,62,39,36,23,-19,43,31,32,26,36,36,32,41,44,14,22,28,23,22,23,2,43,-1,37,16,-17,-28,-19,-21,-15,-39,-30,-48,-35,-19,-8,-5,-4,0,44,55,58,52,30,13,66,0,-13,-10,-36,-184,-206,-190,-207,-206,-221,-637,-724,-724,-767,-795,-808,-811,-816] This tournament was probably the best tournament I have ever had, having 5/9 and a performance of over 2100. I also got a chance to play the famous streamer and chess celebrity Dina Belenkaya. This game was the best game I played in the tournament. I was playing black against a WFM in round 8 of the Reykjavik Open. I hope you enjoy!} 1. Nf3 {I prepped against my opponent before this tournament and I saw that she played many different openings in the past, such as d4 and e4 and Nf3. I decided it wasn't worth my time to prepare all of these openings and just play some chess.} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 {Rats! My opponent had forced me to play into a KID, a defense I have never even played before. Well, this will be interesting.} d6 5. d4 O-O 6. h3 Nbd7 7. Be3 e5 8. d5 a5 9. a3 b6 $6 $146 {My point with pushing my pawn to b6 is to—at some point— have a reasonable place to develop my light squared bishop, but this plan is too slow.} 10. b4 $2 (10. g4 $1 {A prophylactic move! Black's dreams of playing f5 one day is severely crushed. White has many plans of rolling the pawns and starting a decisive attack.} a4 11. Nd2 Nc5 12. f3 Nfd7 13. h4 {And white is ready to begin the attack.}) 10... Ne8 11. g3 f5 12. Bg2 Ndf6 13. b5 $2 {Personally, I think this deserves a question mark because white locks up the queenside, which was a place to counterattack black's kingside advance. Furthermore, white opens up a possible outpost on c5 that can be used in the future.} Nxe4 14. Nxe4 fxe4 15. Ng5 Nf6 16. g4 Bd7 17. Nxe4 $2 $17 {The first big error.} (17. Ne6 $1 {Waiting to take the pawn was a better choice. After} Bxe6 18. dxe6 Qe7 19. g5 $1 Nh5 20. Bxe4 Rae8 21. h4 {It is now clear that white is the one with the advantage. The light-squared bishop is deadly, and the pawn cannot be taken because of Bd5! winning the queen and the game.}) 17... Nxe4 18. Bxe4 Qh4 $1 {The only move to maintain the advantage in this position. Black is now threatening to play a positional masterpiece.} 19. Qd2 Rf4 $3 {We sacrifice THE ROOK!!} 20. Bxf4 exf4 {Now the dark-squared bishop has opened its eyes on the long diagonal.} 21. Ra2 {Also possible was:} (21. O-O-O Qf6 $1 22. Bb1 Rf8 23. a4 Qa1 24. Qa2 Qc3+ 25. Bc2 $17 f3 {The dynamic play between the dark-squared bishop and the queen is worth more than the exchange.}) 21... Re8 22. Qe2 h5 23. Kf1 Bf5 $3 {Yet another sacrifice!} 24. gxf5 gxf5 25. Rg1 $4 {White now crumbles. Being low on time and having to defend an unstoppable attack, it is understandable to make mistakes. Yet this one decides. Some other possible moves were:} (25. Bf3 $1 Rxe2 26. Rxe2 a4 27. Re6 Bf6 28. Rg1+ Kh7 29. Ke1 Bc3+ 30. Ke2 Bd4 $10) (25. f3 $6 {A slight inaccuracy, but still possible.} fxe4 26. Rg1 (26. fxe4 $4 f3 $1 $19) 26... Kf8 27. Qg2 Qf6 28. fxe4 f3 29. Qd2 Rxe4 $13) 25... Qxh3+ 26. Bg2 Rxe2 27. Bxh3 Rxa2 28. Bxf5 f3 $1 {White not only loses the pawn on a3, but loses the rook, and with that, the game.} 29. Be6+ Kf8 {0-1 Black wins. White resigned in view of} 30. Ke1 Ra1+ 31. Kd2 Rxg1 $19 0-1

[Event "Reykjavik Open"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2024.03.15"]
[Round "1.123"]
[White "Seshadri, Sridhar"]
[Black "Signoli, Benjamin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D05"]
[WhiteElo "1458"]
[BlackElo "1883"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[GameId "2060680765636790"]
[EventDate "2024.03.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,67,25,26,13,20,5,-16,15,-13,-19,-48,-22,-8,6,-25,-25,-16,-10,-32,-31,-45,7,-8,32,29,41,50,37,32,58,48,37,0,2,0,21,-27,-17,-28,-20,-18,-18,-16,35,35,70,51,48,58,71,101,107,81,60,19,29981,29982,29983,29984,29985,29986,29989,29990,29993,29994,29995,29996,29999,29999]} 1. d4 d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Bd3 c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Nd2 $6 e6 $6 ({White's rather passive treatment of the opening, mostly deferring the development Nf3 or choosing a system with f4 here on move five, allows Black to take the central initiative with} 5... e5 $1) 6. Ngf3 Bd6 7. h3 Qc7 8. O-O O-O 9. e4 cxd4 10. cxd4 dxe4 11. Nxe4 Be7 12. Bg5 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Bxg5 14. Nxg5 g6 15. Bxc6 Qxc6 16. Qb3 b6 17. Rac1 Qd6 18. Rfd1 Bb7 19. Qe3 Qd5 20. f3 Qxa2 21. Rc7 Bd5 $6 ({Black must challenge the knight with} 21... h6 {, when something like} 22. Rxb7 hxg5 23. d5 $5 (23. Qxg5 {is also possible.}) 23... exd5 24. Qxg5 Qxb2 25. Rxd5 {gives White activity for the pawn.}) 22. Qf4 Qa4 $4 ({Black had to accept inferiority here after} 22... e5 23. Qh4 $1 h5 24. dxe5) 23. Rdc1 $4 {We'll explain the punctuation on these two moves at the end of the game.} e5 24. Qxe5 Qb3 25. R1c3 Qd1+ 26. Kh2 Rad8 27. Qf6 h6 $4 (27... Rde8 $14) 28. Nxf7 $3 Bxf7 29. Rxf7 Rxf7 30. Qxd8+ Kg7 31. Rc8 g5 32. Qh8+ Kg6 33. Rc6+ Kf5 34. Qe5# {A nice tactic to complete the 400-point upset victory. Looking back at move 23, White missed a similar tactical stunner with 23.Nxf7!! Qxd1+ (23...Qe8 24.Nh6+ Kh8 25.Qe5+) 24.Kh2, and Black cannot avoid mate.} 1-0

[Event "Intermat 33rd"]
[Site "Redmond"]
[Date "2024.04.20"]
[Round "1.25"]
[White "Yu, Jason"]
[Black "Harms, Reece"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C58"]
[WhiteElo "2247"]
[BlackElo "1949"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[GameId "2057140994293868"]
[EventDate "2024.04.20"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]
[WhiteTeam "WA"]
[BlackTeam "BC"]

{[%evp 0,55,19,38,25,16,14,14,10,-17,9,0,-1,-16,9,13,13,-7,110,119,188,107,194,43,174,95,198,205,205,209,209,209,168,133,171,175,175,175,171,189,187,172,174,164,151,77,129,349,377,520,684,689,691,697,703,703,717,747]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 {The Two Knights Defense.} 4. Ng5 {Historically, this and 4.d4 were the most common ways to go for White. Nowadays, White tends to essay the more conservative 4.d3, transposing into a very quiet Giuoco Piano (or Pianissimo), and in fact this seems to be the main way to reach these positions, rather than the formerly standard 3...Bc5. However, they all tend to meld back into each other, showing remarkable subtleties revolving around the exact placement of pawns and pieces on both wings. What I would like to rant about here, though, is the current rage of claiming 4.Ng5 is the Fried Liver Attack. This is historically incorrect. The Fried Liver only arises after 4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5?? when White sacrifices 6.Nxf7! with a big attack. There are many other named variations surrounding 4.Ng5 that are quite separate from the blunder that leads to the Fried Liver.} d5 5. exd5 Na5 $1 ({I believe this main line is called the Polerio Defense. Other interesting attempts include} 5... Nd4 {, the Fritz Variation, possibly continuing} 6. c3 b5 7. Bf1 Nxd5 {,}) ({and} 5... b5 {The Ulvestad, though due to possible transpositions, these latter two are sometimes combined as the Fritz/Ulvestad. White should not take the pawn, instead continuing} 6. Bf1 (6. Bxb5 Qxd5 {seems fine for Black.}) 6... h6 {.}) 6. Bb5+ c6 7. dxc6 bxc6 8. Qf3 $5 ({More popular are retreats such as} 8. Be2 h6 9. Nf3 (9. Nh3 $5) 9... e4 10. Ne5) ({or} 8. Bd3 Nd5 9. Nf3 Bd6 10. O-O {.}) 8... cxb5 $5 ({The most common move for Black here is} 8... Rb8 {when} 9. Bd3 h6 10. Ne4 Nd5 11. b3 g6 12. Qg3 $14 {is complex, but perhaps slightly preferable for White.}) ({Simple development with} 8... Be7 9. Bd3 ({After the greedy} 9. Bxc6+ Nxc6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qf3 O-O 12. d3 {, Black takes the initiative with something like} Ng4 13. Nh3 (13. Ne4 f5 14. Nec3 e4 $1) 13... Rc8 14. Nc3 Rc6 {, which is certainly more fun to play with Black, despite White's two extra pawns.}) 9... O-O {is not at all bad for Black, however. The consensus in most of these Two Knights variations with 4.Ng5 is that Black is at least equal and possibly slightly better, having more than adequate compensation for the pawn. Here White's development lags, and it's hard to coordinate against Black's activity.}) 9. Qxa8 Qc7 10. O-O ({Run away!} 10. Qf3 {.}) 10... Nc6 11. Nc3 a6 $6 (11... Be7 $1 12. Nxb5 Qd7 {, and faced with the threat of ...0-0 and trapping the queen on a8, White will need to do something radical.} 13. Nxa7 Nxa7 14. Qf3 Nc6 {leaves two pieces against rook and three pawns. Here the pawns are not yet particularly threatening, and Black's activity suggests the position favors the pieces -- but there's still a battle.}) 12. d4 exd4 $2 (12... Bd6 {seems necessary, with complex and roughly balanced chances.} 13. d5 (13. dxe5 Bxe5 (13... Nxe5 14. Nge4 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Be7 16. Nc3 $16 {White's queen will find safety, and the extra exchange matters.}) 14. Nge4 Nxe4 15. Nd5 Qb7 16. Qxb7 Bxb7 17. Re1 f5 18. f3 Nd4 $15 {does not seem navigable by a human over the board for either side.}) 13... Nd4 14. Nge4 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 O-O 16. Nxd6 Qxd6 17. Qa7 {and Stockfish calls this dead equal.}) 13. Bf4 $1 Qd7 14. Nce4 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Be7 ({Stockfish suggests avoiding White's next move with} 15... f5 16. Ng5 Be7 17. Rfe1 h6 18. Ne6 $16 {, though White still stands clearly better at the end.}) 16. Bd6 $1 O-O 17. Bxe7 Nxe7 18. Qb8 Qc6 19. Qe5 Nf5 20. Rfe1 Qxc2 ({White's queen has escaped the trap, and now the extra exchange should win. If} 20... h6 {, simply} 21. Qc5 {with near total board control, so Black chooses to grab some pawns.}) 21. Rac1 Qxb2 22. Ng5 ({Or} 22. Ng3 $1 Nxg3 (22... g6 23. Ne4) 23. Rxc8 $18) 22... Qb4 23. a3 $1 ({Distracting the queen. Also strong is the (perhaps unnecessarily) complicated} 23. Nxf7 $1 h6 (23... Kxf7 24. Rc7+ Kg8 (24... Kg6 25. g4) 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Qe6+ {and mates shortly.}) 24. Rc7 d3 (24... Kh7 25. Qe4 $18) 25. Nxh6+ $1 gxh6 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Qe6+ Kg7 28. Qd7+ Kg6 29. Re6+ Kg5 {, and now} 30. h4+ $1 Kxh4 (30... Qxh4 31. Qxc8 {is similarly winning due to the exposed black king.}) 31. Qxc8 d2 32. Qd8+ (32. g3+ Nxg3 33. Qd8+ Kh3 34. Rxh6+ Kg4 35. Rh4+ {may be even faster.}) 32... Kg4 33. f3+ Kf4 34. Qb8+ Kg5 35. Qg8+ Kh4 36. Qd8+ Kg3 37. Rg6+ Kf4 38. Rg4+ Ke5 39. Rxb4 $18) 23... Qd2 (23... Qxa3 24. Rxc8 h6 25. Qxf5 hxg5 26. Qd7 $18) 24. Nf3 Qa5 25. Rxc8 Qxe1+ 26. Nxe1 Rxc8 27. Qxf5 Rc1 28. Kf1 1-0

[Event "Intermat 33rd"]
[Site "Redmond"]
[Date "2024.04.20"]
[Round "2.25"]
[White "Imoo, Joshua"]
[Black "Yu, Jason"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "1694"]
[BlackElo "2247"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[GameId "2057140994416774"]
[EventDate "2024.04.20"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]
[WhiteTeam "BC"]
[BlackTeam "WA"]

{[%evp 0,98,19,38,25,16,14,14,11,24,-5,1,13,10,36,-7,12,-13,-11,-13,4,-17,70,63,40,-6,24,12,12,13,12,0,0,0,0,7,12,-53,13,0,4,8,0,-85,-72,-48,-48,-42,-42,-37,-38,-30,-30,-32,-49,-44,-56,-66,-73,-84,-103,-103,-102,-136,-68,-132,-142,-155,-151,-150,-143,-153,-149,-152,-156,-155,-154,-155,-146,-189,-216,-268,-369,-341,-367,-363,-394,-427,-484,-607,-647,-667,-676,-824,-864,-1021,-1055,-1130,-1273,-29999,-29999]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d3 Nf6 5. c3 a6 6. O-O d6 7. Bb3 h6 8. Nbd2 Ba7 9. h3 ({Creating a hook for Black to leverage.} 9. Re1 g5 (9... Ng4 10. Re2) (9... O-O 10. Nf1 $14 {heads back into normal lines.}) 10. Nf1 g4 11. N3d2 {is roughly equal.}) 9... g5 $1 {Black takes advantage of a highly transpositional move order to expand on the kingside instead of the standard idea of kingside castling. The engine approves.} 10. Nh2 g4 11. hxg4 Rg8 12. g5 Rxg5 ({Or} 12... hxg5 $1 {, eventually advancing the new g-pawn toward g3 to create more kingside weaknesses.}) 13. Ndf3 Rh5 14. Be3 Ng4 $1 15. Nxg4 Bxg4 16. Bxa7 Rxa7 ({Interestingly, Black doesn't need to recapture this piece right away! Instead,} 16... Qf6 $1 17. Bd5 (17. Be3 O-O-O $1 18. Re1 Rg8 19. Kf1 Rh1+ 20. Ke2 Rh2 $1 21. Rg1 Rxg2 $1 {and Black collects interest on the investment.}) 17... O-O-O 18. Re1 (18. Bxc6 Bxf3 19. Bxb7+ (19. Qxf3 Qxf3 20. gxf3 Rg8#) 19... Kxb7 20. Qb3+ Kxa7 21. Qc4 Rc8 {and the threat of ...Qg6xg2# can't be stopped by g3 or Kf1 due to ...Rh1#.}) 18... Rg8 19. Re3 {and only now} Nxa7 $17 {.}) 17. Re1 Qf6 18. Qe2 Bxf3 19. Qxf3 Qxf3 20. gxf3 Ne7 21. Kf1 $2 ({White must act quickly in the center before Black locks things down with his knight outposting on f4.} 21. f4 $1 Ng6 $1 (21... exf4 $6 22. Kg2 Rg5+ 23. Kf3 Ng6 24. Rh1 h5 25. Rag1 Rxg1 26. Rxg1 {and White has well-coordinated, active pieces to compensate for a weak extra black pawn.}) 22. fxe5 dxe5 23. d4 Nf4 $15 {and while not completely thrilled with the position, White has at least avoided the worst of the cramp.}) 21... Ng6 22. Ke2 Nf4+ 23. Kd2 Rh3 $6 ({Black misses an opportunity to force White to misplace a rook.} 23... Rh2 24. Rf1 (24. Ke3 Ng2+) 24... Ke7 25. d4 h5 26. Ke3 h4 $17) 24. Bd1 $2 (24. Rg1 $5 {aims for activity to compensate for the offered pawns. Is it enough?} Rxf3 (24... Kf8 25. Rg3 Rh2 26. Ke3 $13) 25. Rg7 Rxd3+ (25... Rxf2+ 26. Ke3 Re2+ 27. Kf3 Rxb2 28. Rh1 $13) 26. Kc2 Rf3 27. Bxf7+ Kf8 28. Rh7 Rxf2+ 29. Kb3 Rg2 $15 {and Stockfish suggests Black is ahead by about half a pawn. A quick count shows two extra pawns, suggesting there's significant compensation. Perhaps this was White's best chance to mix it up.} (29... c6 30. Rg1 Rg2 31. Rxg2 Nxg2 32. Be6 $13)) 24... Rh2 25. Rf1 Ke7 26. Ke3 Ra8 27. Bb3 Rg8 28. Rh1 Rxh1 29. Rxh1 h5 30. d4 h4 31. d5 c6 32. c4 $2 ({Better to wait with} 32. Kd2 Rg2 33. Ke3 $17 {.}) 32... cxd5 33. exd5 f5 (33... Rc8 $5 {ties the bishop to the defense of the c-pawn for awhile.}) 34. Bc2 Kf6 35. Bd3 h3 36. b3 Kg5 37. Bf1 Kh4 38. Bd3 $2 ({Allowing a decisive simplification. Sometimes you just need to wait passively.} 38. Kd2 Rc8 39. Rh2 b6 40. Rh1 a5 41. Rh2 {is a computer line, with Stockfish claiming a two-pawn advantage for Black after} Kg5 42. Rh1 Rh8 43. Rh2 Rg8 {. Sure, Black's position looks great... but, how to make progress? That is far from clear.}) 38... Nxd3 $1 39. Kxd3 Rg2 40. Ke3 ({White can make things more exciting with} 40. c5 {, but it doesn't change the evaluation.} dxc5 41. Kc4 (41. d6 Rg6 $1) 41... Rxf2 42. Kxc5 (42. Rd1 Rc2+ 43. Kd3 Rxa2 44. d6 Rg2 45. d7 Rg8 46. Ke3 (46. Kc4 Rd8 47. Kxc5 Kg3 48. Kd6 h2 49. Ke7 Rh8 50. d8=Q Rxd8 51. Kxd8 Kxf3 $19) 46... Rd8 47. Kf2 Kg5 48. Kg3 Kf6 49. Rd5 Ke6 50. Rxc5 Rxd7 $19) 42... h2 43. Kd6 Kg3 44. Kxe5 Kxf3 45. d6 Kg2 $19) 40... h2 41. c5 dxc5 42. d6 Kh3 43. d7 Rg8 44. Rd1 Kg2 45. f4 e4 46. Ke2 h1=Q 47. d8=Q Rxd8 48. Rxd8 Qf1+ 49. Ke3 (49. Kd2 Qxf2+) 49... Qe1# 0-1

[Event "76th Idaho Open"]
[Site "Pocatello, ID"]
[Date "2024.06.22"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Hunter, Tanner"]
[Black "McKenzie, Niall"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "1304"]
[BlackElo "1832"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[GameId "2062174506840130"]
[EventDate "2024.06.22"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,86,19,31,14,-14,-11,-21,2,7,22,9,1,-2,7,-1,5,26,12,16,13,5,21,27,26,0,31,-2,-9,-24,-4,-148,-31,-30,-32,-32,-18,-34,12,14,3,8,11,8,8,-2,0,4,0,-22,4,-20,26,10,45,11,22,27,21,10,15,16,12,10,32,31,51,12,60,33,26,25,37,25,19,35,12,9,9,0,68,-6,0,0,0,0,0,-676,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ (4... Be7) ({and} 4... Qe7 {are more popular choices.}) 5. Qxd2 O-O (5... d5) 6. Bg2 d5 7. Nf3 b6 (7... Nbd7 8. O-O b6 (8... c6 {heads in a different direction.}) 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Nc3 {could transpose.}) 8. cxd5 exd5 9. O-O Nbd7 10. Nc3 Bb7 11. Rac1 Ne4 12. Nxe4 (12. Qf4 $5 $14) 12... dxe4 13. Ng5 {Ne1-c2-e3 was an interesting alternative.} Nf6 14. e3 (14. Qf4 $5) 14... Rc8 (14... c5 $5) 15. Bh3 $2 (15. Nh3 $13) 15... Rb8 $6 ({A missed opportunity based on the lack of retreat squares for the knight on g5:} 15... h6 $1 16. Bxc8 Qxc8 {, and Black wins material.}) 16. Bg2 h6 17. Nh3 Qd6 18. Nf4 Rbd8 19. Qc2 Rd7 20. a3 Re8 21. Bh3 Rde7 22. Bg2 Nd5 23. Nxd5 Bxd5 24. Qe2 c6 25. Rc3 b5 26. Rfc1 Qf6 27. Qc2 a6 28. a4 Qd6 29. axb5 axb5 30. Ra3 Rb7 31. Rca1 Rbb8 32. Ra7 Qf8 33. Bh3 Red8 $6 (33... Re7) 34. Bd7 (34. Bf5 $14 {could reach the game position with an extra move for White:} Re8 (34... Qe8 35. Qc5 $14) 35. Bd7 Red8 {, and it's now White's move, with the option to try 36.Rc1 or 36.Qc5.}) 34... Qd6 35. Bf5 Re8 36. Rd7 Qf6 37. Bh3 Ra8 38. Raa7 Rxa7 39. Rxa7 Re7 40. Qc5 Rxa7 41. Qxa7 Qf3 42. Qa8+ Kh7 43. Bd7 $4 ({White makes a potentially fatal last-second blunder.} 43. Qa1 {is entirely safe.}) 43... Z0 $4 ({Apparently Black was satisfied with the draw here. Better, of course, would have been} 43... Qd1+ 44. Kg2 Bc4 {which shortly forces mate:} 45. Bf5+ g6 46. Bxg6+ Kg7 $19) 1/2-1/2

[Event "76th Idaho Open"]
[Site "Pocatello, ID"]
[Date "2024.06.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "McKenzie, Niall"]
[Black "Fritchen, Zach"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B51"]
[WhiteElo "1832"]
[BlackElo "1762"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[PlyCount "118"]
[GameId "2062168398745656"]
[EventDate "2024.06.22"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.21"]

{[%evp 0,118,19,37,46,46,72,55,71,67,61,18,12,1,77,57,61,77,95,59,60,30,19,24,21,1,-4,0,0,-47,-28,-39,-33,-35,-16,-41,0,-57,56,61,61,58,70,65,75,55,72,40,109,90,96,89,91,94,121,112,121,78,145,95,134,144,144,149,150,150,160,151,166,166,159,155,166,172,191,168,172,172,182,171,183,129,168,104,118,114,114,114,29999,130,131,155,167,170,173,165,195,197,208,196,205,205,244,323,390,424,430,425,438,444,444,444,444,430,415,450,537,547,547,625,649]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nd7 4. O-O a6 5. Bxd7+ (5. Bd3 {seems more thematic, keeping the bishop, repositioning it to the b1-a7 diagonal, and claiming that knight on d7 is misplaced.} Ngf6 6. c3 b5 7. Bc2 Bb7 8. Re1 {and Black might continue with} e5 ({or} 8... c4 {. The position often becomes more Ruy Lopez/Spanish Game than Sicilian Defense -- which is rather the point of 3.Bb5, whether in a Rossolimo against 2.Nc6 or in a Moscow line as seen here.})) 5... Bxd7 6. d4 Bg4 ({The question I usually ask myself when considering these pins is, does Black really want to trade the bishop for the knight?} 6... cxd4 7. Qxd4 {is theory here. White has a little more central space and a tiny temporary lead in development. Black should be pretty happy with the opening, though, having the bishop-pair and more center pawns.} ({White's "normal" Sicilian recapture,} 7. Nxd4 {, slightly favors Black. White has spent time exchanging the useful light-square bishop for a knight and has committed his king to a short castle, so there's less chance of a kingside pawn-storm attack. Black is ready to develop the rook to c8, the knight to f6, and choose either a Dragon or ...e6 small-center structure, according to taste.} Nf6 8. Nc3 e6 {, for example, and Black really has no worries.})) 7. c3 g6 {I'm not convinced that the fianchetto development is ideal here. First, it takes away g6 as a possible retreat for the bishop (...Bg4-h5-g6 in response to h3, for example). Second, the bishop on g7 would have a limited role facing white pawns on b2 and c3, if White chooses to capture on c5 or advance to d5. Also, there's not much immediate pressure on the white center, allowing White some flexibility in arranging his pieces.} 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Qxf3 Bg7 10. Qd3 $6 ({White starts here with a minimal development edge.} 10. dxc5 dxc5 $14) ({or} 10. Rd1 {seem more natural than moving the queen again to defend the d-pawn.}) 10... Nf6 11. Be3 O-O 12. dxc5 dxc5 13. Qxd8 Rfxd8 14. Bxc5 (14. Nd2 {is still fine for White, if not exactly an exciting advantage, as that c5-pawn needs looking after.}) 14... Nxe4 15. Bxe7 Rd7 16. Bh4 {We start to see the problem with the pawn grab. The bishop has no happy retreat, and those queenside pieces are feeling a bit left out.} b5 (16... g5 17. f3 (17. Bg3 Nxg3 18. fxg3 Re8 {becomes very hard to defend against Black's active rooks.}) 17... gxh4 18. fxe4 Re8 {and Black is doing nicely.}) 17. Re1 $6 (17. f3 Nc5 18. Na3 b4 $5 19. cxb4 Bxb2 20. bxc5 Bxa3 21. Bf2 Rc7) 17... f5 (17... Nc5 {aims the knight at a4 and d3.}) 18. f3 (18. a4 {distracts a bit from the strong knight on e4, and could end up with a level position along the lines of} b4 19. cxb4 Rb8 20. f3 Bxb2 21. Ra2 Bd4+ 22. Kf1 g5 23. fxe4 gxh4 24. e5 Rxb4 {, and for all the chaos, not much has really happened.}) 18... Nd2 $2 (18... Nc5 $15) 19. Nxd2 Rxd2 20. Rab1 {Suddenly, White has an extra pawn an no clogged queenside pieces.} b4 21. cxb4 (21. Bg5 Rc2 22. Rec1 Rxc1+ 23. Rxc1) 21... Bxb2 22. Bf2 (22. Red1 Rc2 23. a4 $14) 22... Rc8 (22... Rb8 23. Bc5 Ba3) 23. Be3 Bd4 (23... Rdc2 $14) 24. Bxd4 Rxd4 25. Rb2 Rb8 (25... Kf7 {White rooks occupying the seventh rank is a bigger worry right now than that extra pawn.}) 26. Re6 (26. a3 Rd3 27. Re7 Rxa3 28. Rc2 $16) 26... a5 $2 (26... Rbxb4 27. Rxb4 Rxb4 28. Rxa6 Kg7 {Positions with the white rook in front of the passed a-pawn are typically theoretical draws.}) 27. b5 Kf7 28. Rc6 Ke7 29. b6 Rd6 $2 30. Rc7+ (30. Re2+ Kd7 31. Rc7+ Kd8 32. Ree7) 30... Rd7 31. Rc6 (31. Ra7) 31... Rd6 32. Re2+ Kd7 33. Rc7+ Kd8 34. Rxh7 Rbxb6 35. Ree7 Ra6 36. Reg7 Re6 37. Rd7+ Kc8 38. Rc7+ Kd8 39. Rcg7 a4 40. Rh6 a3 41. Rg8+ ({Clearly White hasn't figured out how to make progress, but giving up control of the seventh rank doesn't seem the most promising start. Maybe fix the g-pawn with} 41. h4 {first. You can always throw checks around on the ranks and files later.}) 41... Ke7 42. Rg7+ Kf8 43. Rb7 Reb6 $4 (43... Re7 $1 44. Rh8+ Kg7 45. Rxe7+ Kxh8 {and of course White still has the advantage, but at some point he'll need to find a winning plan.}) 44. Rxb6 $4 ({White apparently overlooked his primary threat.} 44. Rh8# {shortens the game considerably. Fortunately the rook behind the black a-pawn thing also seems to work.}) 44... Rxb6 45. Rh8+ Kf7 46. Ra8 Rb1+ 47. Kh2 f4 ({If there is a defensive structure with a chance to hold, it would require no further kingside weaknesses, keeping the white rook tied down in front of the a-pawn, and hiding the black king on h6.} 47... Rb2 48. Rxa3 Kg7 {could extend the torture for quite awhile. Likely White wins eventually in any case.}) 48. Rxa3 Ke6 49. Ra6+ Kf5 50. a4 Ra1 51. a5 Kg5 52. Ra8 Kh6 53. a6 Kg7 54. h4 Ra2 55. Ra7+ Kf6 56. Kh3 g5 57. h5 Ra1 58. Kh2 g4 59. fxg4 Kg5 1-0

