[Event "Seattle City Championship 2024"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.01.12"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Wong-Godfrey, Emerson"]
[Black "Degenbaev, Aziz"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Aziz Degenbaev"]
[ECO "C01"]
[WhiteElo "1919"]
[BlackElo "2377"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[GameId "2168388947636280"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,62,36,35,51,30,32,32,26,21,14,2,18,-5,55,40,92,26,28,11,10,1,11,15,20,15,10,-27,-25,-15,-18,-65,-43,-33,-61,-61,-98,-88,-105,-119,-124,-120,-92,-130,-117,-154,-117,-183,-119,-138,-154,-131,-103,-112,-103,-149,-150,-223,-216,-228,-232,-266,-270,-285,-276]} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. Ne2 {An interesting way for white to prevent some of black's ideas when knight is on f3. Now white has an option of f3.} Bg4 6. O-O $6 {Not a very good move order, white should have started with} (6. f3 Bh5 7. O-O {Transposes to the game. Or another plan} (7. h4 $1 {A good idea to start with an aggressive play, then do long castle} Qd7 8. g4 Bg6 9. h5 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 O-O-O 11. Nbc3 $14)) 6... Qd7 (6... Nxd4 {Computer suggests taking a pawn, but in my vision it was a bit risky and I wanted to keep position more simple. After} 7. Re1 Nxe2+ 8. Bxe2 Be6 9. Bg4 Qd7 10. Bxe6 fxe6 11. Qg4 Nf6 12. Rxe6+ Be7 13. Qh3 Rd8 $15 {It's not so easy to find all these moves, but my engine gives a small edge for black}) 7. f3 Bh5 8. c3 Bg6 $5 {Want to mention this move, I kept my king in center to see on which side game will go on. Also, offering a trade for white's useful bishop} 9. Be3 (9. Nf4 {In my opinion, this move should have played, to place knight to a strong position on d3} Bxd3 10. Nxd3 Bd6 11. a4 {Gaining space} Nge7 12. Na3 a6 $11 {Just a playable postion for both sides}) 9... Bd6 10. Na3 $2 {Just a bad move, now black can double white's pawns. White should play} (10. Re1 Nge7 11. Nf4 $11) 10... Bxa3 11. bxa3 Bxd3 12. Qxd3 Nge7 13. c4 $6 {It was unnecessary to create an IQP} (13. Qb5 b6 14. Nf4 Na5 15. Qxd7+ Kxd7 16. Rae1 $15 {Was better, but black still have an edge}) 13... dxc4 14. Qxc4 O-O 15. Nc3 Nf5 {Now white's weak pawn just falling} 16. Bf2 Ncxd4 17. Rfd1 Rad8 18. Rxd4 $2 {Now black just winning. White should have played a quiet move} ({Of course not} 18. g4 $4 Nxf3+ 19. Kg2 N5d4 $19) (18. Kh1 {Threating g4} Qe6 19. Qa4 Nc6 20. Re1 Qc8 21. Bxa7 Nxa7 22. Qxa7 Nd4 $17 {At least white still can play, but black is still better, thanks to white's double pawns}) 18... Nxd4 19. Rd1 Nxf3+ 20. gxf3 Qf5 {Placing my queen on most active postion} 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 {Here two pieces are not enough for this postion} 22. Qg4 Qe5 23. Ne4 h6 24. Kg2 f5 25. Qh5 b6 {Preparing to push my pawn on c7. There is no need to rush} 26. Ng3 Kh7 $1 27. Qf7 Rd2 28. Qxf5+ (28. Nxf5 Qb2 $19) 28... Qxf5 29. Nxf5 {A winning endgame for black} Rxa2 30. Nd4 c5 31. Nb5 a6 0-1

[Event "Oregon Senior Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.05.04"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Gibbins, Wilson"]
[Black "Haessler, Carl"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Wilson Gibbins/Carl Haessler"]
[ECO "A10"]
[WhiteElo "2200"]
[BlackElo "2200"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[GameId "2174006750788518"]
[EventDate "2024.05.04"]

{[%evp 0,74,24,26,37,34,33,9,37,35,63,34,60,55,70,53,76,81,-24,71,59,61,71,73,64,72,77,63,74,65,79,70,81,64,103,82,14,86,96,102,78,79,5,68,6,94,76,98,81,88,89,-13,-134,70,69,38,-86,0,57,-87,56,-55,-44,-78,-102,-93,-106,-281,-97,-39,-383,-840,-596,-649,-672,-912,-751]} {Annotations marked "CH" were contributed by Carl Haessler, providing additional strategic and psychological insight into the game.} 1. c4 b6 2. Nc3 Bb7 3. e4 e6 4. Nf3 g6 {Heading for the Hippopotamus defense. If it was good enough for Spassky in the 1966 World Championship, it should be good enough for the Oregon Senior Open. Seriously, this is a good approach in a must-win last round game when fate gives you the black pieces. Sure, Black is worse, but there are no forcing lines and lots of slow maneuvering, so both sides will be making a lot of positional decisions in unclear situations.} 5. d4 Bg7 6. Be2 Ne7 7. O-O ({The engine recommends committal moves like} 7. d5) ({and} 7. h4 {There are not the kind of moves one makes when one only needs a draw.}) 7... O-O 8. Re1 d6 9. Be3 h6 {CH - This and …Kh7 is meant to keep Black’s dark squared bishop from being traded off with a future Bh6 by White.} 10. Qd2 Kh7 11. Rad1 Nd7 12. Qc2 {I am trying to discourage f7-f5.} Qc8 {CH - Getting my queen off of the d-file and also beginning to prepare …c5 to gain some space. Ift is interesting that my engine (Stockfish) keeps bouncing back and forth between b4 and h4 as moves for White. This indicates that a clear middle game plan is not obvious. Mission accomplished.} 13. Bc1 {Getting the Bishop out of the range of Back's knight on e7 after 13...f7-f5 14.exf5. More slow maneuvering.} a6 14. a3 c5 15. d5 e5 {CH - With the center closed, Black’s pieces are better placed for play on either flank. White’s space advantage is somewhat illusory as there are no clear targets} 16. g4 {the engine approves, battling for space on the kingside and the light squares, (incorrectly) assuming that Black will inevitably play f7-f5. But this isn't a practical decision, given where White's king is located.} (16. g3 {with the idea of playing 17.Nh4 is a safer way to battle for the light squares. This was the approach Petrosian took against Spassky in game 12 of their 1966 World Championship match.}) 16... Rh8 17. Nd2 $6 {One of my sub-optimal positional decisions, hoping to get the knight to g3 via f1, but much too slow.} ({Better ideas include the risky looking} 17. h4 {, consistently playing for space on the kingside.}) ({And if you know what is coming, you might be inclined to play} 17. b4 {to open lines on the queenside to distract Black from his kingside attacking ambitions.}) 17... Nf6 18. f3 Kg8 19. Nf1 h5 20. g5 Nh7 21. Bd3 {Clearing the second rank so White can shift pieces to the kingside defense.} (21. Kh1) (21. Na4 $5 {distracts Black's queen from kingside attacking ideas by attacking the sensitive b6 square.}) 21... f6 22. gxf6 $2 {White is opening lines toward his own king.} (22. h4) (22. Na4) 22... Bxf6 {White is still better, but the position is not headed towards White's desired draw.} 23. Qg2 Qd7 24. Ng3 {Another sub-optimal positional choice.} (24. Ne3) (24. b4) (24. Kh1) 24... Kf7 $1 {CH - The beginnings of a “Seirawan King”. Yasser was famous in his career for taking a King walk before starting the final attack.} 25. f4 Rag8 26. Rf1 Ke8 27. Rde1 $2 {I was hoping for some sort of magical breakthrough in the center, but Black is too solid and well placed for this to occur} ({Carl suggested} 27. Bc2 {in the post-mortem, as I should be looking for some sort of play on the queenside so he has to at least worry a little about his king safety.} Kd8 28. Ba4) 27... Bc8 28. Kh1 Kd8 29. Nge2 (29. b4) 29... g5 {White's positional choices have been less than ideal, Black has come up with good plans, but until now, Black's superior play has only offset his inferior opening.} 30. fxg5 $4 {positional suicide} ({I thought} 30. f5 $1 $11 {gave Black a free hand to build up his kingside attack, but maybe White can get something rolling with b2-b4 to distract him}) 30... Bxg5 $19 {it is over. Carl's attacking technique brings the game to a rapid conclusion.} 31. Bxg5 Nxg5 32. Ng3 Qh3 33. Qd2 $2 (33. Qxh3 Bxh3 34. Rf2 Ng6 {is also a winning position for Black}) 33... Bg4 {gets the job done.} (33... h4 {is even more brutal, if that is possible.}) 34. Re3 (34. Be2 h4 35. Bxg4 Qxg4 36. Qe2 hxg3 37. Qxg4 Rxh2+ 38. Kg1 Nh3+ 39. Qxh3 Rxh3) 34... h4 35. Qf2 Bf3+ 36. Rxf3 Nxf3 37. Qxf3 Rxg3 0-1

[Event "Oregon Senior Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.05.04"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Morris, Mike"]
[Black "Braverman, Marc"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Wilson Gibbins/Mike Morris"]
[ECO "B19"]
[WhiteElo "1928"]
[BlackElo "1943"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[GameId "2184885246738917"]

{[%evp 0,109,17,17,30,5,31,31,34,20,28,43,25,35,22,31,35,27,22,34,25,13,21,7,7,18,38,11,-27,12,-6,16,40,-32,16,-37,-85,-107,-214,-123,-98,-142,50,-365,-380,-365,-392,-386,-347,-399,-437,-385,-406,-474,-489,-460,-388,-352,26,204,123,120,116,-47,52,48,-1,-84,-163,-74,-148,-92,-23,-207,1,-5,-1,-1,-1,-25,1,-8,54,61,23,-1,8,-21,-175,-23,27,-16,36,56,64,164,441,413,269,315,374,417,478,706,988,972,1031,1115,1106,1116,1146,1280]} {Marc's last tournament was the 2018 Oregon Senior Open - the tournament Carl Haessler won to represent Oregon at the first tournament of Senior State Champions in Middleton Wisconsin. Welcome back to chess, Marc. Marc had a good tournament at this poitn with two wins, a draw and a bye, but Mike ends the warm welcome back to chess in this final round battle for second place.} 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. h5 Bh7 8. Nf3 Nd7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 e6 11. Bd2 Ngf6 12. O-O-O Qc7 13. Kb1 O-O-O 14. c4 Bd6 {Mainline theory up until now.} 15. Ne2 (15. Ne4 {has been played a lot more frequently, but Stockfish says Mike's choice is another reasonable try for a slight edge.}) 15... c5 16. Nc3 (16. Qc2 {gets White's queen out of the line of fire.}) 16... a6 17. Rh4 $6 {defends the pawn on d4 and prevents Black's knight from arriving on g4, but although it sounds solid, this move allows the position to spiral out of control.} cxd4 $1 18. Nxd4 Ne5 $1 19. Qc2 Qxc4 20. Be3 (20. Nf5 $5 {is a fun try, but after} Qd3 21. Bxh6 $5 Qxc2+ 22. Kxc2 Rxh6 23. Nxd6+ Kc7 {Black has an edge}) 20... Nd5 (20... Neg4 $1 {blocks the lateral attack on Black's queen from White's rook on h4.}) 21. Nf5 $2 {Diagram [#] This move isn't as strong as it was the move before} (21. Nxd5 Qxc2+ 22. Nxc2 exd5 23. Rxd5 $11) 21... Nxc3+ 22. bxc3 Qb5+ 23. Ka1 exf5 {Black is up a piece and is objectively winning, but Mike manages to stir up sufficient trouble to keep the game alive.} 24. Rb1 Qc6 25. Rb6 Qc7 26. Qb3 Rd7 27. Ra4 Nc6 28. Rc4 Kd8 $2 {Diagram [#] trying to run his king out of trouble just like Carl did, but it puts Black's king on the same diagonal as Black's queen.} 29. Rbxc6 $1 {And just like that, the game is back to equal.} Qxc6 (29... bxc6 30. Bb6) 30. Rxc6 bxc6 31. Qb6+ (31. Kb2 {gets White's king off the a1 square where it may be vulnerable to a linear mate from the two rooks.}) 31... Ke7 32. Qxc6 {White grabs a loose pawn and creates a passed c pawn.} ({Stockfish is not impressed and prefers} 32. Bc5 $11 {Trading Black's Bishop gives Black's king fewer defenders and results in more checking opportunities for White's queen.}) 32... Rb8 $15 33. Bc5 {Not as strong as it was the move before as Black's rook has found a good file.} Rb5 $1 34. Bxd6+ Rxd6 35. Qf3 {preventing 35...Rd1+} Ke6 (35... Rdb6 $1 $17 36. a4 Rb1+ 37. Ka2 R6b2+ 38. Ka3 Rb8 39. Ka2 Kf8 40. Qxf5 R1b2+ 41. Ka1 Kg8 {Black's king is safe, White's king is in danger, but it isn't immediately obvious to me how Black makes progress. It is obvious to the patient, blunder-free Stockfish - take what the defense gives you. Maybe you can find a safe opportunity to transform your doubled rooks on the b-file to doubled rooks on the 2nd rank. Or maybe you can take some kingside pawns if White quits defending them in an attempt o get a perpetual check.}) 36. a3 Rdb6 $11 37. Qe3+ Kd6 38. Qd4+ Ke6 39. Qe3+ Kd6 40. Qd4+ Ke7 41. c4 Rb1+ 42. Ka2 {This position is balanced. White has enough checks so that Black can't mount an offensive, and Black has sufficient defensive resources to prevent White's c-pawn from causing much mischief.} R1b2+ $2 {Hoping to win with an outside kingside passed pawn, but Black's doubled f-pawns mean that he can't create a passed pawn without White's help. Mike demonstrates a lack of hospitality by not providing that help.} 43. Qxb2 Rxb2+ 44. Kxb2 g6 45. Kc3 Kd6 46. Kd4 gxh5 47. f4 $1 {Diagram [#]} f6 48. c5+ Kc6 49. a4 h4 50. Kc4 a5 51. Kd4 Kc7 52. Kd5 Kd7 53. c6+ Kc7 54. Kc5 Kc8 55. Kb6 1-0

[Event "Oregon Senior Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.05.04"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Echaure, Samuel"]
[Black "Nelson, James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Wilson Gibbins"]
[ECO "C01"]
[WhiteElo "1927"]
[BlackElo "1601"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[GameId "2184882975653974"]

{[%evp 0,68,12,24,37,-187,31,6,87,3,115,-13,-6,-2,-10,-2,-14,-26,-35,-34,-38,-38,18,-92,42,23,0,39,36,34,61,-7,-11,-10,-1,-58,-40,-75,16,21,-51,-30,-44,-65,-56,11,-104,-48,-106,-106,-69,-111,-80,8,-134,3,-205,-204,-235,-239,-210,-294,-317,-290,-341,-484,-356,-464,-480,-407,-246]} 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. c4 e6 $5 {The ever-dangerous Icelandic Gambit} ({The most popular move line is} 3... c6 4. d4 (4. dxc6 $6 {is risky} Nxc6 5. Nc3 e5 {and Black has more than enough for the pawn with good development, good squares for his pieces while White has a weak square on d4 and a backward d-pawn.}) (4. d4) {and} 4... cxd5 {reaches the Panov-Botvinnik variation no the Caro-Kann (!)}) 4. Nc3 (4. dxe6 $5 {is playable, but you better know some theory if you want to play it successfully.} Bxe6 5. d4 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Qe7 7. Bxb4 (7. Be2 $1) 7... Qxb4+ 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Nc3 O-O-O 10. d5 Bg4 11. f3 Rhe8+ 12. Be2 Bf5 13. O-O-O Na5 14. g4 Bg6 15. Nh3 Nd7 16. Nb1 Qb3 $1 17. Bd3 Qxa2 18. Qb4 Re2 19. Bxe2 Nb3+ 20. Qxb3 Qxb3 21. Rd2 Qe3 {0-1 Kuijf,M (2485)-Hodgson,J (2545) Hoogovens-B Wijk aan Zee 1989 (5)}) 4... exd5 5. d4 {We now have a position that is classified as the exchange variation of the French Defense (C01) - 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3. But can also arise frm the Albin Counter-Gambit (1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5!? 3.e3 exd3 4.exd3 Nf6 5.Nc3), the English (1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.exd5 exd5 5.d4 or 1.c4 e6 2.e4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nc3 or even 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.e3 d5 4.d4 exd4 5.exd4)} Bb4 6. Nf3 O-O 7. Be2 Ne4 8. Bd2 Nxd2 9. Qxd2 dxc4 10. O-O Bxc3 11. bxc3 Bg4 12. h3 Bh5 13. g4 $5 Bg6 14. Bxc4 Nc6 15. Rfd1 (15. Rfe1 $14) 15... Qf6 $11 16. Nh2 Rad8 17. f4 $6 {gains space, threatens to trap the bishop on g6, but White isn't well placed for a kingside attack.} Be4 $15 {this move would not be possible if White had moved his rook to e1 on move 15.} 18. Qf2 Ne7 19. Re1 $1 {White doesn't allow pride to prevent himself from making the best move by placing the rook on the correct square, admitting the loss of time on move 15.} Bc6 20. g5 $1 Qd6 21. Rac1 (21. Ng4 $1 $13 {If Black tries the game continuation} Nd5 {then} 22. Bxd5 Bxd5 {and the position is roughly even. Note that White is contesting the open e-file. In the game condition Black gets control of this file.} (22... Qxd5 23. Kh2 {looks scary, but White is defending the checkmates on h1 and g2.})) 21... Nd5 22. Rf1 (22. Bxd5 $2 Qxd5 {Black's ever-present threat of checkmate on h1 or g2 and the possible pawn break f7-f6 means that Black is much better. White can't play 23.Kh2 to defend the h1 square as mentioned in the last note, as his knight occupies that square. That was one of the benefits of playing 21.Ng4.}) 22... Rde8 23. Ng4 {right idea, too late. Black's control of the e-file means that he has too many threats.} Re4 $1 24. f5 (24. Bxd5 {is best, but after} Qxd5 {Black has a dangerous looking queen+bishop battery on the long diagonal, control of the e-file, and threats like 25...Rxf4}) 24... Nf4 $1 25. Qh2 b5 $1 $19 {Black wins a piece, but it depends on accuraacy on move 28.} 26. Ne5 (26. Bb3 Re2) 26... bxc4 27. Rxf4 Rxf4 28. Qxf4 f6 $1 29. gxf6 gxf6 30. Kh2 fxe5 31. dxe5 Qd3 32. Rg1+ Kf7 33. h4 Qe2+ 34. Kh3 Qf3+ {I'd be tempted to play on, hoping the connected passed pawns on e5 and f5 would provide some cheapo potential, but Stockfish says Black is easily winning.} 0-1

[Event "Reykjavik Open 2025"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2025.04.09"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Roth, Jonas"]
[Black "Seshadri, Sridhar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "D30"]
[WhiteElo "1884"]
[BlackElo "1680"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[GameId "2181835940818973"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,47,19,31,14,1,-3,-1,24,17,14,14,29,8,12,7,-9,-9,10,-32,32,31,34,19,33,24,32,32,20,18,58,48,63,72,81,83,82,55,72,57,245,210,301,290,380,370,386,403,439,454]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. a3 c5 4. e3 d5 5. Nf3 Be7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O b6 8. Nc3 Bb7 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. b4 Be7 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Nxd5 Bxd5 13. Bb2 Bf6 14. Nd4 Bb7 15. Rc1 a6 16. Bf3 Qe7 17. Qe2 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Ra7 19. Rc2 Rc7 $4 ({Though passively placed, Black is not much worse after} 19... Rd8 {. White still must find a way to break in.}) 20. Nf5 $3 {Good situational awareness by White. The c7-rook is under-defended.} exf5 ({The best hope here is} 20... Rxc2 21. Nxe7+ Bxe7 {, but it isn't a great chance.}) 21. Bxf6 gxf6 (21... Qd6 22. Rd1 $18) (21... Qd7 22. Qg3 $18) 22. Qg3+ Kh8 23. Qxc7 Qe6 24. Rd1 Kg7 25. Rd6 Qe5 26. Rd4 Qb5 27. Qg3+ Kh8 28. Qd6 Kg7 29. Rcc4 a5 30. Qg3+ Kh8 31. Rh4 f4 32. Qxf4 Qg5 33. Qd6 Rg8 34. Rhg4 Qf5 35. Rxg8+ Kxg8 36. Qxb8+ Kg7 37. Rc1 axb4 38. axb4 1-0

[Event "Reykjavik Open 2025"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2025.04.10"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Seshadri, Sridhar"]
[Black "Schultze, Dr Joerg Martin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "B13"]
[WhiteElo "1680"]
[BlackElo "1956"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[GameId "2181835942735902"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,95,19,31,23,16,50,-11,3,-23,30,7,42,-13,-6,-33,21,-12,-5,-22,-22,-119,-154,-267,-124,-146,-120,-122,-102,-126,-102,-110,-84,-93,-87,-102,-83,-130,-104,-113,-133,-179,-181,-188,-156,-140,-208,-150,-153,-195,-203,-205,-226,-232,-143,-142,-75,-73,-83,-63,-87,-164,-152,-157,-106,-151,-138,-162,-38,-64,0,-5,0,-63,-48,-44,-49,-75,-37,-49,-9,-15,636,646,29993,29994,29995,29996,29997,29996,29997,29994,29995,1027,1127,1207,1217,1290]} 1. d4 d5 2. e3 c5 3. c3 Nc6 4. Bd3 cxd4 5. exd4 Qc7 6. f4 $6 ({We've reached an exchange Caro Kann. One line continues} 6. h3 Nf6 7. Nf3 g6 8. O-O Bg7 9. Re1 O-O 10. Na3) 6... Nh6 7. h3 g6 8. Ne2 Bg7 9. Ng3 Bd7 10. Qf3 $2 Nxd4 11. Qxd5 $6 (11. Qf2) 11... O-O (11... Nhf5 $17) (11... O-O-O $17) 12. O-O Be6 13. Qe4 Nhf5 14. Nxf5 Nxf5 (14... Bxf5 15. Qe3 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 $17) 15. Qf3 Qb6+ 16. Kh2 h5 17. Na3 Rac8 18. Nc2 Rfd8 19. Bxf5 Bxf5 20. Nd4 Bxd4 21. cxd4 Rc2 (21... Qxd4) 22. Rf2 Rxf2 23. Qxf2 Rc8 24. Be3 Rc2 25. Qf3 Qxb2 26. Re1 Qb5 (26... Qxa2) 27. Bg1 Be6 (27... Kf8) (27... Rxa2 28. Rxe7 Be6 29. Rxb7 $2 Qd5) 28. Re5 Qd7 29. d5 Bf5 30. Qa3 e6 31. Qxa7 exd5 (31... f6) 32. Qa8+ Rc8 33. Qa3 Re8 $6 (33... d4 $1 34. Re7 Qd5 35. Re5 Qd8 $15) 34. Qe3 Be4 35. Rxe8+ Qxe8 36. Qa7 Qc8 37. Bd4 Kh7 38. Qa3 Qc2 39. Qg3 Qxa2 40. f5 $1 Qd2 $4 (40... Qc2 {covers c7, so after} 41. fxg6+ fxg6 {there's no seventh-rank queen check.}) 41. fxg6+ fxg6 42. Qc7+ Kh6 43. Bg7+ Kg5 44. Qe5+ (44. Qg3+ Kf5 45. Qe5#) 44... Bf5 45. Qf6+ (45. h4+ Kxh4 46. Qg3#) 45... Kf4 46. Bh6+ g5 47. Bxg5+ Ke4 48. Bxd2 1-0

[Event "Franklin Charles International"]
[Site "Boise, ID"]
[Date "2025.06.09"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Gorman, Cody"]
[Black "Machin, Alex"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Alex Machin"]
[ECO "E61"]
[WhiteElo "1959"]
[BlackElo "1800"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[GameId "2187046747910144"]
[EventDate "2025.05.19"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "USA"]

{[%evp 0,88,19,31,14,1,42,-23,24,-3,24,8,16,13,34,35,60,39,54,14,20,26,54,50,35,47,43,-66,-62,-88,-64,-51,-50,-50,-47,-76,-79,-114,-109,-137,40,-58,-58,-117,-80,-102,-103,-106,-104,-92,-102,-111,-113,-113,-34,-369,-403,-408,-395,-537,-559,-577,-631,-621,-614,-623,-536,-845,-360,-365,-386,-381,-368,-388,-357,-573,-346,-458,-407,-871,-886,-29991,-314,-387,-361,-361,-346,-944,-469,-472,-479]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. Nf3 {I know Ne4 and c5 begs to be played but I wanted to see what setup White adopts before showing my cards and playing for either e5 or c5.} O-O 5. e3 d6 6. Nc3 c6 7. Be2 a6 {Clearly my intention is to expand with b5 and gain some space while making the knight on c3 a little uncomfortable. I was planning on meeting a4 with a5/Na6 to take control of the b4 square.} 8. Qc2 (8. a4 {For example...} a5 {[%cal Gb8a6,Ga6b4]}) 8... b5 9. Nd2 {I was really torn at this point and couldn't decide between b4, bxc4 or just keeping the tension. I also noticed the bishop on g5 was vulnerable to Qa5+ so I kept that in mind for a rainy day.} b4 {A hard move to make since it was based solely on attacking a knight with tempo and gaining some more space.} 10. Na4 {I wasn't sure about this move as the only strength lays within c5 and Nb6 ideas. That said, if White can organize Bf3 in combination this could create some nice pressure on my queenside.} (10. Nce4 Bf5 {Looked very comfortable since d5 is a threat as well as exchanging on e4 and eventually playing f5 with tempo.}) 10... Bf5 11. e4 Nxe4 {He had his chance to play e4 way earlier. This may not be the best continuation but it sure is fun! It always feels good to initiate play when the opponent hasn't castled yet.} 12. Nxe4 {I really wanted b3 and Qa5+ to work but he always has Bd2 worse case.} Qa5 {[%csl Gg5,Ga4] Temporarily down a piece but the overloaded queen and loose minor pieces make it easy to restore material. I wasn't sure if he could get away with Bxe7 but it definitely feels wrong to be so greedy.} 13. Bd3 Bxe4 14. Bxe4 Qxg5 {I was very excited to end up with a monster bishop and vulnerable d4 pawn to target.} 15. Rd1 Ra7 {It's hard to develop the knight without hanging the c6 pawn so a quick rover looked logical.} 16. O-O Rc7 17. Qb3 {a5 looks logical but I figured he would play f4 to get some counter play so let's avoid it with tempo.} Qa5 18. f4 {I was contemplating both f5 and e6. My issue with f5 is that it creates a slight weakness where I have opened up a backward pawn on e7 . It may not be that big of a deal but I wanted to limit his counter play as much as possible. What I missed was that Bf6 defends the pawn easily and life is good. Moving on, e6 only seems to invite d5 when again the position seems to be opening up a little more than I'd like. Lastly, with the pawn committed to e6 I always have to watch out for potential f5-f6 ideas by him.} Nd7 {I finally opted to keep the pawn on e7 to keep a lock on f6 so that f5-f6 is never an issue.} (18... f5 19. Bf3 {[%csl Ge7]}) (18... e6 19. d5) 19. f5 Nb6 {After expecting Nxb6 Qxb6 and some defensive move guarding d4 I was very optimistic!} 20. Nxb6 Qxb6 21. c5 {After a close inspection my heart sank. I slowly realized what I had just allowed and how quickly the tables have tuned. I initially thought I was immediately losing from calculating some forcing variations. For example....} dxc5 22. fxg6 hxg6 (22... Kh8 23. gxf7 cxd4 24. Qh3 h6 25. Qf5 {[%csl Gh7] ouch}) 23. Bxg6 e6 {The only move I saw to resist the attack and gain back some time.} 24. Bc2 cxd4 25. Qd3 f5 {Not pretty but with some extra pawns I kept hope.} 26. Bb3 {I saw a potential trap...} c5 27. Rxf5 {He falls into it! At this point I'm down to minutes on the clock to his 45 min.} Rxf5 28. Qxf5 c4 29. Qg6 cxb3 30. Qe8+ {With no time I'm scrambling to compose myself. I hope I don't allow some perpetual check scenario.} Kh7 31. Qh5+ Kg8 32. Qe8+ Bf8 33. axb3 Re7 34. Qg6+ Rg7 35. Qe4 Qd6 36. Rd3 (36. Qxd4 Qxd4+ 37. Rxd4 Bc5) (36. Rxd4 Qc5 {[%cal Ge6e5,Gc5c1]}) 36... e5 37. Rh3 Be7 38. Qa8+ Bd8 {At this point I'm down to a little over a minute. Just making moves to not lose on time.} 39. Qf3 d3 {Obviously a queen exchange would be lovely for me.} 40. Qh5 Qg6 41. Qh8+ Kf7 42. Rf3+ Bf6 43. Rf2 e4 (43... Qxg2+ {A beautiful way to end the game} 44. Rxg2 Rxg2+ 45. Kxg2 Bxh8) 44. Qh3 Qg4 {By this point the store was closing and the TD insisted we would have to resume next week if we couldn't finish it up. Cody graciously resigned out of respect . What a fun game and a pleasure since Cody and I haven't played in years it seems.} 0-1

[Event "3rd Bellingham Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.20"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Griffith, Nelsen"]
[Black "Panda, Vedic"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E73"]
[WhiteElo "1626"]
[BlackElo "2250"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[GameId "2188721343414333"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 Nbd7 6. Bg5 h6 7. Be3 e5 8. d5 h5 9. f3 Bh6 10. Bxh6 Rxh6 11. Qd2 Rh8 12. f4 Qe7 13. Nf3 exf4 14. Qxf4 Ng4 15. O-O Nge5 16. Nb5 Nxf3+ 17. Rxf3 Ne5 18. Rf2 a6 19. Nc3 Bg4 20. Bxg4 hxg4 21. b3 O-O-O 22. Raf1 Rh5 23. Qf6 Qxf6 24. Rxf6 Rdh8 0-1

[Event "3rd Bellingham Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.20"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Panda, Vedic"]
[Black "Scollon, Owen"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B01"]
[WhiteElo "2250"]
[BlackElo "1776"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "45"]
[GameId "2188721343430718"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. d4 Bg4 4. f3 Bf5 5. Bb5+ c6 6. dxc6 Nxc6 7. Nc3 e6 8. Nge2 Bd6 9. O-O h5 10. Re1 Bxh2+ 11. Kxh2 Ng4+ 12. fxg4 Qh4+ 13. Kg1 hxg4 14. Bf4 Qh1+ 15. Kf2 Qh4+ 16. Ng3 Qf6 17. Be5 Qg5 18. Qc1 Qg6 19. d5 f6 20. dxc6 fxe5 21. cxb7+ Ke7 22. bxa8=Q Rxa8 23. Qe3 1-0

[Event "3rd Bellingham Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.20"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Yu, Peter"]
[Black "Panda, Vedic"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "A24"]
[WhiteElo "2100"]
[BlackElo "2250"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "147"]
[GameId "2188721343430719"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,95,29,-12,-2,-19,39,12,12,12,13,1,-4,-4,13,10,24,19,26,-29,-7,-5,-16,-36,-36,-77,-55,-67,-72,-72,-29,-60,-61,-94,-94,-95,-113,-302,-297,-320,-314,-322,-311,-339,-322,-322,-309,-375,-352,-358,-258,-327,-196,-410,-290,-282,-197,-197,-197,-197,-190,-197,-189,-202,-187,-187,-187,-187,-195,-249,-169,-265,-265,-266,-238,-246,-193,-279,-180,-204,44,42,50,48,48,45,192,43,185,146,266,156,156,61,190,190,184,184]} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. e3 e5 6. Nge2 d6 7. O-O a5 8. a3 Nc6 9. Rb1 Bf5 10. e4 Be6 11. Nd5 ({White is rushing a bit.} 11. d3 {, complete development, expand on the queenside with b2-b4.}) 11... Nd7 12. f4 $6 ({Black's g7-bishop gains activity after an exchange of pawns on f4, and the white king becomes a bit more exposed. Better} 12. b4) 12... Bg4 13. Bf3 Bxf3 14. Rxf3 exf4 (14... Nd4 {is an alternative. After} 15. Nxd4 exd4 {the d5-knight is in peril.} 16. f5 c6 17. Nf4 Ne5 {is very comfortable for Black.}) 15. gxf4 Nd4 16. Rg3 (16. Nxd4 Bxd4+ 17. Kh1 {favors Black, but simplifying may be White's best chance.}) 16... c6 17. Ne3 Qh4 18. Ng2 $2 (18. Kh1 Nxe2 19. Qxe2 Qxf4 20. d3 Qf6 21. Bd2 {is a gambit of sorts. White probably doesn't find quite enough for the pawn.}) 18... Qh5 {Pin.} 19. Kf2 Nxe2 20. Qxe2 Bd4+ 21. Ke1 Qxh2 22. Rf3 Nc5 (22... Rfe8 23. Ne3 (23. d3 f5 $19) 23... Qxe2+ 24. Kxe2 Rxe4 25. d3 Re7 $19 {and Black is two pawns up with initiative.}) 23. d3 f5 24. Be3 Bxe3 25. Rxe3 Ne6 ({White is barely hanging on.} 25... fxe4 26. d4 (26. dxe4 Rxf4 27. Nxf4 Qg1+ 28. Kd2 Qxb1) 26... Ne6 27. Rd1 Nxf4 28. Nxf4 Qxf4 29. Rxe4 (29. Kd2 d5) 29... Qg3+ 30. Kd2 Rf2) 26. exf5 Nd4 (26... Nxf4 {works here as well.} 27. Nxf4 Qg1+ 28. Kd2 Qxb1) 27. Qf2 Qh1+ 28. Qf1 Nc2+ 29. Kd2 Qxf1 30. Rxf1 Nxe3 31. Nxe3 gxf5 32. Rg1+ Kh8 33. Rg5 Rf6 34. Nxf5 Raf8 35. Ne3 Rxf4 36. Rxa5 Rf2+ 37. Kc3 R8f3 38. Ng4 Rg2 39. Nh6 c5 $4 ({No doubt under time pressure, Black misses the threat.} 39... Rgg3 $19 {White hung on, and now grabs the opportunity.}) 40. Ra8+ Kg7 41. Rg8+ Kxh6 42. Rxg2 Kh5 $2 ({The plan of inching up the board caterpillaring with the king and h-pawn is just too slow. To even maintain equal chances here, the g-file trap must be released.} 42... Rf7 43. b4 Rg7 {and the struggle continues.}) 43. b4 (43. Rg7 h6 44. Rxb7 {is also good.}) 43... h6 ({Doomed. But it's too late to return to the other plan:} 43... Kh6 44. b5 Rf7 45. a4 $16 {and the queenside play has gotten a big headstart.}) 44. b5 Kh4 45. Rg6 (45. Rg7 b6 46. Rb7 $18) 45... h5 46. Rxd6 Rf7 47. Rg6 $1 Kh3 48. a4 h4 49. a5 Rf1 (49... Kh2 50. b6 h3 51. Rg5 Kh1 52. Rxc5 h2 53. Rh5 Kg2 54. c5 h1=Q 55. Rxh1 Kxh1 56. c6 bxc6 57. a6 $18 {is the consistent application of the caterpillar.}) 50. Kc2 Ra1 51. a6 bxa6 52. Rxa6 Rg1 53. b6 Rg8 54. d4 cxd4 55. c5 Rc8 56. Ra5 Rb8 57. Ra7 Kg2 58. b7 h3 59. c6 h2 60. Ra1 Rf8 61. c7 Rf1 62. Rxf1 Kxf1 63. c8=Q h1=Q 64. Qf5+ Ke1 65. Qe5+ Kf1 66. Qf4+ Ke1 67. Qc1+ Ke2 68. Qxh1 d3+ 69. Kc3 d2 70. Qh2+ Kf1 71. Qxd2 Kg1 72. Kd3 Kf1 73. Ke3 Kg1 74. Kf3 {Chess games are decided by mistakes. White survived long enough to take advantage of an opportunity, then showed no mercy.} 1-0

[Event "3rd Bellingham Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.20"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Thorwe, Pratik"]
[Black "Yu, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C01"]
[WhiteElo "2033"]
[BlackElo "2100"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[GameId "2188721343430720"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,57,19,31,43,18,28,23,23,24,47,19,31,4,22,25,46,49,40,21,13,11,49,21,15,15,2,-13,34,-20,-24,-27,17,-59,16,10,5,3,4,-40,9,-15,11,13,18,15,30,29,29,7,36,27,35,36,26,25,25,25,25,26]} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Bd3 Bd6 5. Nf3 Ne7 6. c3 c6 7. O-O Bg4 8. h3 Bh5 9. Be3 Nd7 10. Nbd2 Qc7 11. Qc2 Bg6 12. Rfe1 O-O 13. Nh4 Rae8 14. Ndf3 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 Bf4 16. Nf5 Ng6 17. g3 Bxe3 18. Rxe3 Nf6 19. Rae1 Re4 20. N5h4 Rfe8 21. Nxg6 hxg6 22. Ng5 Rxe3 23. Rxe3 Qd7 24. Kg2 Ne4 25. Nxe4 dxe4 26. Rxe4 Qd5 27. f3 Rxe4 28. fxe4 Qxa2 29. Qe2 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Bellingham Open"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.20"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Fletcher, Andrew"]
[Black "Thorwe, Pratik"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "C01"]
[WhiteElo "1933"]
[BlackElo "2033"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[GameId "2188721343430721"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,83,23,28,30,33,28,20,20,27,33,11,11,11,12,2,-8,8,12,-1,3,-1,5,-2,23,16,5,5,38,39,59,22,43,49,74,51,52,32,38,37,39,39,46,34,39,37,48,31,34,52,64,59,83,80,84,78,560,560,548,571,675,788,875,1111,1166,1238,1238,1311,1656,825,1058,1291,29983,29984,29985,29984,29985,29986,29987,29988,29991,29992,29993,29994,29995,29996]} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Bd3 Bd6 5. Nf3 Nf6 6. O-O O-O 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 Be6 9. Nbd2 Nbd7 10. Re1 c6 11. Ne5 Qc7 $6 (11... Qb6 12. Bg3 Bxe5 13. dxe5 Bg4) 12. Ndf3 $6 (12. f4) 12... Rae8 13. c3 Ng4 14. Bg3 c5 15. Rc1 c4 16. Bb1 f5 $6 (16... Ngf6 17. h3 b5 18. Nd2 a5 19. f4 $14) 17. Qc2 (17. Nxg4 fxg4 18. Nh4 $16 {offers White good kingside light-square control.}) 17... Ngxe5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Bd7 20. f4 Re7 21. Re3 Qb6 22. Qf2 Re6 23. Rg3 Bxe5 24. fxe5 Rg6 (24... f4 $5 25. Rf3 g5 $13) 25. Rf3 Qe6 26. Rf1 Rg5 27. h4 Rh5 $4 ({The rook is trapped. Black has some chances to survive in the rook ending after} 27... Rg4 28. Rxf5 Rxf5 29. Bxf5 Qxf5 30. Qxf5 Bxf5 31. Rxf5 Rxh4 32. Kf2 $14) 28. g4 Qg6 29. Qg3 Qb6 30. gxh5 Qxb2 31. Bxf5 Bxf5 32. Rxf5 Rxf5 33. Rxf5 Qxa2 34. Qf3 Qb1+ 35. Kh2 Qc2+ 36. Qf2 Qe4 37. Rf8+ Kh7 38. Qf5+ Qxf5 39. Rxf5 b5 40. e6 b4 41. e7 b3 42. e8=Q 1-0

