[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Palathingal, Rafael"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A40"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1950"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[GameId "2188721479274639"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 g6 2. Nf3 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Bg5 c5 5. dxc5 dxc5 6. Qxd8+ Kxd8 7. O-O-O+ Nd7 8. Ne4 Kc7 9. Bf4+ e5 10. Be3 b6 11. Nd6 Nh6 12. Bxh6 Bxh6+ 13. e3 Rf8 14. Bc4 f5 15. Be6 Rd8 16. Nf7 Bg7 17. Nxd8 Kxd8 18. Ng5 h6 19. Bxd7 Bxd7 20. Ne6+ Ke7 21. Nxg7 Rg8 22. Nxf5+ gxf5 23. g3 Bc6 24. Rhe1 Bf3 25. Rd3 Rc8 26. e4 fxe4 27. Ra3 Rc7 28. h3 Kf6 29. Kd2 Ke6 30. Rg1 Kf5 31. Kc3 Rd7 32. Re1 Bg2 33. Kc4 Bxh3 34. f3 Rd4+ 35. Kb5 Rb4+ 36. Kc6 Bg2 37. fxe4+ Bxe4+ 38. Kd6 a5 39. Rae3 Bxc2 40. Rxe5+ Kg4 41. b3 a4 42. bxa4 Rxa4 43. R1e2 Rxa2 44. R5e3 Bb1 45. Rxa2 Bxa2 46. Kc6 c4 47. Kxb6 Bb3 48. Kc5 h5 49. Kd4 h4 50. gxh4 Kxh4 51. Ke4 Kg4 52. Re1 Bc2+ 53. Ke3 1/2-1/2

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Rastogi, Atharv"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1465"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[GameId "2188721479274640"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Bf5 3. Bf4 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. c4 Bb4+ 6. Nbd2 O-O 7. a3 Bd6 8. Ne5 Nbd7 9. c5 Bxe5 10. dxe5 Ne4 11. Nxe4 Bxe4 12. Rc1 c6 13. Qd2 Qc7 14. f3 Bg6 15. Qc3 Rac8 16. h4 h6 17. g4 Qd8 18. h5 Bh7 19. Bd3 Bxd3 20. Qxd3 f6 21. Qg6 Qe7 22. exf6 Rxf6 23. Bd6 Qd8 24. Qd3 Rxf3 25. Ke2 Qf6 26. Rcf1 Rxf1 27. Rxf1 Qxb2+ 28. Qd2 Qb5+ 29. Qd3 Qxd3+ 30. Kxd3 b6 31. cxb6 axb6 32. e4 Nc5+ 33. Bxc5 bxc5 34. Ra1 Ra8 35. a4 Kf7 36. Ke3 c4 37. Kd4 Ra5 38. exd5 cxd5 39. Kc3 Kf6 40. Kb4 Ra8 41. a5 0-1

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Malla, Digesh"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "2249"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[GameId "2188721479274641"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Bf4 e6 4. e3 c5 5. Nc3 a6 6. Ne5 Be7 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. Nxd7 Bxd7 10. O-O Bc6 11. Be5 d4 12. exd4 Bxd4 13. Bxd4 Qxd4 14. Be4 Qb6 15. Bxc6+ Qxc6 16. Ne2 O-O 17. c3 Rad8 18. Qc2 Rd6 19. Rad1 Rfd8 20. Rxd6 Qxd6 21. Nd4 Ng4 22. g3 Qd5 23. Qe2 h5 24. h3 Nf6 25. a3 Qe4 26. Re1 Qxe2 27. Rxe2 Rd5 28. Kg2 Kf8 29. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Zhu, Jamie"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "2006"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[GameId "2188721479274642"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. Nc3 d5 5. Bxf6 exf6 6. h4 h5 7. g3 Nc6 8. e3 Bf5 9. Bd3 Qd7 10. Na4 Nb4 11. Nc5 Nxd3+ 12. cxd3 Qb5 13. O-O O-O 14. a4 Qc6 15. Rc1 Rac8 16. Qb3 b6 17. Na6 Qb7 18. Nb4 c6 19. Nd2 Rfd8 20. Rc3 c5 21. Nc2 Bxd3 22. dxc5 Bxf1 23. Nxf1 Bf8 24. cxb6 Qxb6 25. Nd4 Qxb3 26. Rxb3 Rb8 27. Rc3 Rxb2 28. Rc7 a6 29. Ra7 Bc5 30. Rxa6 Bxd4 31. exd4 Rb4 32. Rxf6 Rxd4 33. a5 Ra4 34. a6 d4 35. Nd2 d3 0-1

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Inouye, Matt"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1387"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[GameId "2188721479299219"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 c5 3. dxc5 e6 4. Be3 Na6 5. g3 Nxc5 6. Bg2 d5 7. O-O Be7 8. c4 O-O 9. Nc3 dxc4 10. Ne5 Rb8 11. Bf4 Ra8 12. Nxc4 Nh5 13. Be3 Rb8 14. Qxd8 Rxd8 15. Rfd1 b6 16. g4 Nf6 17. Bf4 Rb7 18. Bxb7 Bxb7 19. Rxd8+ Bxd8 20. Rd1 Be7 21. Bd6 Kf8 22. Bxe7+ Kxe7 23. f3 Nd5 24. Nxd5+ Bxd5 25. Ne5 f6 26. Nd3 Nxd3 27. Rxd3 a5 28. b3 Bb7 29. e4 Ba6 30. Rc3 Kd6 31. Kf2 g5 32. h4 h6 33. hxg5 hxg5 34. Ke3 e5 35. Rc1 Ke6 36. Rh1 1-0

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Yondon, Odbayar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1858"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[GameId "2188721479299220"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Bf4 e6 4. e3 Bd6 5. Ne5 Nbd7 6. Nd2 O-O 7. Bd3 h6 8. g4 Bxe5 9. dxe5 Nh7 10. Bxh7+ Kxh7 11. g5 hxg5 12. Qh5+ Kg8 13. Bxg5 f6 14. exf6 Nxf6 15. Qh4 e5 16. Rg1 c5 17. O-O-O b5 18. Ne4 Kf7 19. Bxf6 gxf6 20. Qh7+ Ke6 21. Nxc5+ Kd6 22. Rxd5+ Kxd5 23. Rd1+ Kc6 24. Qe4+ Kxc5 25. Rxd8 Bb7 26. b4+ Kb6 27. Rd6+ Kc7 28. Qd3 Bc6 29. Re6 Rad8 30. Qc3 Rd6 31. Re7+ Rd7 32. Qc5 Rc8 33. Qxa7+ Kd8 34. Rxd7+ Bxd7 35. e4 Ke7 36. Qe3 Rh8 37. Qg3 Rh3 38. Qg7+ Ke6 39. f4 exf4 40. Qg4+ Ke7 41. Qxf4 Rh5 42. h4 Be8 43. Kb2 1-0

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Razmov, Gabriel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1858"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[GameId "2188721479299221"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Bf4 e6 4. e3 c5 5. Nc3 a6 6. Ne5 Nc6 7. Be2 Bd6 8. Nxc6 bxc6 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. O-O O-O 11. Na4 Bd6 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. c4 c5 14. Rc1 Bd7 15. cxd5 Bxa4 16. Qxa4 exd5 17. Rfd1 Rfb8 18. b3 Rb6 19. Qa5 Rc6 20. Bf3 Re8 21. Rd2 Ne4 22. Bxe4 Rxe4 23. Rcd1 d4 24. exd4 cxd4 25. f3 Re8 26. Rxd4 Qg6 27. Rd8 Rce6 28. Qxa6 Qc2 29. Qxe6 fxe6 30. Rxe8+ Kf7 31. Red8 Qxa2 32. R8d3 Qb2 33. R1d2 Qa1+ 34. Kf2 Qa7+ 35. Ke2 Qg1 36. g4 Qxh2+ 37. Kd1 Qg1+ 38. Kc2 Qa1 39. Rc3 Qa2+ 40. Kd3 Qa6+ 41. Rc4 Qb5 42. Kc3 Qa5+ 43. Kc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Fondren, Chad"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A46"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1580"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[GameId "2188721479299222"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 c5 3. dxc5 Nc6 4. g3 e5 5. Be3 Qa5+ 6. c3 Ng4 7. Qd2 Nxe3 8. Qxe3 Qxc5 9. Qxc5 Bxc5 10. e4 d6 11. Nbd2 O-O 12. Nc4 f5 13. exf5 Rxf5 14. Bg2 Bxf2+ 15. Kxf2 e4 16. Nxd6 exf3 17. Bh3 Rf8 18. Bxc8 Raxc8 19. Nxc8 Rxc8 20. Rhe1 Rf8 21. Rad1 h6 22. Rd7 1-0

[Event "GM Troff IHCC Simul"]
[Site "Blakely Hall"]
[Date "2025.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Troff, Kayden"]
[Black "Zhang, Patrick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A46"]
[WhiteElo "2571"]
[BlackElo "1196"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[GameId "2188721479303320"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bf4 Nc6 4. e3 Be7 5. Bd3 d5 6. O-O O-O 7. Ne5 Nxe5 8. dxe5 Nd7 9. Nd2 f6 10. exf6 Nxf6 11. Nf3 Bd6 12. Ne5 c5 13. c4 Qc7 14. Ng4 e5 15. Nxf6+ Rxf6 16. Bg5 Rf8 17. cxd5 h6 18. Bh4 Bf5 19. e4 Bd7 20. Bg3 c4 21. Rc1 b5 22. b3 Ba3 23. Rc2 Qa5 24. bxc4 b4 25. Bxe5 Ba4 26. Qg4 g5 27. Qe6+ Rf7 28. Qxh6 Rh7 29. Qg6+ Kf8 30. Qxh7 Bxc2 31. Bd6+ Ke8 32. Qe7# 1-0

[Event "2024 SCC Fright Night Championship"]
[Site "Seattle, WA"]
[Date "2025.04.11"]
[Round "2"]
[White "van Eerde, Matthew"]
[Black "Loving, Jason"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Matthew van Eerde"]
[ECO "B08"]
[WhiteElo "1787"]
[BlackElo "2044"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[GameId "2186661106200576"]
[EventDate "2025.03.28"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "USA"]

{[%evp 0,89,19,31,54,61,61,85,87,70,76,91,65,46,48,24,42,32,40,42,45,-23,-18,-51,-93,-102,-5,-16,-17,-28,-26,-28,-35,-72,-53,-43,-45,-45,-53,-89,-94,-71,-54,-54,-37,-68,-14,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,-43,160,166,150,132,152,158,246,277,323,204,266,272,271,308,293,313,483,200,203,186,187,185,185,191,191,210,210,201,230,241,234,229,315,322,345,353] Jason is the highest-rated regular in the Friday night tournaments, a good 300 points above me. But I've had better positions against him occasionally, and even nicked him for a draw ones, so I am somewhat relaxed.} 1. d4 d6 {Jason chooses the Pirc! I love playing against the Pirc. So far so good.} 2. e4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Be2 O-O 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 c6 8. O-O Bg4 9. h3 Bxf3 {The first big decision. I retake with the Pawn to open the g-file. The computer microscopically prefers retaking with the Bishop.} 10. gxf3 Nh5 11. Kh2 g5 12. Bg3 e5 13. d5 c5 14. Rg1 Nd7 15. Nb5 Qe7 16. a4 a6 17. Na3 f5 18. exf5 Rxf5 19. Nc4 Raf8 {Jason's attack on the Kingside is gathering steam. I need to make more progress with my Queenside counterplay. I find a Rook maneuver that combines attack and defense.} 20. Ra3 Nf4 21. Rb3 Nxe2 22. Qxe2 h5 {Black's attack is visually scary but White's counterplay on the b- and g-files is adequate. The position is equal.} 23. Kh1 b5 24. axb5 axb5 25. Rxb5 h4 26. Bh2 Rxf3 27. Rb7 Qf7 28. Nxd6 Qxd5 $2 {Jason succumbs to the siren's call. He takes an important Pawn; the Knight on d6 is hanging; if it moves the Rook on b7 hangs; he is threating twelve nasty discovered checks; and the Pawn on f2 is going to fall. And yet, ... Qxd5 is a serious error. White has one move to secure an advantage – everything else loses. Can you find it?} 29. Qc4 $1 {The Black Queen is pinned! Trading is forced and White has a better endgame.} Qxc4 30. Nxc4 {A key moment. Jason's best try is 30. ... Rxh3! Perhaps I will blunder 31. Rxd7? Rxf2 32. Rg2 Rf1+ with a perpetual. Even if I find 31. Kg2 Rhf3 32. Rxd7 Rxf2+ 33. Kh1 then Jason's Rook is a cat among the pigeons and the win is hard to prove.} R8f7 $2 {The last mistake. Now my Knight gets to e4 and Jason's Pawn islands fall.} (30... Rxh3 $1 31. Kg2 (31. Rxd7 $2 Rxf2 32. Rg2 Rf1+ $10) 31... Rhf3 32. Rxd7 Rxf2+ 33. Kh1 $14) 31. Nd6 Re7 32. Ne4 Nf6 $5 {An Exchange sacrifice for activity. The Rook, Knight, g- and h-Pawns are scary, but fortunately the Bg7 is hemmed in by its own Pawns.} 33. Rxe7 Nxe4 34. Re1 Nxf2+ 35. Kg2 Rxh3 {Now I can liquidate and my b- and c-Pawns will win the day.} 36. Re2 g4 37. Rxf2 Rxh2+ 38. Kxh2 g3+ 39. Kg2 gxf2 40. Kxf2 Kh7 41. Rc7 e4 {Jason tries one last swindle. I put on my best poker face and hover my hand over the Rook, as if to take the Pawn on c4... and then I push the c2-Pawn instead.} 42. c3 Kg6 43. Rxc5 Bh6 44. Re5 e3+ 45. Rxe3 {After 45. ... Bxe3 46. Kxe3 my King can still stop Jason's h-Pawn, even if his King tries to help it; and if Jason runs his King to the Queenside to stop the b- and c-Pawns then my King can take the h-Pawn first and then wander lazily back over to the Queenside. So, Jason resigns.} 1-0

[Event "2024 SCC Fright Night Championship"]
[Site "Seattle, WA"]
[Date "2025.05.09"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Nakagawa, Jonathan"]
[Black "van Eerde, Matthew"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Matthew van Eerde"]
[ECO "C02"]
[WhiteElo "1730"]
[BlackElo "1787"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[GameId "2186661318959104"]
[EventDate "2025.03.28"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "USA"]

{[%evp 0,88,36,16,51,30,33,13,13,7,1,20,1,-9,-3,-26,-46,-56,-31,-82,-27,-25,-17,-1,12,-9,21,16,-21,-1,-21,-21,-21,-32,143,143,143,149,314,236,229,213,321,324,312,243,251,241,254,69,221,30,221,-127,-101,-101,-121,-120,-109,-151,-150,-158,-108,-125,-199,-140,-147,-169,-135,-168,-104,-99,-130,-128,-119,-95,-100,-183,-153,-185,-183,-494,-219,-220,-213,-633,-259,-257,-271,-29985,-29986] Going into the final round I was on 3/3. There were three people on 2/3 but I had played two of them already, so I knew I would be playing Jonathan. In our previous games we had always played the Najdorf but this time I wanted to change things up. All I need is a draw to clinch the championship – Jonathan needs a win to force a tiebreak. If he does, both Jason and Mike can win their games to join in the tiebreak (they are not playing each other.)} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 {Darn. I was hoping for 3. Nc3 or 3. Nd2, when I would have captured on e4 and played into the Rubinstein. That's okay, I can work with this.} c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Qb6 6. Bd3 Bd7 7. O-O cxd4 8. Re1 Nge7 9. h4 h5 10. Nbd2 dxc3 11. bxc3 Nf5 12. Nb3 {The battle lines are drawn. Black has an extra Pawn but White has better development. The position is equal.} Be7 $6 13. Rb1 $6 Nxh4 14. Nxh4 Bxh4 15. Nd4 Qa5 16. Rxb7 Qxc3 $4 {A horrible blunder. Jonathan, two Pawns down, is now completely winning because the Knight gets to d6.} 17. Nb5 Qc5 18. Qd2 a6 $6 19. Nd6+ $6 Ke7 20. Qf4 Nxe5 $6 21. Nf5+ Kf8 22. Be3 Qc6 23. Qxe5 exf5 {The computer finds a killer blow here} 24. Rb6 $2 (24. Rb8+ $1 Rxb8 25. Qxb8+ Qc8 26. Bc5+ Kg8 27. Qxc8+ Bxc8 28. Re8+ Kh7 29. Rxc8 {My extra Pawns are no match for Jonathan's extra Bishop}) 24... Bf6 $2 25. Qf4 $4 Qc3 $4 26. Rc1 $4 Qe5 {After trading blunders I have blocked the lines leading to my King. The position is equal again, but Jonathan is still forced by the tournament position to play for the win.} 27. Bc5+ $5 Kg8 28. Qd2 Rh6 {An echo of 20. Ra3 in my game against Jason.} 29. Bd6 $5 Qd4 30. Bc5 Qg4 $6 31. Rb4 $2 d4 32. Be2 Qg5 33. f4 Qg6 {Somewhere around here I accidentally brushed my clock while picking up my water glass, so the clock was a move off, which becomes important later.} 34. Bf3 Re8 $6 35. Bxd4 Bxd4+ 36. Rxd4 Qb6 37. Kh2 Bc6 $6 38. Rd6 $4 {The time pressure gets to Jonathan, who is now playing on the 30-second increment. 38. Rb4! was necessary. Now Black has a big advantage.} (38. Rb4 $1 $15) 38... Ree6 $6 39. Rxe6 {Jonathan offered a draw, played this move, and pressed the clock, which now incorrectly indicated that he had made the time control, and that I had six minutes remaining to make one move. I declined.} Rxe6 40. Be2 $4 Be4 $2 {40. ... Qf2! wins on the spot. I had ample time to spot this, even if the clock knew what move it was. Still, 40. ... Be4 is very solid.} (40... Qf2 $1 41. Qd8+ Kh7 42. Qg5 Rg6 $1) 41. Rc8+ Kh7 42. Bc4 $5 Rg6 43. Bf1 Rg4 44. Qd8 Qf2 {Eventually I get the idea. Jonathan resigned here as mate cannot be stopped, only delayed.} 0-1

[Event "WA Senior Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.05.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Hanson, Roger"]
[Black "Gavrysh, Leonid"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "A08"]
[WhiteElo "1800"]
[BlackElo "2070"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[GameId "2200953136242838"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. e4 Nf6 2. d3 {White declines the invitation to expand in the center against the Alekhine Defense, instead choosing to make it a King's Indian Attack.} d5 3. Nd2 c5 4. g3 Nc6 5. Bg2 g6 6. Ngf3 Bg7 7. O-O O-O 8. Re1 e5 9. c3 d4 10. cxd4 cxd4 11. Nc4 Ne8 12. a4 Nd6 13. b3 (13. Nfd2) 13... Nxc4 14. bxc4 Re8 15. Rb1 b6 16. Bd2 Bf8 17. h3 a5 18. Nh2 Nb4 19. Bxb4 axb4 20. f4 Bd7 21. Ng4 Bxa4 22. Qd2 f6 $6 {Doesn't GM Finegold say, "Never play ...f6?"} ({At least in this case,} 22... b5 {may be a better choice.} 23. cxb5 Bxb5 24. Nxe5 (24. fxe5 Ra3 $5 25. Nf6+ Kg7 26. Nxe8+ Qxe8 27. Bf1 Qxe5 {with good compensation for the exchange: pawn plus bishop-pair, pressure on d3, kingside weakening.}) 24... Ra3 25. Bf1 (25. Rxb4 Bxb4 26. Qxb4 Qa5) 25... Rc3 $17 {and Black's passed b-pawn combines with the bishop-pair to be a strength, rather than a weakness.}) 23. fxe5 fxe5 24. Rf1 Re6 25. Rxb4 $5 ({The alternative is} 25. Rf2 {with rough equality. Taking this rook looks scary....}) 25... g5 ({Careful analysis suggests the exchange offer was more bluff than actual danger.} 25... Bxb4 26. Nh6+ (26. Qxb4 Qe7 $17) 26... Kg7 27. Rf7+ Kh8 28. Qxb4 Qd6 29. Qb2 Rf6 {and White doesn't seem to have enough compensation.}) 26. Rbb1 h5 $6 (26... Bg7 $14) 27. Nh2 $6 ({White gains a solid advantage with the intermezzo} 27. Qf2 $1 {, when} Qe7 (27... hxg4 $2 28. Qf7+ Kh8 29. Qxe6 {simply wins for White.}) 28. Nf6+ $16 {suggests a far superior placement for that knight.}) 27... Bh6 28. Kh1 (28. g4 {seems natural, though it's painful to entomb one's own bishop. Rf5 and Nf3 are then ideas to put pressure on the fixed e- and g-pawns.}) 28... Be8 29. Qb2 Qe7 30. Bf3 Ra3 31. Qe2 g4 32. hxg4 h4 33. gxh4 $2 ({The game now swings toward Black. White can keep the battle complex and roughly balanced with} 33. g5 $1 hxg3 (33... Bxg5 34. gxh4 Bf4 (34... Bxh4 $2 35. Bh5 {actually leaves the black king more exposed.}) 35. Bh5 Qxh4 36. Bxe8 Rxe8 $13) 34. Bg4 Rg6 35. gxh6 Rxh6 36. Qf3 Rxh2+ 37. Kg1 $13) 33... Qxh4 34. g5 Bxg5 35. Rg1 Kh8 36. Rg4 Qh6 37. Rbg1 Rg6 38. Qg2 (38. R4g2 $5 {, but} Be3 39. Rf1 Ra7 $17 {builds pressure.}) 38... Be3 (38... Bf4 $1 {looks even stronger.}) 39. Rxg6 Bxg6 40. Rd1 Kh7 ({The engine insists the king is better-placed on h8, preferring here} 40... Ra7 $17 {.}) 41. Bg4 Ra7 ({Stockfish wants to undo the "error" by retreating} 41... Kh8 {here.}) 42. Qh3 Qxh3 43. Bxh3 Bh5 44. Bg4 ({After} 44. Ng4 $5 $17 {, there is an intriguing possibility:} Rg7 45. Nf6+ Kh6 46. Nxh5 (46. Rf1 Be2 $1 47. Rf5 Bf4 48. Bg2 Bxd3 $19) 46... Kxh5 {and we're in an opposite bishops ending. It is not drawish, though; Black maintains an enduring initiative due to superior king placement.} 47. Rf1 Kh4 48. Rf3 Rg1+ 49. Kh2 Rd1 50. Bf1 $6 Rd2+ 51. Kh1 $2 Kg4 {and White must pitch the d-pawn to prevent the black king from infiltrating.} 52. Rf6 Kg3 53. Rg6+ Kf2 54. Rf6+ Bf4 {is a disaster.}) 44... Kh6 45. Rb1 Bxg4 ({Or} 45... Kg5 46. Bxh5 Kxh5 47. Kg2 (47. Rxb6 Ra1+ 48. Kg2 Rg1+ 49. Kf3 (49. Kh3 Bf4 $19) 49... Kh4 $1 {soon winning the knight (...Rg3+ and ...Rg2+ threatened).}) 47... Bf4 48. Rb2 Rg7+ 49. Kh1 (49. Kf3 Rg3+ 50. Kf2 Rxd3 $19) 49... Rg3 $1 50. Rxb6 (50. Rb3 Rh3) 50... Rxd3 51. Nf1 Rc3 52. Rb4 Kg4 $19 {. Black's active pieces dominate the board.}) 46. Nxg4+ Kg5 47. Nxe5 (47. Nxe3 dxe3 48. Kg2 Kg4 49. Rxb6 {Now there's only one way to win:} Ra1 $3 (49... Ra2+ {is insufficient:} 50. Kf1 Rd2 (50... e2+ 51. Kf2) 51. Rf6) 50. Rb2 Rd1 $1 51. Re2 Rd2 52. Kf1 Kf3 $19) 47... Kf4 48. Nc6 (48. Kg2 Kxe5 {lasts longer, but doesn't offer much hope for White.}) 48... Rc7 49. Rf1+ Kg3 0-1

[Event "Washington Open (Rising U1500)"]
[Site "Redmond, WA"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Avula, Guru H.R."]
[Black "Lee, Justin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Justin Lee"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "1210"]
[BlackElo "938"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[GameId "2200952876490771"]
[EventDate "2025.05.24"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "USA"]

{[%evp 0,116,19,31,19,0,23,31,30,57,46,34,50,24,24,31,29,-20,-18,-18,-20,-35,-36,-40,-42,-46,-42,-60,-48,-80,-50,-47,-43,-59,-38,-81,-53,-78,-61,-92,141,141,138,-70,-41,-47,-37,-100,-71,-57,-27,-27,-11,-24,-11,-21,-14,-14,-21,-19,-21,-21,-9,-39,-55,-60,-35,-43,-43,-43,-44,-71,-81,-125,-125,-123,-165,-204,-204,-213,-242,-259,-279,-402,-263,-314,-365,-515,-321,-341,-374,-404,-409,-597,-651,-786,-862,-920,-651,-713,-982,-1190,-1409,-1409,-1409,-1904,-1002,-1012,-1240,-2362,-2214,-29987,-29990,-29995,-29996,-29997,-29998,-29999,-29999]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 {I like to play the Slav against the Queen’s gambit. If I played the Queen’s gambit declined, my opponent could take the d pawn and would have 2 pawns in the center.} 3. e3 e6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bd3 Nbd7 7. cxd5 cxd5 8. Bb5 O-O 9. Nf3 a6 10. Bxd7 {My opponent shouldn’t have traded his bishop for my knight. His bishop was more active than my knight. So making this trade just helped develop my bishop.} Bxd7 11. Ne5 Rc8 12. O-O Bd6 13. Nxd7 Qxd7 {This was another unnecessary trade. The position is closed, and knights are usually better than bishops in closed positions. He traded his more useful knight for my bad bishop.} 14. f4 Rc6 15. a3 Rfc8 16. Rc1 R8c7 17. Qb3 Qc8 18. Na2 Ne4 {Because my opponent played f4,I have a permanent outpost for my knight} 19. Qd3 Rc2 {This move by me was a blunder. If white takes the rook and I take back, My rook would be trapped with Bc3} 20. Rxc2 Rxc2 21. Rc1 (21. Bc3 Qc4 22. Qxc2 Qxa2) 21... Rc7 22. Nc3 b5 23. Na2 Rc4 24. Rxc4 Qxc4 25. Qxc4 dxc4 26. Bc3 Nxc3 27. Nxc3 f5 28. h3 h5 29. Kf2 Kf7 30. Kf3 h4 31. g4 hxg3 32. Kxg3 Ke7 33. Kf3 Kd7 34. e4 g6 35. exf5 exf5 36. Ke3 Kc6 37. Ne2 a5 38. Kd2 b4 39. axb4 axb4 40. Ke3 Kd5 41. Nc1 Bc7 42. Na2 Ba5 43. Nc1 Bb6 44. Ne2 Ba7 {This is a waiting move. Once white runs out of safe pawn moves, I will be able to win the d pawn.} 45. h4 Bb6 46. h5 gxh5 47. Ng3 {I’m not worried about white taking my h or f pawn. My c pawn or b pawn will promote. White wont be able to promote their f pawn. My king is able to stop it from moving.} Bxd4+ 48. Kd2 Ke6 49. Nxh5 Bxb2 50. Kc2 Bd4 51. Ng3 b3+ 52. Kb1 Be3 53. Ne2 Kd5 54. Ng3 Bxf4 55. Nxf5 c3 56. Ne7+ Kc4 57. Nd5 c2+ 58. Kb2 c1=Q# 0-1

[Event "Washington Open (Elite 1800+)"]
[Site "Redmond, WA"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Anoop, Pranav Kurungod"]
[Black "Razmov, Gabriel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Gabriel Razmov"]
[ECO "C51"]
[WhiteElo "2156"]
[BlackElo "1862"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[GameId "2199180606767193"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,68,19,31,25,16,14,14,11,-27,24,25,9,6,18,28,1,7,7,10,27,27,37,34,31,39,28,6,58,36,58,8,52,57,56,39,24,7,19,18,14,19,-16,-36,12,17,9,1,0,-2,16,-15,-13,-15,-21,-21,43,-30,92,87,97,8,15,-106,0,-262,-290,-301,-312,-326,-326]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bb6 {A line that avoids the theory of the Evans Gambit mainline, bringing the position into more well-known Italian waters.} 5. a4 a6 6. Nc3 d6 7. Nd5 Nf6 {While allowing doubled pawns on b6 and b7 seems awkward at a glance, this holds back White's queenside and central play quite well. Black intends to play on the kingside or center.} 8. Nxb6 cxb6 9. d3 h6 10. O-O Bg4 11. c3 O-O 12. h3 Be6 13. Bb3 Ne7 $6 {Black follows through on the traditional plan to re-route the knight to g6 and eventually f4, but taking more direct measures was called for here.} (13... d5 {leads to a pleasant position for Black after} 14. exd5 Bxd5 15. Bxd5 Nxd5 16. Bd2 Nc7 {, with the idea of maneuvering to e6 and controlling both d4 and f4 while maintaining some pressure on the backward d3 pawn.}) 14. Re1 Ng6 15. d4 $6 {White decides to push forward in the center; however, they haven't completed their development yet, which could backfire later.} (15. Bxe6 fxe6 16. Be3) 15... Qe7 $6 {A natural choice, but slightly inaccurate.} (15... Bxb3 {was a better option, with the idea of blocking the queenside or opening the a-file after} 16. Qxb3 b5) 16. d5 {The center is now closed, and White doesn't yet have much going on the queenside, so Black should have chances to attack on the kingside.} Bd7 17. Nd2 b5 {Preventing the knight from reaching c4, thus forcing White to make a decision to capture and open the a-file or else freeze the queenside with a5.} 18. axb5 axb5 19. Rxa8 Rxa8 {Now Black not only has potential kingside pressure, but also an open a-file and ideas to infiltrate on the queenside.} 20. Bc2 Nf4 21. Nb1 $6 {An awkward attempt to guard both the queenside and kingside.} (21. Qf3 {was a better defensive setup, aiming to meet} N6h5 {with} 22. Nf1 Qf6 23. Kh2) 21... g5 $6 {After spending much time calculating N6h5, I somehow talked myself out of it.} (21... N6h5 $1 {is indeed a better move that puts pressure.} 22. Qf3 {allows an infiltration on the queenside with} (22. Kh2 $2 {doesn't work because of a double-piece sacrifice:} Ra2 23. Na3 Qh4 24. Qf3 Bxh3 $1 25. gxh3 Nxh3 {and calculating up to this point, I thought White "must have something" to help them defend... In reality, White is lost, since Black has two pawns for a piece, is about to capture a third, and has four pieces in the attack. Further, White has almost no moves since all of their pieces are tied up.}) 22... Ra1) 22. Bxf4 gxf4 {Despite the missed opportunity, Black still retains a good position with a half-open g-file to attack along.} 23. Bd3 Kh8 24. Qf3 Nh7 25. Bf1 $2 {A sensible defensive move, but first White had to focus on slowing down the attack.} (25. Qh5 {can be effective, since there is no ...Qg5 for Black and the h6 and f7 pawns are weak too.} Kg7 $17) 25... Rg8 $2 {Too slow! Black needs to keep making threats to further improve their position.} (25... Qh4 $1 {avoids Qh5 and threatens ...Ng5 followed by ...f3, which can't really be prevented.} 26. Qe2 Ng5 27. Kh2 f3 {and Black is close to winning.}) 26. Kh2 Qf6 (26... Qh4) 27. Nd2 Qg5 28. Ra1 Nf6 $2 {Dreaming about sacs on g4. Instead, Black should still try to put a knight on g5 and push ...f3.} (28... Qg6 29. Qd3 Ng5 30. h4 Nh7 {and now the g4 square is weak.}) 29. Ra7 {White senses that Black has a strong initiative and attempts counterplay on the queenside. Meanwhile, Black has 6 minutes to complete the 2 moves before the time control, and has to find a concrete plan.} Bc8 (29... Qh4 30. Qe2 $1 Bxh3 31. Nf3 Ng4+) 30. Bxb5 $4 {This pawn grab cannot be right, and it isn't.} (30. Ra8 {pinning the bishop creates better practical defensive chances.}) 30... Qh4 $1 {Played instantly, with threats of Bg4 and Bxh3.} 31. Ra8 (31. Bf1 Bxh3 32. Qxh3 (32. gxh3 Ng4+ 33. Kg1 (33. Kh1 Nxf2+ 34. Kh2 Rg3) 33... Nxf2+ 34. Bg2 Nxh3+ 35. Kf1 Rg3) 32... Ng4+ 33. Kg1 Qxf2+) 31... Kh7 $4 {A natural move to avoid a trade on g8 with check, but with that Black misses a clear win.} (31... Bg4 $1 {wins instead, since after} 32. Rxg8+ Kxg8 33. Qd3 Qxf2 $1 {wins material or mates, which Black missed in calculating this line:} 34. Nf1 (34. hxg4 $6 Nxg4+ 35. Kh3 Ne3 $1 {cuts off White's queen from the defense, creating a dual threat of ...Qxg2 and ...Qg3.}) 34... f3 35. Qd2 Qh4) 32. Be2 $4 {A creative attempt, but at this point the attack is almost sure to succeed, so White must quickly seek to eliminate some of the key attackers.} (32. Rxc8 $1 {leads to an equal-ish endgame after} Rxc8 33. Nc4 Rd8 34. Na5 Ra8 35. Nxb7 Ra2 36. Kg1 Ra1+ 37. Bf1 Ne8 {and Black doesn't have a clear way in, while White has two pawns for the exchange and can also create distractions on the queenside.}) 32... Bg4 33. Rxg8 Bxf3 34. g3 {"Trapping" the Black queen. However, the material White had to give up to achieve this was too much.} Bxe2 {This capture wins, since if the queen is captured, Black will recapture the rook and be up a piece in an endgame; and if White moves his rook instead, the Black queen would no longer be trapped. This was an important victory for me in multiple ways, putting me in serious contention for the top spots in the tournament.} 0-1

[Event "Washington Open (Elite 1800+)"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.05.25"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Willy, Stephen"]
[Black "Leong, Ryan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "B22"]
[WhiteElo "2276"]
[BlackElo "1938"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[GameId "2181837066575872"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,55,28,28,66,-4,14,9,25,25,3,-3,-3,-3,-3,-7,-5,-8,-4,-3,35,27,20,34,45,38,57,22,22,22,22,12,20,22,67,102,133,133,230,255,235,235,235,275,408,430,465,330,874,874,901,932,2052,2052,29989,29990,29995,29996]} 1. e4 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. e5 Nd5 4. d4 cxd4 5. Qxd4 e6 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. Qe4 f5 8. Qe2 d6 ({This is usually delayed a little.} 8... Qc7) ({and} 8... b6 {are the common moves here.}) (8... b5 $5 {is an idea sometimes seen after 8...Qc7, but has some merit played right away.} 9. Qxb5 Qc7 10. Qe2 a5 11. Nbd2 Ba6 12. Nc4 Bc5 13. Qc2 O-O {looks like plenty of development, not to mention Black can almost certainly regain the pawn at will.}) 9. c4 Nde7 ({Things already start going downhill for Black from here. Possibly the best is the sharp} 9... Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Ndb4 11. exd6 (11. a3 Nc2+ 12. Kd1 Qa4 $19) (11. Qd1 dxe5 12. a3 e4 13. Ng5 Nd4 $17) 11... Bxd6 12. Bc3 e5 $13 {, posing problems for both players.}) 10. exd6 Qxd6 11. Nc3 g6 ({Creates more dark-square weaknesses, but} 11... Ng6 $14 {is still better for White.}) 12. Nb5 $1 Qb8 (12... Qb4+ $4 13. Bd2 Qxb2 14. Bc3 $18 {, and both black rooks are under threat.}) 13. Qd3 ({Direct, controlling d6. An alternative is} 13. b3 Bg7 (13... a6 14. Bb2 Rg8 15. Nc3 $16 {leaves Black in disarray}) 14. Bb2 Bxb2 (14... O-O 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Qb2+ Kg8 17. Rd1 {transposes.}) 15. Qxb2 O-O 16. Rd1 $16 {White owns the d-file.}) 13... Bg7 (13... Ng8 $14 {attempts to defend d6.}) 14. Nd6+ Kf8 15. Bd2 e5 16. Bc3 Bf6 $6 ({A couple not-very-impressive alternatives:} 16... h6 17. O-O-O Rh7 18. c5 Be6) (16... Be6 17. O-O-O Nc8 18. Nxc8 Qxc8 19. Qd6+ Kg8 20. Ng5 Bh6 21. h4) 17. O-O-O Kg7 18. Re1 Rd8 19. c5 Qc7 20. Nxe5 Nxe5 21. Rxe5 $1 b6 (21... Bxe5 22. Bxe5+ Kf8 23. Bg7+ Kxg7 24. Qd4+ Kh6 (24... Kg8 25. Bc4+ Nd5 26. Bxd5+ Kf8 27. Qf6+) (24... Kf8 25. Qf6+ Kg8 26. Bc4+) 25. Nf7+ Kh5 26. Be2#) 22. Qe3 Nc6 23. Rd5 bxc5 (23... Qe7 24. Qxe7+ Nxe7 25. Bxf6+ Kxf6 26. Ne4+ fxe4 27. Rxd8 $18) 24. Bxf6+ Kxf6 25. Qc3+ Ke6 (25... Kg5 26. Qg3+ Kf6 (26... Kh5 27. Qh3+ Kg5 28. Ne4+ Kf4 29. Qf3#) (26... Kh6 27. Qf4+ g5 28. Nxf5+ Bxf5 29. Qxc7 Rac8 30. Qf7 $18) 27. Ne8+ Rxe8 28. Qxc7 $18) 26. Bc4 Rxd6 27. Re1+ Kd7 28. Qg7+ 1-0

[Event "Washington Open (Elite 1800+)"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2025.05.25"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Orlov, Georgi"]
[Black "Wan, Bertrand"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Ralph Dubisch"]
[ECO "E92"]
[WhiteElo "2507"]
[BlackElo "2134"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "45"]
[GameId "2200953273950529"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,45,18,18,18,27,39,32,33,34,46,29,31,31,45,40,53,54,62,48,40,33,32,7,29,29,29,10,25,24,41,63,100,68,86,96,118,112,157,150,183,229,710,721,719,730,719,737]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 O-O 5. e4 d6 6. Be2 e5 7. dxe5 dxe5 8. Qxd8 Rxd8 9. Bg5 c6 10. Nxe5 Re8 11. f4 h6 $1 ({I like Black's plan with ...h6/...g5, breaking up the white center. I've seen it before, but delayed a move:} 11... Na6 12. O-O-O h6 13. Bh4 g5 {, with actual results slightly favoring Black.}) 12. Bh4 g5 $1 13. fxg5 hxg5 14. Bg3 Nxe4 $6 ({After} 14... Na6 {White now has the option to go kingside with some pressure on the f-file:} 15. O-O Nc5 16. Nxf7 $1 {, but Stockfish says this is still equal, with complicated-looking lines such as} Ncxe4 17. Nxe4 Nxe4 18. Bh5 Be6 19. Be5 Bxc4 20. Rf5 {. Seriously? I have no idea if this works for either player.}) 15. Nxe4 $14 Bxe5 16. O-O-O Bf5 17. Bxe5 Bxe4 18. Bf6 Na6 ({If} 18... Bxg2 19. Rhe1 Na6 20. Bh5 Rxe1 21. Rxe1 Nc5 22. Rg1 $16 {guarantees White will recover the pawn with bishop-pair and initiative.}) 19. h4 Bh7 ({This looks like a double-purpose move, blocking the h-file against Rh8# while gaining a tempo on the e2-bishop. What could go wrong?The alternative} 19... g4 20. Bxg4 {isn't fun for Black, of course.}) 20. hxg5 $1 Rxe2 21. Rxh7 $1 Kxh7 22. Rh1+ Kg6 23. g4 $1 {The net closes. The only way to avoid checkmate now is to toss both rooks: 23...Re1+ 24.Rxe1 Rh8 25.Bxh8 Kxg5.} 1-0

