Albany versus Saratoga A for Second Place

We conclude coverage of this year’s Capital District Chess League play with the Albany - Saratoga A match. First place was decided the week before when Schenectady A defeated the previously undefeated Albany A team. Now Albany had to play the very strong Saratoga A team. Saratoga had conceded two drawn matches at this point and were potentially tied with Albany for second place. Events in the match worked to keep the spectators uncertain of the outcome right up to the last moments of the match.

The drama of the match began early on the first board. In the decades of the 1960’s and 1970’s Matt Katrein was clearly the strongest local player. Somewhere in the 80’s Steve Taylor emerged as a challenger for that distinction. Around the same time and through 90’s Matt scaled back his participation in local events and Steve was preeminent among the locals with others such as Van Riper and Howard and Battes challenging. Today Deepak Aaron is generally seen as the strongest player in the Capital District. It may be said this game is a clash between the “old guard” and the “older guard.”

CDCL Match Albany v Saratoga A, Board 1

White: Matt Katrein, Albany

Black: Steve Taylor, Saratoga A

Date: 24 June, 2010

1.e4 c5 2.c3..

Karpov, Anand, Ivanchuk, Kramnik, Shirov and others at the top of the ratings lists have used the Alapin variation of the Sicilian against top level opponents as a change of pace. Although it has to be said they have not used it often in classical chess. The line is popular with the top flight in contests such as Wijk aan Zee and the like.

2..., d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.Be2 e6 7.0–0 Be7 8.Qa4+ Nc6 9.c4 Qd7 10.dxc5 Ne4

A couple of Russian masters played so in the Alekhine Memorial, Moscow, 1992; Lagvillava - Bazhin. Rather than 10..., Ne4; Bazhin went with 10..., Bxc5; winning in 38 moves. The game move has the idea of capturing on c5 with the Knight and making the White Queen uncomfortable on a4.

It may be said the opening has not gone particularly well for White - ten moves in and Black is equal.

11.Be3 0–0 12.Rd1 Qc7 13.Nbd2 Nxc5 14.Bxc5..

Rybka suggests 14 Qa3, as an alternative. It avoids giving up the Bishop pair immediately and enters a nicely complicated middle game position after 14..., Na6 15 c5 Nab4 16 Rac1 Nd5 with play centering on can the c-pawn be held or not. Quite a difficult position to play and that difficulty may be why Matt searched out an alternative.

14..., Bxc5 15.Ne4 Be7 16.h3 Bf5 17.Ng3 Bg6 18.h4...

This move leads to trouble. Finding something better is not easy. 18 Bd3, is met by 18.., f5 heralding the advance of the center pawns. Perhaps White has nothing better than 18 a3 and trying to work his way out of difficulty slowly. The computer suggests play going 18 a3 Bf6 19 Rd2 Rad8 20 Rad1 Rxd2 21 Rxd2 Qf4 22 Qd1 e5 23 Nf1 e4 24 N3h2 then either 24..., Be7; or 24..., Ne5; or even 24..., Qb8; do not give Black anything more than a slight edge.

18..., Bc5

A small threat (19.., Qxg3) that Katrein may have missed when heading for this position allows Black to improve the activity of his pieces. The small but persistent advantage Black has enjoyed so far is blossoming into something significant.

19.Kf1 h6 20.Bd3 f5 21.a3 Rad8!?

Heeding that piece of wisdom about correct technique; never hurry, Mr. Taylor improves piece position rather than entering the tactical line 21.., Nd4 22 Nxd4 Bxd4 23 Ne2 (If 23 Bxf5 Qxg3 24 fxg3?? Rxf5+ 25 Ke2 Re5+ 26 Kd2 Rd8 and the end is near. If White tries to improve on this by not taking the Queen, things are no better; 24 Rxd4 Rxf5 and he is down a full piece.) 23.., Bxb2; getting away with a whole pawn leading to a very promising position that is probably won for Black.

Chess players, particularly very strong ones such as our protagonists in this drama, often are faced with decisions like this; two good moves, one comfortable not requiring much calculation, and one sharp needing a clear evaluation of some more or less complicated lines. The practical choice in this age of sudden-death time controls is to take the comfortable path. For the benefit of easier scheduling, we the spectators may not get to see some pretty chess. The selection of practical over artistry is surely a characteristic of modern times. This is the case here. Steve keeps the advantage and Matt has the task of finding a plan in tough position.

22.h5..

This move creates a target. The alternative 22 Qc2, is not much more appealing when Black continues 22..., Ne5 and if White plays 23 Qe2 Nxf3 24 Qxf3 Rd4 25 h5 Rf4! Is winning for Black. Trying to improve with 24 gxf6 in this line leaves Black still comfortably ahead and the White K-side very weakened.

22..., Be8 23. Qc2 Bd6 24.c5..

Things have not been going well for White. At first look I was tempted to mark this move as an error with a query, but when the alternatives; 24 Ne2, and Be2, are examined they are not any better. In every case, the White K-side comes unraveled and pawns fall.

24..., Bxg3 25.fxg3 Bxh5 26.Bc4 Bxf3 27.Bxe6+ Kh8 28.gxf3 Nd4

The final blow. Save the Bishop with 29 Qc4, and the rest of the pawn cover is stripped from the White King with 29..., Qxg3+; and mate is close. Give up the Exchange by 29 Rxd4 and 29..., Rxd4 30 Kf2 Rfd8 threatens havoc on the 2d rank. Nothing works for White now, and so Katrein resigned.

The game on board 1 did not take much of the allotted playing time. I was keeping up with play on the other boards. As it became clear Katrein for Albany was going to lose, the situation on board 2 appeared to be very good for Albany.

CDCL Match Albany v Saratoga A, Board 2

White: Lee Battes, Saratoga A

Black: Dean Howard. Albany

Date: 24 June, 2010

1.e4 e6 2.Nf3 d5 3.Nc3..

A quirky line that is one Lee’s favorites. It is not used by the elite GM’s but has featured in the opening repertoires of some very good players; Ljuboojevic, Benjamin, Andras Andorjan of “Black is OK” fame, and Ian Rodgers.

3..., Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.d4 c5 6.Bg5?

This is just bad. The GM’s like 6 dxc5, and they have a reasonable record with the move. Another try, 6 Bb5, seems to not be bad either. The text, however, is just not good. The line does have some tricks in it that can catch an unwary opponent off guard.

6... Qa5!?

The text did not work out well for Black in Sjkoldborg - Zemerov, Marianske Lazne, 2004 where, after 7 Bb5 a6 8 Bxd7+ Bxd7 and Black later traded off all the minor pieces except his poor light squared Bishop, suffered for many moves without much hope and succumbed in 55 moves. Much more usual is 6..., Qb6, hitting at b2 and d4.

7.Bb5 Nc6!?

A bit more accurate is 7..., a6; more principled is 7..., cxd5.

8.0–0 cxd4 9.Bxc6?..

A surprising slip by Mr. Battes in the early going in an opening he knows well. Necessary is 9 Nxd4, when after 9..., Nxd4 10 Qxd4 a6 11 Bxd7+ Bxd7 the game is level.

9..., dxc3! 10.Bxd7+ Bxd7 11.bxc3..,

White has lost a pawn. This recapture makes things worse. The isolated pawn on the c-file is a easy target for the Black heavy pieces. Offering more resistance in a bad position is 11 b3. The rest of the game revolves around the theme of attacking this exposed weakness and using these threats to gain an advantage elsewhere.

11..., Qxc3 12.Rb1 Qc7 13.Re1 Bc5 14.c3 0–0 15.Re2 Rfc8 16.Nd4 Bb6 17.Rc2?..

Better is 17 Re3. If then 17..., Ba4?; there is no real threat on the back rank after 18 Qxa4. Black probably has to play 17..., Qc4 then 18 Rh3 is an attacking gesture (19 Rh3) that requires Black to simplify with 18.., Bxd4. The resulting ending after 19 cxd4 Qxa2 20 Rxb7 Bc6 21 Qb1 Qxb1 22 Rxb1 is bad for White. At this point in the game the result on board 1, Katrein’s loss, was clear and very likely played a part in the decision by White. He wanted to delay the leveling of the match score at 1-1 as long as possible knowing the score would play a role in decisions on other boards.

17..., Ba4 18.Nb3 Qxe5 19.Qd2 Qf5 20.Rcb2 Bxf2+ 21.Qxf2 Qxg5 22.Nc5 Bc6 23.Nxb7 Qe7 24.Nc5 Qc7

Black has a winning advantage; two extra pawns and continuing pressure on the c-pawn.

Time pressure began about here in the game. Both players had used nearly all of the allotted time and the game became a flurry of quick moves with errors made by both sides. It rolled on for several more moves with the advantage going first one, then the other player until Lee made the last error, dropped material and resigned.

While this situation was unfolding Jon Leisner had obtained what looked like a near winning advantage over Magat of Saratoga on board 3, and the Le Cours - Wright game was unclear. This post is getting too long. I will finish up tomorrow with the game scores for boards 3 and 4.

Wrapping Up the Schenectady A - Albany CDCL Match

The games in today’s post were surprising. In the first one, the board four clash between Leisner and Rotter, two of the sharper players active locally made a careful draw that struck me as slightly out of character for these guys.

CDCL Match Schenectady A v Albany, Board 4

White: Jon Leisner

Black: Bobby Rotter

Date: 17 June, 2010

1.f4..

Over the past two or three years, Leisner and Rotter have made good progress in the ratings list because they court tension in sharp lines. Both have pet lines of play about which they are very knowledgeable. The Bird’s Opening is one of Jon’s favorites.

1..., d5 2.Nf3 g6 3.e3 Bg7 4.Be2 c5 5.0–0 Nf6 6.d3 0–0

It is not easy to find games between masters in this opening. I have yet to obtain one of Chessbase’s big databases. With four or five million games there may be more examples found. In the one million or so games in my databases, there are only a double handful of games in the Bird’s. Of those, three or four feature master players on both sides of the game. Absent a goodly number of games from the better players, I had to fall back on my electronic mentor. At this point Rybka sees Black as having a slight edge.

7.Nc3 d4!?

Bobby tries to sharpens the contest. The move lets go of some of his edge because it lacks preparation. More controlled is 7..., Nc6.

8.Ne4 Nxe4 9.dxe4 dxe3

Opening the d-file allows the trade of Queens taking much of the fight out of the game. With 9..., Qb6; tension could be maintained. Both players may have recognized they were facing mirror images and decided to stay away from tactical melees.

10.Qxd8..,

White had choices here. He could have tried 10 Bxe3, 10 e5, or 10 c3. None of these seem particularly better than the game move.

10...,Rxd8 11.c3 Nc6 12.Bxe3 b6 13.Rfd1 Bb7 14.e5 e6

This move sets up a rather inflexible pawn formation for Black, however it has the virtue of limiting possibilities for White. The game is entirely level now.

15.Rxd8+ Rxd8 16.Rd1 Rxd1+ 17.Bxd1 Bh6 18.Kf2 Ne7 19.g3 Bc6 20.Nd2 Bf8 21.Nc4 Nd5 22.Bd2 Bb5 23.Ne3..

Creating some tension with 23 Be2 Bd7 24 Na3 is met by 24... Nc7 leaving White with some initiative but it is hard to see just how significant progress is to be made. The text agrees to a trade of Knights. The resulting position with both sides having a pair of Bishops and no pawn weaknesses offers little incentive to keep the battle going.

23..., Nxe3 24.Bxe3 Be7 25.Bf3 Kf8

Black avoids advancing his f-pawn. That is the only resource available to introduce any kind of imbalance into the position.

26.b3 Ke8 27.c4 Bd7 28.Bd2 Kd8 Draw agreed.

The careful play by these two fighters indicated the importance of the match, the result was certainly going to be a major factor in deciding who was to be in first place at the finish. By the time the draw was agreed, Katrein had resigned his game against Aaron and Leisner, the Albany team captain, was measuring his team’s chances of holding a drawn match. Halving the match point would have kept alive Albany hopes for another League title.

The surprise in our second game was Katrein made an error in sharp position he deliberately brought about. The following week he and I had opportunity to talk about the game. Matt said he had noted the superior move, 22..., Nf3+, and just forgot to play it. Matt is a very strong player and has been so for many years. If my memory is accurate, he acquired the Life Master title before 1980. He, like almost all chess players, has lost games through mistakes, but Matt’s mistakes are not often made when he instigates the tension. This game was the first to finish. The result heartened the Schenectady team by the unexpected early win.

CDCL Match Schenectady A v Albany, Board 1

White: Deepak Aaron

Black: Matt Katrein

Date: 17 June, 2010

1.e4 Nf6 2.e5 Nd5 3.d4 d6 4.c4 Nb6 5.exd6 cxd6 6.Nc3 g6 7.Be3 Bg7

Katrein has used Alekhine’s Defense for decades. It, and the Pirc are his main weapons against 1 e4.

8.Rc1 0–0 9.Be2 Nc6 10.b3 e5!?

This is risky as this game demonstrates. The move sets White a decision; open a central file with 11 dxe5, or grab a superior Q-side pawn structure while facing aggressive play by Black on the K-side. Mr. Aaron goes for the long term positional plus of a superior Q-side pawn formation. Black could have tried 10..., d5, then a possible line is; 11 c5 Nd7 12 Nxd5 Ndb8 13 Bc4 b5 14 cxb6 axb6 15 a4 e6 16 Nc3 Nxd4 17 Nge2 e4, and so on. Not too many humans would think this way. The computer likes it and calls the game equal. White can continue with 18 f4, and the position is full of tactics.

11.d5..

If the Black King is tied down on the K-side in some fashion in an bare King endgame, the White Q-side pawn mass has excellent chances of forcing a passed pawn. Mentioning this characteristic of this particular game does not imply the position is lost for Black. It does indicate Black will have to be accurate from here forward.

11..., Nd4 12.Nf3 Nxe2 13.Qxe2 Bg4 14.h3 Bxf3 15.Qxf3 f5

The logical continuation of the idea behind 10..., e5. Black wagers there is compensation to be found in a direct attack by pieces and pawns on the White King.

16.0–0 Nd7

Aiming at bringing the Knight around to f6 if allowed to do so, reinforcing the planned attack, or so I thought at the time. It seems Mr. Katrein had in mind a different plan.

17.Nb5..

Threatening a7 and d6 and thinking probably that Black will have to use some time to calculate 17..., Nf6 18 Bxa7 Qa5 19 Qe3 Nd7 20 Bd4 and the alternatives all of which are quite complicated

17..., e4

Mr. Katrein is not to be distracted. The a-pawn is bait to buy a tempo to be used to speed the K-side assault. Matt did not use a huge amount of time to decide on the e-pawn push. I expect he had been considering his options in this position for a couple of moves

18.Qe2 Ne5

So this where the Knight was heading.

19.Nd4..

Deepak gave some moments of thought perhaps considering 19 Bxa7 Nd3 20 Rcd1 Nf4 21 Qd2 Qg5 which looks near won for Black, and 19 Rcd1 Nd3 20 f3, with things becoming more complicated. Rybka liked the text move.

19..., f4!?

The computer prefers 19..., Nd3. After the game move it gives White an advantage, not a winning one, but a distinct edge. Matt’s move is the logical continuation of the intention of attacking the White King. With 19..., Nd3 20 Ne6 Nxc1 21 Rxc1 Qa5 22 Bf4 Qa3 23 Nxf8 Rxf8 24 Qd2 b6 25 c5 dxc5 26 d6 Bd4 27 Bg5 Rf7 28 Be7 Rxe7 29 dxe7 Kf7 30 Qh6 Kxe7 etc. the computer claims the game is equal. I think it would take the mechanical accuracy of a computer, or the skillful vision and confidence of a GM to go down the computer’s recommended path.

20.Ne6?!..

Not to be outdone Aaron goes boldly into great complications. Safe an sound is 20 Bd2 when White obtains good compensation after giving up the Exchange in the form of extra pawns and a powerful Ne6. The line goes; 20..., Nd3 21 Ne6 Nxc1 22 Rxc1 f3 23 Qe4 Qe7 24 g3 Rf5 25 Bf4. The pawn on f3 is likely doomed, although White must approach taking it off gingerly via ..Rd1/d3/xf3 to avoid problems . Even if Black returns the Exchange on e6 he will only get back one of the two pawns leaving White with a very favorable ending. After the text the tactics come quick and sharply.

20..., Qh4 21.Bxf4 Rxf4 22.g3 Qxh3?

Matt told me he had seen the correct move, 22..., Nf3+ and then forgot about it when it was time to play the move. As dangerous as the situation appears to be for White, really the game is even after 22..., Nf3+ 23 Qxf3 Rxf3 24 gxh4 Rxh3 25 Kg2 Rxh4 26 Rh1 Rxh1 27 Rxh1 Bf6 28 Re1 Rc8 29 Rxe4 h5 and the passed h-pawn balances the White pawn plus on the Q-side. Another path to equality is 22...Nf3+ 23.Kg2 Rg4 24.Rh1 Rg5 25.Nxg5 Qxg5 26.Qxe4 Rf8 and the two minor pieces are very well placed to fight against the two extra pawns White has in hand.

The forced sequence that follows gives White a solid advantage.

23.Nxf4 Nf3+ 24.Qxf3 Qxf1+ 25.Kxf1 exf3 26.Re1 Rf8?

Often it takes a couple of errors to lose a game. White has the clear edge before this move. After it is made the game is lost. Notwithstanding the theoretical plus Black has; a Bishop versus a Knight with pawns on both sides of the board, White is much better here. The Bishop lacks targets, the White pieces have an unassailable outpost at e6 and the White Rook threatens to go to the 7th rank wrecking havoc with the Black pawns. Black had to try the risky 26..., b5!?; to get his Rook into action and make fight of it. White will still be better, but Black has chances. The next moves are virtually forced and make the White win clear.

27.Ne6 Rf5 28.g4 Re5 29.Nxg7 Rxe1+ 30.Kxe1 Kxg7 31.g5 and Black Resigns.

If 31..., h5 32 gxh6+ Kxh6 33 c5! And the d-pawn rolls home to make a Queen. Other tries fail also on the rock of White making a passed pawn on the Q-side. Deepak Aaron got some edge early, defended calmly against a furious direct attack on his King and took advantage of his opponent’s errors to simplify into a won pawn ending. A masterly performance. A very nice win for the newest local master.

More CDCL News

A late news flash! Last night (Thursday) the Schenectady Chess Club was the site of a match between the Albany and Saratoga A teams to settle second place in this year’s Capital district Chess League. Albany secured second place with a solid match win scoring 3-1.

The Albany team used the Schenectady club room for their home games this year. Now that the Albany club has found a new home at the Hamilton Presbyterian Church in Guilderland on Route 20, next season they will likely use the new site for home games.

The breakdown of the results in the Albany - Saratoga Match is:

(The first named player had the White pieces)

Board 1: Matt Katrein, Albany: 0 Steve Taylor, Saratoga: 1

The opening was a Sicilian, Alapin variation, 28 moves.

Board 2: Lee Battes, Saratoga: 0 Dean Howard, Albany: 1

The opening was a French Defense. The game went about 50 moves with a the last 15 moves played in terrific time trouble.

Board 3:Jon Leisner, Albany: 1 Gordon Magat, Saratoga: 0

The opening was the Bird’s, and again, the number of moves is not clear - something about 45 to 50 - with the last several played when Magat was in great time pressure.

Board 4: Alan Le Cours, Saratoga: 0 Tim Wright, Albany: 1

The opening was a Slav Defense, the 4..., a6 variation, 50 moves.

A solid win for Albany in a match that did not begin in too promising a fashion. Early in the session Matt Katrein, Albany’s first board, after not being able to prevent Taylor from equalizing in the opening, lost material in the middle game and had to resign on his 29th turn. The rest of the Albany team battled on. Howard had the advantage on the second board, but matters were far from clear in the remaining games. As the playing session was winding down and time pressure built, one by one the Albany players notched wins. It was an impressive effort by the team to lock in second place in the League. A full report of the match with the game scores will be posted here soon.

Returning to the Schenectady - Albany match from last week:

On board two a couple of Experts battled to wring an advantage from the positional Catalan System. In the end the point was split.

CDCL Match Schenectady A v Albany

White: Peter Michelman, Albany

Black: Philip Sells

Date: 17 June, 2010

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 c6 5.Nf3 Be7 6.0–0 0–0 7.Nbd2 Nbd7

The Grandmasters play this way for both sides. The game will be a positional struggle about pawn formations and which side obtains a better disposition of his pieces.

8.Qc2 c5!?

This seems slightly questionable. The GMs prefer to prepare the advance to c5 with .., b6; first. That move also presents White with some worries about just what the intentions are for the Bc8. Is it coming out via a6, or is it going to be assigned support duties on b7? Nevertheless, the computer sees the position with only a small plus for White.

9.cxd5 exd5 10.dxc5 Nxc5

Now we can see the form of the rest of the game; White will pressure the isolated d-pawn. Black will defend it, and while doing so, coordinate his pieces on the best squares possible.

The position has shown up in a couple of master games in the not too distant past; Ionesco - Slovineanu, Bucharest Spring, 2001 1-0 in 42 moves and Slavina - Yagupov. Petrov Mem., 2002 ½ -½ I 23 moves.

11.Rd1 Qb6 12.b3 Re8 13.Bb2 Bg4 14.Bd4..

White has settled on his plan; try to make something out of the bold Nc5.

14..., Rac8 15.h3 Be6 16.Rac1 Qa6 17.Qb2 Ncd7

Not the foolish 17..., Qxe7?; it loses right away to 18 Bf1 since 18..., Nd3; just is not quite good enough to get the Black Queen out of her troubles.

18.Nb1..

The game now begins to head towards a draw. If White wanted to try for a victory 18 b4 seems to be a move worth giving a go.

18..., Bf8 19.e3 Ne4 20.Bf1 Qa5 21.a3 a6 22.b4 Qd8 23.Rxc8 Qxc8 24.Rc1 Qb8 25.Ne5 f6 26.Nxd7 Bxd7 27.Nc3 Nxc3 28.Rxc3 Rc8 29.Qb3 Be6 30.Bg2 Rxc3 31.Qxc3 Qd6 32.Bc5 Drawn by agreement.

Both players had used up most of the time on their clocks, all the other games had finished (two wins and a draw for Schenectady) and White has only a very small edge in the final position. The contestants could see no point in spoiling the score of a pretty well played game with a time scramble for a meaningless point. A reasonable and gentlemanly decision.

One of the Decisive Games

After some delay, we are going to look at the games from last week’s match between Schenectady A and the team from Albany. To begin, the game Chi - Howard:

CDCL Match Schenectady A v Albany

White: Patrick Chi, Schenectady

Black: Dean Howard, Albany

Date: 17 June, 2010

1.d4 e6 2.c4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.Nf3 h6 6.Bh4 0–0 7.e3 b6 8.Be2 Bb7

Very, very much mainstream theory. A quick look in the databases shows Kasparov, Karpov, Kramnik, Topalov and others of the 2600+ ilk on the White side and much the same line up on the Black side.

9.Bxf6 Bxf6 10.cxd5 exd5 11.b4..

This is not an opening I have much experience with. During the game this move surprised me. It turns out it is standard and preferred by that list of world champions and contenders above.

11..., Be7?

The top flight players do not, however, like this move at all. The is only one example in the databases, Guilev - Mamedov, Dubai, 1999, a couple of 2300/2400 players where White won in 36 moves. The elite guys play 11... c5, and sometimes 11..., c6. Interestingly, Rybka finds nothing wrong with the game move even after given some time to think about it.

12.Qb3 Nd7!?

This rather normal looking move is not the computer’s choice. It much prefers 12.. Qd6. There is a trick or two in the position. If 13 0-0, then 13..., Qxb5 is met by 14 Nxd5. So it seems that White can offer the b-pawn for a move or two and complete his development before having to take time to defend b4. The evaluation given by Rybka is only slightly in favor of White after the text.

13.0–0 Nf6 14.Rfc1..

We may have come to the end of Patrick’s theoretical knowledge. The principled and theoretical move 14 b5 is one of the ideas behind 11 b4. The notion is for White to obtain a favorable pawn formation on the Q-side and pressure down the c-file on the backward c-pawn. That seems to be the idea of the text also, but now Black can play ..,c7-c6; without his d-pawn becoming isolated.

14..., a5 15.a3!?...

White passes a second time on the chance to advance to b5. The game is dead even now.

14.., c6 16.Na4 axb4 17.axb4 Ne4 18.Ne5 b5

The continued pressure on the Q-side pawns produces an ugly move. The computer does not give White any significant edge after the text, but to this human, the Black position is not attractive at all.

19.Nc5 Nxc5 20.bxc5 Qc7 21.Qd3 Bf6 22.f4

White has now switched his sights to the K-side. He is undertaking an attack there with only a marginal advantage of force in the sector; Q+B+N versus a lone B. There is a rather large but in this assessment; the Black Queen can be brought to the aid of her monarch quickly and there are no glaring weaknesses in the pawn structure. The plan just may be over-optimistic.

Both players had used a considerable amount of clock time by now. Patrick and Dean tend to use time in the early phases of the game attempting to truly understand the nature of the position. Most often they then are able to survive a scramble in time pressure relying on this understanding to see them through. When two such players meet, the concluding moves of a game can be made in a flurry of hands faster than Ping Pong. Rybka still says the game is even.

22..., Rxa123.Rxa1 Ra8 24.Rf1?!..

This is a gamble. Probably the best play is 24 Rxa8 Bxa8 25 Qf5 Bxe5 26 fxe5 b4 when the question is; is the really terrible Black Bishop on a8 offset by the passed b-pawn? Holding on to the b-pawn keeps the Black pieces tied down, but if the White Queen has to blockade the b-pawn from b3, the chances for a win by White are remote.

24..., Ra2

Safer is first 24..., Bc8; guarding the light squares on the K-side.

25.Bh5 g6 26.Bd1 Qa5!?

Black is going for gold also. The infiltration of the Black major pieces down the a-file looks dangerous, it is however not quite as quick as the sacrificial assault White has in mind. Once more safer is 26..., Bc8.

27.Nxg6 fxg6??

In a game score that Bill Townsend shared with me this move was given the double query, and that is accurate. In a sharp position Dean either miscalculated or miscounted. Maybe he thought his Queen and Rook could make threats along the 2d rank that would require defensive moves by White. The computer gives White a winning advantage after the text move.

Black has chances to hold with 27..., Ba6, after which things get very tactical immediately. Play, according to Rybka goes; 28 Bc2 and if 28..., Bxf1 29 Qf5 Bxf1 30 Qxf6 gxf6 31 Qxg6+ Kf8 32 Qxh6+ and the White Queen and Bishop hunt down the Black King. Or if 30..., Rxc2?? 31 Qh8 mate. Best play according to the computer is; 27... Ba6 28 Bc2 b4 29 Qf5 Qd8 30 Rb1 Bc8 31 Ne7+! Qxe7 (If 31..., Bxe7 32 Qh7+ and mate the next.) 32 Qxc8+ and there is a perpetual on c8 and g4 for White. The alternative try in this line of 29..., Rxc2 30 Qxf6 fxg6 31 Qxg6+ Kf8 32 Qxh6+ leads to a draw also but with much accuracy required of both parties to get there. With time running down for both players they have to go on intuition. Calculating all the complexities after 27..., Ba6; is no easy job in time trouble. This time intuition fails Dean.

28.Qxg6+ Bg7 29.f5!..

A nice idea leading to a forced win with limited risk. During the game I spent a good deal of time calculating 29 Qe8+ Bf8 (If 29..., Kh7 30 Bh5 wins) 30 Bg4 which also winning but quite so neatly as the game continuation.

29..., Qd2 30.f6 Qxe3+

There is no real hope in 30..., Qxg2+; because after giving up the Exchange the Bb7 is useless and the c-pawn doomed in the long run. Any advance of the b-pawn, although necessary to get some life for the Bb7, loses it. All-in-all, not a position worth playing. The text offers an exchange of Queens, but White has calculated the precisely.

31.Kh1 Qg5 32.f7+ Kf8 33.Qd6+ Qe7 34.Qb8+ Resigns.

Even when the Black Queen throws herself onto the bonfire it is mate the next move. A very nice win by Patrick Chi. The end came so soon we, the spectators, were not treated to time scramble we expected. This victory cemented the match win for the Schenectady A team and first place in this year’s CDCL contest.

More games tomorrow. I have completed the analysis of Michelman - Sells and hope to have Leisner - Rotter also. The big game, Aaron - Katrein, will the last posted for a big finish!

Schenectady A Wins the CDCL

Here is some fresh news. The Schenectady A team won their match with Albany by the score 3-1.

The score breaks down as follows with the Schenectady players listed first:

On board one Deepak Aaron with the White pieces won from Matt Katrein in an Alekhine's Defence, 31 moves.

On board two Philip Sells with the Black pieces held Peter Michelman to a draw. It was the last game to finish although it only went 32 moves. The opening was a Catalan. These two players are known for using all the time on their clocks and they did it again tonight. For them the time pressure was not serious. They had something like four minutes each at the end.

One board three, with White, Patrick Chi won a Queen's Gambit Declined, Tartakower variation from Dean Howard. I misplaced the game score so I can't give you the number of moves.

On board four Bobby Rotter defending the Black side of the Bird's Opening drew with Jon Leisner in 28 moves.

That is two wins and two draws, or 3-1 overall.

Albany still has Saratoga A to play. That match will not make a difference regards the title. Saratoga has drawn two matches and Albany has lost one match, while Schenectady A after finishing their schedule tonight gave up only a single draw to Saratoga A last week.

In the match last week with Saratoga A the youth squad, Aaron and Chi, were only able to score

0.5 - 1.5. This week with the title one the line, they came through in great style scoring 2-0. It has been some years since Schenectady A held the CDCL title. This was an excellent effort by the entire team. Congratulations!

The game scores will be up on the blog in the next couple of days.

The Rest of the Story, Schenectady v Saratoga

As promised here are the other games from last week’s Schenectady A v Saratoga A CDCL Match.

Aaron, Deepak - Taylor, Steve [B38] Board 1

Schenectady A v Saratoga A

6.10.2010 at Schenectady

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6 5.c4 Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Nc3 d6 8.Be2 0–0

The game is moving in the mainstream of theory. The databases have many 2500, 2600, and 2700 Grandmasters playing both sides.

9.0–0 Bd7 10.Qd2 ..

White will capture the Knight if 10... Ng4; then play f2-f3 happy to have the Maroczy Bind position with his poor light squared Bishop gone.

10...,Nxd4 11.Bxd4 Bc6 12.f3 a5 13.Nd5 ..

This move is not popular with the 2500+ set. More usual is 13 b3. Topalov defeated Reindeman Wijk aan Zee, 1999 and Gelfand won over Anand, Manila, 1990 with 13 b3. The text move tends towards equality.

13...,Bxd5 14.cxd5 Nd7 15.Bxg7 Kxg7 16.Qd4+ f6 17.Rac1 Nc5

The game has gone well away from GM practice. There a few examples in the databases by untitled players. Rybka says the game is near equal. Black has some advantage in space on the

Q-side and the White Bishop does not look too imposing. White has space in the center and may hope to do something aggressive on the K-side, in fact he will have to do so to find an active role for the Bishop.

18.f4 a4 19.Rf3 Qa5 20.Rfc3 b5 21.f5 b4 22.Rh3 Rac8 23.Qe3 ..

White spots a tactic.

23..., g5 24.Qf3 Qb6

If Black wants to make a fight he has to play Rh8 now. Steve may have been satisfied to make a draw with the Black pieces against a fast improving young Master.

25.Rxh7+ and the game was agreed drawn. There is no way to avoid the perpetual after 25... Kxh7 26 Qh5+. If 25..., Kg8 26 Rh8+ draws similarly, but not 26 Qh5?? which loses instantly to 26... Nxe4+!

Battes, Lee - Sells, Philip [B31]

Schenectady A v Saratoga A

6.10.2010 at Schenectady Board 2

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.0–0 Bg7 5.Re1 Nf6

Another Sicilian in the theoretical vein. The 2600+ crowd play both sides equally.

6.Nc3 a6 7.Bf1 ..

I have played so myself and have seen the Bishop retreat in games by good players.

7..., 0–0 8.a4 ..

The game is more or less equal. Rybka sees the situation as very, very slightly in favor of Black.

8..., d6 9.d3 h6 10.Nd5 e6

A standard approach is 10..., Nxd5 11 exd5 Nb4 12 c4 e6; with a position looking a bit like something from a Benoni. Either way the game is favoring Black by some small amount.

11.Nxf6+ Qxf6 12.c3 e5 13.Bd2 Qd8 14.g3 Be6 15.b4 cxb4 16.cxb4 Qd7 17.h4!?..

After a period of maneuvering where neither side came up with a plan to shake the position out of equality, White unbalances the game. Trying to maintain the balance and continuing in the same manner as the previous half dozen moves would be 17 Qb1.

Lee probably recognized that .., f7-f5 was coming soon, and after .., fxe4 the open f-file gives Black a highway down which a dangerous attack on the White King can be made. Putting the pawn on h4 may have been done with the idea that if Black decides to bring up the g-pawn to help out, it can be traded off. This somewhat a gamble because g3 is weakened by the advance of the h-pawn.

17..., f5 18.Bh3?

White should now play 18 b5 then the likely line is 18..., Ne7 19 Rb1 axb5 20 Rxb5 which maintains equality in a complex position.

18..., Qf7

Black is clearly better now. He has gotten another major piece onto the f-file making White begin to consider using moves to reinforce f3 and f2. That is the very definition of seizing the initiative.

19.Rb1 Ba2 20.Rb2 fxe4 21.dxe4 Bc4 22.Bg2 Nd4 23.Re3 Be6 24.Nxd4?

After getting the initiative, Black made a clever maneuver (19..., Ba2; 21.., Bc4; and 23..., Be6) to avoid the exchange of light squared Bishops and maintain tension. Prolonging tension in such a fashion often provokes errors even from good players at the club level. Such is the case here. White had to play 24 Qf1, guarding f2. Black initiative continues after 24..., Rc8, but there is no clear advantage. The text leads to a win of material.

Qxf2+ 25.Kh1 exd4 26.Rd3 Qf7 27.Bf4 Qd7

Rybka sees 27..., Qe7 as markedly better than this move. I confess to not really understanding why. The computer also is firm in the conviction that the best chance for White is to sacrifice the Exchange on d4 recovering the lost pawn and opening lines for his Bishop pair. As subsequent play shows, absent the Exchange sacrifice, the White position is rather fragile.

28.Rbd2 Bg4 29.Qb3+ Be6 30.Qd1 Bg4 31.Qb3+ Be6 32.Qd1 Kh7 33.Qb1?

White does not believe the Exchange sacrifice is justified. It is the only way to hold the game. The game move offers Black the opportunity to cement his advantage with 33..., Qe7.

33...Be5 34.Rf3?

This was one more chance to sacrifice the Exchange to keep the struggle going. Without the sacrifice, the White position crumbles.

34..., Qxa4 35.Qb2 Rf7 36.Rc2?

Almost anything is better. The move sets up a simple discovered attack that ends the contest in short order. White could have tried 36 Rxd4, but even offering the Exchange would not have set his house in order. Black will make his Q-side pawns very big problems for White in this line of play.

36..., d3 37.Bxe5 Qxc2 38.Rxf7+ Bxf7 39.Qxc2 dxc2 40.Bf4 Rc8 41.Bc1 Rc4 42.e5 dxe5 43.h5 Rxb4 44.Kh2 gxh5 45.Be3 Bg6 and White resigned.

The late and awkward surrender of the Exchange may have been the result of a flawed calculation at end of a long day and two and a half hours of hard mental work. As we age seeing combinations at 10:00 o’clock in the evening gets harder and harder. Winning this game gave the Schenectady A a real chance of taking the match. That was not to be as we have already seen in the previous post about the Chi - Magat game.

LeCours, Alan - Rotter, Bobby [A17]

Schenectady A v Saratoga A

6.10.2010 at Schenectady Board 4

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 0–0 5.a3 Be7 6.b4 d5 7.e3 c5 8.bxc5 Bxc5 9.d4 Be7

After an offbeat line in the English the game reached a position that favors White slightly.

10.cxd5 exd5 11.Bd3 Be6 12.0–0 Nbd7 13.Bd2 Re8 14.Qb3 Nb6 15.Rfc1 Ne4 16.Be1 Bd6 17.h3 Qf6 18.Qd1 Qg6 19.Kh1 Nc4 20.Bxc4 Nxc3 21.Bxc3 dxc4

Rotter has maneuvered to aim his Bishops at the White King, put his Queen on the K-side where she can support a sacrificial assault and obtained a three to one pawn majority on the Q-side. To get these advantages he gave up the center. White now uses the central space given to rally forces to prevent the looming attack on his King.

22.d5 Bd7 23.Qd4 Bc5 24.Qf4 Qf5 25.Qg3 f6 26.Rd1 Ba4

During the game I wondered if 26..., Qc2; might be a more forcing try. After 27 Bb4 Bxb4 28 axb4 c3 the Black position looks threatening. Rybka does not agree claiming equality based on the line 29 Nd4 Qe4 30 Rxa7 Qxd5 31 Qf3. Playing over the positions with the computer bears out the conclusion that the position is about equal.

27.Rd2 Red8 28.Nh4 Qg5 29.Qxg5 fxg5 30.Nf3 h6 31.Kg1 Re8 32.Nd4 Bxd4 33.Rxd4 Bc2 34.Ra2 Bd3 35.Rb2 Rc7 36 a4 b6 37 d6 Rb6?!

Better 37..., Rd7.

38 a5?! ..

White misses his chance to press Black with the tricky 38 e4! Now capturing either with the Re8 or the Bishop lets White win a piece. The resulting positions with the Bishop versus the three to one Black pawn majority on the Q-side are theoretical wins for White requiring accurate play. The best for Black is 38..., Kf7 and 39..., Ke6; with a position full of possibilities. White plays instead to pull the fangs of the Q-side Black majority. This leads to equality.

38..., Rd8 39 axb6 axb6 40 d7 Rc7

The players agreed to a draw here. If Black clips the d-pawn right away, the White Rook and Bishop are well placed to attack the g-pawn should the Black Rook leave the 7th rank. The White Rook and Bishop combo are well placed after the Bishop captures the g-pawn to hold up the Black c-pawn by simply putting the Rook on c7. It then looks unlikely the c-pawn would have a chance to advance unless the Black King finds a way to come up to support it. Such tries leave the Black K-side majority to its fate, and when White gets these pawns off, all winning chances are gone for Black; the White Bishop can be given up for the c-pawn. It is well known a R+B v R is drawn.

And so Saratoga A is out of the running for the title. Schenectady A has a hope, but to realize that hope means defeating Albany A. A drawn match will give Albany the title. The Albany team has used five strong players in their matches this year; Matt Katrien, Dean Howard, Peter Michelman, Jon Leisner and Tim Wright. The Schenectady A team has used Deepak Aaron, Sells, Chi, Rotter, John Barnes, Bill Townsend and Cory Northrup. If Schenectady can bring their top players; Aaron, Sells, Chi and Rotter there is a real chance they may win the match. In any event the match should be well worth watching. I have not heard when and where the contest will take place.

A Draw in a Key CDCL Match

On Thursday last one of the match’s key to determining the eventual winner of this year's League took place. The Saratoga A team came to Schenectady to face SCC's top team. On the first board for Schenectady Deepak Aaron, a scholastic star who recently broke through to the ranks of USCF Masters, played Steve Taylor a long established local Master. On the second board veteran Expert Lee Battes for Saratoga faced newly established Expert Philip Sells. On the third board the fast rising scholastic player Patrick Chi, representing Schenectady met the well established Expert Gordon Magat. The fourth board had two long time Class A/Expert opponents; Bobby Rotter for Schenectady and Alan LeCours for Saratoga were paired.

To stay in the hunt for the League trophy Saratoga needed to win this match. Earlier in the season they had been held to a draw versus RPI, a team who finished well down in the standings. With both Albany and Schenectady A winning all matches so far the pressure was on Saratoga.

There were half dozen spectators in the Schenectady club room for the match. That is quite a crowd for a CDCL event. Play was interesting with opportunities for either side to break to the front. Aaron - Taylor ended drawn in 25 moves. Battes - Sells was a victory for Sells in 45 moves. Board four ended drawn in 48 moves, taking us to the last game to finish; Chi - Magat. It looked to me as if Schenectady just might win the match. All Patrick had to do was draw a Rook and pawn ending a pawn up. A misconception in the ending took a possible win to a likely draw, then an error in a Rook and pawns ending transitioned to a dead lost pawn ending. Chi's defeat tied the score. Both teams' chances for the trophy were hurt. Saratoga A now is a full point off the leader’s pace and Schenectady is a half-point behind Albany.

Today's game is the battle between Chi and Magat.

Chi,Patrick - Magat,Gordon [A85]

CDCL Match SCC, 12.10.2010

1.d4 f5 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.Nc3 Nf6

Plenty of games in the databases to this point.

5.e3 0–0 6.Be2 d6 7.0–0

Chekhov, V., A Soviet GM in the 80’s tried 7. b4, with good success here.

7..., Qe8

Onischuk has used this move as well as Matulovic with good results.

8.b3

Hug versus S. Plogar preferred 8. b4, in this position, with Hug going on to win in 21 moves at Bad Homburg, 1996, and so did Gorbatow, A., against Dubinski in the Moscow City Ch., 1996 winning in 31 moves. Both games were similar to this game in that action on the a1-h8 and h2-g8 diagonals by the White Queen and Bishops was an important theme.

8..., e5 9.dxe5 dxe5 10.Ba3 Rf7 11.Qc2

Up to now the game has followed Doombos, Y – Szabolcsi, J in the French Team Ch., 1999. In that game Doombos played 11. c5, first letting Black play 11..., Rd7 with a gain of tempo. The computer says the game is about even at that point. Szabolcsi got carried away in the ensuing middle game struggle, missed a couple of chances to make the fight tough and lost on move 42.

The notion of advancing the c-pawn to make a place for White’s light squared Bishop shows up in a number of games in this variation. It seems even if the c-pawn falls, White obtains compensation with the activity of the Bishop.

11..., b6?

Gordon does not see the idea of the c-pawn charge, or he undervalues it.

12.c5 Ba6?

Better 12..., Rd7; or 12..., h6. The text is an error that sets up a tactical shot for White.

13.Ng5 Rd7 14.Nb5?

Mr. Chi used twenty minutes to find this move. While watching the game I believed he was calculating 14 c6, Rd8 15 b4, Bxe2 16 Qb3+!, Kh8; 17 Nf7+ with a very large, winning advantage. Apparently he did not have the idea in mind and so settled on a move that let slip the chance to win early. Black does not quite get back to an even game. He trails a bit in development and his King is somewhat exposed, but since Patrick missed the sharp continuation there is hope for Black.

14...,Nd5

This move is too optimistic. Better 14..., Bxb5 15 Bxb5, c6; with a slightly inferior position and decent chances to hold. Gordon comes to the chess board with serious intentions of winning every game. His success recommends such an approach. That attitude underlies this bold try.

15.Bc4?,....

Once more a reasonable amount of time was used by Patrick here, about five minutes, and again he does not see the utility of pushing the pawn to c6. Correct is 15 c6, then 15... Rd8 16 Rad1 Qxc6 17 Bc4 Bxb5 18 Rxd5 Rxd5 19 Bxd5 Qxd5 20 Rd1 Qc6 21 Rd8+ Bf8 22 Qxc6 Bxc6 23 Rxf8+ Kg7 24 Ne6+ Kh6 25 Nxc7 and Black will be down a full piece. This is a harder line to find than the previous opportunity.

Bxb5 16.Bxb5 c6 17.Be2 e4

The net result of Chi's missing the tactical opportunities is Black has fully equalized and is maybe a fraction better mostly because the Ng5 is awkwardly placed and the c-pawn is weak.

18.Bb2 Bxb2 19.Qxb2 Qe720.Nh3 Qxc5

An interesting moment, it is natural to capture with the Queen, but a thought should be given to 20..., bxc5. By capturing with the pawn, Black could activate his pieces more quickly than in the game and not grant White the tempo gained by attacking the Queen with Rac1. The line of play I am considering is 20..., Bxc5 21 Rac1 Rd8 22 Qa3 Nd7 23 Rfd1 Kg7 24 Bc4 N7b6, with chances to hold the game. Magat's uncompromising approach, no doubt, gave only short consideration to a line that looks at only holding the balance. By taking with the Queen he sees an extra pawn in the bag without any problems in his pawn formation.

21.Rac1 Qe722.Nf4,...

This move takes on a problem in the K-side pawn structure willingly. Better attempt to avoid that with 22 Bc4.

Nxf4 23.exf4 b5

Motivated by the need to find a way to get the Nb8 into the game. That will take more this one move, c6 needs a defender.

24.a4 a6 25.b4 Qg7

Patrick played the pawn moves correctly. Finding those moves speak to a good understanding of positional principles. Both players had used much of the clock time available. Patrick had 25 minutes and Gordon 30 minutes remaining. Here Black could have played 25..., Raa7.

26.Qa2+ Qf7 27.Qb2 Qg7 28.Qa2+ Qf7 29.Qb2 Raa7?

This move was OK when the Queen guarded d8 along with the Rd7. The just concluded sequence of Queen moves could have signaled a splitting of the point. I doubted it was going to be that easy. Gordon used the time gained by repeating moves to look for a way to continue the fight. Unfortunately, he found a flawed idea. Better 29..., Qe7; if he did not want the draw.

30.axb5 axb5 31.Bxb5 Qg7 32.Qb3+ Kf8 33.Bxc6 Nxc6 34.Rxc6 Qf7

With nice tactical insight Patrick spotted his chance and took it. The pawn is recovered with interest. Chi now has an extra distant passed pawn. As Steve Taylor said after the game finished; when you have that, you want win the game.

Somewhere around this point in the game all the other contests had finished and Bill Townsend, the captain of the Schenectady team, let Patrick know all that was needed for the match victory was a draw. That is the role of the team captain to let the team members know what score is needed for the team and is within the rules of chess.

35.Qc3?!

Missing subtle shot that would have won almost instantly. Much better is 35 Qb2. What, the reader may ask, is the difference between the two moves? Both put the Queen on the long diagonal, both support the b-pawn. The difference is on b2 the White Queen avoids a counter-pin by ..., Rac7. That means 35 Qb2 threatens 36 Rf6 fatally pinning the Black Queen over the King as well as the White Rook going to c8 with check. Play might go; 35 Qb2 Qg7 36 Rc8+ Kf7 37 Qb3+ Ke7 38 b5 and even though Black has all his pieces working and White has a Rook not actively working at f1, the exposed position of the Black King, the charging b-pawn and the very active placement of the White Queen and Rook doom the Black cause. Rybka evaluates the position as favoring White by +5.00 points!

35..., Rac7 36.Qh8+?...

Possibly trying to follow Bill's advice, Patrick goes for a general liquidation thereby surrendering some, then all advantage. The natural 36 b5 holds on to the edge.

35.... Qg8 37.Rf6+ Rf7 38.Rxf7+ Kxf7 39.Qxg8+ Kxg8 40.Rb1 Kf7

White still has the better game and Black will have to be very accurate to find some drawing chances. All my endgame references; Fine's Basic Chess Endings (1941), Smyslov & Levenfish's Rook Endings (1971) and Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual (2006) make one important point in the first place about outside passed pawns in Rook endings: the pawn must be PUSHED!

41.Kf1? ...

White ignores that well established chess wisdom and it costs him. Correct is 41 b5 Ke6 42 b6 Rb7 43 h3 angling to get in g2-g4 with the potential for creating another outside passed pawn, or in some events the advance of the White King up the King's wing. Such an approach would have strained Gordon's defensive skill more than the method used did. Both players were down to about ten minutes on their clocks. That is precious little time to work out over the board the tricky ideas in a Rook and pawn ending. By not pushing the b-pawn and taking the slower path of centralizing his King, White made finding moves too easy for Black.

41...,Ke6 42.Ke2 Rc2+ 43.Ke3 Kd5!?

Safer is 43... Kd6; hurrying the King to blockade the b-pawn.

44.h4?...

This move gives up almost all of the residual advantage White had. Again 44 b5, is correct.

44... Kc4?

Making life difficult for himself by obstructing the easiest path back for the Rook to block the pawn.

45.b5 Rc3+ 46.Kd2? ....

In the building time pressure Gordon handed Patrick another chance. White should focus on driving the b-pawn forward to gain space through which his King can take up a position over the midline of the board. From there his threat to run towards g6 is very strong. Play could go; 46 Ke2 Rc2+ 47 Ke1 Kd5 48 b6 Rc8 49 b7 Rb8 50 Kd2 Kc6 51 Kc3 Kc5 52 Rb3 Kd5 53 h5 (to weaken g6 and/or f5) 53... Kc5 54 hxg6 hxg6 55 Rb2 Kd5 56 Rb5+ Kc6 57 Kc4, and it can be seen that g6 will fall one way or another, with that the game is won for White.

The move played gives Black a tempo useful in defense.

46....,Rd3+ 47.Ke2 Rd7 48.b6 Rb7

The b-pawn is stopped one square sooner than it could have been. White still has an advantage but not the clearly winning one of a few moves ago. The time pressure had now become acute. The players were under five minutes each. It is not entirely fair to be critical of their moves under the double tension of little time to think and the knowledge that a great deal depended on the outcome of the game. If drawn, Schenectady wins the match keeping pace with Albany, if lost, Saratoga salvages a tied match and Schenectady will need to defeat the Albany team to take the title.

49.Rc1+ Kb5 50.Rc7?...

The rest of the moves were played quickly, time was fast running out for both sides. White must had a delusion here abouts thinking if the Rooks go off a draw is obvious. Not so. Better is 50 Ke3, and White just may win the game. With his King one square closer to the path d4/e5/f6 Black dare not take the b-pawn. White then forces a Rook trade and penetrates with his King winning. Calculating such a line with plenty of time on the clock is one thing, it is another entirely with just moments left. The crucial line is 50 Ke3 Kxb6? 51 Rb1+ Kc6 52. Rxb7 Kxb7 53.Kd4 Kc6 54.Ke5 Kc5 55.h5. The advance of the h-pawn at the correct moment brings the base of the pawn chain within easy reach of the
White King.

After the text move White has no advantage left at all. Only if he is very accurate can he avoid a misstep that could lose the game. With a few minutes left on the clocks, being that accurate is a challenge.

50 ..., Kxb6 51.Rc3 Rc7 52.Rb3+ Kc6 53.Rc3+ Kd6 [53...Kd7] 54.Rxc7 Kxc7 55.f3...

Some better is 55.Ke3.

55... exf3+ 56.Kxf3 Kd6 57.Ke3??...

This rather ordinary looking move is a fatal error. Necessary is 57.h5, and White would have to be familiar with the follow-up play; 57...gxh5 58.Kg3 Kd5 59. Kh4 Ke4 60.Kxh5 Kxe4 61.Kh4 Ke4 62.Kg5 f4 63.Kh6 Ke3 64.Kg5 Ke4 65.Kh6 Kf5 66.Kxh7 Kg4 67 Kg6 Kg3 68.Kg4. The pawn standing on f2 and the aggressive use of his King are key to White holding the draw. That is a very high order of endgame play. With virtually no time remaining, it is too much to expect anyone to work out such over the board. The game is now lost for White, and the winning technique is clear. Gordon did not have to find hard moves to finish the job.

57... Kc5 58.Kd3 Kd5 59.Ke3 Kc4 60.Ke2 Kd4 61.Kf3 Kd3 62.g4 h5 63.g5 Kd4 64.Resigns.

A tough battle having a good number if interesting errors by both sides in the middle and end game. The other games of the match will be posted next.

Chess From long Ago

Waiting for Schenextady A, Albany and Saratoga A teams to schedule and play the last and critical matches of the season in the CDCL led me to scrounge around on the net. In doing so a very interesting site was found; Chess Archaeology. It is a virtual treasure trove of little remembered material from yesteryear well worth a look on a rainy morning ot a quiet evening.

In about three months the NYS Champioship will be held once more in Saratoga Springs. Most local chess players are aware the State Championship has been in Saratoga for several years. Less well known is how far back in time the State Association and Saratogo go, and how distinguished the players who participated were. Here's a sample of what can be found:

The New York State Chess Association’s

Mid-Summer Meeting at Saratoga Springs 1899

by John S. Hilbert

The New York State Chess Association (NYSCA) had, even before time took its sharp turn into the Twentieth Century, an established history of holding what it referred to as “mid-summer” association meetings. The term “mid-summer” is set off by quotation marks to emphasize that, by 1899 at least, the meetings were held at the end of August and beginning of September, and hence could hardly, even under the most charitable calendar reading, be considered near the middle of summer. Such events were frequently, if not invariably, held outside of New York City, and often were held at summer resorts such as the meetings at Thousand Islands 1897 and Lake Keuka 1898. In 1901, for another example, the association’s mid-summer meeting was held in Buffalo, New York, then the scene of the 1901 Pan-American Exposition. Seven years earlier, play had also been held in the Queen City, and in later years other upstate locations, including Rochester, would be the summer playgrounds of the NYSCA.

The events held in the late 1890s, however, are unusual for another reason. Rather than remaining purely the province of New York players, players from other state associations, notably Pennsylvania, but also Massachusetts, were actively lobbied to attend the NYSCA’s mid-summer sessions. Indeed, a lively interstate rivalry developed between the players of New York and those of Pennsylvania.

The article goes on at length providing background on the several contests, remember this was in the days before the Swiss System, the competition issues and historical insights. It also includes many games with annotations by the participates and others.

One event was a match for the Staats-Zeitung Cup Match. The Cup was named for a NYC German language newspaper that donated the trophy. The match in 1899 was between Frank Marshall and S. Lipschütz. Instead of what one might expect, this was no "whitewash" by Marshall. Of course the match took place fifteen years before Marshall was named one of the first five chess players to be called Grandmaster by Czar Nicolas II at the 1914 St Petersburgh tournament. Lasker, Capablance, Alekhine, Tarrasch along with Marshall, the top five prize winners were give title by the Czar in closing ceremonies.

The Staats-Zietung Cup Match was to be a five game contest. Lipschütz represented Manhattan and Marshall Brooklyn. Marshall had made a reputation for himself by winning the recent London Minor Tourney in England. Lipschütz was considered the more experienced player with many years of battles at the top of NYC and NYS chess.

The games were published in the American Chess Magazine for September 1899. Lipschütz took the early lead winning the first game, then finished going away winning the next two also.

Lipschütz,S (Manhattan) — Marshall,FJ (Brooklyn)

Game 1

C29/03

Vienna Gambit

1899.08.28

USA Saratoga Springs, NY (Staats-Zeitung Cup Tournament)

Annotations from the American Chess Magazine and additional material from Deep Rybka and Bill Little.

1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.f4 d5 4.fxe5 Nxe4 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.Be2

So far a generally accepted version in those days. One hundred years later top players such as Adams, Hector, Shulman, Djuric and Lombardy preferred 6 Qe2, which has 8-2 with 7 draws record in the databases.

6...Bc5

“To draw on the d-pawn and get it within reach of the c-pawn. White might otherwise play d3 and effectively dislodge the knight from e4.” quoting American Chess Magazine.

7.d4 Bb4 8.Bd2 c5

Deep Rybka does not see any great difference between this move and the alternative 8..., Nc6.

9.0-0 Nc6 10.a3 Ba5

More comments from the magazine; “The try 10...Bxc3, followed by ...c4, would not improve the Black position to any extent, although apparently causing a block. As will be seen, Black later on regains the pawn he now surrenders.”

11.dxc5 0-0 12.Nxe4 dxe4 13.Bxa5 Qxa5 14.b4 Qc7

Rybka now gives White the edge. It suggests 14..., exf3?!; and if 15 bxa5, fxe2; 16 Qd3, exf1+ (Q); 17 Rxf1, and Black has the advantagewith two minor pieces and a Rook for the Queen. That being the case, White would likely vary with 15 gxf3, Qc7; 16 fxg4, Qxe5; when the two extra pawns on the Q-side and net one pawn advantage overall make endgame prospects very good for White.

15.Ng5,...

This looks doubtful. Better is 15 Nd2, and White obtaisn the advantage.

15..., Bxe2 16.Qxe2 Qxe5 17.Qe3?

The following comment was made in the original annotation "17.Nxe4 would cost him a piece, as Black then plays ...Rae8, ...Qd4+, and ...f5 in due order." It seemed there might be some flaw in the idea. My trusty electronic companion quikly pointed out: 17 Nxe4, Rae8; 18 Rae1, Qd4+; 19 Kh1, f5; 20 c3!, Qd5; 21 Qd2, breaking the pin and saving the piece remaining a pawn ahead.

17...Rae8

Not 17..., f5; 18 Qb3+!, collects the Exchange.

18.Rae1 Nd4

Guarding against the check at b3 to make possible ...f5.

19.Rf2?,....

Tossing away another chance to cement the advantage with the principled 19 Qxe4. after which White gets to create three connected passed pawns on the far away Queen's wing at the cost of his Knight. The line goes; 19 Qxe4, Qxe4; 20 Rxe4. Nxc2; 21 Rxe8, Rxe8; 22 Rxf7, h6; 23 Rxb7, hxg5; 24 Rxa7, and Rybka gives White a +1.53 evaluation. After the text the game is even.

19....h6 20.Nh3?!

The Ameriacn Chess Magazine comments were: "Fearing the complications attending the capture of the e-pawn, White retreats circumspectly. In this he was wise, as the following interesting variations show: 20.Nxe4 f5 21.Rd2 (21.Rd1 Ne6 also leaves White’s knight open to capture.) 21...Nc6 22.Qb3+ Kh8 and the knight cannot be saved." Unconsider is; 20 Nf3, leading to equality. The game move hands the advantage to Black.

20...Nf5 21.Qf4 e3

“He is forced to advance the pawn or else lose it at once. Advanced thus far its chances for longevity are very slim, however.” So says the commentator.

22.Rfe2

“He could also play 22.Qxe5 exf2+ 23.Kxf2 Rxe5 24.Rxe5 the rook getting to the seventh a move or two later. But, instead of 22...exf2+, Black could retake the queen at once and gain time for the defense of the e-pawn. Moreover, the text move of White enables him more quickly to compass the downfall of the disputed pawn.” American Chess Magazine quoted.

22...Qxf4?

Slipping towards a loss. With better move 22..., Qd5; Black has a near won game. If 23 c4, Qd3; 24 g4, Nd4; 25 Rxe3, Rxe3; 26 Rxe3, Ne2+, picks up the Exchange, or 23 g4, Nh4; strongly favors Black, or finally, 23 Qf1, e3; 24 c2, Re4; 25 g3, Rd8; 26 Qg2, Qc4; 27 Qf3, Rd5, and the Black pieces are very aggressively massing. In each case Black has superior chances. It is easy to see commenting on a chess game was riskier to one’s reputation back before chess computers came on the scene.

23.Nxf4 Re4 24.Nd5 Rfe8 25.Nc3 R4e6 26.Nb5 R8e7 27.c3 Nh4?

Either 27..., a5; or possibily 27..., Ra6; are better tries. The text move is a costly error.

28.Nd4 Re4 29.g3

Forcing his hand. Black must either move the knight or resort to the text move. It is doubtful whether the latter is the wiser course, inasmuch as White’s pawns are undoubled and strengthened in the process. Black retains his e-pawn, but he, nevertheless, finds himself a good way behind in the race.

29...Rxd4 30.cxd4 Nf3+ 31.Kf1 Nxe1 32.Rxe1 Re4 33.d5 Kf8 34.Ke2 Re5 35.Rd1

“Better than advancing the pawn, the Black king being held longer in check.” ACM comments.

35...Ke8 36.c6,...

A nice bit of technique from the olden times. If Black brings his King to d8, White captures on b7 and pushes the d-pawn. There then is no stopping one of the pawns from Queening. The game continuation leaves the Black King cut-off.

35..., bxc6 37.dxc6 Re7 38.b5 f5 39.a4 g5 40.a5 Rc7

With the King unable to aid the Rook and the far advanced White pawn mass on the Q-side threatening to move forward, Black’s attempt to get counter-paly by pushing his own pawns will fail.

41.Rd6 f4 42.Rxh6 Rf7 43.gxf4 gxf4 44.Kf3 Kd8 45.b6 axb6 46.axb6 Rf8 47.Rh7 Kc8 48.Ra7 Kd8 49.Ra8+ Ke7 50.Rxf8 1-0.

The ACM comments on this game closed with the observation that the standard of play was not up to that of internation masters. True enough, but the game is interesting illustrating some improtant points of technique and some missed opportunities by Marshall, who in later years was one of the most gifted tactical masters, fifth the the world for awhile and from many decades the US Champion.

Such was the action from 1899. One hundred and eleven years later chess masters, and the rest of us are getting ready for another gathering in Saratoga. I hope all our games are as interesting.