Final Report on the Schenectady Prelims

Sadly for me, but happily for Dean Howard the battle for qualifying places in the Schenectady Finals came to an end last Thursday. The game went 46 moves. We both played rather quickly and time trouble was never much of an issue. This victory for Dean put him in second place behind Mike Mockler. A telephone call this afternoon from Bobby Rotter brought the news that he and David Connors had played to a draw Sunday at the Saratoga Club. It was their scheduled game from the Schenectady Championship and the draw gives Rotter the third qualifying spot from Preliminary A. We now know all the participants for the Schenectady Finals: from Section A; Mockler, Howard and Rotter, from Section B; Sells, Chi and Phillips. For the rest of us, the Consolation Swiss (?) will be played at around the same time as the Finals.

With all the contestants known, a little handicapping is in order. Sells and Mockler are the probable favorites. Their results have been good of late, particularly taking firsts in the Prelims.

Assessing where Chi, Howard and Rotter will come in the Finals is difficult. Chi has advanced quickly in the ratings, but I don’t believe he has had to deal with the pressure of an all-play-all event yet. Howard has been struggling with his form over the last year. But when things got tight in the last rounds in Section A, Dean came through with two wins over LeCours and Little just when he needed to do so. These victories might herald a period of better results. Bobby Rotter made it through to a place in the Finals by drawing with David Connors in the very last game of the Prelims. Recently I wrote about some good and bad points of his chess; excellent opening preparation, creative middle game play with a let down in the endgame. Will he shore up his endgame technique and fight hard in that part of the game? For sure in this line up, he will have to play out an ending or two and they will likely be the difference in where he places. John Phillips made it into the Finals with three losses the beneficiary of a nice win by Sells over John Barnes. I am guessing Phillips will have a hard time challenging for first. John is strong enough to do so, but he is also another of us who has variable form from time to time. This maybe one of his down periods. That said, John’s results will likely have an effect on the final standings. He can defeat any of the participants when on his game.

Phil Sells the defending Schenectady Champion and the newly crowned Saratoga Champion has been delivering strong results lately. If I had to make a bet about first place, he is where the wager would be made. Aside: He has told me he is interested in writing some pieces for this blog, in particular a report on the Eastern Amateur Team Championship that finished play Monday. It will be good to have another voice on the enyca blog.

Today’s game is Howard’s win that put him in the finals.

SCC Ch 09-10 Prelim A
2/11/2010
White: Little, B
Black; Howard, D

1. d4 Nf6
2. c4 e6
3. Nf3 d5
4. Bg5 Be7
5. Nc3 h6
Almost everybody who’s anybody at the top of the international chess has played this way as White or Black. We are very much in the mainstream of theory.

6. Bh4 O-O
7. e3 b6
8. cxd5 Nxd5
9. Bxe7 Qxe7
10. e4?! …..
If I wanted to stay with the big names, then 10 Rc1, is the move. The game is a lesson about how not to play White in the QGD. White just does not have enough force left after the nearly unavoidable trades that come after this move to make anything out of the passed d-pawn that soon appears. If the passed d-pawn is really not a factor, there is a good chance that White has compromised his Q-side and Black will have an easy time of equalizing. The computer sees the game as equal, however I find no examples in my databases. That sort of information leads to real doubts about playing in this way.

10.… Nxc3
11. bxc3 Bb7
12. Bd3 c5
13. O-O Nc6
14. d5 …..
The computer continues to see the game as about equal with White having a nominal edge.

14.…. exd5
15. exd5 Ne5
16. Re1 Nxf3+
17. Qxf3 Qd6
18. c4 Rfe8
We have pretty much have played that which my electronic friend says are the good normal moves. White has retained that small nagging edge he is supposed to get out of the opening. Since everything went along so well, I am puzzled at not finding examples in the databases.

19. Re3 Re7
20. Rae1 Rae8
21. Rxe7 Rxe7
22. Rxe7 Qxe7
Some of the spectators thought after the game that this exchange of all the Rooks was misguided. The computer agrees and suggests 21 R1e2, first. After “cooking” for a few minutes, it then offers 21 Rxe7, Rxe7; 22 Re4. The idea is: White’s Q-side pawns are vulnerable which requires keeping at least one heavy piece on the board until the White King is better placed and the K-side stabilized. Even then White probably should not be in any hurry to trade the heavies. That notion crossed my mind during the game. Then I thought with the Queens off, I can still hold the position, after all there is still the passer on d5. Just how wrong my judgment was becomes clear in a few moves.

23. Qe4 Qxe4
24. Bxe4 ….
Only now did it dawn on me that my bridges were well and truly burnt and I began to search for some way to bolster the defense of d5..

24.… Kf8
25. f4 Ba6
26. Bd3 Ke7
27. Kf2 Bc8
28. a4? ….
This just makes a second target for Black. After this move, although the trusty computer says White is no worse than even, I expect the game is nearly lost.

28.… Bd7
29. Bc2 Kd6
30. Ke3 a6
Yipes! To quote Aagaard; “What was I thinking heading into this position? Clearly I was not thinking!” My notion was with my Bishop on b3 all is secure. It was about here that I realized after the trading of pawns on b5 and the Black Bishop landing on b5, there are not enough free squares on the a2-g8 diagonal for my cleric to make tempo moves. That fact made holding the d-pawn problematical. A touch of panic set in for me now. I did not take a step back and search for some alternative idea. One thought is to boldly send my King to e4 trying to induce f7-f5. If I can get some of the Black K-side pawns on light squares, there are chances of giving up the d-pawn to get my Bishop behind those pawns to attack them from the rear. Maybe that isn’t enough to hold, but it would create chances.

31. Bb3 b5
32. axb5 axb5
33. cxb5 Bxb5
34. Ba2 Bf1
35. Kf2 Ba6
36. Ke3 f6
37. g4 Bc8
38. h3? ….
The line I followed had reasonable chances to hold. Here, however, I falter. Better 38 Kf3, then although the d-pawn drops, there is counter play that just might hold the game after 38..., g6; 39 h4, Bb7; 40 Ke4. Bxd5+; 41 Bxd5, f5+; 42 gxf5, gxf5+; 43 Kxf5, Kxd5; 44 Kg6, and White is fast enough in the pawn race to draw. One factor that colored my thinking was a distaste for a play-off. If Dean and I split the point, there was a real chance that we would end in a three way tie with Rotter for the third qualifying spot. That outcome meant a three way playoff, something that had no appeal for me. Two more hard games just to get to the finals for five more hard battles.

After the text, the game slips away from me. Black has targets and I could not find a way to hold the balance.
38.… h5
39. Kf3 Bb7
40. Ke4 Ba6
41. gxh5 Bc8
42. f5? ….
After the game, my team mate from the Schenectady Geezers, Richard Chu thought this was a mistake. In the usual manner of an Class A player to a C class player I assured him the game was already lost. Wrong again! With 42 h4. White could have kept the battle going as Richard suggested. My objectivity had gone completely. In my mind the game was lost justifying giving up the coverage of e5. One more example of how one’s attitude about a position affects decisions.

42.… Ba6
43. h4 Bf1
Threatening a check on g2 winning the d-pawn and the game. There is not much to say about the few remaining moves. A nice effort by Dean Howard taking advantage of my questionable play in a workmanlike manner.

44. Kf3 Ke5
45. d6 Kxd6
46. Be6 Ke5
47. Ke3 Bh3
48 Resigns

The 4th of March is the starting date for the Schenectady Consolation Swiss. I’ll be there. If the contenders that were knocked out of the Finals all play, this will be a pretty strong Consolation. Possible entrants include; John Barnes, Jonathan Lack, Alan Le Cours and me, although I’m not so sure I am a serious threat for first any more. That is not to forget the dangerous folks from further down the rating list; Qu, Chu, Saran and Connors. A good turnout will make this a tough event to win.