The board 2 game from the Saratoga A - Schenectady A CDCL match played Sunday last was a veteran versus youth confrontation. Mr. Feinberg is a long time Expert who returned to the game after a hiatus of some years about three years ago. Mr. Chi is a quickly rising scholastic player. Most recently Patrick won the Schenectady Club Championship, the youngest ever to do so.
In the past extraordinary results from young players made big news in the chess world. Morphy conquering Europe in the 1850s, Sammy Reshevsky giving simultaneous exhibitions as an eight-year old and Bobby Fischer winning the US Championship as a teenager made big headlines even outside of the closed universe of chess. These events were headline worthy because of rarity, it was exceptional for youth to triumph over experience in chess as elsewhere. That has not been so true these last ten or twenty years. Carlssen came out of the not very large chess culture of Norway to be the top rated player in the world as a teenager, Robson and many others have garnered the GM title long before they had to consider shaving regularly, and if you go to weekend Swiss tournaments it is no longer surprising to see someone just barely able to see over the edge of the chessboard taking full and half-points from Class A and Expert players.
Why this is so is a question to ponder. I believe the rise of the Internet is the root cause. There is a tidal wave of chess knowledge on the ’net, and it increases almost daily. We all have observed the way in which youth seem to understand how to effectively use the Internet in all its forms from their very earliest years. The knowledge necessary to become a strong player is far more available now than at any time in the past.
Bare knowledge is not enough to produce strong players. Practice is also needed. Local efforts, such as Brother John’s Make the Right Move events, have certainly had a profound effect. The ready availability of knowledge and a growth of opportunities for practice are giving rise resurgence in American chess. The Schenectady club has been the beneficiary of this phenomenon. Deepak Aaron, a past Club Champion and now working towards a USCF Senior Master (2400) title, Patrick Chi, this year’s Champion and Deepak’s brother Dilip, a finalist in the Club Championship this year, are all products of this. The burgeoning of youthful success in chess is all to the good. It spreads the game I love to more folks and ensures lots of chess for me to contemplate in my declining years.
All that said, it is not easy being “the old lion” defending his turf when youth comes a’ calling. Jonathan Feinberg makes a determined effort in today’s game.
Chi, Patrick - Feinberg, Jonathan [E24]
Saratoga A v SCC A CDCL Match Saratoga Springs, NY, 16.05.2011
Board 2
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.f3 d5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 0–0 7.e3 c5 8.Bd3 Nc6!?
Mr. Feinberg, Steve Taylor and I spent a little while looking at the game after play was complete. Unfortunately Patrick had to leave, Monday is a school day. We did not pick up that this move was a mistake, or at least somewhat doubtful. Research in the databases uncovered that the masters much prefer 8..., Qc7; threatening to uncover an attack in the Bc4 by capturing on d4. With the Queen at c7, Black has a much easier time of devaluing the White center than after the text.
9.Ne2 Na5
In the postmortem I questioned this move. Why not get on with development playing 9..., Bd7? Both Taylor and Feinberg saw opportunity for the Knight at c4.
10.cxd5 exd5 11.0–0 Re8 12.Ng3 b6 13.Rb1 cxd4
Another way to play this position is 13..., c4. Carlos Varela tried that approach against Patrick in the Schenectady A - RPI match at the end of March. It did not turn out well for him because of later errors. If Black pushes to pawn to c4, he must also know that .., h7-h5; followed by .., h5-h4; if possible, has to be tried. Leave out the K-side pawn charge and White gets to effectively break in the center with e3-e4. The purpose of the h-pawn advance is to dislocate the Ng3 reducing support for the e-pawn advance. I don’t know that in the long run Black’s game all that great, but there certainly are chances: the Nc6 can go to a5 eyeing the b3 square, the Bc8 may be deployed to b7 to hold back the e3-e4 push, or it may find work to do at g4.
14.cxd4 Bb7 15.Bd2 Bc6?!
Taylor and Feinberg identified this as an error. The threat to be answered is 16 Bxa5, winning the Bb7. Mr. Taylor pointed out 15.., Nc4; is a reasonable try. After 15..., Nc4 16 Bxc4 dxc4 17 Qc1 Rc8 18 Bc3 Nd5 19 e4 Nxc3; whose pawns are better is not entirely clear. I rather like White here, but Black has chances if he maintains his composure. Other possible moves are; 15.., Qd7; and 15..., Rb8.
16.Re1 Nb7
More active is 16..., Nc4. The ensuing play would then be a tough positional battle about whether the White d&e duo can be devalued in some manner. As long as they are side by side they are strong, if one pushes forward to the 5t h Maybe Black can make use of the square released.
17.Rc1 Rc8 18.Qb3 Nd6?!
Jonathan saw this as a possible error. He thought perhaps 18..., g6; covering f5 was better here.
19.Bb4 Qd7?
Here 19..., g6; is definitely superior.
20.Bxd6 Qxd6 21.Nf5 Qd8 22.Qb4 Re6!?
Black is reacting to the lead of White. Silman makes the point repeatedly in his writings that it is a mistake to take an opponent’s threats at face value. A serious search for alternatives must be made. Here Black can play 22..., Bb7?!; but White is better after 23 Nd6 Rxc1 24 Rxc1 Re7 25 Nxb7 Rxb7 26 Qc3, thus the text may be the best choice.
23.Ng3 g6 24.e4 h5?
This definitely an error. The move loosens up the defenses of the Black King. Black must try something more adventurous here. It is always difficult to identify the right point where you shift from positional play trying to keep the balance to a tactical mode. This is the point for Black in this game. The sequence; 24..., dxe4 25 fxe4 Bb7 26 d5 Rxc1 27 Rxc1 Re5 is promising for Black. If 28 Qc3 Qe7 29 Qc7 Nxd5; and the swirl of tactics seem to favor Black. Or alternatively, 28 Qa4 Qd6 29 Qxa7 Re7 30 Qa4 Qf4; and Black is equal. Strongest for White in this line is 28 Nf1, intending to bring the Knight to f3 or c4 as the situation warrants. What is clear is the fight is still on and undecided. After the text White has the advantage.
25.e5 Nh7?
Compounding the problem. The attack with f3-f4 and f4-f5 is looming. The try 25..., h4?!; offers some hope of confusing the issue, but after 26 exf6 Rxe1+ 27 Qxe1 hxg3 28 Qe7 Be8 29 Rxc8 Qxc8 30 hxg3 Qc1+ 31 Bf1 Ba4; White is much better. Note; 31..., Bb5?; is lost against 32 Qd8+ Kh7 33 Qf8. After 31..., Ba4; White has the resource; 32 f4, breaking the diagonal c1-h6 where Black could get a perpetual check. With that option eliminated, the White Queen gains some freedom. The need to guard against a check on the back rank by the Queen followed by Qf8 with mate the next, constrains the Black Queen’s activity.
26.f4 Bd7 27.f5 Rec6 28.Rxc6 Rxc6 29.e6,..
Good also is 29 fxg6.
29...fxe6 30.fxg6 Nf6 31.Qd2 Kg7 32.Rf1 1–0
White has a winning advantage and cashed it in shortly. The games all were finishing at nearly the same moment, and I was unable to obtain the complete score of this one.
More soon.
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