[Event "Blitz 5m"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2019.03.16"]  [Round "4"]  [White "Storn, Justin"]  [Black "Balyan, Aryan"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "E32"]  [WhiteElo "2209"]  [BlackElo "2086"]  [PlyCount "68"]  [TimeControl "300"]   {509MB, Fritz 14.ctg, balyan-PC} {This is my last round game against Justin  Storn in the Queen City Class. In the tournament, Justin is leading with a  perfect 4/4 with me trailing 3.5/4.} 1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 2. c4 e6 {  I was debating whether to maybe play a Kings indian or even a Benko based on  the tournament situation, but i figured Justin will be well prepared against  the two so i decided to play a nimzo, which was what I played the last 2 times  we played.} 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 {4.Qc2 is a common line, as white tends to try  and play with the bishops and a space advantage against Black's potential  counterattack in the center.} O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Bg5 Bb7 8. f3 d6 9.  e3 Nbd7 10. Bd3 c5 {The main move here is to play e5, but I don't like that  line as much as the f5 square tends to get exploited via Ng3 Nf5 in some cases,  or a Bf5.} 11. Ne2 Rc8 12. Qd2 $2 {Somewhat passive, although logical to get  the queen off the file.} h6 13. Bh4 cxd4 14. Nxd4 $2 Ne5 {White seems to be in  some discomfort here wiht the c4 pawn hanging, Bishop under attack it his  pieces are somewhat discoordinated.} 15. b3 Nxd3+ 16. Qxd3 d5 {Trying to  undermind the center and later a Ba6 to take advantage of the pin.} 17. cxd5 g5  $1 {This may weaken the kingside, but my idea is to recapture with the knight  and this coordinates my pieces better.} 18. dxe6 $1 {A sacrifice! White's idea  is to use the dangerous queen and knight duo to mate the king.} gxh4 19. exf7+  Kxf7 {Forced. If 19.Rxf7, white can play Qg6+ Rg7 Qxg7+ Kxg7 Ne6+, regaining  the queen in a better endgame.} (19... Rxf7 20. Qg6+ Rg7 21. Qxg7+ Kxg7 22.  Ne6+ Kf7 23. Nxd8+ Rxd8) 20. O-O Rc5 21. e4 Qc8 {A very sneeky trick for  what's to come.} 22. Nf5 $2 (22. Rfd1 {This would have been better, to step  out of the pin.}) 22... Rxf5 $1 23. exf5 Ba6 $1 {This was the point of Qc8,  regaining the material thus trading pieces up a piece.} 24. Qd2 Bxf1 25. Rxf1  Qc5+ {Intermezzo, to get the king in some back-rank checkmate threats.} 26. Kh1  Qxf5 27. Qxh6 {To evaluate the position, white has 2 pawns and a weak king to  hunt for the piece. But, this knight for me is an absolute beast, blocking ALL  checks by the queen.} h3 {Sacrificing the pawn to trade pieces and weaken the  structure.} 28. Qxh3 Qxh3 29. gxh3 Rc8 30. Kg2 Rc3 31. Rb1 Kg6 32. a4 a5 33. h4  Kf5 34. Rb2 Kf4 {We stopped notating due to time pressure, but I went on to  win after some gruesome technique. I won the tournament clear first with a 4.5/  5 score.} 0-1   

   [Event "Glasscoe Weekender Anti-Swiss"]  [Site "Berkeley, CA"]  [Date "2/10/19"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Viktor Mishkin"]  [Black "NM Michael Walder"]  [Result "1-0"]   1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nc3 g6 7. h3 Bg7 8. e4 O-O  9. Bd3 b5 10. O-O {I think that this was a mistake and that I should have played  Nxd5 but at the time I miscalculated and thought that that would lose a pawn.} (  10. Bxb5 Nxe4 11. Nxe4 Qa5+ 12. Bd2 Qxb5) 10... b4 11. Ne2 Re8 12. Bg5 (12. Ng3  {would have been better-it preserves my bishop pair and threatens Re1 followed  by Nf1-d2-c4.}) 12... h6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Rb1 a5 (14... Bxh3 $1 {was winning  for black}) 15. Nd2 a4 16. f3 a3 {trying to open up my dark squares and hoping  that his knight will find its way to d4 or c3.} 17. b3 (17. bxa3 Rxa3) 17... Ba6  18. Bxa6 Nxa6 19. Nc4 Nc7 20. Qd3 Nb5 21. Rbc1 Ra7 22. Rc2 Qd8 23. Kh1 Rae7 24.  g4 (24. Ng3 {would have been better I think.}) 24... f5 25. Nf4 ({after} 25.  gxf5 gxf5 26. exf5 {I felt that black was better even though I was up a pawn  because of my horrendous pawn structure, but now this seems like white MIGHT  have an advantage because of his pressure along the g-file.}) 25... fxe4 26.  fxe4 Nd4 (26... Rxe4 $2 27. Ne6) 27. Rcf2 g5 (27... Rxe4 $2 28. Ne6 $1 Nxe6 (  28... R4xe6 29. dxe6 Rxe6 $18) 29. Qxe4) 28. Nh5 Rf8 (28... Rxe4 29. Rf7 R8e7  30. Rxg7+ Rxg7 31. Qxe4) 29. Rxf8+ Bxf8 30. e5 $3 dxe5 31. Qg6+ Bg7 (31... Kh8  32. Nf6 Bg7 (32... Rg7 33. Qxh6+ Rh7 34. Qxh7#) 33. Qh7#) 32. Nf6+ Kf8 33. Qh7  Kf7 (33... Bxf6 34. Qh8+ Kf7 35. Rxf6#) (33... Rf7 34. Qg8+ Ke7 35. d6+) 34.  Ne4+ Ke8 35. Qg8+ Kd7 36. Nxc5+ Kc8 37. Nb6+ Kc7 38. Na6+ 1-0   

   [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "D46"]  [WhiteElo "2221"]  [BlackElo "1985"]  [PlyCount "78"]   {Hello CCLians! This is a game I played with black against Pappu Murthy in the  Mustard Seed tournament.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 {The more  challenging approach for black after 4.e3 is to play Bf5 or Bg4. But I chose a  more solid approach.} e6 5. Nc3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4  Qe7 {The idea in these positions for black is to play e5. But I took on c4  first to eliminate the weakness of the pawn on d5.} 10. e4 e5 11. d5 Nb6 12.  Bd3 cxd5 13. exd5 Bg4 {I could maybe take on d5, but I wanted to play a  position where white has difficulty coordinating his pieces and a weakness on  d5.} 14. Ng5 h6 15. Nh7 Rfc8 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17. Be3 {At this point, white  almost has to give the pawn to coordinate his pieces.} Qh4 $1 {White has some  problems now. Threats like e4 and maybe expanding on the kingside with f5.} 18.  g3 Qh5 {A move like Qh3 might be visually attractive, but Be4 shuts down most  of the attack.} 19. Qd2 $2 {After 19. Qd2, white is struggling because of the  c4 square and the weak light squares.} Bf3 20. Be4 Nc4 {Now black immediately  gets the bishop pair.} 21. Qc2 Bxe4 22. Qxe4 f5 23. Qg2 Qg6 $2 {The computer  will absolutely roast me after this move, but the idea is to play f4 without  giving up any counterplay on the g-file.} 24. Nb5 Nxe3 25. fxe3 Bc5 26. Rae1  Qb6 27. Nc3 Bxe3+ 28. Kh1 g6 $2 {A crucial mistake, allowing white activity  with d6.} 29. d6 Bd4 30. Qd5+ Kg7 31. Qe6 Qc6+ 32. Nd5 Rf8 $1 {A forced move,  otherwise white escapes with a draw.} 33. Rc1 Rae8 34. Rxc6 Rxe6 35. Rc7+ Rf7  36. d7 Rd6 37. Nb4 Rfxd7 38. Rxd7+ Rxd7 39. Kg2 Bc5 {White resigned hear, as  his position will fall apart.} 0-1   

   [Event "2017 Ohio Chess Congress"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2017.09.02"]  [Round "2"]  [White "Ghosh, Shourjya"]  [Black "Hollinberger, Drew"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "D30"]  [WhiteElo "1934"]  [BlackElo "2093"]  [PlyCount "73"]   1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Qa4+ {Bg2 is more common but  requires just as much preparation for the lines where black holds on to the  pawn as well as other variations.} c6 6. Qxc4 b5 7. Qc2 {Better moves are Qd3  and Qb3.} Bb7 8. Bg2 Qb6 9. O-O Nbd7 {Up until now, my play in the opening has  not been very good and no matter what I play, black will get in c5 next and  the position will be just equal.} 10. Bd2 {Just by looking at it, you can  decipher that this is not a good move by me. After c5 this move clearly  discoordinates my development and the bishop is very clumsy on d2.} Rc8 {Any  move but c5 in this position is a serious mistake, and I got lucky this time.  White is not far away from being strategically winning after my next move.} 11.  b4 Be7 12. a3 O-O 13. Bc3 {My plan was to just play it slow and outplay black  while putting my pieces on their ideal squares. Black has no active future, so  I give my opponent a lot of credit for his next find. I did not respond well.}  a5 {The engine will absolutely roast this move, but this is really the only  way over the board not to suffer and die slowly. At the cost of a measly pawn,  black hopes to free himself with the break c5.} 14. bxa5 {A bad practical  decision by me. This capture takes only one pawn, away from the action, and  makes black's active life so much easier. Better was to play Nd2 and Qb2 and  keep the bind where I maintain white's sizeable edge.} Qa7 15. Bb4 {One bad  move after another, my pieces end up on loose squares and we both miss an  opportunity where black actually ends up on top. It simply was not worth it to  grab a pawn and allow all of this activity.} c5 16. dxc5 Nxc5 17. Nd4 Bxg2 18.  Kxg2 Na6 (18... Na4 {The move that puts me in big trouble. White has to play  very precisely to stay in it after this.} 19. Qd3 Bxb4 20. axb4 Nb2 21. Qd2 Nc4  22. Qd3 Rcd8 23. Nc6 Qb7 24. Qf3 Rd5 25. Nc3 Qxc6 26. Nxd5 Nxd5 {And only  black can win.}) 19. Qb2 Nxb4 20. axb4 Rc4 21. e3 {The next crucial moment of  the game. Many people like myself would be tempted to play Nc2 and greedily  hold on to the pawn, but during the game the look of my b1-knight and a1-rook  made me cringe. By holding on to the pawn when I am a pawn up, I would lose so  much activity that I didn't even think I'd be better. Activity is far more  important than material in cases like this.} Qb7+ {Inaccurate and unnecessary  since a6 will come with tempo. You'll see that black also takes back the pawn  on b4 with the wrong piece, overlooking my strong reply.} 22. Kg1 Bxb4 23. a6  Qb6 24. Na3 Bxa3 25. Rxa3 b4 26. a7 Ra8 27. Rfa1 Rc7 28. Ra6 Qc5 29. R6a5 Qe7  30. Rb5 {A cowardly move. I totally forgot that I could pile up (and probably  win) the pawn on b4 with R1a4, where the pawn is in serious trouble. Taking on  a7 is now just an immediate draw.} Rb7 {His biggest gift of the game. On the  backfoot, my opponent refuses an obvious draw and throws the game away in one  move. I can't help but wonder if my opponent was playing for a win. I mean, it  sounds ridiculous, but how else can one justify this move?} 31. Nc6 Qc7 32.  Qxb4 Rxb5 33. Qxb5 {I've won the pawn and the game is in the bag.} Nd7 34. Rb1  Kf8 35. Qb8+ Qc8 36. Qd6+ Kg8 37. Ne7+ {And black resigned. The key take aways  from this game are that knowing how to accurately play openings is not to be  underestimated, and that one should be very careful when balancing material  gains and activity. Earlier, when I took the pawn on a5, I allowed black so  much freedom from his once cramped position and it nearly cost me. Later, when  I could've held onto a pawn with Nc2, I correctly evaluated that my pieces  would find it extremely tight and lack space to function. It was not a great  game, but the lessons are important nonetheless.} 1-0   

   [Event "Barbers Tournament"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2017.07.31"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Wang, Justin"]  [Black "Shen, Christopher"]  [Result "1/2-1/2"]  [ECO "C07"]  [WhiteElo "2336"]  [BlackElo "2307"]  [PlyCount "91"]  [EventDate "2017.07.08"]  [EventCountry "USA"]  [WhiteTeam "Texas"]  [BlackTeam "Ohio"]   {C07: French Tarrasch: 3...c5, 4 Ngf3 and 4 exd5 Qxd5} 1. e4 {I choose this  game to share with CCL fellows because this is a critical game of round 5 on  the top board between top 2 seeds. I also want to post this French opening I  played in memorial of coach Goran.} e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 c5 {I remember last  time Goran saw this line from my game was in 2016 Gem City Open when I played  black against then IM Ruifeng Li on top board.} 4. Ngf3 cxd4 5. exd5 Qxd5 6.  Bc4 Qd6 7. O-O Nf6 8. Nb3 Nc6 9. Nbxd4 Nxd4 10. Nxd4 a6 11. Re1 Qc7 12. Bb3 Bd7  13. g3 O-O-O 14. Bf4 Bd6 15. Bxd6 Qxd6 16. Nf3 Qc7 17. Qe2 Bc6 18. Ne5 Bd5 $6  $146 {Not a very accurate move} (18... Be4 {is a correct move} 19. Qc4 Qxc4 20.  Bxc4 Bg6 21. Nxg6 hxg6 22. Rad1 Ng4 23. Be2 Nf6 24. f4 Kc7 25. Bf3 b6 26. Rxd8  Rxd8 27. Kf2 Rd2+ 28. Re2 Rxe2+ 29. Bxe2 a5 30. Ke3 Nd5+ 31. Kd4 Kd6 32. Bc4  Nb4 33. c3 {Sorsak, J-Komora,A Hlohovec 1993 1/2-1/2 (41)}) 19. Ng4 $6 {  After the game, Justin told his weak move like this because he was also  nervous about the game. We both realize the result of this round would impact  the outcome of whole tournament.} (19. Qe3 $5 {should be investigated more  closely} Rhf8 20. Qf4 $14) 19... Nxg4 20. Qxg4 f5 {Black threatens to win  material: f5xg4} (20... g6 21. Rad1 Bc6 22. Qb4 $11) 21. Qe2 Rhe8 22. c4 Bc6  23. c5 {[%cal Rb3e6,Re2e6,Ge8e6] Attacks the backward pawn on e6} Kb8 24. Rad1  (24. Bxe6 $2 {doesn't work} Bd5 25. Qc2 Bxe6 $19) 24... Be4 25. Bc2 Bxc2 26.  Qxc2 Rxd1 27. Rxd1 Rd8 28. Re1 Qc6 29. Qc3 {White threatens to win material:  Qc3xg7} Rd7 $6 (29... g6 $1 {would make a solid pawn structure for Black} 30.  b4 $11) 30. Qe5+ {White forks: e6} Ka7 31. Qxe6 {This move suprised me because  White seeks a draw when I thought he wanted to keep the tension and slowly  pushed to make a better position on board.} (31. b4 a5 $14) 31... Rd1 $1 $11  32. Qe2 Rxe1+ 33. Qxe1 Qxc5 {A queen endgame occured.} 34. Qd2 g6 35. b3 Qe5  36. Kg2 Qe4+ 37. f3 {White threatens to win material: f3xe4} Qe5 38. h4 Kb6 39.  Kf2 Kc6 40. Kg2 h5 41. a4 b5 42. axb5+ Kxb5 43. Qd3+ Kb6 44. Qd8+ Kb5 45. Qd3+  {Twofold repetition} Kb6 46. Qd8+ {A draw was ageed and we both were ready to  let next round determine final result.} 1/2-1/2  

   [Event "Pan American Youth Chess Championships"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2017.07.05"]  [Round "7"]  [White "Soto, Miguel Angel"]  [Black "Liu, Aristo"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "C42"]  [WhiteElo "2320"]  [BlackElo "1969"]  [Annotator "Liu, Aristo"]  [PlyCount "100"]  [EventDate "2017.??.??"]  [SourceDate "2017.07.08"]   {This was played in round seven of the Pan-American Youth Chess Championships,  having the Black pieces against the highest rated player.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6  3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Nc3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Be7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Bd3 Re8  10. O-O-O Bf6 11. h3 a6 $13 {[%cal Yg2g4,Yf2f4,Yg4g5,Yh3h4,Gc7c5,Gb7b5,Gc5c4,  Ga6a5] When players castle on opposite sides, generally the best plan is to  push pawns to attack the enemy king. In this position, however, White is  faster in his attack.} 12. g4 g6 $5 {[%cal Gf6g7,Rg4g5] Played to preserve the  diagonal for the bishop, as opposed to retreating to e7 or being exchanged for  a knight.} ({However, moves that continue the attack despite these reasons may  have been better; for example} 12... Be6 {[%csl Yc4][%cal Gc6e5,Gc6a5,Ga5c4,  Ge5c4] intending Ne5 or Na5 followed by Nc4.}) 13. Bg5 {[%csl Yf6,Yg5,Yg7,Yh6]  White exchanges bishops to riddle the Black kingside with weak (and  indefensible) dark squares. However, White no longer has his "good"  dark-squared Bishop to utilize these holes, which considerably slackens the  pressure.} Ne5 $11 {Exchanging more pieces that may aid the White attack.} 14.  Bxf6 Nxd3+ {I felt that removing the light-squared bishop, resulting in a  slightly better (though probably equal) position due to the BvN matchup.} (  14... Qxf6 {was another option, but this leaves White with his active bishop,  although this difference is likely minimal due to Black's kingside pawn  structure that limits its activity.} 15. Nxe5 dxe5 $14) 15. cxd3 {Exchanging  the knight for the bishop also fixed White's pawn structure, however.} Qxf6 16.  Ng5 d5 {Preventing Ne4} (16... Be6 $2 17. Ne4 Qd8 18. g5) 17. f4 Qd6 $6 {  This allows White to continue his attack with f5, but I (questionably?)  decided that it wouldn't work.} 18. f5 $13 gxf5 19. gxf5 Bxf5 20. Rdf1 Bg6 21.  Rhg1 Re7 22. h4 h5 23. Nh3 Rae8 24. Nf4 Re5 25. Nxg6 fxg6 26. Qh6 R8e6 $14 27.  Kb1 Re2 28. d4 ({The point was that} 28. Qxh5 $4 {would be met with} Re1+ $1 {  winning material.} 29. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 30. Rxe1 gxh5) 28... R2e4 $6 {I was running  somewhat low on time around this point.} ({Possibly} 28... b5 $13 {was better  with the intention of continuing the attack.}) 29. c4 $2 {A mistake, but I did  not find the refutation due to time pressure.} (29. a3 $1 {makes Qxh5 once  again viable and gives White a better position} Rg4 $16) 29... Rg4 $6 (29...  dxc4 $1 {should have been played, as the "deflection" does not actually work}  30. d5 c3 $3 {as} 31. dxe6 {fails:} ({This is the best move, but still  promises Black some advantage.} 31. Rf8+ Qxf8 32. Rxg6+ Rxg6 33. Qxg6+ Qg7 34.  Qxe4 Qg1+ 35. Kc2 cxb2 $17) (31. bxc3 $2 Re2 32. Rf8+ Qxf8 33. Qxf8+ Kxf8 34.  dxe6 Kg7 35. Rd1 g5 $19) 31... Qd3+ 32. Ka1 cxb2+ 33. Kxb2 Rb4+ 34. Ka1 Qc3#)  30. Rxg4 hxg4 31. cxd5 {Now White regains his pawn.} Rf6 32. Re1 Qd7 $11 33.  Kc1 Qf7 34. Qg5 Rf1 35. Rxf1 Qxf1+ 36. Kd2 Qf2+ {This is a drawn position, but  only if White responds to the checks correctly.} 37. Kc1 $6 (37. Kc3 $11) 37...  Qe1+ 38. Kc2 Qe4+ 39. Kc3 Kf7 40. h5 gxh5 41. Qxh5+ Ke7 42. Qg5+ Kd7 43. Qg7+  Kd6 44. Qg8 Qf3+ 45. Kb4 $4 {Now Black has a winning position.} (45. Kc4 $8 $11  ) 45... a5+ $1 46. Ka4 Qd1+ $2 ({Qd1+ still wins, but} 46... Qxd5 $1 $19 {  was better.}) 47. Kxa5 $2 $19 (47. Ka3 $8 $17) 47... Qd2+ 48. Ka4 Qxd4+ 49. b4  b5+ $1 50. Kxb5 Qxd5+ {Exchanges queens, and Black promotes first. Winning  this round allowed me to tie for first to have a chance of winning the  tournament. Thank you for viewing!} 0-1   

   [Event "Pawn Storm "]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2017.01.07"]  [Round "1"]  [White "Cao, Elton"]  [Black "VanMeter, Lester"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "A31"]  [WhiteElo "1932"]  [BlackElo "2200"]  [Annotator "Elton"]  [PlyCount "115"]  [EventDate "2017.01.12"]  [SourceDate "2017.01.12"]   1. d4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nf3 (5. Nb5 d5 6. cxd5 Bc5 7. N5c3  O-O 8. e3 e4 9. Be2 {I considered this during the game and thought that White  has a slight advantage but I don't know too much in this position but I didn't  see any reason to not opt for the other line.}) 5... e4 6. Nd4 {This position  is equal but I though black overadvanced the e-pawn and I can put pressure on  it.} d5 7. Nc3 Bc5 ({On} 7... dxc4 8. Bg5 Bb4 9. Qa4+ Nc6 10. Nxc6 Bxc3+ 11.  bxc3 bxc6 12. Qxc6+ Bd7 13. Qxc4 {I should be fine but my lack of development  will need to be solved.}) 8. Bg5 Bxd4 9. Qxd4 Nc6 10. Qd2 d4 {This pawn  sacrifice has it's merits. White either lets black steamroll him in the center  or accept the sacrifice and attempt to solve his development issues. I chose  the latter since black needs to prove his compensation.} 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 (11...  dxc3 12. Qxd8+ Nxd8 13. Bxc3 (13. Bxg7 $6 {is not as accurate since the c4  pawn can be targeted later.} cxb2 14. Bxb2) 13... O-O 14. e3 {and White has 2  bishops and a solid extra pawn.}) 12. Nxe4 Qg6 13. Ng3 O-O {The question here  is where to put my pieces.} 14. O-O-O {I felt that I needed to get my king out  and fast so I can develop without worrying about my king.} (14. e3 $2 {gets  destroyed after} dxe3 15. fxe3 (15. Qxe3 $2 Nb4 {and White can't stop the  threat without making catastrophic concessions.}) 15... Rd8 16. Qc3 {this  position is very bad for white since his king is too weak.}) 14... Be6 {  Attacking c4. Here e3 is possible and reasonable.} 15. e3 dxe3 (15... Rad8 16.  Bd3 Qf6 17. Kb1 {and white is fine.}) 16. Qxe3 Nb4 17. Qb3 a5 (17... Qg5+ 18.  Kb1 Qg6+ 19. Kc1 Qg5+ {is black's saving grace but instead he wanted to win.})  18. a3 Na6 19. Bd3 Qh6+ (19... Nc5 20. Qc3 Nxd3+ 21. Qxd3 Qxd3 22. Rxd3 Bxc4  23. Rc3 Be6 {wins his pawn back.}) 20. Kb1 Nc5 21. Qc2 Nxd3 22. Rxd3 Rac8 23.  Rc3 {Here I'm able to save the pawn.} Qf4 {He wanted to put for pressure on me.  } ({Perhaps here} 23... g6 {is good, trapping my knight out for good.} 24. Ne4  Bf5 25. g4 Bxe4 26. Qxe4 Rfe8 {and black is good here with active rooks.}) 24.  Rc1 Rfd8 25. Nh5 $5 {Setting a devilish trap. The move itself isn't that good  but I was trying to muddy the waters.} Qg5 $2 {Falling for it.} (25... Qh6 26.  Ng3 (26. Qe2 $2 {is bad due to} Rd2 27. Qe5 Rxf2 28. Nxg7 Qxg7 29. Rg3 Bf5+ 30.  Ka1 Bg6) 26... Rd2 27. Qe4 Rxf2 28. Rf1 Rxf1+ 29. Nxf1 b6 {and white has a  good queen on e4 and I can work to improve my other pieces.}) 26. Nxg7 $1 {  The blow.} Rd2 (26... Qxg7 27. Rg3 Bg4 28. h3 h5 29. hxg4 hxg4 30. Qf5 {  R.I.P Black king.}) 27. Nxe6 fxe6 28. Rg3 (28. Qb3 {Is better since the black  king is very weak and I have very good attacking chances but going into a  winning endgame isn't bad either.} Qf5+ 29. Ka1) 28... Qxg3 29. hxg3 Rxc2 30.  Rxc2 {The dust had settled and white is two healthy pawns up.} Rc5 31. b4 Re5  32. Kb2 {White has now a winning position.} Kf7 33. Kc3 Ke7 34. Kd4 Rh5 35. c5  axb4 36. axb4 Kd7 37. b5 Rd5+ 38. Kc4 Re5 39. f3 Re1 40. Kb4 Kc7 41. c6 Rb1+  42. Kc5 bxc6 43. bxc6 Rb6 44. Kd4 {Now that I have secured a passed pawn on c6  that can never be taken due to my king walking over to the kingside and taking  his pawns.} Rb5 (44... Rxc6 45. Rxc6+ Kxc6 46. Ke5 Kd7 47. g4 Ke7 48. f4 h6 49.  f5 exf5 50. gxf5 Kf7 51. f6 Kf8 52. Ke6 Ke8 53. f7+ Kf8 54. g4 h5 55. gxh5 Kg7  56. Ke7 $18) 45. Ke4 Rd5 46. g4 {Here I wanted to slowly but surely push all  my pawns and prevent counterplay and enjoy this position while it lasts.} Rb5  47. Rc3 Rd5 48. g3 Rb5 49. f4 Ra5 50. g5 Rb5 51. g4 Ra5 52. Rc4 Rb5 53. f5  exf5+ 54. gxf5 Ra5 55. Kf4 Ra1 56. f6 Rf1+ 57. Ke5 Re1+ 58. Kf5 1-0   

   [Event "Ohio Chess Congress"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2016.09.05"]  [Round "6"]  [White "Partee, Isacc"]  [Black "Cao, Stanley"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "A12"]  [WhiteElo "1864"]  [BlackElo "2000"]  [PlyCount "130"]  [EventDate "9.??.??"]   1. Nf3 {Nf3 usually results in tough positional battles, and very drawish  games.} d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 c6 4. b3 h6 {May not be the most necessary move,  but I have to play it sometime in order to preserve the light squared bishop.}  5. c4 Bf5 6. d3 Nbd7 7. O-O e6 8. Bb2 Be7 9. Nbd2 O-O 10. Rc1 Rc8 11. a3 a5 {  I could not allow him to get queenside space.} 12. Rc3 {with the idea of Qa1  and this guy is backed by many Grandmasters. It was very apparent that he  didn't know what to do after his book knowledge was depleted.} Bg6 {Now e4  doesn't come with tempo.} 13. Qa1 Re8 14. Rcc1 Bf8 {At this point, I could  tell it was going to be a slow game. Black's position has a lot of potential,  and can be improved in many ways. White, on the other hand, is running out of  moves. Sooner or later white will need to make a serious pawn break in order  to make progress. While Black's positional progress is slow, white can't do  much.} 15. Ne5 $6 {A bit premature. There was no need to trade pieces,  especially when White has some space advantage.} Nxe5 16. Bxe5 Nd7 17. Bc3 f6  $1 {This dulls out White's queen-bishop battery, allows for a possible e5 push,  and gives me flexibilty with the g6-bishop.} 18. Rfe1 Bf7 19. Rb1 Ra8 20. Nf3  Qc7 21. Qb2 Nb6 22. a4 {This wasn't needed. Better is:} (22. cxd5 exd5 23. Rbc1  Nc8 $11 {And both sides struggle for play.}) 22... Reb8 $6 {A positional error  on my part. Reb8 didn't really achieve anything, and anything b5 related is  difficult to carry out.} 23. Qd2 Nd7 24. cxd5 {A little frustration is evident  as he decides to release the tension.} exd5 25. Red1 Rd8 26. d4 {A big  commitment. Now the b1-h7 diagnal is open, and the f7 bishop takes advantage  of it immediately.} Bg6 27. Rb2 Ra7 $6 {This move simply didn't make sense. I  wanted to double rooks and push b5, but now is not the time yet.} 28. Ne1 Re8  29. Nd3 Bd6 30. Nf4 Bh7 (30... Bxf4 $6 31. Qxf4 Qxf4 32. gxf4 {White has the  bishops pair, and my knight doesn't have anywhere to go.}) 31. Bh3 Nf8 32. Bg2  {Demonstrating that he played Bh3 just to play a move.} Ne6 33. Nxe6 Rxe6 34.  Bh3 Re8 35. e3 Be4 36. Bg2 Bg6 {We were both struggling to get to the time  control here.} 37. Ra1 Rea8 38. Bf1 Qd7 39. Bd3 $2 {Offering a favorable trade  for me. White's light squared bishop is better than his other. I was happy to  make the trade.} Bxd3 40. Qxd3 Qe7 41. Rba2 Kf7 42. Bb2 Ra6 (42... Bc7 43. Ba3  Qe4 44. Qxe4 dxe4 45. Bc5 {The position is definitely equal, but I'd prefer  white here.}) 43. Ba3 $1 {A sound maneuver on his part, trading his bad bishop  for my "semi-good." Even if I stopped this trade, his bishop would go to c5,  and his bishop would be very active.} Rb6 $5 {If I put my rooks on b4 and b6,  the b3 pawn is basically a backward pawn.} 44. Bxd6 Qxd6 45. Qc3 Ke7 {I'm  preparing for any trades. In the endgame, I will have a temporary advantage  with my king activity.} 46. Rb1 Rb4 47. Rc2 Kd7 48. Qc5 Qxc5 (48... b6 $6 {  Accuracy is key here. This is banking on White's Qxd6+, but simply} 49. Qc3 {  and I don't see much for black here.}) 49. Rxc5 b6 (49... b5 $6 50. axb5 cxb5  51. Rxd5+ Ke7 52. Rc5 a4 53. Rc3 a3 54. Ra1 {It's hard to make progress here.}  a2 55. Rc2 Rxb3 56. Rcxa2 Rxa2 57. Rxa2 Rb1+ 58. Kg2 Kd6 $13 {White may be  slightly better here, but it's very complicated.}) 50. Rc3 Kd6 51. Kf1 c5 52.  Rd1 $2 $15 {A little too passive. Black definitely has an advantage here.} c4  $1 {The only move that extends the lead.} (52... cxd4 $2 53. Rxd4 Rxd4 54. exd4  $11) 53. bxc4 dxc4 54. Ra1 Kd5 55. Ke1 Ke4 56. Rc2 (56. Kd2 {Is another option,  but Black is still better.} Kf3 57. Ke1 Rb2 58. Rxc4 Rxf2 59. h4 Re8 60. Ra3  Re2+ 61. Kd1 R2xe3 62. Rxe3+ Rxe3 $17) (56. Ra2 f5 {White's rooks are simply  too passive. Black will just push his kingside pawns, provoke weaknesses, and  use his a8 rook with his active king to achieve a material advantage.}) 56...  Kd3 {Improving the king even more. However, f5 would have retained blacks  advantage better.} (56... f5 57. Kd2 Rc8 58. Ra3 g5 59. Kc3 Rc7 60. Rd2 Kd5 61.  Rb2 Rxb2 62. Kxb2 f4) (56... g5 57. Kd2 Kd5 58. Ra3 f5 59. Kc3 Re8 60. Rb2 Rxb2  61. Kxb2 f4 62. gxf4 gxf4 $15 {There's nothing left for white to play.} 63. Rc3  (63. exf4 Re2+ 64. Kb1 Rxf2 65. Rh3 Rf1+ 66. Kc2 Kxd4 67. Rxh6 Rxf4 68. Rxb6  Rf2+ $15) 63... Re4 64. Kc2 f3 {followed by Rh4, winning a pawn.}) 57. Kd1 (57.  Rd2+ {Makes things complicated for black.} Kc3 58. Ke2 Rd8 59. h4 Kb3 60. Rda2  {Black definitely has activity here, but it's not enough to win.}) 57... c3 58.  Rac1 $2 {Too passive. More active is:} (58. Ra3 Rb1+ 59. Rc1 Rxc1+ 60. Kxc1 Rc8  61. h4 h5 62. Rb3 Rc4 63. Ra3 g5 64. hxg5 (64. d5 $2 gxh4 65. Ra2 (65. gxh4 $4  Rxh4 66. Kb1 Rh1+ 67. Ka2 Kc4 68. Rb3 c2 $19) (65. d6 $4 h3 $1 66. d7 Rd4 $3  67. exd4 h2 $19)) 64... fxg5 65. d5 Rc7 66. d6 Rd7 67. Rb3 Rxd6 68. Rb5 Rg6 $17  {With two passed pawns, this should be enough to secure victory.}) 58... Rc8  $17 59. Ra2 Rb2 60. Ra3 $4 {After the f2 pawn falls, white has no hope.} (60.  Rca1 {Is what I calculated in the game.} Kc4 61. g4 Rxa2 62. Rxa2 Kb3 $17 63.  Rc2 (63. Ra1 $4 Kb2 64. Rc1 c2+ 65. Kd2 Rc3 $1 {Followed by Rd3+ and Kxc1.})  63... Rc4 $17 {With Rxa4 coming.}) (60. Rc2 {Is another interesting try.} Rb1+  61. Rc1 Rb3 62. Rca1 g5 {Black just pushes his kingside pawns to creat the  second weakness.} 63. Kc1 f5 64. Ra3 Rb2 65. R1a2 Rxa2 66. Rxa2 f4 67. exf4  gxf4 68. f3 Rc4 69. d5 Rd4 $17) 60... Rxf2 61. Ke1 Rxh2 62. Raa1 Kxe3 63. Kd1  Kd3 64. Ke1 Rh1+ 65. Kf2 Rxc1 {And white resigned. There's no stopping the c3  pawn now.} 0-1   

   [Event "US Open 2016"]  [Round "7"]  [White "Storn, J"]  [Black "Cervantes"]  [Result "1-0"]  [WhiteElo "1970"]  [BlackElo "2160"]  [CurrentPosition "rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1"]   1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Bd2 Bg7 6.e4 Nb6 7.Be3 O-O 8.h3 Nc6 9.Nf3 Na5 { Trying to play Nc4, which is annoying } 10.Bf4 { Preventing Nc4 in a way because of... } 10...f5?! { Trying to take advantage of the bishop on f4 } ( 10...Nac4 11.Bxc4 Nxc4 12.Qe2 Nb6 13.Rd1 { And white has a great position. } ) 11.e5 Nd5 12.Bd2 h6 13.Rc1 Nb6 ( 13...g5 14.b4 Nxc3 15.Bxc3 Nc6 16.Bc4+ ) 14.h4 Nc6 15.Bf4 { The dark square bishop has had quite the journey } 15...e6 16.Qd2 h5 17.Bg5 Qe8 18.a4?! { Interesting move, trying to provoke a5 so I can play Bb5. In retrospect, I think it is just weakening. } 18...a6 19.Be2 Bd7 20.O-O Na5 21.Qc2 Nxa4? { This move allows me to enter her position and provoke weaknesses } 22.Nxa4 Bxa4 23.Qxc7 Nb3? { Her knight actually gets trapped on b3 } 24.Rc3 Rf7 25.Qb6 Rc8 26.Rxb3 Rc6 27.Qb4 Bxb3 28.Qxb3 Qc8 29.Bd3 b5 { Stopping Nd2 then Bc4 and advancing her majority } 30.Bd2 Rd7 31.Rd1 { I'm just slowly improving and not creating weaknesses before time control } 31...Bf8 32.Be3 Be7 33.g3 Rd5 34.Bb1 a5 35.Qd3 b4 36.Ba2 Rd8 37.Ng5 a4 38.Bxe6+ Rxe6 39.Nxe6 Qxe6 40.Qb5 a3 { We both reached time control, so I start to asses the position : I am up a pawn, but she will get an outside passer, but if I can get my pawns rolling, I will be in the driver's seat. } 41.bxa3 bxa3 42.Qa5 Qb3 43.Rd2 Qb7 { Ra8 is next } 44.Qc3 Rc8 45.Qa1 Qe4 { Setting up a mating net, so I have to act fast } 46.Qa2+ Kg7 47.Rd1 { Preventing the mating net } 47...Rc6 48.d5 Rc2 49.Qa1 { Lining up with the king } 49...a2 50.d6 Bxh4 51.e6+ Bf6? { Falling for the tactic } 52.d7! Qa8 ( 52...Bxa1 53.d8=Q { You can't stop Rd7# next move } ) 53.Bd4 { Her pawn is no longer a threat and I will simply promote on d8. Black Resigned }  1-0[Event "US Open 2016"]   

   [Event "2016 Columbus Open"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2016.06.17"]  [Round "1"]  [White "Annorjan Naguleswaran"]  [Black "Xavier Paganini"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "C41"]  [Annotator "Xavier"]  [PlyCount "97"]   {This was my first-round game in the 2016 Columbus Open, and I was already  stuck playing somebody nearly 400 points above my rating (I was an 1870 at the  time). Fortunately, through a mix of outplaying him in the opening and  middlegame and getting somewhat lucky in the endgame, I managed to win the  game.} 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 e5 4. Nf3 Nbd7 5. Bc4 Be7 6. O-O c6 7. a4 a5  8. h3 O-O 9. Re1 exd4 10. Nxd4 Nc5 {So far, it's been a very normal main-line  Philidor Defense, and is still theory at this point. White has quite a few  options, the most commonly played being Bf4.} 11. Nb3 $6 {This is not very  good for white. In general, white wants to keep the knight on d4 to stop Be6.}  (11. Bf4 Be6 12. Nxe6 (12. Bf1 Qb6 13. Qd2 Qb4 14. Rad1 Rad8 $11) 12... fxe6  13. e5 Ne8 {Nfd7 works too.} 14. exd6 Rxf4 15. dxe7 Qxe7 16. Qe2 Nc7 $11) 11...  Nfd7 (11... Be6 12. Bxe6 Nxe6 13. Be3 Re8 {With equality.}) 12. Bf4 $6 ({White  is probably better off playing Nxc5.} 12. Nxc5 Nxc5 13. Be3 Be6 14. Bxe6 Nxe6  $11) 12... Ne5 13. Bxe5 dxe5 14. Qh5 Qc7 15. Re3 $6 {Playing directly into  black's hands. I can't say I understand this move.} Be6 16. Qe2 (16. Nxc5 Bxc5  17. Rg3 Bxc4 (17... g6 18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. Rf1 Rad8 $15 {This line is better  than what was played in the game, but very easy to miss.}) 18. Rxg7+ Kxg7 19.  Qg5+ Kh8 20. Qf6+ {This would be a draw, so black would have to play 17.. g6})  16... Rad8 $15 17. Nxc5 Bxc5 18. Rf3 Bxc4 19. Qxc4 Qb6 20. Rd1 Qb4 21. Qe2  Rxd1+ 22. Nxd1 Qxa4 $17 23. b3 Qb4 24. Rf5 $6 {The third rank was actually a  decent defensive place for the rook, so moving off it was somewhat ill-advised.  } f6 $6 {Not a good move. Black doesn't have to fear Rxe5.} (24... Rd8 25. Rxe5  (25. Nb2 g6 26. Rxe5 Rd2 27. Qc4 Bxf2+ 28. Kf1 Rxc2 29. Qxb4 axb4 30. Nd3 Bd4  31. Re8+ Kg7 32. Rd8 c5 $19) 25... Qd4) (24... g6 25. Rf3 (25. Rxe5 Rd8 26. Ne3  f6 {And white's rook is trapped.} 27. Rxc5) 25... Rd8) 25. Nb2 b5 26. Kh1 a4  27. Nd3 Qc3 28. bxa4 bxa4 29. Nc1 Bd4 $6 {An inaccurate move. Ba3 would've  been superior.} (29... Ba3 30. Rf3 (30. Nd3 Be7 {And the pawn will run.}) 30...  Qa1 31. Qc4+ Kh8 32. Qxa4 Qxc1+ {And white loses a piece.}) 30. Kh2 Rb8 31. Na2  Qc5 32. Nc1 Qb5 33. Qg4 Qb1 $2 {And now I begin to go completely off-track,  losing touch with the reality of the game and blowing my advantage. The simple  Kh8 would've done fine, but with this move all I do is force his knight to e2  where it'll take the bishop next turn. After this, all black will have is a  moderate advantage, and that's only if I play Kh8 next turn, which I didn't.}  34. Ne2 Rf8 $4 (34... Kh8) 35. Nxd4 exd4 $15 36. Qe2 $6 {The computer faults  this move, saying e5 is more accurate.} (36. e5 Qb8 37. Qxd4 g6 38. Rf4 Qxe5  39. Qxe5 fxe5 40. Rxa4 Rxf2 41. Rc4 {White has good drawing chances here.})  36... Qb4 $6 (36... Qb8+ {The computer's preferred move.} 37. f4 (37. g3 Qb4  38. Qa6 g6 39. Rf3 Qb5 $19) 37... Qb4 38. Qa6 g6 39. Ra5 Qd2 40. Qc4+ Kh8 41.  Rxa4 Qxf4+ 42. Kh1 Rb8 43. Ra1 (43. Rb4 $6 Ra8 44. Rb1 (44. Ra4 $2 Rxa4 45.  Qxa4 Qxe4 $19)) 43... Qxe4 44. Rd1 Rd8 45. c3 Kg7 {White will have drawing  chances here.}) 37. Qa6 c5 $6 $11 {a3 has to be tried instead.} (37... a3 38.  Ra5 Qc3 39. Qa7 {Still even, perhaps with a small edge for black, but a better  try than in the game.}) 38. e5 c4 39. e6 Re8 40. Rb5 Qe7 $6 (40... Qe1 {This  is an obviously better move, defending against the e-pawn and threatening some  pawn pushes.}) 41. Rb6 d3 42. cxd3 cxd3 43. Qxa4 $2 {This move on its own does  not lose the game, but it's a step in the wrong direction.} (43. Qxd3 {This is  just drawn.} Qc7+ 44. Qd6 Qxd6+ 45. Rxd6 Ra8 46. e7 Re8 47. Ra6 Rxe7 48. Rxa4)  43... Rd8 44. Qb3 $4 {Things may seem a bit hopeless now, but there was, in  fact, a way to save the game.} (44. Qc6 d2 45. Rb7 Qxb7 46. Qxb7 d1=Q 47. Qf7+  Kh8 48. e7 {And this, incredibly, turns into a draw. I can't fault him too  much for missing this with a few minutes left on the clock, I guess.}) 44... d2  45. Rb7 Qd6+ 46. g3 d1=Q 47. Qa2 Q1d5 48. Qa7 Qxb7 49. Qxb7 {And he resigned.  I won the upset prize for this game, and went on to get 3.5/5 to take 1st  place for U2000, only half a point out of an open prize. My performance ended  up in the high 2300s for the tournament, getting my rating up to the painful  spot of 1999, after which an Akron Chess Club tournament got me into the mid  2000s.} 0-1   

   [Event "?"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2016.03.04"]  [Round "?"]  [White "KOLAY, ALEX."]  [Black "MEMARIAN, MILAD."]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "A58"]  [PlyCount "83"]  [EventDate "2016.??.??"]  [Source "PlyCounter"]   1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:45]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} c5 {[%emt 0:  00:27] This can turn into the modern benoni or the benko gambit, which is what  he played.A usual continuation was either e6 or g6 where black could also get  some counterplay.} 3. d5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:07] This is the  beginning of the benko gambit. The benko gambit is a gambit that wants black  to get a lot of counterplay on the a-file and b-file usually.} 4. cxb5 {  [%emt 0:00:20]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 5. bxa6 {[%emt 0:00:11] I decided to  accept the gambit because I know this line pretty well, and I thought I could  defend against his active counterplay against his attack on the queenside.  Other moves are declined variations of the exchange on a6 such as b6 and f3  possibly to play e4.} Bxa6 {[%emt 0:00:01] The most logical continuation.  Black aims to put his knight on d7, develop his bishop on g7 to defend the  dark squares around black's king , and put both of his rooks on the a-file and  b-file so they could attack the queenside, and black will have enough  compensation.} 6. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:08]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:28] Threathening to put  the bishop on g7 and attack the queenside and target the b2-pawn. Also, it  helps black put a lot on white's knight and defends all the weaknesses on the  kingside.} 7. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:14]} d6 {[%emt 0:02:57]} 8. e4 $5 {[%emt 0:00:19]  Controlling space immediately. White's idea after Bxf1 is that he would take  on f1 with the king, play g3, and then make sure his king is safe and connect  the rooks for counterplay.} Bxf1 {[%emt 0:00:01] The most logical move.} 9.  Kxf1 {[%emt 0:00:09]} (9. Rxf1 $2 Bg7 $15 {white's king is completely  misplaced and black has a slightly better position thanks to his much more  safer king and better development of his pieces instead of white's.}) 9... Nbd7  {[%emt 0:01:23]} 10. g3 {[%emt 0:00:23]} Bg7 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 11. Kg2 {[%emt 0:  00:08]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:01]} 12. Qe2 {[%emt 0:02:57] Putting the queen  probably on the best spot. I wanted to move my bishop from c1 and defend the  pawn on b2. Now black makes a positional mistake by letting my knight become  very strong on c4.Another possible move was h3 to play Be3.} (12. h3 Qc7 13.  Qe2 Rfb8 14. Bf4 $14) 12... Qa5 $2 {[%emt 0:01:08] A big positional mistake.  Black should have played Qc7 and put the rook on b8 instead of wasting a tempo.  } (12... Qc7 13. h3 Rfb8 14. Bf4 $14) 13. Nd2 $1 {[%emt 0:01:05] A very good  move. Now black has to move his queen after Nc4, and white will have a very  strong knight on c4, so white will have a decent advantage.} Rfb8 {[%emt 0:00:  13]} 14. Nc4 {[%emt 0:00:36] Putting the knight where I intended to put it,  and the knight is pretty well placed because the b-pawn is gone. The only  problem is that is that he could pin me and I have to waste a tempo because I  have to stop Rb4.} Qa6 $5 {[%emt 0:06:31] The best decision making it harder  for me to move my knight and deal with his threats.} 15. a3 $1 {[%emt 0:01:41]  Good prophylaxis. It prevents Rb4 and it helps white prevent any counterplay.  Now white has prevented everything. The only problem is that it allowes some  counterplay by black.} Ne8 $6 {[%emt 0:03:57] An inaccuracy. Black should have  made use of the pin on the knight.} (15... Nb6 $1 {the best try.} 16. Nxb6 Qxe2  17. Nxe2 Rxb6 18. f3 $14) 16. Re1 {[%emt 0:01:19] A reasonable move. It  prevents Nb6 because this time I could take it with the rook, and white will  have a huge positional advantage.} Nb6 $6 {[%emt 0:19:59] An inaccuracy  because this time I could take it with the rook and I defend b2 with the rook  because I defend against b2.} 17. Nxb6 $5 {[%emt 0:02:24]} Qxe2 $6 {[%emt 0:00:  01]} (17... Qxb6 $1 {Black needs to prevent trading of queens at all costs  because it will leave black with a losing endgame.}) 18. Rxe2 {[%emt 0:00:15]}  Rxb6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 19. Rc2 {[%emt 0:03:07] An important move. I needed to  play this move because black could take on c3 and my pawns on a3 and c3 are  super weak.} (19. Be3 $2 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Rb3 $15) 19... Nc7 {[%emt 0:06:48]} (  19... Bxc3 20. Rxc3 $16) 20. Ra2 {[%emt 0:00:29] A reasonable move. My idea  was to move my bishop on c1 to e3 because if he takes on c3 with the bishop, I  wouldn't have to weaken my position with the pawn because now I could take it  withe rook because the pawn on b2 is protected by the rook.} (20. Rb1 $2 Rb3  $11) 20... h6 {[%emt 0:12:12] A useless move. It has no purpose, and I try to  put my knight on the best square which is on c4 because black can't take the  pawn on b2 anytime because his knight cannot attack, so I have time to get my  knight on c4.} 21. Nb1 $3 {[%emt 0:01:08] A move that he missed and is a very  strong move. Now he can't really prevent my knight going to c4, so he tried  getting his knight on d4 because it is an outpost.} Nb5 {[%emt 0:02:20] The  only good try.} 22. Be3 $5 {[%emt 0:00:33]} Nd4 $6 {[%emt 0:19:15] A bad move.  Now it allows me to get my knight on time at c4 because he wastes a tempo.  Also, h6 is also a bad move because he can never play Bd4 thanks to his pawn  hanging on h6. Now I play the only logical move.} (22... Rab8 23. Nd2 Nd4 24.  Bxd4 Bxd4 25. Nc4 R6b7 26. a4 $16 {Transposes to almost the same line to waht  happened in the game where I will push the a pawn and doesn't have a good way  to stop it.Also, I would bring my rook on c2 eventually into the game. Black  is almost lost.}) 23. Bxd4 {[%emt 0:00:12] Removing the knight on d4 and  preparing to put the much more stronger knight on c4 where it will become an  outpost because his knight is gone.} Bxd4 {[%emt 0:00:21]} 24. Nd2 {[%emt 0:00:  06] Threathening to put the knight on c4 where it would be very strongly  placed.} f5 {[%emt 0:02:10] Trying to bring the king in the game and get some  counterplay. Another option which is Rab8 which transposes to the same line as  before.} 25. Nc4 {[%emt 0:01:22]} Rb3 {[%emt 0:00:59]} 26. exf5 {[%emt 0:00:34]  } gxf5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 27. Kf1 {[%emt 0:00:44] I needed to get my king in the  game, and I needed to put it on e2 so eventually my rook could be free and I  will have a very good position.} Rab8 {[%emt 0:06:21]} 28. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:09]  Putting the king on where I wnat to put it. Then I decided to sacrifice a pawn  for counterplay, and the knight became practically as powerful as a rook for  black.} Kg7 $2 {[%emt 0:00:13] Missing a very strong move by me that is very  strong.} 29. Na5 $3 $18 {[%emt 0:05:20]} Rxb2 $2 {[%emt 0:03:58] The decisive  mistake. Now black has no play and black is completely lost. A better try was  Rb5 deciding to not take the pawn.} (29... R3b5 $2 30. Nc6 R8b7 31. a4 Rxb2 32.  Rcxb2 Bxb2 $8 33. a5 Rc7 34. a6 Rc8 35. a7 Ra8 36. Rxb2 $18) (29... R3b6 $1 30.  Nc6 Rxc6 $3 31. dxc6 Rc8 $18 {way better than what was played in the game  because black will lose a lot of pawns and the game.}) 30. Rcxb2 {[%emt 0:00:  40]} Bxb2 {[%emt 0:01:17]} (30... Rxb2+ $4 31. Rxb2 Bxb2 32. Nc4 Bc3 33. a4 $18  {black's bishop is blocked and has to give up the bishop for the pawn and  black is totally lost because of the strong knight on c4}) 31. Nc6 {[%emt 0:  00:14] The point of Na5. Now it is practically an outpost and white will start  advancing his a-pawn.} Rb6 {[%emt 0:06:27]} 32. Nxe7 {[%emt 0:00:47]} Kf6 {  [%emt 0:03:09]} 33. Nc8 $1 {[%emt 0:00:11] Now the pawn on d6 is going to fall  because of his rook tied up to the support of the bishop on b2. Now black has  to play Rb3 to get some counterplay, but then white's rook will become active.  Also, the pawn on d6 will promote soon tahnsk to the bad position of Black's  king.} Rb3 $5 {[%emt 0:03:39]} 34. Nxd6 {[%emt 0:02:15]} Bxa3 {[%emt 0:00:11]}  35. Nc4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:46] Why to move the knight so many times you may be  asking. The answer is that it is a triple-purpose move that prevents Rb2,  opens up the rook for action, and it prevents the knight on e5.} Bb4 {[%emt 0:  00:21]} 36. Ra6+ {[%emt 0:00:10] making sure his king is completely in the  back, and I could advance the pawn and try some mating patterns.} Ke7 {[%emt 0:  01:07]} 37. d6+ {[%emt 0:03:35]} Kd8 {[%emt 0:00:59]} 38. Ra8+ {[%emt 0:00:27]}  Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 39. Ra7+ {[%emt 0:00:05]} Kd8 {[%emt 0:01:09]} 40. Ne5 $18  {[%emt 0:00:28] I create a mating net and the game is over.} Rb2+ {[%emt 0:00:  01]} 41. Kf3 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Rd2 {[%emt 0:02:36]} 42. Ra8# {[%emt 0:00:06]  This is one of my most memorable games because in this tournament, I finally  crossed 2000 and my opponent was 2100. Notice how I got my Knight on c4 by  Nb1!!and then sacrificed a pawn by Na5!! so I could promote my pawn easier.  Then I nicely converted my advantage, and I won the game with nice technique.}  1-0   

   [Event "Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2015.08.03"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Aristo Liu"]  [Black "Alexander Qi"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "B01"]  [Annotator "Aristo Liu"]  [PlyCount "79"]  [EventDate "2015.??.??"]   {Greetings to all CCLers! This is my game played at the Barber tournament  against Alexander Qi (Utah). It was voted the "best game" for the Barber  tournament. Enjoy!} 1. e4 d5 {This is the Center Counter, also known as the  Scandinavian Defense. This opening leads to many positional lines. How would  this get voted the best game? Well, I'm not spoiling anything.} 2. exd5 Qxd5 3.  Nc3 Qa5 4. d4 c6 5. Nf3 Nf6 6. Bd3 Bg4 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Bf4 e6 9. Re1 Be7 10. h3  Bh5 11. Ne4 $6 {Not that bright of a move on my part.} ({Possibly better is  the unpinning} 11. Be2) 11... Nxe4 12. Bxe4 Nf6 13. Bd3 Qb6 {My opponent  catches me, apparently, hanging a pawn. Whether the pawns are actually hanging,  that is another matter.} 14. g4 Bg6 15. Ne5 Bxd3 ({The b2-pawn should not be  taken:} 15... Qxb2 $4 16. Rb1 Qxa2 (16... Qxd4 17. Bxg6 Qxf4 18. Bxf7+ Kf8 19.  Bxe6 {With material now equal, Black is best advised to resign.}) 17. Rxb7 {  Not even castling anymore!} Rc8 18. Nxc6 Rxc6 19. Bb5) 16. Qxd3 Rd8 {Once  again, Black avoids taking the pawn - still the correct decision.} 17. c3 Nd5  18. Bd2 {Played in case if Black suddenly decides to chop on b2 - now c3 is  defended and Qxb2 is again bad.} O-O 19. b4 {Stops the pawn thrust ... c5,  which could weaken the d-pawn, which the Black Rook is aiming at.} Qc7 20. a4 {  This move now stops ... b5, which creates an artificial support point on d5.}  a6 21. a5 {Now b5 will never be a problem.} Bf6 22. Nf3 Nf4 $2 {This can't be  good. Exchanging the great knight on d5 for the bad bishop is rarely a good  idea.} 23. Bxf4 Qxf4 24. Re4 Qh6 25. Kg2 Qg6 26. Qe2 Rd7 27. g5 $5 {At first  glance this looks nonsensical; the g-pawn is pinned! However, my opponent  played according to my plan.} h6 ({Of course not} 27... Bxg5 $4 {when} 28. Ne5  {picks up a full rook}) 28. h4 hxg5 29. hxg5 {And the h-file is opened;  perfect for an attack} Rdd8 30. Rg4 $1 (30. Rh1 $6 {wins immediate material,  but White can do better.} Bxg5 31. Rg4 Rd5 (31... f6 32. Qxe6+ Qf7 (32... Rf7  $4 33. Ne5) 33. Nxg5 fxg5 34. Qxf7+ Rxf7 35. Rxg5) 32. c4 Rf5 33. Ne5 Qf6 34.  Nd7) 30... Qf5 31. Rg3 {Not letting down the heat. Now the simple Rh1 followed  by Rgh3 would pick up the point. But will my opponent allow that? Of course  not!} Be7 32. Rh1 f6 33. g6 {Taking away f7. Now various common mating  patterns start to appear.} Bd6 {But this seems to solve Black's problems. He  chases the rook off the g-file, the pawn would be hanging, his king can go to  f7, he would be a pawn up, and ...} 34. Ng5 $3 {... and the world falls off  its axis! When a piece is hanging, who could resist to throw in two more?  Amazingly, all the variations work in favor for White!} Qxg6 {Probably the  best option; please explore the variations.} ({The obvious alternative.  However, who said hanging one piece was enough?} 34... fxg5 35. Rh8+ $3 {This  forces the Damiano's mate!} Kxh8 36. Qh5+ Kg8 37. Qh7#) ({Black meets a  similar end here.} 34... Bxg3 35. Rh8+ Kxh8 36. Qh5+ Kg8 37. Qh7#) (34... Qd5+  35. Kg1 Qxh1+ {This seems to be the obvious next alternative, getting rid of  the Damiano's mate inducing rook. But the problems aren't over.} 36. Kxh1 {  Which piece should you take? Don't worry, they both lose.} fxg5 (36... Bxg3 37.  Qxe6+ Kh8 38. Qh3+ Bh4 39. Qxh4+ Kg8 40. Qh7# {And it's Damiano's mate again!})  (36... Rfe8 37. Rh3 {Still leaving the knight hanging! And of course it still  can't be taken.} Rd7 {Making space on d8 for the King if it ever needs it.} (  37... fxg5 38. Qh5 {Instead, who would not have liked another "Damiano"-like  mate? Indeed, Rh8 does mate, but apparently slower.}) 38. Qh5 {This is enough  to easily win.}) 37. Qxe6+ Kh8 38. Rh3# {This is sufficient, but if White got  a bit "Damiano Crazy", he could play 38. Qh3+ Kg8 39. Qh7#.}) 35. Qxe6+ Rf7 36.  Qxf7+ $6 {Now I start to sidetrack. Far more convincing was the following  "computer tactic". (variation)} (36. Nxf7 Qxf7 37. Rxg7+ $3 Kxg7 38. Rh7+ $3  Kxh7 39. Qxf7+ Kh8 40. Qxf6+ Kh7 41. Qxd8 {This is even better than in the  game.}) 36... Qxf7 37. Rh8+ Kxh8 38. Nxf7+ Kg8 39. Nxd8 Bxg3 40. Kxg3 {Black  resigns. So positional openings don't always lead positional games after all!}  1-0   

   [Event "2015 World Open"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2015.07.05"]  [Round "9"]  [White "Wang, Ricky"]  [Black "Chan, James"]  [Result "1-0"]  [WhiteElo "1983"]  [BlackElo "2106"]  [PlyCount "133"]  [EventDate "2005.??.??"]   [Event "COLUMBUS"]  [Site ""]  [Date "2015.07.19"]  [Round "1"]  [White ", KIAN"]  [Black "LAI, JASEN"]  [Result "0-1"]  [PlyCount "87"]  [Section ""]  [Source "PlyCounter"]  [WhiteUSCF ""]  [BlackUSCF ""]  [WhiteElo ""]  [BlackElo ""]   1. d4 d5  2. c4 e6  3. Bf4 Bd6  4. Bg3 f5  5. e3 Nf6  6. Nc3 O-O  7. Nf3 Bxg3  8. hxg3 Nbd7  9. Bd3 c6  10. b4 Ne4  11. Qc1 Qe7  12. a3 a5  13. c5 e5  14. Ne2 Ng5  15. Nxg5 Qxg5  16. dxe5 Nxe5  17. Bc2 Qf6  18. Nd4 Re8  19. Kf1 Bd7  20. Qd2 Ra7  21. Rb1 Rea8  22. Ke2 Bc8  23. b5 Bd7  24. b6 Ra6  25. a4 Re8  26. Bd3 Raa8  27. Nb3 Ng4  28. Nxa5 d4  29. Qa2 Be6  30. Nc4 dxe3  31. f3 Nf2  32. Qc2 Nxh1  33. Rxh1 Bxc4  34. Bxc4 Kh8  35. Bd3 Rad8  36. g4 Qe5  37. Rh3 Rxd3  38. Kxd3 Rd8  39. Kc4 Rd4  40. Kb3 e2  41. f4 Qd5  42. Ka3 e1=Q  43. gxf5 Qa1  44. Qa2   

   [Event "2015 World Open"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2015.07.05"]  [Round "9"]  [White "Wang, Ricky"]  [Black "Chan, James"]  [Result "1-0"]  [WhiteElo "1983"]  [BlackElo "2106"]  [PlyCount "133"]  [EventDate "2005.??.??"]   1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 {I have a very bad record  against the Sicilian Najdorf overall but things turned out to be different in  this game} 6. f3 $5 {The main line here would be Be3 but f3 transposes to the  same English Attack by not allowing another variation that goes 6. Be3 Ng4} e6  {This move is a bit more sharp then e5} 7. Be3 b5 8. Qd2 Bb7 9. O-O-O Nbd7 10.  g4 Nb6 {A sideline in this opening that I completely forgot how to play} 11.  Bd3 Rc8 12. Kb1 Be7 13. h4 Nfd7 14. f4 {Beautiful pawns :)} Nc5 $6 {Nc4 was  better. I calculated that move and didn't see anything for me but it was  better then my other choices} 15. Nb3 O-O 16. h5 Nba4 17. Nxc5 {Nxa4 would  have killed him} (17. Nxa4 Nxa4 18. g5) 17... Nxc5 18. h6 g6 $8 (18... Bf6 19.  hxg7 Bxg7 20. Qh2 h6 21. f5 f6 22. fxe6 Nxe6 23. Bxh6 {And its over}) 19. f5 $6  b4 20. Ne2 Bxe4 $4 {He probably missed after Bxe4 Nxe4 Qd4 Nf6 g5!} 21. Bxe4  Nxe4 22. Qd4 Nf6 23. g5 e5 24. Qh4 Qc7 $2 {Just loses a piece} 25. gxf6 Bd8 (  25... Qxc2+ 26. Ka1 Bd8 27. fxg6 fxg6 28. Rxd6 Qxe2 29. f7+ $3 Kxf7 30. Qh3)  26. Rd2 d5 27. Qg4 {From here on I was in serious time pressure so you can  expect some bad moves from me} d4 28. Bg5 Qc6 29. Ng3 {Defends the rook} Bxf6  30. Bxf6 Qxf6 31. Rf1 Qc6 32. Qe4 Qb5 33. Qd3 Qd5 34. Ne4 {threatning Nf6+} Kh8  35. Ng5 Rc6 36. Qf3 Qc4 $2 {b3 was the best move here but it weakens your king  so it is kind of hard to find} 37. fxg6 Rxg6 {I forgot I couldn't take f7} 38.  Ne4 $2 f5 $1 39. Rg2 Rxh6 40. Nd2 {Advantage is dissappearing little by little}  Qf7 41. Qg3 Qe7 42. Qg5 Qxg5 43. Rxg5 {Now I have to play very accurate, any  mistake could lose the game} Rg6 44. Rgxf5 $2 Rxf5 45. Rxf5 e4 {Looks scary  but this move is actually not good} 46. c3 $2 Rg1+ (46... d3 $1 $17) 47. Rf1  Rxf1+ {You have to take} 48. Nxf1 e3 49. Ng3 d3 $4 {The losing move} (49...  bxc3 50. bxc3 dxc3 51. Kc2 h5 52. Kxc3 h4 53. Ne2 h3 54. Kd3 h2 55. Ng3 Kg7 56.  Kxe3 {And this is a draw}) 50. Kc1 bxc3 51. bxc3 Kg8 52. Nf5 {You can  calculate the rest...or just see it} e2 53. Kd2 h5 54. Nh4 Kf7 55. Nf3 Ke6 56.  Kxd3 Kd5 57. Kxe2 Ke4 58. c4 h4 59. Nxh4 Kd4 60. Kd2 Kxc4 61. Kc2 Kb4 62. Kb2  a5 63. a3+ Kc4 64. Nf5 a4 65. Kc2 Kb5 66. Kc3 Ka5 67. Nd4 1-0   

   [Event "Gem City"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2015.05.31"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Ulloa, Antonio"]  [Black "Kleban, Joe"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "B22"]  [WhiteElo "1751"]  [BlackElo "1630"]  [PlyCount "105"]  [EventDate "2015.??.??"]   1. e4 c5 2. c3 d5 3. exd5 Qxd5 4. d4 Nc6 5. Be3 $2 ({Main line is} 5. Nf3 {  this move isn' best as puts the bishop in a dubious place. I decided to carry  on as if he played Nf3}) 5... e5 $5 {sacs a pawn with real noticeable way of  getting it back in the near future} 6. dxc5 Nf6 {not good in view Na3 should  exchange immediately} 7. Nf3 (7. Na3 {is best}) 7... Qxd1+ 8. Kxd1 Bg4 9. Be2  O-O-O+ 10. Ke1 a5 11. Nbd2 Nd5 12. Nc4 Nxe3 13. Nxe3 Bh5 14. Nxe5 $2 {this  move is bad, it allows black to completely pin down white after what will be  shown.} Nxe5 15. Bxh5 Nd3+ 16. Kf1 g6 {Not good should carry on the attack. No  need for this if he takes then Rf8 and there's a free pawn} 17. Bf3 Bxc5 18.  Nd1 {in view of Nxf2 threats} Rhe8 19. Be2 Nf4 20. Bc4 Nd3 21. Bxd3 Rxd3 22. g3  Rd2 23. Kg2 a4 24. b4 Ba7 25. a3 Ree2 26. Rf1 {The only move} Kd7 {I honestly  didn't know what I was doing with the king. I was low on time and felt I  should get it involved. There's also not much you can do to screw this  position up.} 27. Kf3 Ke6 28. h3 Kd5 29. Ne3+ {The only shot at winning} Bxe3  30. fxe3 Kc4 31. Rfc1 Kd3 32. c4 $2 Rxe3+ 33. Kf4 Re4+ 34. Kf3 Rxc4 {black's  now cleary ahead.} 35. Re1 Rc7 36. Re3+ Kd4 37. Re4+ Kd5 38. b5 Rc3+ 39. Re3  Rdd3 40. Rd1 $2 {Now it's just all over. No more commentary needed} Kc4 41.  Rexd3 Rxd3+ 42. Rxd3 Kxd3 43. Kf4 Kc3 44. Ke3 Kb3 45. Kd3 Kxa3 46. Kc3 Ka2 47.  Kb4 a3 48. Kc5 Kb2 49. Kb6 a2 50. Kxb7 a1=Q 51. b6 Qh1+ 52. Ka7 Qa1+ 53. Kb7  0-1   

   [Event "2015 National High School Championships"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2015.04.12"]  [Round "7"]  [White "Srivastava, Vikram"]  [Black "Peng, David"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "B81"]  [WhiteElo "2080"]  [BlackElo "2320"]  [PlyCount "53"]   {Hey CCLers! My name is Vikram Srivastava, and I have been chosen for the  monthly spotlight. This is my game from the last round of the National High  School Chess Championship. Going into the game, I had 4.5/6. I was paired  against David Peng from Illinois - let's take a look.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4  cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e6 6. g4 {The Keres Attack against the Schevenigen  Defense, one of the most complicated lines in chess. I was aiming for a  complex position like this, because it gives him greater chances to blunder  tactically.} h6 7. Be3 {One of the lesser played variations, but White does  very well in practice from this position. More common are:} (7. h4) (7. g5)  7... a6 8. Bg2 {temporarily stopping 8... b5 while developing a piece.} Nbd7 {  [%cal Gd7e5,Ge5c4] going to c4 via e5, a square I had made weak by playing Bg2.  } ({Note b5 is a huge blunder because of Bg2} 8... b5 $4 9. e5 $18) 9. h3 {  [%cal Yh3g4] Prophylaxis against Ne5, which would simultaneously attack g4 and  have ideas of Nc4. Now one of those threats are removed.} (9. Qe2 {is another  move with a similar idea.} Ne5 10. h3 {transposing.}) 9... g5 $1 {[%csl Re5]  [%cal Yg5f4] This move looks weird, but allows him an unchallenged knight on  e5, because f4 will simply be met by capturing, when I can never control e5  with a pawn.} 10. Qe2 {continuing with my prophylaxis against Ne5-c4, and also  preparing to castle queenside.} (10. f4 {If I want to control e5 anyway,} gxf4  11. Bxf4 Ne5 $15 {and the strong knight gives Black a slight edge.}) 10... Ne5  11. O-O-O Qc7 {adding more support to the c4 square for a knight to land there.  } 12. Kb1 $1 {Useful Rule of Thumb: Always play Kb1! Although this rule is  said jokingly, it does have a grain of truth as I clear the c1 square for my  bishop and get off the same line as his queen.} b5 {Time to take stock.  White's opening experiment has somewhat backfired, and Black despite his  slight development disadvantage controls lots of key squares such as c4 and e5.  I thought I had to use my development advantage and open up the position.} (  12... Nc4 13. Bc1) 13. f4 $1 {Although I am giving him permanent control of e5,  opening up lines matters more because my king is safe, while his cannot castle  either way safely.} ({If I were to play a slower move such as} 13. f3 {  intending h4, busting open the kingside, then that would be met by:} b4 {and  now my knight doesn't have a happy square to go to.}) 13... gxf4 14. Bxf4 b4 {  Where does my knight go?} 15. Nd5 $5 {The move any Sicilian-killer would play  instantly. By sacrificing a piece, I gain pressure down the e-file and the  h1-a8 diagonal, and the e5-knight will be especially bothersome for him.} (15.  Na4 {saves the piece but the knight has no future here.}) 15... exd5 $1 {No  time to back down now, all other options are inferior, where I gain the  initiative without material deficit.} (15... Nxd5 $6 16. exd5 $16 {and White  has a huge advantage.}) 16. exd5 {Over the next few moves the battle revolves  around the knight on e5; I will throw everything I've got at it, while he will  protect it by all possible means.} Nfd7 ({Notice how he cannot allow the pawn  on d6 to capture back the knight, for example} 16... Bg7 17. Bxe5 dxe5 18. d6  $18) 17. Nc6 Bg7 18. g5 $5 {This move just drives the complication bar up to  overload, as I am temporarily letting go of attacking the knight in favor of  opening up more lines so that he can't castle kingside. Computers condemn  this move, but a human cannot possibly know what's going on here. Ergo, g5!} (  18. Rhe1 {is a much calmer move, and the battle continues, with Black having a  small pull.}) 18... hxg5 19. Bxg5 {eyeing weak squares on e7 and d8.} Bb7 {  Guarding d8 and developing his last piece. Unfortunately for him, castling  will never be played due to the blistering attacks I would start. This is the  long-term compensation of the Nd5 sacrifice.} 20. Rhg1 $5 {This move can be  useful at some points looking at g7 and dissuading kingside castling even more,  but the simple} (20. h4 {was better, with a clear plan (h4-h5-h6).}) 20... Bxc6  {eliminating my dangerous and annoying knight for his useless bishop, but this  makes my g2-bishop much more powerful.} 21. dxc6 Nf8 $1 {The better choice!  Going to e6, and possibly g6 to shield the g-file!} (21... Nc5 {doesn't give  Black the option to maneuver to g6.}) 22. Rd4 $4 {Believe it or not, this move  actually blows the game! Much better was the calmer} (22. Qf2 Ne6 23. Bd5 {  and the position is about equal.}) 22... Ne6 23. Rxb4 Nxg5 24. Rb7 {This was  the idea behind my 22nd move, but this should be easily rebuffed by his next  move.} Qc8 $2 {Still winning, but this allows unnecessary slight complications.  } (24... Qa5 {was much stronger}) 25. Qd2 {I'm down two pieces(!) yet still  fighting. Even though I am losing, there are some counterchances if he is not  careful.} Bf6 $6 {Defending his knight but exposing his bishop. He must play  very precisely after this.} (25... Ne6 26. Qxd6 Qd8 $17) 26. Qxd6 {with a  multitude of threats to his king and the pieces around it.} Ne6 $4 {One  careless move too many. The only move to keep a large advantage is:} (26...  Qd8 $1 $19) (26... Qe6 {maintained some winning chances as well.}) 27. c7 {Now  it's over. Next move Rb8 comes almost no matter what. His exposed king and  uncoordinated pieces are overrun my my small, but protected and coordinated  army. Overall I was very happy to win this game because he was the highest  rated player I had ever beaten, and I also played the tactical game of my life.  Happy chessing!} 1-0   

   [Event "2015 Queen City Classic "]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2015.03.21"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Srivastava, Vikram"]  [Black "Xie, Luke"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "B50"]  [WhiteElo "2082"]  [BlackElo "2192"]  [PlyCount "84"]   1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. c3 Nf6 4. Be2 g6 5. h3 Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. d3 Nc6 (7... c4  {This move seemed interesting to me because it would force his knight to d2 or  a3 instead of c3.}) 8. Nbd2 (8. Re1 {[%cal Re2f1,Rc8d7,Re7e5]} e5 9. Bf1 Re8)  8... Nd7 9. Re1 b5 10. Nf1 {[%cal Rc8g4]} b4 11. d4 bxc3 12. bxc3 e5 $6 {This  was not the best possible move but I liked the position we reached where we  were in a race to attack each other's wings.} (12... Qa5 {I also looked at  this move as a possibility. It gives pressure to the pawn on c3 and forcing  the bishop to defend it.} 13. Bd2 Rb8 14. Ne3 Ba6) 13. d5 Ne7 14. Ne3 Nb6 15.  a4 f5 16. a5 Nd7 17. Nd2 (17. Ng5 $1 {This was the correct way to go instead  of playing passively with Nd2. This move causes trouble to my kingside attack.}  Nf6 18. exf5 Nxf5 19. Bc4 Rb8 20. Re2 Ne7) 17... Nf6 18. Bd3 f4 $6 {Another  possibility was Rb8 to control the open file.} 19. Nec4 g5 20. a6 h5 21. Nf1 {  I thought that Na5 was stronger so he could get his attack going.} g4 22. h4  Ng6 23. g3 Ne8 24. Re2 Bf6 25. Nh2 Rf7 {At this point I thought I was winning  because I was going to sacrifice on h4.} 26. Rb2 Rg7 27. Na5 Bxh4 28. Nc6 Qf6  29. gxh4 Qxh4 {According to the computer many moves here (with best play) give  me perpetual.} 30. f3 {This was the key move that caused him to lose.} gxf3 31.  Nxf3 Qh3 32. Rg2 Bg4 33. Be2 Bxf3 34. Bxf3 Nh4 35. Rxg7+ Nxg7 36. Bh1 Qg3+ 37.  Kf1 Qh2 38. Bf3 Qh3+ 39. Kf2 Qg3+ 40. Ke2 Qxf3+ 41. Kd2 Qxe4 42. Qb3 Nf3+ {  With mate in two} 0-1   

   [Event "MOTCF"]  [Site "Dayton "]  [Date "2015.3.15"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Scott Ramer"]  [Black "Walker Griggs"]  [Result "0-1"]  [WhiteELO "2305"]  [BlackELO "2357"]   1. d4 {Scott and I have played many times, and it's always been close. So I  was looking forward to this game. } 1... Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. g3 {He  goes for the fianchetto variation. Almost all of the games Scott and I have  played that I can remember I've been White, and I've struggled somewhat in the  opening phase. I had no clue what he was going to play against my King's  Indian, and I feared some preparation.} 4... O-O 5. Bg2 d6 6. O-O Nbd7 {This  is the first move of the Gallagher system, my major tournament weapon against  the fianchetto. I've also dabbled with the Panno, which is probably more  correct, but this system has gotten me really good results against strong  players, despite its somewhat dubious theoretical reputation.} 7. Nc3 e5 8.  e4 exd4 9. Nxd4 Re8 10. h3! {A useful little move that is practically  sacrosanct in the fianchetto, allowing the bishop to come to e3 and generally  securing kingside space. I like to meet this pawn push with its double on the  opposite side of the board.} 10... a6!? {This is the point at which we really  enter the Gallagher. In the early days of the KID, players like Gligorich and  Bronstein would invariably play ...c6 and ...a5 and try to hold this  structure, hoping their dynamism would offset the weak d6 pawn. This worked  well up to a point, but in recent years White has been focusing on gaining  kingside space with a g4 and f4 plan that has always been hard for me to  counter, and Black's typical plan of ...a4 and ...Qa5 falls a little flat.  Instead, with ...a6, Black prepares the positionally shocking plan of ...Rb8,  ...c5! followed by ...b5, gaining queenside space and sacrificing the weak  d-pawn, usually in exchange for White's e-pawn.} 11. Be3!? {A natural move.  The official prescription against the Gallagher variation is 11.Re1 Rb8 12.  Rb1! which indeed guarantees White an advantage, as Calvin Blocker played  against me in Cleveland this year. The point, which I believe he found over  the board, is to get the rook off of the long diagonal and not block the e1  rook's protection of the e-pawn. I replied 12...Ne5 13.b3 c5 14.Nc2. Now  immediate queenside play would fail, e.g. 14...b5?! 15.f4 Ned7 16.Qxd6 nabs a  pawn for minimal compensation. I played 14...Be6 and went on to win a  hard-fought game, but White's position is a little better here, with more  space and the potential to attack Black's weak d6 pawn (although not  immediately). That said, 11.Be3!? is by no means a bad move, also basically  preventing Black's idea.} 11... Rb8 {Stepping off of the long diagonal and  preparing Black's queenside play.} 12. b3! {This is the move that makes this  variation work well. Gallagher in his book Play the King's Indian mentions  that it also "cast doubt" on Black's ideas. By protecting the c4 pawn, White  anticipates attacks by ...b5 and ...Ne5. The potential exposure on the long  diagonal is not relevant, as Black's bishop on g7 is just as valuable as the  rook on a1.} 12... c5 {Black plays his hand. By driving the knight from d4,  Black gains space in the center and queenside, allowing him to begin attacking  with ...b5. He is left with the horribly weak d-pawn that is the hallmark of  the KID. If I get this position in the future, I might try Gallagher's  reccomendation of 12...Qe7!? trying to play the same idea without sacrificing  the d-pawn.} 13. Nde2! {Leaving the knight available to go to f4 is stronger  than 13.Nc2? which leaves it with nowhere to go.} 13... b5?! {Black follows  through. This is the natural move and Black's general plan in this variation,  but here White gets a big edge, practically paralyzing Black with a series of  bold but accurate moves. Gallagher recommends the more circumspect 13...Qc7,  with good play following 14.a4 b6! in Ruck-Vajda, 2003. } 14. Qxd6! {White  seizes material and places his queen squarely in Black's camp. Exchanging on  b5 is far weaker, trading White's strong c-pawn for Black's weak a-pawn for no  discernible reason.} 14... b4 {This is the point of Black's play - he wins the  e-pawn.} 15. Na4! {Another great move from Scott! Putting the knight on the  rim is actually much stronger than centralizing it with 15.Nd5?, which Black  can just take, followed by kicking around White's queen. 15.Na4 targets c5 and  gets out of the queen's way.} 15... Nxe4 {Regaining material and completing  Black's mini-plan. Now Black's pieces look pretty active, don't they?} 16.  Bxe4! {A fascinating decision. Giving up a fianchettoed bishop like this is  rarely a good idea. The light squares on the kingside just get way too weak.  But here, again, Scott makes the right call. Eliminating the knight on e4  allows the queen to stay on d6, where it radiates power and paralyzes Black's  pieces. But despite being a good decision, this is a risky one, because if  White makes one mistake and allows Black's pieces to become active, his  kingside will look like Swiss cheese.} 16... Rxe4 17. Rad1! {Saving the rook  and threatening 18.Qxb8 due to the pin on the knight.} 17... Qe8 {Forced to  escape the pin, Black also supports a potential exchange sac with ...Rxe3. Now  White should crown his play with the powerful 18.Nf4! deploying his only  remaining inactive minor piece. After 18...Bf8 19.Qc7! The queen continues to  paralyze Black utterly, and as long as White doesn't mess up, Black is nearly  in zugzwang.} 18. Qd2?? {The curse of "playing it safe"! Having exchanged his  light-squared bishop, White can no longer play fearful moves. 18.Nf4! isn't a  hard move at all to find, but it's tough to be that fearless. I was playing so  quickly maybe Scott thought he had made a mistake. No less of a player than  Grischuk bailed out into a draw here by playing 17.Nxc5, which leads to  complications and eventually to a drawn endgame after 17...Rxe3! 18.Nxd7 Rxe2  19.Nxb8 Bxh3 20. Qd8 Bxf1 21.Kxf1 Re1+ 22.Kg2 Bf8. This move, though, is just  horrible, retreating the queen from it's active position and allowing Black to  activate his knight with an instant light-square attack.} 18... Ne5 {This move  is so obvious it deserves no annotation. Black threatens Nf3+ and Bxh3.} 19.  Qd5!? {An admirable try. White takes the pawn and c5 and challenges Black to  "come get me". Probably best is 19.Qd8, but that leads to a depressing ending  an exchange down after 19...Nf3+ 20.Kh1 Bxh3 21.Qxe8+ Rexe8.} 19... Bb7  {Another obvious and strong move. White's long diagonals are termite tunnels  into his position.} 20. Qxc5 Nf3+ {Setting up the discovered attack.} 21. Kg2  Nd4! {The only move I had to spend time on in this game. Black clears the long  diagonal and attacks the e2 knight. Other moves lead only to minimal  advantages.} 22. Nxd4 {Capitulation. White hopes desperately for 22...Re5+?,  winning White's queen but losing any trace of an advantage.} 22... Bxd4  {22...Rxd4+! is actually faster but both moves lead to decisive advantage.}  23. Rxd4 {Bxd4 amounts to the same thing.} 23... Rxd4+ 24. Kh2 Qe4 {The  dreaded battery rears its head and Black's domination of the light squares  bares fruit. White has no defense, as 25.f3 drops the bishop on e3.} 25. Rg1  Rd1 {A cute deflection, threatening ...Qh1+. A nice way to end the game and  the tournament! A very sad ending for Scott, though, who found all the right  moves over the board and got a big advantage before collapsing. } 0-1   

   [Event "Pawn Storm XXV"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2014.08.02"]  [Round "4"]  [White "Ramaswamy, Rahul"]  [Black "Baumgartner, Blake"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "B13"]  [WhiteElo "2032"]  [BlackElo "2115"]  [PlyCount "77"]  [EventDate "2014.??.??"]  [SourceDate "2015.01.11"]   {Hey CCLians! Just wanted to thank you for the opportunity to annotate this  game for the newsletter. Hope you enjoy the game! This game was another CCL  matchup between me and Blake, played in the last round of the August Pawn  Storm in Dayton. Going into this game I was 2-1, with a couple of wins against  lower rated players and a loss against Carl Boor. I needed a win here to be in  contention for any money.} 1. e4 c6 {Blake chose once again to respond with  the Caro-Kann. This was I believe the fourth time I have played him, each time  with the white side of the Caro-Kann variation.} 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. c4  Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 {Standard development in the Panov-Botvinnik.} 6. Bg5 dxc4 7.  Bxc4 {Certainly the sharpest response to dxc4. This line surprisingly allows  Black to win the d4 pawn and also trade queens. However, White develops  quickly and gets strong pressure along the d-file and against the Black king.  Computers evaluate this position as roughly equal, but as mere humans it is  very tough to defend as Black. Other responses to 6…dxc4 include d5 and Nf3.}  h6 {This is an interesting move, a little in-between move that usually comes a  few moves later on. I had the choice of playing Bxf6 and following up with d5  giving me a slight advantage or simply playing Bh4 and still sacrificing the  pawn. I chose the latter because not only did I need a win, but I had prepared  this line and felt quite comfortable playing it.} 8. Bh4 Qxd4 9. Qxd4 Nxd4 10.  O-O-O {This is the key move, as White creates immense pressure down the d-file.  The black knight cannot retreat from d4. For example, 10…Nc6 fails to 11.  Nb5!, and both 10…Ne6 and 10…Nf5 fail to 11. Bxf6 exf6 12. Bb5+! Ke7 and  either 13. Nd5+ or 13. Nf3.} e5 {The only move.} 11. f4 {Challenging the  defense of the black knight} Bg4 12. Nf3 {So far, the entire game has been  played according to theory. Black now has two interesting options: Nxf3 or  Bxf3. 12…Nxf3 leads to 13. Bb5+ Bd7 14. gxf3 and White will soon win the e5  pawn while maintaining pressure against the Black king. Blake chose the latter  option, which proceeded as follows.} Bxf3 13. gxf3 Rc8 {Essentially the only  move in this position.} 14. fxe5 {The only way to maintain the initiative} Rxc4  15. exf6 Ne6 {Defending threats along the e-file and on d8 square. And now the  purpose of the move h6 all the way back on move 7 is evident: to gain a tempo  on the white bishop on h4.} 16. Bf2 gxf6 17. Bxa7 {Although this move may  appear slightly greedy, it is important as it results in an opportunity for  White to create a passed pawn on the queenside.} Bb4 18. Rd3 Ke7 19. Kb1 Bxc3  20. Rxc3 Rxc3 21. bxc3 {And now an almost comical endgame arises as White has  four isolated pawns and Black has two isolated pawns along with double  isolated pawns! White’s chances lie in the fact that his 2 vs. 1 on the  queenside is slightly stronger than Black’s 3 vs. 2 on the kingside, and  Black’s chances lie in the present lack of coordination between the White  pieces.} Rd8 22. Rf1 Rd2 23. Rf2 Rd5 {A slight mistake. Trading the rooks  would have yielded better chances for Black.} 24. Be3 h5 25. Kc2 Ng5 {I  didn’t really understand the purpose of this move as it appears to simply  lose a tempo. Perhaps more aggressive is 25…Ra5.} 26. h4 Ne6 27. Kb3 {I  continue with my simple plan of putting my King on c4 and transferring my rook  to the b-file.} Rf5 28. Kc4 Nf4 {A mistake allowing me to immediately attack  the b7 pawn.} 29. Rb2 Ng6 30. Rxb7+ Kd8 31. a4 {Of course the f7 pawn is  immune as after 31. Rxf7? Black has 31…Ne5+} Rxf3 32. Bb6+ {This is the key  move securing the a-pawn’s path to queening.} Kc8 33. Rc7+ Kb8 34. a5 Ne5+  35. Kb5 Rf5 36. a6 {Black has no legitimate discovered check threats.} Nd7+ 37.  Kc6 Nxb6 38. a7+ {A cute in-between move that quickly ends the game.} Ka8 39.  Kxb6 {And Black has no defense to impending mate on c8. The win here put me  in a tie for second place, winning me $50.} 1-0   

   [Event "Ohio Chess Congress 2012"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2012.09.01"]  [Round "1"]  [White "RUTHERFORD, DAVE ."]  [Black "CAO, STANLEY."]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "B23"]  [WhiteElo "1799"]  [BlackElo "1618"]  [PlyCount "90"]  [EventDate "2012.??.??"]   1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. f4 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Bb5 Nd4 6. O-O Nxb5 7. Nxb5 a6 {  This may not be the best move, but it was what I chose.} ({Another option is:}  7... d5 8. e5 a6 9. Nc3 Bg4 10. d4 cxd4 11. Qxd4 Bxf3 12. Rxf3 e6 13. Qb4 b5  14. a4 Bf8 15. Qb3 b4 16. Ne2 $11) 8. Nc3 d6 9. d3 e6 10. Qe1 Ne7 11. Qh4 Nc6  12. Qxd8+ $6 {This move completely destroys all opportunities for future  attacks. With the queens off, pressure over the black king is not easily  obtained.} Nxd8 $6 {This was a mistake on my part. I must've not seen that the  king is safe in the center. The center cannot be blasted open immediately, so  Kxd8 is a much better move.} (12... Kxd8 13. e5 dxe5 (13... d5 $6 14. Na4 Nd4  15. Nxd4 cxd4 $14) 14. fxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxf7 Ke8 {Although the  white rook may look dangerous, it is driven away with the king and cannot  cause any damage.} 17. Rf1 Rf8 $11) 13. Be3 Nc6 {I have to give on tempo as  the price of my idiotic move.} 14. Nh4 Nd4 15. Rf2 {Quite a passive way of  playing for white.} (15. Bxd4 Bxd4+ 16. Kh1 b5 17. Nf3 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Bb7 {And  I'd rather be black in this position.}) 15... O-O 16. Nd1 {Again, this is very  passive for white. I can understand why white did this, to push c3 and my  knight away, but doesn't Na4 achieve the same thing?} b5 17. c3 Nc6 18. Bd2 d5  {Black slowly consolidates his center control and restricts the movement of  the white pieces.} 19. exd5 exd5 20. Rc1 Bf6 21. Nf3 Bf5 22. Ne3 Bxd3 23. Nxd5  Bg7 24. Ne1 Bc4 $6 {Nb6 didn't occur to me at this time, but when he played it,  all my advantages of pawn structure were utterly destroyed.} 25. Nb6 Rad8 26.  Nxc4 bxc4 {I have to deal with doubled pawns now. However, he has to take some  time to get his pieces out of the way before he can apply major pressure on my  doubled pawns.} 27. Be3 Rd5 28. Nf3 Rb8 29. Kf1 Ne7 30. g4 f6 31. Ke1 Rd3 {I  decided to gamble everything. To defend and slowly die was not an option, nor  a good way to die. If I am going to die regardless, let me die bravely.} 32.  Bxc5 Nd5 33. Ng1 $2 {My pieces are coming to his front doorstep and all white  thinks about is his knight?} Bh6 $17 {One of his pawns has to fall, the b2  pawn, orf the f4 pawn.} 34. Ne2 Rxb2 35. a3 Rdd2 36. Rd1 $4 {This gives me his  coffin, all I need is a body now...} Rxe2+ 37. Rxe2 Rxe2+ 38. Kxe2 Nxc3+ 39.  Ke1 Nxd1 40. Kxd1 Bxf4 41. Bd4 Kf7 42. h3 Be5 43. Be3 Ke6 44. Bd2 Kd5 45. Kc2  Ke4 {He resigned here. For the people that took the time to see this game,  just remember to be brave when in times of trouble. Make sure that sacrifices  are carried out with caution. In my case, that doubled pawn on c5 is worth  nothing, so why waste my rook to defend it? Taking a pawn also takes a tempo.  Thus, I gain 2 moves to improve my pieces and finish him off.} 0-1   

   [Event "ICC"]   [Site "Internet Chess Club"]  [Date "2014.12.12"]  [Round "?"]  [White "iceface"]  [Black "spiked"]  [Result "*"]  [ECO "C50"]  [PlyCount "31"]  [EventDate "2014.??.??"]  [TimeControl "1800"]   {I'd like to add a bonus game for this week. This game is the quickest game of  my life. I played this a long time ago and would like to introduce a new idea  to those that play e4, and recieve a reply of e5.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4  Bc5 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. d3 h6 6. O-O a6 (6... d6 7. Be3 Bb6 {If you ever meet this,  just retreat the bishop and let him take. When he does,} 8. Bxb6 {Simply take  with the a-pawn and enjoy the newly formed a-file for your rook.} axb6 $15) 7.  a3 d6 8. Be3 {The point of this move is to bait black into taking on e3. Most  people do this for the sake of doubling your pawns.} Bxe3 (8... Bb6 {But, in  this case, black's pawn is on a6 and you can no longer take back the bishop  with the a-pawn. You are forced to take back with the c-pawn and play with bad  pawn structure.} 9. Bxb6 cxb6 $14) 9. fxe3 {However, these pawns do not prove  to be a weakness, but they open the f-file for your rook and create  opportunities to attack.} Bg4 10. h3 Bh5 11. Qe1 O-O 12. Qg3 Re8 13. Nh4 Qd7  14. Nf5 Bg6 $4 {One can enjoy the useless defense of the black pieces. It's  surprising how devastating 3 pieces can be against a fully armed castle.} 15.  Qxg6 d5 16. Qxg7# {As you can see, this attack is simple, but it really packs  a punch.} *   

   [Event "2013 Championship of Ireland"]   [Site "?"]  [Date "2013.07.13"]  [Round "?"]  [White "Hughes, John"]  [Black "Fitzsimons, David"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "C54"]  [PlyCount "70"]  [SourceDate "2013.07.17"]   1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. O-O d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8.  Re1 Bg4 9. Nbd2 a6 10. h3 Bh5 11. Ne4 Ba7 12. Ng3 Bg6 13. Nxe5 Bxf2+ 14. Kxf2  Nxe5 15. Rxe5 Qf6+ 16. Qf3 Qxe5 17. Qxd5 Qf6+ 18. Qf3 Qxf3+ 19. Kxf3 b5 20. Bb3  Bxd3 21. Be3 Rfe8 22. Bd4 Rad8 23. h4 h6 24. Rd1 Bg6 25. h5 Bh7 26. Rf1 Rd7 27.  Kg4 Be4 28. Rf4 Bxg2 29. Kh4 Kh8 30. Nf5 Re4 31. Bxg7+ Kh7 32. Bxh6 Re2 33. Bf8  Rxb2 34. Ne7 f6 35. Rxf6 Rd3 1-0   

   [Event "2012 World Youth Championship U08"]   [Site "Maribor"]  [Date "2012.11.10"]  [Round "3.14"]  [White "Karacsonyi, Gellert"]  [Black "Shen, Christopher"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "B32"]  [WhiteElo "1517"]  [PlyCount "100"]  [EventDate "2012.11.??"]  [EventType "swiss"]  [EventRounds "11"]  [EventCountry "SLO"]  [SourceDate "2000.03.01"]   1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nb3 Nf6 6. Bd3 d5 7. exd5 Qxd5 8.  O-O Be7 9. Nc3 Qd8 10. Re1 O-O 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 Be6 13. Bb5 Qc7 14. Qe2 Nd4  15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Bxe7 Qxe7 18. Qxe4 Qc5 19. Bd3 g6 20. Qf4 Kg7  21. Qg3 Qg5 22. Qxg5 hxg5 23. Be4 Rac8 24. Rad1 Rfd8 25. Re2 b6 26. Red2 f5 27.  Bd3 Rc6 28. Bb5 Rcd6 29. c3 Bxa2 30. c4 d3 31. Ra1 Bb3 32. Rxa7+ Kf6 33. Ra3  Bc2 34. Ra1 Rd4 35. f3 Bb3 36. Rc1 Ke5 37. Re1+ Kd6 38. Kf2 Kc5 39. Rc1 Bxc4  40. Ba6 Ra8 41. Bb7 Ra7 42. Bc8 Kb4 43. g4 f4 44. Re1 Rd8 45. Be6 Re8 46. Bxc4  Rxe1 47. Kxe1 Kxc4 48. Rd1 Ra2 49. Rc1+ Kd4 50. Rb1 Ke3 0-1   

  [Event "2012 World Youth Championship U-12"]  [Site "?"]  [Date "2012.11.18"]  [Round "11"]  [White "Feng, Maggie"]  [Black "Mayrhuber, Nikola"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "C02"]  [WhiteElo "1746"]  [BlackElo "1668"]  [Annotator "Feng,Maggie"]  [PlyCount "95"]   1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 {This is what I always play against the French Defence.  The advanced variation.} c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Qb6 6. a3 Nh6 ({The last time  Nikola faced the advanced french she played} 6... a5 {Against this I would play  } 7. Bd3 {Play could continue} Bd7 8. Bc2 Nge7 9. O-O Nf5 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. a4  $11) 7. b4 cxd4 (7... cxb4 $6 {is bad because it removes an attacker from d4  and after} 8. axb4 {my d4 pawn is defended securly by my c3 pawn.}) 8. cxd4 (8.  Bxh6 {I could take on h6 first, but I don't like to give up my bishop. Play  could continue} gxh6 9. cxd4 Bg7 10. Nc3 f6 11. exf6 Bxf6 12. Ne2 a5 {and I am  being attacked.}) 8... Nf5 9. Be3 Bd7 10. Bd3 Nxe3 ({Not} 10... Nfxd4 $4 {or  Ncxd4??} 11. Nxd4 Nxd4 12. O-O h5 13. Bc2 $18) 11. fxe3 Rc8 12. O-O Be7 13.  Nbd2 {My plan is to bring my knight to c5 via b3.} Nb8 {I think black's idea  is to trade light square bishops.} 14. Qe2 Rc3 {Black changes plans.} 15. Rfc1  Qc7 16. Nb3 O-O 17. Nc5 {I finished my plan.} Rxc1+ 18. Rxc1 b6 19. Nb3 Qb7 20.  Rf1 {I don't want rook trades and I want to attack.} {If I continued with my  plan then} Qc7 21. Rc1 {I didn't want the queen to infiltrate on the c file} ({  If I continued with my plan then} 21. Nfd2 Qc3 22. Rc1 Qb2 23. Qh5 g6 24. Qe2  Ba4 $15) 21... Qb7 22. Nfd2 g6 {weakening her position for nothing} 23. e4 {  This may not be the best move but I want my knights to the dark squares} Bc6  24. b5 dxe4 (24... Bd7 25. a4 {knight is limited}) 25. bxc6 exd3 26. Qf3 Qc7  27. Ne4 {sacking a pawn for active play} Bxa3 28. Nf6+ Kg7 29. Rf1 Be7 $4 {a  key mistake. now white is winning.} (29... h6 $142 30. Nh5+ gxh5 31. Qg3+ Kh7  32. Qxd3+ f5 33. exf6+ Kh8 34. Qg6 $13) 30. Ne8+ $1 Rxe8 31. Qxf7+ Kh6 32. Qxe8  $18 Qd8 33. Qxd8 Bxd8 34. c7 Bxc7 35. Rf7 Na6 36. Kf2 Bb8 37. Rb7 Kg5 38. Rxh7  Kf4 39. Nd2 Nb4 40. Rb7 Nc6 41. Rf7+ Kg5 42. Ke3 Nb4 43. Ne4+ Kh6 44. Rb7 Nc6  45. Kxd3 Nb4+ 46. Ke3 Nc6 47. Nf6 Nxe5 $4 {Black's lost anyway.} 48. dxe5 1-0  

  [Event "2012 World Youth U-10"]  [Site "Dublin"]  [Date "2012.11.18"]  [Round "11"]  [White "Nusa, Hercog"]  [Black "Meghana, Bhanuprasad"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "D15"]  [WhiteElo "1627"]  [Annotator "Bhanu,Meghana"]  [PlyCount "94"]  [TimeControl "900+10"]   {545MB, Fritz10.ctg} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e3 b5 6. a4 b4  7. Na2 e6 8. Bxc4 Be7 9. O-O O-O 10. Qe2 Nbd7 11. Bd2 a5 12. Rac1 Bb7 13. Rfe1  Qb6 14. h3 Rac8 15. Bd3 Rfd8 16. e4 c5 17. e5 Nd5 18. Be3 Rc7 19. Bc4 Rdc8 20.  b3 Nxe3 21. fxe3 Bd5 22. Red1 Qa7 23. e4 Bxc4 24. Rxc4 cxd4 25. Nxd4 Nxe5 26.  Rxc7 Rxc7 27. Kh1 Rc5 28. Qd2 h6 29. Nb5 Qb7 30. Qe2 Ng6 31. Qf3 Re5 32. Rf1 f6  33. Re1 Kh7 34. Nc1 f5 35. Qe2 Rxe4 36. Qd2 Rxe1+ 37. Qxe1 Nf4 38. Qf2 Qe4 39.  Kh2 Nd3 40. Nxd3 Qxd3 41. Qd4 Qxb3 42. Nc7 Bf6 43. Qc5 Qc3 44. Na6 Be5+ 45. Kh1  Qe1+ 46. Qg1 Qxg1+ 47. Kxg1 b3 0-1