We met yesterday over lunch to discuss the Metro High School Chess Club. We will be meeting for practices twice a week, after school on Wednesday and Saturday mornings 10:30-12 at the Chess Club in the Central West End.
I mentioned in the meeting that there are generally three activities that have been shown to improve your game.
1. Lots of tactics practice
2. Going over Grandmaster Games
3. Analyzing your own games
I asked that everyone bring in a game of their own that they've analyzed. Some of you may have not analyzed your own games before. There are many ways to do this, but I'm going to include an analysis I did recently on one of my own online games. I am white playing as "Negoba" in this relatively fast game (g/15). Note: I do not expect you to put this many notes in your game. However, the more work you put into analyzing, the more you learn.
[Event "Live Chess"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2014.09.23"]
[White "Negoba"]
[Black "fractalfreak"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "1388"]
[BlackElo "1347"]
[TimeControl "15|10"]
[Termination "Negoba won by resignation"]
1.c4 e5
This is the English Opening, Reversed Sicilian Variation. The English is a less common opening that allows me to often have more familiarity with the position than my opponent. The e5 response is the most common one I see at my level of play.
2.Nc3 c6
The c6 move usually has two functions. First is to block the long diagonal as most people fiancetto the white squared bishop on the kingside in the English. The other is to prepare d5 to break up the center.
3.d4 exd4
d4 is a move I’ve read about in response to c6 in this opening, with the idea of grabbing the center. Since c6 is blocked, after the trade, black can’t knock the queen away with Nc6.
4.Qxd4 b6
I assumed that this move was to prepare c5 to kick the queen out of the center.
5.Nf3 Nf6
Normal development
6.Bg5 Be7
Bg5 was an attempt to be a little more aggressive and active, but the move is easily defended.
7.e4 c5
White grabs a little more center, with a thought to e5 attacking the “pinned” piece. This is a misjudgment on my part, as the knight isn’t really pinned anymore. Black pushed the queen and opens the long diagonal but allows holes for white’s knights.
8.Qd2 d6
Black now has a classic positional weakness. A “hole” on d5 and a backward pawn on d6. White gets so excited about this that he misses a tactic that would have won a rook.
9.Bxf6 Bxf6
This trade allows white to use the d5 square.
10.Nd5?? O-O
Having a knight in an advanced outpost (a square that cannot be attacked by a pawn, with protection by your own pawn) is a great goal. However, Qd5 wins at least the a8 rook. Balancing tactical and positional ideas at the same time is one of the complexities of chess!
11.Be2 Nc6
12.Rd1 Re8
Some normal development. White is looking at the weak d6 pawn. In fact, trading on f6 again would win the pawn, but first the hanging e4 pawn must be protected.
13.Bd3 Bf5
Attempting to overload white’s weak pawn. The pin on the e-file makes life tough for white. Should have castled on move 12 and this wouldn’t be a problem.
14.Qc2 Bg4
White defends the e4 pawn again by x-ray. Qf4 would have done the same thing and attacked the bishop at the same time. Moves that do two or more things at once are always superior! Bg4 now threatens to trade on f3, destroying the castled position.
15.Be2
So the bishop goes right back where it was to defend this threat. (14. ...Qf4 would have aleady defended against it.) Still one attacked and one defender on e4. Pin still really annoying. Computer says black is winning by about half a pawn (-0.6)
15. ...Nd4??
The first blunder by black in this game (missing the free rook was also a true blunder by white earlier). This move probably felt good, it places a knight in an outpost square and adds an attacker on f3. But it is a tactical counting error
16. Nxd4 cxd4
17. Bxg4
Nxd4 leaves the bishop on g4 “en prise” or basically able to be gobbled for free. Either black takes back and then loses the bishop, or if the bishop trades on e2, white takes back with the knight (sometimes called the “boomerang” tactic). Either way, black is now down a minor (3 point) piece.
17. ...Be5
Black in turn takes a more active square which eyes the h2 pawn.
18.O-O Qh4
And white castles right into the attack. h2 (or h7 for black) are often the “soft spots” in the castled position and a perfect place for an attack. White had been wanting to castle so badly a few moves ago, that he didn't look at the consequences this move.
19.Bh3
Clearly I didn’t see the attack coming, and spent a fair bit of time thinking about possible defenses. Bh3 works but h3 is probably better. Since black is down, he decides to get very aggressive and it works. He decides to ignore his king safety and pawn storm in the hopes of finishing off the attack. I don’t defend well and end up being forced to give back the material I’d won to avoid checkmate. But at least I deflect the checkmate attack.
19. ...g5
20. Qe2 h5
At this point I’m still ok, with the computer evaluating the position at +6.0. I spent some time trying to figure out how to save my bishop from f4, prevent checkmate. I made a common mental error of playing a move that I’d already eliminated during my calculations. f4 by white and the attack is over.
21.g4?? Qxh3
Doh! ...and Chomp! Computer now scores at +0.8. Chess is a game of mistakes!
22.f4 gxf4
Not a great continuation
23.Qg2 Qxg2+
I’m still scared of the attack, and basically force a queen trade to end it. In 3 moves I’ve went from a completely winning position to a slightly worse one.
24.Kxg2 Rac8
Takes the half-open file, attacks an undefended piece.
25.b3 hxg4
26.Nxf4 Kg7
The kings become important factors in the endgame, but black is working in two places at once.
27.Rd3 Kh6
I’m looking to pick off the annoying g4 pawn. I tried to do this with the rook, which was too slow and allowed black to defend. Kg3 would have accomplished this faster. However, with two pawns ahead, black should be looking to trade down to an endgame. This likely should have been done by working on the queeside to destroy white’s pawn chain and then get a rook in from that side.
28.Rg3 Rg8
I spent significant time calculating and keep eliminating possible moves. h3 is playable, and continues my plan. The x-ray on my king is dangerous, and again I was a little worried about those possibilities.
29.Rf2 a5
Two positional errors in a row by both players, picking the wrong moves to execute the wrong plans. The computer scores this position at -0.7, so we’re still basically even.
30.Rd3 Kg5
I abandon my kingside ideas, and go back to center control. I’m also noticing the rooks in forking position which miraculously actually ends up happening.
31.Nd5 Kh4?
The knight goes back to the outpost square I’d coveted from very early in the game. This move threatens the fork and attacks the undefended f7 pawn at the same time. Black continues to try to force the action in the kingside corner.
32.Ne7 Bxh2??
The fork psychologically feels like a dagger, but the computer scores this position only as +1.0. At worst it loses an exchange and possible positional consideration. The Bxh2 feels like a desperation move.
33.Nxc8 g3?
It is very tempting to take the bishop immediately. But I didn’t like the idea of a revealed attack on the h-file, and I thought I’d have a chance to get it later. By taking the c8 rather than f8 rook, I assumed I’d be drawing off the rook from the action. Instead, he makes a few last ditch moves to try to keep forcing the action.
34.Rf4+ Kg5
35.Rf5+ Kg6??
36.Ne7+ 1-0
Some points to notice...
1. The momentum swung fairly widely. Both sides made major blunders at several phases of the game. This will be the case in virtually every game between players less than 1800. Some would say all games, even at the grandmaster level, are decided by errors. It’s just how subtle or devastating those errors might be.
2. Psychology played a huge part in this game. White felt some confidence building up positional strengths, while Black felt some confidence while attacking. Both players tended to unravel when they were in positions that were unfamiliar or uncomfortable. Even in bad positions, some moves are much better than others. It is your job to find the best continuations. Defending is especially difficult due to the emotion involved.
3. In the end, the d5 hole was indeed an extremely important aspect of the game. Discussing vague positional ideas like this can seem dry and not very practical when you’re getting started. But this game is an example of a centrally placed knight exerting influence at multiple stages of the game.
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