Back to Lansing

The Michigan Open returned to Lansing for the third time in four years. This time, we were on the west side of the city at the Holiday Inn – West. We again saw a slight up-tick in the number of players in the tournament. There were 157 players, with six re-entering for a second chance. Adding another three housemen put the total on the crosstables at 166. The tournament was directed by Paul Kane and assisted by Bradley Rogers.

As always, coverage of the Reserve and Booster section will appear in the next issue. Now that we don’t tiebreak for first place, a couple of young players, Gary Pratt and John Gattinger, split the Reserve section championship. Another youngster, Anatoli Zaremba, took the clear championship in the Booster section.

The open section had 45 players, two less than last year, but several of the state’s strongest players came out to play. The three different schedules had nearly equal player totals. The 4-day had a solid 16 players. The 14-player 3-day was the smallest group. Totaling 17 players, including the two re-entries, the 2-day was actually the largest group for the first time since three schedules were installed. On to the tournament:

4-Day Schedule Rounds 1-2

The 4-day was led by master Thomas Ward at 2229. This group had an average rating of 1960. Black’s slow opening play haunts him throughout the game:

Tom Ward (2229)
Attila Lehotzky (1977)
Round 1
French: Advance (Paulsen), C02

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 e6?

Voluntarily locking in the lightsquare bishop cannot be right. Black now inherits the positional defects of the French Defense without the rapid counterplay, since he will be a move behind with ...c5. The normal moves are 3...Bf5 or, more daringly, 3...c5.

4.c3 c5 5.Nf3

Here we have it: White is a full and useful tempo up on 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3.

5...Nc6 6.Be2 cxd4 7.cxd4 Bb4+ 8.Nc3 a6 9.0–0 Nge7 10.a3 Ba5 11.Bd3 h6

Here 11...0–0 would be met by a devastating Greek Gift under very favorable circumstances: 12.Bxh7+ Kxh7 13.Ng5+ Kg6. In this position the standard ideas with Qd3 or Qg4 are not so forceful, but White brings down the house with 14.Ne2! when Black has no effective reply to the threat of 15.Nf4+ mating.

12.Ne2 0–0 13.Ng3 f5 14.exf6 Rxf6 15.Nh5 Rf7 16.Be3 Nf5 17.Rc1 Nxe3?!

Exchanges of minor pieces are sometimes difficult to judge. I dislike this one since in the symmetrical pawn structure that results. White's knight (pick either one) seems better than Black's bishop on c8.

18.fxe3 Ne7?

Nothing ambiguous about this: Black is giving up a key outpost square.

19.Ne5 Rxf1+ 20.Qxf1 Qe8 21.Qf3

A double-purpose move, defending the knight but also moving to a better square.

21...b5 22.Qg4!

Now White's pieces run all over Black's kingside.

22...Qf8 23.Ng6 1–0

Black has had enough. After 23...Nxg6 24.Qxg6 Qf7 25.Qh7+ Kf8 White mops up with either 26.Rf1 or 26.Bg6.

White takes advantage of a king left in the center:

Michael A. Smith (1889)
Ray Garrison (1863)
Round 2
Pirc: Czech, B07

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6

This defense, championed by Pribyl, seems to be on the rise in Michigan.

4.Nf3?!

Probably already a false step. White's main hope of advantage lies in the space-gaining 4.f4.

4...Bg4 5.Be2 e6

Black can now set up a French-like position with his lightsquare bishop outside the pawn chain. This does entail some loss of time, but Black's position is solid enough that he can absorb some heat if White tries to launch a direct attack. That being said, Black does have to play rather precisely over the next few moves.

6.0–0 d5 7.Bg5 h6

This looks like one liberty too many with the sacred principles of development. 7...Qb6 or 7...Be7 would be better moves.

8.Bxf6 Qxf6 9.Ne5 Bxe2 10.Qxe2

Warning: look out for the lineup of the enemy queen against your king! Black should take some precautions here, and he does -- just not sufficient precautions.

10...a6 11.exd5 cxd5

White to Move

12.Nxd5!

A real zinger.

12...exd5 13.Ng6+ Be7 14.Nxh8

Black's only hope now is to trap the knight.

14...Nc6 15.Qh5 Nxd4?

These adventures never turn out well when the other fellow is safely castled. 15...g6!? 16.Qxh6 0–0–0 17.Nxf7 Qxf7 favors White, but it is unbalanced enough to allow Black to play on. And at least his king has a modicum of shelter!

16.Qxd5 Nxc2 17.Nxf7?

A counter-slip. There was no need to extract the knight immediately. 17.Qxb7 Rd8 18.Rac1 Nd4 19.Rc8+- is clean and decisive.

17...Qxf7?

Black plays the automatic move. It was better to take the more valuable piece first: 17...Nxa1 18.Qxb7 Kxf7 19.Qxa8 Nc2 and though I still prefer White the outcome is now seriously in doubt.

18.Qxb7 1–0

Black queen finds things a little tight in the center:

Thomas Triplett (1837)
Rick Wilson (1945)
Round 2
Indian: East Indian (London), A48

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.d4 g6 3.Bf4 Bg7 4.e3 0–0 5.Be2 d6 6.h3

This ultra-solid approach against a King's Indian was used by Smyslov in the Zurich Candidates tournament in 1953.

6...b6 7.0–0 Bb7 8.c4 c5 9.Nc3 cxd4 10.exd4 d5 11.b3 Nc6 12.cxd5 Nxd5 13.Nxd5 Qxd5

Positionally, this is a desirable state of affairs for Black. Now he would like to blockade the d-pawn and swap off some minor pieces.

14.Bc4 Qe4

This is not a bad move in itself, but it narrows Black's margin of error. A glance shows that the queen does not have a clear line of retreat; one misstep, and she will be embarrassed by White's minor pieces. I would have preferred the apparently cowardly 14...Qd7 followed, if White allowed, by 15...e6 with a nice long siege of the d-pawn in prospect.

15.Be3 Rad8 16.Re1 Ne5 17.Be2 Rd7 18.Qc1 Rc8 19.Qa3 Nc6?

Black's queen has lived a charmed life long enough. Now she gets roughed up. 19...Nd3 looks reasonable.

20.Ng5!

Suddenly it appears that she has nowhere wholly safe to go.

20...Qd5?

Black may have been trying to avoid 20...Qf5!? 21.Bg4 Qd5 22.Bxd7. But then he could have gotten some counterplay with 22...Nxd4! thanks to the mate threat on g2: 23.f3 Qxd7 and there is still a game on. Instead, he walks into something far worse.

21.Bc4

In this line, the queen cannot stay on d5 so the latent pressure against g2 disappears.

21...Qf5 22.Bxf7+! Kh8 23.Be6! 1–0

No recovering from that one! Black is losing a whole rook.

3-Day Schedule Rounds 1-2

Master and 2002 champion Eric Fischvogt was the top in this group of fourteen. An average rating of 1882 placed this as the weakest of the three schedules. White tries to fight back despite giving up a piece early. But, he just can’t the right way to continue the comeback:

Gary Newton (1632)
Don Vandivier (1911)
Round 1
Bird, A02

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.f4

Gary has a great liking for the Bird and plays it at almost every opportunity.

1...c5 2.Nf3 d5 3.e3 a6

Black burns a tempo but prevents the stock idea of Bb5 and Bxc6 doubling the c-pawns.

4.b3 Nc6 5.Bb2 Nf6 6.Be2 Bf5 7.d3 d4!?

Double-edged. Black buries White's fianchettoed bishop, but meanwhile he gives White more space in the center.

8.e4 Bg4 9.Qd2 Bxf3 10.Bxf3 e5 11.Na3 b5 12.c3?

A tactical oversight.

12...dxc3 13.Bxc3 b4

Oops!

14.Bxe5 bxa3 15.Bc3 Nd4 16.Bxd4 Qxd4 17.Rc1 Rd8 18.e5 Ng8 19.Ke2?

In a difficult position, one must seize every chance. White should have tried to discoordinate Black's position with 19.Bc6+ Ke7 20.Be4 followed (if Black permits it) by 21.Rc4. Objectively it isn't good enough to make up for the missing piece (20...Qb4! should force a favorable trade or tie White up in return), but in practical play a game can sometimes be salvaged by tying the opponent up like this. There are two ways to increase an advantage in piece coordination -- increase your own, or decrease his!

19...Qd7 20.b4

With the transparent idea 20...cxb4 21.Bc6+-. But there is more to the move than this; White actually comes close to getting enough play despite his earlier errors.

20...Rc8 21.Rc4 Nh6

Amazingly, Black can get into real trouble after 21...cxb4 22.Rxc8+ Qxc8 23.Rc1!±.

22.bxc5 Nf5

22...Rxc5 23.Rb1!

23.Be4?

This is the point at which the game becomes irrecoverable. 23.Qc3 keeps the knight out of d4 and puts muscle behind the c-pawn. Black must now tread carefully since he is in danger of getting rolled by an avalanche of center pawns: 23...Nh4 24.d4 Nxf3 25.Qxf3 Rb8 26.Rd1 Be7 27.c6 Qf5 28.d5 and White is on top.

23...Nd4+ 24.Kf2 Bxc5

Ugh.

25.Qc3 Nb5+ 0–1

Double ugh.

3&4-Day Schedules Round 3

The merged schedules only have a combined four perfect scores. Another five players sit a half point behind. Black puts together a strong attack and White definitely does not find the right defense:

Jeff Aldrich (1900)
Eric Fischvogt (2254)
Dutch: Queen's Knight, A85

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.d4 f5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3

There is a school of thought that says White's first three moves can be played without looking at Black's moves, so long as Black doesn't bring pawns into contact in the center. With the Dutch, I'm not so sure about that. Black often gets good play by exchanging his darksquare bishop for the knight on c3 -- sometimes it doubles White's c-pawns, and in any event it gives Black better control of the e4 square. Perhaps 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 is better, waiting for Black to commit himself, avoiding the exchange on c3, and inhibiting ...b6 and ...Bb7.

3...Nf6 4.Nf3 b6

This “Classical Dutch” plan is coming back into vogue. Black's chief short-term goal is to grip the e4-square and plant a knight there. Over the next few moves, Black's play is very purposeful; nearly every move is directed to this goal.

5.e3 Bb7 6.Be2 Bb4 7.Qb3 a5 8.0–0 0–0 9.Rd1 Bxc3 10.Qxc3 Ne4

The conquest of e4 has been a complete success. White's moves have all been reasonable, but Black's position is very comfortable and relatively easy to play.

11.Qc2 d6 12.b3 Nd7 13.Ba3 Ndf6 14.c5

White is trying hard to make something happen on the queenside. The problem is that Black can ignore him. Meanwhile, White has relinquished control of the d5-square.

14...Ng4

Of course not 14...d5?? 15.c6! winning the exchange.

15.Rf1 Bd5

Black makes use of the hole. It is still not clear how Black will seize the initiative, but his forces are comfortably camped out in the center.

16.Rac1 Rc8 17.Ba6 Ng5

Very daring! Can this be sound? Much depends on the tactics around the g2-square.

White to Move

18.Qe2?

Since this fails spectacularly, it is worth considering some alternatives. The most obvious (and greedy) try is 18.Bxc8. But this gets smashed flat by 18...Nxf3+! 19.gxf3 Qh4! Now 20.fxg4 Qxg4# looks strong, so White has to try 20.Bxe6+. But it doesn't work: 20...Bxe6 21.fxg4 Qxg4+ 22.Kh1 Qf3+! 23.Kg1 Rf6 leaves White completely helpless, e.g. 24.Rfd1 Qh3! 25.f3 Rg6+ 26.Kh1 (26.Kf2 Qxh2+ 27.Ke1 Rg1#) 26...Qxf3+ 27.Qg2 Qxg2#. In light of these variations, it is clearly better for White to prevent the damage to his kingside pawns with 18.Nxg5 Qxg5 19.Bxc8 Rxc8. The g2-square is very sensitive, and Black threatens things like 20...Nxh2. But I think White can emerge intact with careful play: 20.h3! Nh2 (20...Bf3! Now White has a wide choice of losing moves, one of them really spectacular. 21.cxd6! a) 21.gxf3?? Nxe3+ 22.Kh2 Qg2#. b) 21.hxg4?? Qxg4 22.g3 Qh3 also gets White mated. c) 21.g3 Qh6 22.h4 (22.Qc4 d5-+) 22...g5!! 23.cxd6 gxh4! 24.d7 Rf8 25.Bxf8 h3!! 26.Bxh6 h2#. 21...Nh2 22.g3 Be4 23.Kxh2 Bxc2 24.Rxc2 c6 25.Rfc1 f4 26.gxf4 Qd5 and I would rather have White. The weakness at c6 ties Black down terribly, and with 27.Kg3, White can make it difficult for Black's queen to engineer any funny business on the kingside. Still, it's not entirely clear, and it is much more difficult to evaluate a position like this as the end point of a line of analysis begun nine moves earlier!) 21.f4! Qg3 22.Rf2 Nf3+ 23.Rxf3! Bxf3 24.cxb6 Bb7 25.Qe2 and White should certainly be happy with his position.

18...Nxf3+ 19.gxf3 Nxh2!

Necessary but effective.

20.e4

Now 20.Kxh2 just gets mated: 20...Qh4+ 21.Kg2 Qg5+ 22.Kh3 Rf6 and the rook swings over to h6.

20...Qg5+ 21.Kh1 Nxf3 22.exd5 Qh4+ 23.Kg2 Qg4+ 0–1

A classic pattern.

White puts together a nice little kingside attack:

Attila Lehotzky (1977)
Ray Garrison (1863)
Dutch, A80

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.d4 f5 2.Nf3 g6 3.c3 Bg7 4.Qb3 Nf6 5.Bg5

I am no expert on the Leningrad Dutch, but it seems to me that this is a novel and promising idea. The only other example I was able to find is Saskirian-Skytte, Politiken Cup 2003.

5...e6

In Saskirian-Skytte, Black preferred 5...c6 and 6...d5 to wall out the White queen. This has, of course, its own disadvantages -- most significantly the e5-square and the entombed bishop on c8. Ray tries something else.

6.Nbd2 h6 7.Bxf6 Qxf6 8.e4 d6 9.e5! dxe5 10.Nxe5 0–0 11.h4 c5! 12.Nef3 cxd4 13.Nxd4 Kh7 14.0–0–0 e5 15.N4f3 Nc6

Black has extricated himself well from a difficult situation and now owns a reasonable piece of central real estate. At this point, however, the game takes a sharp tactical turn.

16.Nc4 e4?!

This pushes the knight where it wants to go anyway.

17.Ng5+! Kh8 18.Rd6! Qe7 19.Rxg6

Black's position is balanced on a knife edge.

19...Ne5

He slips. 19...Qe8 20.Rd6 Qe7 isn't pretty, but it may be defensible in the short term.

20.Nxe5 Bxe5

Dreadful, but 20...Qxe5 allows 21.Nf7++-

21.Rxh6+ 1–0

Black's queen drops after 21...Kg7 22.Rh7+.

A surprising leader emerges, but it is still early:

3.0: Homa
2.5 Hahn, Kahn, Kvatadze

3&4-Day Schedules Round 4

1. Homa ½ Hahn
2. Kahn ½ Kvatadze

Another case where the king gets stuck in the center:

Mike Skidmore (1863)
Wei Li (1820)
Sicilian: Moscow (Nimzovich), B51

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+

Typical of Mike's play: he heads for something sound but not too theoretical.

3...Nc6 4.0–0 a6?

This is already a concession. White often captures on c6 voluntarily; why give him a free tempo?

5.Bxc6+ bxc6 6.c3 Bg4 7.h3 Bh5 8.Qa4!? Qc7 9.Nh2 e5 10.d4 cxd4 11.cxd4 exd4 12.Qxd4 Nf6 13.Bf4 Be7 14.e5 dxe5 15.Bxe5 Rd8?

This is a subtle tactical error. Subtle, because the damage it allows White to inflict is positional rather than material -- but the damage is real. 15...c5 16.Qe3 Qb6! would have prevented the coming damage to Black's pawns.

16.Qe3 Qd7 17.Bxf6 gxf6

Black has two bishops against two knights, a small theoretical plus. But every single Black pawn is isolated, and this is a significant disadvantage. How will the two balance out?

18.Re1 Qe6 19.Qc3 Qd5?

Black's weak pawns and uncastled king betray him now. He had to try 19...Qxe1+ 20.Qxe1 Rd1 21.Qxd1 Bxd1² although the ending should still favor White somewhat in view of Black's horrific pawns.

20.Qxf6 Kd7 21.Qxe7+ Kc8 22.Nc3 Qd2 23.Qc5 1–0

Hitting Black's bishop and the c-pawn. Time to call it a day.

Before we sum up the leaders, we will take a look at the results of the 2-day schedule.

2-Day Schedule Rounds 1-4

The schedule had the strongest group of players in the tournament with an average rating of 1992, especially skewed by the presence of the state’s two IMs, Ben Finegold and Andrei Florean. This is the first Michigan Open where both players have played. Black works over an isolated king:

Walt Smith (1927)
Ben Finegold (2614)
Sicilian: Rossolimo, B30

1.Nc3 c5 2.e4 Nc6 3.Bb5 e6 4.Nf3 Nge7 5.0–0 a6 6.Be2 d5 7.exd5 Nxd5 8.d3 Be7 9.Bd2 0–0 10.Re1 b6 11.a3 Bb7 12.Nxd5 Qxd5 13.c4 Qd7 14.Bc3 Rad8 15.Qc2 f6 16.Rab1 a5 17.Qb3 Qc7 18.Rbd1 e5 19.Nd2 Nd4 20.Bxd4 Rxd4 21.Nf1 f5 22.Ne3 a4 23.Qxa4 f4 24.Nc2 Rd6 25.f3 g5 26.Bf1 Rg6 27.h3 h5 28.d4 g4 29.fxg4 hxg4 30.dxe5 Bc6 31.Qb3 f3 32.Kh2 Qc8 33.g3 gxh3 34.Re3 Qg4 0-1, Time

White finds a shot:

Andrei Florean (2496)
Greg Bailey (1921)
Round 1
Indian: East Indian (Przepiorka), A49

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3

Andrei came a little late to patent this, but he has certainly made his preference for a fianchettoed bishop clear.

2...g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.0–0 d6 5.d4 0–0 6.b3 c5 7.Bb2 cxd4 8.Nxd4 a6

All of Black's moves are reasonable, and he may even be said almost to have equalized. But then, there are those 500+ rating points to consider...

9.c4 Qc7 10.Nc3 Nc6 11.Re1 Nxd4 12.Qxd4 Nd7??

As Capablanca once said to one of Emmanuel Lasker's opponents, “Are you making combinations with the doctor? Ha ha!” 12...Be6 would leave Black with a tolerably small disadvantage.

White to Move

13.Qxg7+ 1–0

Rack 'em up for another game. 13...Kxg7 14.Nd5+ and 15.Nxc7 nets a piece.

Black tries a little unorthodox opening and seems to be right up White’s alley:

Ben Finegold (2614)
Faris Gabbara (2050)
Réti: Symmetrical (Spassky), A05

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 b5 3.a4 b4 4.Bg2 Bb7 5.0–0 c5 6.d3 e6 7.e4 d6 8.Nbd2 Be7 9.Nc4 Nbd7 10.a5 Ba6 11.e5 dxe5 12.Nfxe5 Nxe5 13.Nxe5 Rc8 14.Nc6 Qd7 15.Nxe7 Qxe7 16.b3 0–0 17.Bb2 Rfd8 18.Qe2 Rc7 19.f4 Bb7 20.Bxb7 Rxb7 21.f5 exf5 22.Qxe7 Rxe7 23.Bxf6 gxf6 24.Rxf5 Re5 25.Raf1 Rd6 26.Rxf6 Rxf6 27.Rxf6 Re2 28.Rf2 Re1+ 29.Kg2 Ra1 30.Kf3 Rxa5 31.Ke4 Kf8 32.Kd5 Ke7 33.Rf4 Ra6 34.Re4+ Kd7 35.Re2 Ra5 36.g4 h6 37.h4 f6 38.Rf2 Ke7 39.Rf4 h5 40.gxh5 Kf7 41.Rc4 1–0

A positional struggle gets cuts off before we see the final result:

Manis Davidovich (2055)
Andrei Florean (2496)
Round 2
Sicilian: Alapin, B22

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 b6 2.d4 Bb7 3.Bd3 e6 4.Ne2 c5 5.c3 Nf6 6.f3

I remember playing like this against a queenside fianchetto once, and after the game I decided not to try it again. Despite the apparent symmetry, c3 and f3 are not equivalent moves; the latter makes one's kingside drafty and takes away a good square from the Queen's knight. Yes, that is not a misprint: White often plays Nb1–d2-f3 in such positions if he has the time.

6...d5 7.e5

A reasonable position, but one that gives Black a French -- with which Andrei is probably pleased.

7...Nfd7 8.0–0 Nc6 9.f4 g6 10.a3 cxd4 11.cxd4

Since Black's N/c6 is pretty obviously a better minor piece than White's N/e2, it would probably have been better to play 11.Nxd4, inviting 11...Nxd4 12.cxd4. Yes, I know; you're not supposed to trade minor pieces when you have more space than your opponent. But this is only a generalization, true on average more often than not because usually your minor pieces have greater freedom than your opponent's. In this particular position, that condition is violated by the respective knights. So, White should disregard the generalization and play by the deeper and more widely applicable principle that exchanges are comparisons.

11...Na5 12.b3 Qc8 13.Rf3 Ba6 14.Bc2 Qc6 15.Ra2

White might consider 15.Rc3 Qb7 16.b4 Nc4 17.Nd2 with a reasonable position.

15...Rc8 16.Nec3

With this move, White loses the opportunity to challenge Black's control of the c-file. Since it is the only open file on the board, this is quite a concession. 16.Rc3 Qb7 17.Rxc8+ Qxc8 18.Bd3 intending 19.Rc2 looks better.

16...Be7 17.Bb2 0–0 18.Ba1 b5 19.Nd2 b4 20.axb4 0–1

The remainder of the scoresheet did not make sense, but it was G/30.

White’s sacrifice allows Black to build up a kingside attack:

Lineas Baze (2001)
Tony Palmer (2070)
Round 2
Four Knights: Spanish, C48

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5 Bd6

You can't be serious! Putting the bishop on d6 flouts a well-established general rule about not blocking one's center pawns. Yet this is a known line that has some high-class backers including Pavasovic, Korneev, Malaniuk and Hector.

5.d3 a6

It is more common to prevent the pin with 5...h6. But Tony has a sharp idea in mind.

6.Bc4 Bc5

With one move lost on each side, we have come to a position that might have arisen from a Giuoco Piano. White's d3 is probably of more use than Black's ...a6, but the position is still known via the Giuoco move order and has been seen in recent high-level encounters like Short-Stevanova, Telford 2003.

7.0–0

One hesitates to criticize a developing move, but one of the cardinal rules of the Giuoco Piano is that one should not castle too early. Keep your eye on the kingside as the game unfolds. In hindsight, 7.Bg5 or 7.Be3 might have been better.

7...d6 8.h3 Na5 9.Bg5 Nxc4 10.dxc4 h6 11.Bh4?

This, however, is clearly a mistake. White is preparing a sacrifice that cannot work because his own king will come into the crossfire. 11.Bxf6 is reasonable and leads to a knights vs. bishops duel in which White is not significantly worse.

11...g5 12.Nxg5?

Sometimes a sacrifice like this works because Black cannot defend f6 fast enough to meet the threat of Nd5. This isn't one of those times.

12...hxg5 13.Bxg5 Rg8

Already momentum has shifted and Black is calling the shots.

14.h4 c6

This takes away d5 from White's knight. Now the only way to intensify the pressure is with Qf3, but Black can meet that by ...Rg6.

15.Kh1 Qe7 16.f4 Bg4

“Bullying.” Black uses his extra material, offering exchanges that White cannot accept. The upshot is that White has to duck and Black gains tempi.

17.Qe1 exf4

At first glance this looks like a mistake, opening the f-file voluntarily. But Black has calculated this all out very well.

18.Rxf4

Black to Move

18...Rxg5! 19.hxg5 Qe5!

Now the awful truth becomes clear. White's king is imprisoned and a check on the h-file would be fatal.

20.Qg3

What else? 20.Rxf6 Qxg5! is just devastating: 21.Qg3 0–0–0!-+ and White can only stop ...Rh8+ at ruinous material cost. 20.g3 creates a flight square for the White king at g2, but after 20...Qxg5 21.Kg2 0–0–0 the threats of ...Rh8 and ...Nh5 are painful.

20...Qxg5 21.Raf1 0–0–0!

The knight doesn't have to move yet: threats on the h-file trump anything else.

22.Qh2 Nh5!

Now the threat is 23...Ng3+ with a quick mate.

23.g3 Nxf4 24.gxf4 Qg7!

Renewing the threat of ...Rh8.

25.Kg2 Be2+ 0–1

Good enough to force resignation, but 25...Bh3+ forces mate in six: 26.Kh1 Bxf1 27.Ne2 Rh8 28.Ng3 Qd4 29.Qxh8+ Qxh8+ 30.Nh5 Qxh5#.

White fianchettoed and Black’s counterattack proves devastating:

Abijit Manohar (1797)
Jennifer Skidmore (1872)
Round 2
Philidor: Jaenisch, C41

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6

Jennifer has a narrow opening repertoire, but she knows it well. The Philidor is one of her workhorses and it scores well for her.

3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 exd4 5.Nxd4 Be7 6.g3

This is not bad, but it cannot be a critical test of Black's opening.

6...0–0 7.Bg2 Re8 8.0–0 Nbd7 9.Kh1

This, however, is fairly pointless and will get White into trouble later.

9...Nc5 10.b4 Ne6 11.Nf3 Bf8

This formation, with the Black king castled, a rook on e8, and the bishop tucked away demurely at f8, is worth remembering. The bishop will generally come out again when the time is right; meanwhile it is out of the way of the other pieces. In a moment, we will see what this can mean.

12.Bb2 c6

Preparing ...d5, but White provokes another and even more effective response.

13.b5 Nc5 14.Nd4 Ncxe4 15.Nxe4 Nxe4 16.bxc6 bxc6!

Jennifer does not fear the opening of the long diagonal since she has her eye on White's undefended bishop at b2.

17.Nxc6 Qb6!

White's pieces are more vulnerable than Black's!

18.Bxe4 Rxe4 19.Qd5 Bb7!

Now who owns that diagonal?

20.Bd4 Qxc6 0–1

Perfectly convincing, though for the record 20...Rxd4 is just as good. An instructive game for those inclined to fling pawns forward too rashly!

White puts up a good fight, but Black is able to hold everything together:

Kevin Czuhai (2200)
Ben Finegold (2614)
Sicilian: Richter, B62

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.Bg5 e6 7.Be2 Be7 8.0–0 0–0 9.Kh1 h6 10.Be3 a6 11.a4 Bd7 12.f4 Rc8 13.Nf3 Na5 14.e5 Ne8 15.Qe1 Nc4 16.Bd4 dxe5 17.Nxe5 Nxe5 18.Bxe5 Bc6 19.Bf3 Nf6 20.Qg3 Qb6 21.a5 Qc5 22.Bxc6 Qxc6 23.Rae1 Ne8 24.f5 f6 25.Bf4 e5 26.Bxh6 Bb4 27.Bd2 Rd8 28.Re2 Rf7 29.Qg6 Kf8 30.Rf3 Qc4 31.Ref2 Bxc3 32.bxc3 e4 33.Rf4 e3 34.Rxc4 exf2 35.Rf4 Rxd2 36.h3 Rd1+ 37.Kh2 f1Q 38.Rxf1 Rxf1 39.c4 0–1 about 10 moves later.

White keeps up constant pressure on the kingside:

Andrei Florean (2496)
Tony Palmer (2070)
King's Knight C44

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d3 Nf6 4.Be2 Bc5 5.0–0 d6 6.c3 a6 7.a4 Ba7 8.b4 Qe7 9.Na3 h6 10.Nc4 Be6 11.Ne3 Bxe3 12.Bxe3 0–0 13.Nd2 a5 14.b5 Nb8 15.c4 g5 16.d4 Bc8 17.Rc1 Nbd7 18.c5 dxc5 19.dxe5 Qxe5 20.f4 Qe7 21.fxg5 Nxe4 22.gxh6 Ndf6 23.Nxe4 Nxe4 24.Bd3 f5 25.Bxe4 Qxe4 26.Rxc5 Re8 27.Qh5 Qg4 1–0

White finds a shot:

Jennifer Skidmore (1872)
Lineas Baze (2001)
Sicilian: Closed (Zukertort), B23

1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bb5 e6 6.Bxc6 bxc6 7.0–0 d6 8.d3 Ne7 9.Qe1 0–0 10.Qh4 f6 11.Be3 Kh8 12.e5 Nd5 13.Bd2 Nxc3 14.Bxc3 dxe5 15.fxe5 f5 16.Ng5 h6

White to Move

17.Nf7+! Kg8 18.Nxd8 g5 19.Qc4 Rxd8 20.Rxf5 Rd5 21.Rf3 a5 22.Re1 Ba6 23.Qe4 Rad8 24.Qg6 c4 25.Qxe6+ Kh8 26.Qe7 cxd3 27.cxd3 Bxd3 28.e6 Rg8 29.Rf8 Bxc3 30.Rxg8+ Kxg8 31.Qf7+ Kh8 32.bxc3 Rf5 33.Qe8+ Kg7 34.Qd7+ Kh8 1–0

White misses a tactic:

Henry Thomas (1712)
Matthew Morabito (1751)
Round 3
Sicilian: Alapin (Smith-Morra), B22

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3

A Smith-Morra Gambit?

3...Nf6

Black declines. If you like the ...Nf6 lines of the Alapin, you need learn nothing else against the Smith-Morra. But Black does have to absorb some heat on the kingside in most of these lines.

4.e5 Nd5 5.cxd4 e6 6.Nf3 d6 7.Bb5+?!

This move doesn't fit in with White's plans. Pressure against h7 is one of White's key attacking ideas in this variation, so the bishop should be reserved for d3. Both 7.Bc4 Nb6 8.Bd3 and simply 7.a3 preparing 8.Bd3 are more popular alternatives.

7...Bd7 8.Bxd7+ Qxd7 9.0–0

In this sort of position, White's extra space is a mixed blessing. The pawn on e5 keeps a Black knight out of f6, but this is only significant if White can whip up some kingside pressure, particularly against h7, and he has just traded off one of the best pieces for assisting in that. On the down side, Black's knight at d5 is better posted than any White minor piece is likely to be. And White's pawn on e5 can become a target in an ending.

9...Nc6 10.Nc3 Nxc3 11.bxc3 dxe5 12.dxe5 Qc7

The weakness of e5 makes itself felt already. Black cannot win that pawn -- not directly, not now -- but he can tie down White's pieces by pressing on it. Meanwhile, White's pawn structure is clearly worse for the endgame, so Black methodically prepares to swap down.

13.Qe2 Be7 14.Rd1 0–0 15.Bf4 Rfd8 16.Rd3 Rxd3 17.Qxd3 Rd8 18.Qe2 Qa5 19.c4 Nd4 20.Nxd4 Rxd4 21.Be3 Re4

Here 21...Qxe5! picks off a free pawn.

22.f4??

A moment of tactical blindness shortens White's suffering. 22.Rb1 keeps some play in the position, though Black still has an easier game.

22...Rxe3! 0–1

The rook cannot be captured because of the pin at c5.

Greg Bailey (1921)
Kevin Czuhai (2200)
Round 4
Bird: From, A02

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.f4 e5

Severin From's gambit remains one of theory's problem children in the 21st century. Black's practical results in over the board play are excellent, but theory and high-level correspondence games tell a different tale.

2.fxe5

Greg makes a gutsy decision here. Some players would bail out into a King's Gambit with 2.e4.

2...d6 3.exd6 Bxd6

Eric Schiller has recommended Langheld's move 3...Nc6. It's worth a try if you've done a bit of home analysis and don't mind being a couple of pawns down for a while.

4.Nf3 Bg4

The wild-looking alternative 4...g5 was endorsed by Lasker, but it is highly committal and not to everyone's taste.

5.c3 Nc6 6.Qa4 Nf6 7.d3 0–0 8.Bg5 Qd7 9.Nbd2

I do not understand why Black permitted, and White refrained from, the exchange on f6. After 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.Nbd2 Black's bishops seem poor compensation for White's strong center and better pawn structure.

9...b5 10.Qc2

Another timid move. True, 10.Qxb5 does not win a pawn. But after 10...Rab8 11.Qa4 Rxb2 12.Bxf6 gxf6 13.Nc4 White's position looks more attractive than Black's.

10...Nd5 11.e4 Rfe8 12.Kf2

Playing over this game, I just didn't have any success guessing either player's moves. I'd vote for 12.0–0–0 here, not fearing the b-pawn.

12...Nf4 13.e5?

This attempt to play tactical tricks in the center gets White's misplaced king into trouble. Instead, 13.d4! looks very good, preparing to push e5 without a pawn sacrifice. In fact, I don't understand what Black has going for him in this position -- the pawn on b5 is hanging and Black's pieces do not seem to coordinate well.

13...Nxe5 14.Bxf4

This is the point, but after Black's next two moves White's miscalculation is revealed.

14...Nxf3 15.gxf3 Bxf4 16.fxg4

White has snatched a piece, but his king is very exposed and Black's pieces are active.

16...Qxg4

Possibly 16...Be3+ right away is a little more precise.

17.Ne4 f5 18.Ng3

At first it looks like White can wriggle out of the net with 18.Be2 Qh3 19.Ng3. But after 19...Be3+ 20.Ke1 f4 21.Ne4 f3! White is still in great difficulties, e.g. 22.Bxf3 (22.Bf1 Qh4+ 23.Kd1 Rxe4! 24.dxe4 Rd8+-+) 22...Qxf3 23.Rf1 Qh3 and all the extra material is gone while White's king is still stuck in the center and Black threatens 24...Rxe4 25.dxe4 Qh4+ when White is losing material.

18...Be3+ 19.Kg2 f4 20.Be2 Qg5 21.d4 Rf8 22.Raf1 Rae8 23.Qb3+ Kh8 24.Qxb5 Qg6 25.Qd3 0–1

Unfortunately, Finegold and Florean were matched in round four of this schedule. Neither player was willing to put the other to the test at G/30 as they played a six-move draw. Now, we can take a look at the overall leaders:

3.5 Finegold, Florean, Homa
3.0 Fischvogt, Czuhai, Hahn, Kahn, Davidovich, Kvatadze, Chehayeb, West

Now, on to the meat of the event.

Round 5

1. Florean 1 Homa
2. Davidovich 1 Fischvogt
3. Kvatadze 0 Czuhai
4. Hahn 1 West
5. Chehayeb ½ Kahn

Ben Finegold took a half-point bye here again this year. But, now that places him a half point behind Florean. He is going to need some help to take the title.

White just plays his way into an exchange:

Andrei Florean (2496)
Seth Homa (1959)
Sicilian, B50

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.b3 Nc6 4.Bb2 e5 5.Bc4 g6 6.0–0 Bg7 7.c3 h6 8.h3 Nge7 9.d4 0–0 10.dxc5 dxc5 11.Nbd2 Qc7 12.Qe2 b6 13.a3 Rd8 14.b4 cxb4 15.axb4 a5 16.b5 Nb8 17.Ba3 Bb7 18.Ba2 Nc8 19.Nc4 Nd7 20.Rfd1 Re8 21.Bd6 Nxd6 22.Nxd6 Re7 23.Nxb7 Qxb7 24.Bd5 Qb8 25.Bxa8 Qxa8 26.Rd6 Qb7 27.Nd2 Nc5 28.Nc4 Re6 29.Rxe6 Nxe6 30.Qd3 Nf4 31.Qd8+ 1–0

White wins a pawn in the middlegame and makes it stand up in the end:

Manis Davidovich (2055)
Eric Fischvogt (2254)
Two Knights: Anti-Lange, C56

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.0–0 Nxe4 6.Re1 d5 7.Bxd5 Qxd5 8.Nc3 Qh5 9.Nxe4 Be6 10.Bg5 h6 11.Bf6 Qg6 12.Nh4 Qh7 13.Qh5 Be7 14.Bxe7 Kxe7 15.Nc5 Nd8 16.Nf5+ Kf8 17.Nxd4 g6 18.Qf3 Kg8 19.Ndxe6 fxe6 20.Nxe6 Qf7 21.Qb3 Nxe6 22.Rxe6 Kg7 23.Rae1 Rhe8 24.Rxe8 Rxe8 25.Qxf7+ Kxf7 26.Rxe8 Kxe8 27.Kf1 Ke7 28.Ke2 Ke6 29.Ke3 Ke5 30.f4+ Kf5 31.h3 h5 32.g3 a6 33.Kf3 a5 34.g4+ hxg4+ 35.hxg4+ Kf6 36.Ke4 Ke6 37.Kd4 b6 38.f5+ gxf5 39.gxf5+ Kxf5 40.Kd5 a4 41.Kc6 Ke4 42.Kxc7 b5 43.Kc6 b4 44.Kc5 a3 45.b3 1–0

White breaks through on the kingside:

David Hahn (2138)
Tony West (1847)
English: Four Knights (Fianchetto), A29

1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Nf3 0–0 6.0–0 Re8 7.d3 Bxc3 8.bxc3 d6 9.e4 h6 10.Ne1 Bg4 11.f3 Be6 12.f4 Bg4 13.Nf3 exf4 14.gxf4 Qc8 15.Kh1 h5 16.Rg1 h4 17.Bf1 Ne7 18.Be2 h3 19.Bd2 Kf8 20.Qf1 Neg8 21.Qf2 Nh6 22.Raf1 Bd7 23.Qg3 Nfg4 24.f5 Ke7 25.Bxh6 Nxh6 26.Qxg7 Ng8 27.Ng5 Rf8 28.f6+ Ke8 29.Qxf8+ 1–0

No scoresheet was turned in from the Chehayeb-Kahn game.

White has the positional muscle in this game:

Frederick Kleist (2083)
Jennifer Skidmore (1872)
Old Semi-Slav: Marshall, D31

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c6 4.e4 Bb4!?

This is a very sharp system with a relatively small margin of the draw. It requires strong nerves and good preparation to play into it!

5.e5

Often White swaps with 5.cxd5 exd5 before pushing this pawn.

5...Ne7 6.a3 Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 dxc4?!

Here I think Black's opening preparation was faulty. Instead of accelerating White's development (the recapture on c4 doubles as a developing move), Black should highlight the fragility of the White center with 7...c5! White's captures in the center now are either worthless (8.cxd5 exd5 frees Black's game and leaves a nice target on d4) 7...c5 or silly (8.dxc5 Qa5 9.Qd4 Nbc6 and Black clobbers the weak White pawns everywhere).

8.Bxc4 Nd5

The knight is centralized here, but the c3-point is pretty easily defended and meanwhile Black is falling behind in development. Probably 8...c5 was still the best idea, though here it is nowhere nearly as strong as it would have been last move.

9.Qg4! g6 10.Ne2 Nd7 11.0–0 b5 12.Bd3 a6 13.Bg5 Qc7 14.Rfc1

We can already see c4 on the horizon. Moves like this, putting a rook opposite the enemy queen even with some pawns in the way, are often very strong. If you find this puzzling, imagine that White gets to play another move: after 15.c4, either Black captures (leaving a pitiful weakling at c6 on the open file) or he moves his knight. But after 15...N goes away 16.cxb5 axb5 we can see exactly what White has achieved by putting his rook on c1: 17.Bxb5 picks off a free pawn and once again that weakling on c6 will suffer horribly.

14...h6 15.Bd2 N7b6

Black tries to prevent c4, but it cannot be done.

16.Ng3 Bb7 17.Ne4!

White remorselessly probes at the weakened dark squares.

17...0–0–0 18.c4 bxc4 19.Bxc4 Nxc4 20.Rxc4

Black's position is a study in positional misery. Though material is equal, Black's castle wall has been severely damaged and the bishop on b7 is in some ways worse than useless: it positively interferes with the coordination of the defenses around the king.

20...Qb6 21.Nd6+ Rxd6 22.exd6 Kd7 23.Qf3 f5

Now the pawn at e6 is a natural target, but White chooses to infiltrate on the queenside instead.

24.Bb4 Qb5 25.Rac1 a5 26.Rc5 Qb6 27.Bxa5 Qb2 28.Qd3

Perhaps 28.Qd1 is slightly more accurate. White prepares 29.Rb1 without allowing ...Nf4.

28...Nf4 29.Qb1 Qxb1 30.Rxb1 Ba6?

Black has no good moves, but 30...Ba8 was a little more tenacious.

31.Rb6 Ne2+ 32.Kh1 Ra8 33.Rcxc6 Bc8 34.Rc7+ Kd8 35.Rb5

Missing a chance for a brilliant mate: 35.Rb8!! Rxb8 36.Re7+ Rb6 37.Bxb6#

35...Ke8 36.Re7+ Kf8 37.d7

37.Bb4!+- is immediately crushing since now d7 with threaten a discovered check on e8.

37...Ba6 38.Re8+ Rxe8 39.dxe8Q+ Kxe8 40.Rb6 Bc4 41.Rb4 Bd5

The dust has settled and White still has the exchange and a passed a-pawn.

42.Bc7 g5 43.h3 h5 44.a4 h4 45.a5 f4 46.f3 Kd7 47.Be5 Nc1 48.a6 Nd3 49.Rb8 Nf2+ 50.Kh2 Nd3 51.a7 1–0

Scott Thach (1628)
Attila Lehotzky (1977)
Caro-Kann: Classical, B18

Notes by Tim McGrew

Scott Thach launches a nice kingside attack.

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.Nf3!?

Normally White plays 6.h4, provoking ...h6, before bringing out this knight. The omission of h4 here leads to a curious double oversight.

6...h6?

This automatic reaction is mistimed, but White doesn't notice the slip.

7.Bd3

White misses his chance. He could have set Black real problems with the alert 7.Ne5! Black can scarcely afford to let White capture on g6 and degrade his pawn structure, but 7...Qd6 (possibly best) allows 8.Qg4 hitting both g6 and c8. That leaves the retreat 7...Bh7. But now Black's pawns at f7 and b7 are too weak: 8.Qf3! Nf6 9.Qb3! and White wins material. Wow!

7...Bxd3

Now things settle down quite a bit.

8.Qxd3 Nf6 9.c4 e6 10.0–0 Bd6 11.Bd2

I like this move, aiming to place the bishop on c3 instead of playing the automatic “centralizing” 11.Be3. Another way to achieve the aim is 11.b3 followed by 12.Bb2.

11...Nbd7 12.Rfe1 0–0 13.Bc3 Bc7 14.Rad1 Re8 15.Ne5 Nb6

At first glance 15...Nxe5 looks sensible. After all, White has more space, so exchanges should favor Black. But this is only a rule of thumb. The real problem is that after 16.dxe5 Qxd3 17.Rxd3±. Black's knight is short on squares and White can invade at d7 or sink a knight into d6, neither of which is a particularly pleasant prospect for Black.

16.b3 Rc8 17.Qf3

Scott switches his attention to the kingside, looking for ideas like Ne4 or Nh5 to loosen up the defenses still further.

17...Rf8 18.Bb4 Re8 19.Nh5

There is not yet a concrete threat -- no smashing sacrifice on g7, say -- but the pressure is increasing move by move.

19...Bxe5

Black flinches first. This gives White a wedge pawn on e5 and opens the d-file, and these factors far outweigh the exchange of a pair of minor pieces.

20.dxe5 Nfd7 21.a4

21.Bd2 is very strong right away.

21...c5 22.Bd2 Rc7

This puts the rook on an unfortunate square.

23.Qg3!

The g7-square is the weak point!

23...g6

It doesn't look very promising to play 23...g5, but in fact it's even worse than it looks because of that undefended rook on c7: 24.Nf6+ Nxf6 25.exf6 and now 25...Qxf6 drops that confounded rook, while 25...Rd7 gets smashed by 26.Bxg5! etc.

24.Bxh6 Kh7 25.Bg5 Re7 26.Nf6+ Kg7 27.Ng4

There are many ways to win here. The most precise is 27.Bh6+! Kh8 28.Qh4 with mate in two.

27...Qe8 28.Qh4 Nxe5 29.Qh6+ 1–0

Florean takes the lead:

4.5: Florean
4.0: Finegold, Czhuai, Hahn, Davidovich

Round 6

1. Czuhai 0 Florean
2. Hahn 0 Finegold
3. Davidovich 1 Kleist (3.5)

When Black starts making progress, White gets overly aggressive:

Kevin Czuhai (2200)
Andrei Florean (2496)
Irregular King's Pawn: St. George, B00

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.e4 a6 2.d4 b5

The St. George is an enterprising way for Black to get out of book. It usually transposes to a Sicilian Najdorf with ...c5 but not always. The most famous example is Karpov-Miles (Skara, 1980) where Black won a pawn in the middlegame and prevailed in the endgame.

3.Nf3

3.c4 bxc4 4.Bxc4 Bb7?? 5.Qb3 1–0 Mackowiak-Kusiak (Lublin, 1980) is one way for Black to lose instantly. 3.c4 seems more forcing than other White third moves.

3...Bb7 4.Bd3 e6 5.0–0 Be7

5...d6 6.c3 Nd7 7.a4 Ngf6 8.Re1 Be7 Seirawan-Spassky (Bankers, 1990) where White soon won the b-pawn and prevailed. 5...c5 6.c3 Nf6 7.Re1 d5 8.e5 Nfd7 9.Ng5 cxd4 10.Nxe6! 1–0 Jowett-Anderson (Festuge, 1991) is another sparkling miniature based on Black's slow kingside development.

6.a4 b4 7.c4 d6 8.Qe2 Nd7 9.Nbd2 e5 10.Nb3 c5 11.dxe5

Seems to give White better chances versus closing the center with 11.d5.

11...dxe5 12.Ne1 Bg5!

Black alertly trades darksquare bishops, also prevents a pawn break with 13.f4.

13.Nc2 Bxc1 14.Raxc1 Ne7 15.Ne3 0–0 16.Nd5 Nc6

Chances are even; White gets a beautiful knight at d5, while Black can also get a beautiful knight at d4. The other knights might have a harder time finding good squares.

17.Qh5

17.Qe3 Nd4

17...a5 18.f4 exf4 19.e5!?

White is going for it!

19...g6 20.Qh6 Ncxe5 21.Rxf4 Bxd5 22.Rh4 Nf6 23.Be2 Bc6 24.Rf1 Re8 25.Rhf4 Ned7

Black has consolidated his pieces nicely, avoiding any major knockout blow.

26.Bf3 Bxf3 27.R4xf3 Qe7 28.h3 Ra6 29.g4 Ne5 30.Re3 Nfd7 31.g5 Re6 32.Rf4 Nc6 33.Ref3

33.Rh4 Nf8

33...Re1+ 34.Kg2 Nce5 35.Rf2 Qd6 36.Nd2 Qc6+ 37.Kg3 Rg1+ 38.Kh4 Rg2 39.Ne4

Black to Move

39...Qxe4 0–1

40.Rxe4 Nf3+! 41.Rxf3 Rxe4+ 42.Rf4 Rxf4#. Exciting game.

Another typical Ben Finegold game, his pieces just always seem to be on better squares than his opponent:

David Hahn (2138)
Ben Finegold (2614)
Irregular Queen's Pawn: Owen, A40

Notes by Tim McGrew (TM) and Tony Palmer (TP)

1.c4 b6

TM: Has anyone else noticed that Ben doesn't want to enter most theoretical variations (Sicilian excepted) against lower rated players?

2.d4 Bb7 3.d5!?

TM: I understand the motivation behind this move, but it looks very committal.

TP: This opening with 3.d5 is supposed to be fantastic for White according to my reference database = 6 wins, 1 draw, 0 losses.

3...e6 4.a3 Qh4!?

TP: Out of book already! 4...Nf6 5.Nc3 Bd6 6.Nf3 exd5 7.cxd5 0–0 Karpov-Miles (Las Palmas, 1977) with an even game where White won. 4...Bd6 5.Nf3 Qe7 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bh4 Na6 9.e3 c6 10.Be2 Nc7 Timman-Speelman (Amsterdam, 1978) with a slight advantage for White who also won.

5.Nc3

TP: If you're playing at home, consider what you would do as White here. 5.dxe6 Bc5.

5...Nf6

TM: 5...Qxc4 6.e4 Qc5 looks a little risky even for Ben. 7.Nb5 Na6 8.Bg5! takes away the e7 square from Black's queen and prepares 9.Rc1, which makes matters at least difficult.

6.Nf3 Qxc4 7.e4 Qc5 8.Be3 Qe7 9.Nb5 Na6 10.Rc1 Qd8

TP: So Black snatched a pawn in return for space and development.

11.dxe6 fxe6 12.e5 Nd5 13.Bg5 Be7 14.Bxe7 Qxe7 15.Rxc7!?

TP: An enterprising exchange sacrifice based on the loose Bb7.

15...Naxc7 16.Nd6+ Kf8 17.Nxb7 Ne8

TM: Ben shuts the exit at d6.

18.Bc4 Nf4 19.0–0 Rc8 20.Ba6 Rb8 21.Qd2 Nd5

TP: Black stands better because the mighty Nd5 prevents Qf4, also protects the d7-pawn. Now Black intends ...Nec7 hitting the Ba6.

22.b4 h6 23.Nd4 Nec7

TM: White's troubles intensify. Who will guard the guardian?

24.b5

TM: Perhaps it was better to try 24.Qe2 Nf4 25.Qe4 Qg5 26.Bd3 Nxd3 27.f4! Black is momentarily a whole rook up, but his knight is stranded on d3 and White's knight is coming back into play on d6. 27...Qe7 28.Nd6 and White has some compensation for the missing material.

24...Qxa3 25.Nd6 Ne8

TM: Ben makes sure that White doesn't have time to get any joy out of having a knight on d6.

26.Nc8 Qc3 27.Qxc3

TP: 27.Qd1 Rxc8

27...Nxc3 28.Nxa7 Nc7 29.Rc1 Ra8 30.Rxc3 Rxa7 0–1, Time

TP: White lost on time, although Black had the superior endgame being up a full exchange. Sharp struggle.

White overruns the queenside with a clump of pawns:

Manis Davidovich (2055)
Frederick Kleist (2083)
Sicilian: Paulsen, B43

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.Nc3 a6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 b5 6.Bd3 Qb6 7.Nb3 Qc7 8.0–0 Bb7 9.Re1 Bd6 10.h3 Be5 11.Ne2 d5 12.exd5 Bxd5 13.Ned4 Nd7 14.c3 Ngf6 15.a4 b4 16.cxb4 0–0 17.b5 Bxd4 18.Nxd4 Nc5 19.Bc2 Rfd8 20.Qe2 Bxg2 21.Kxg2 Rxd4 22.Be3 Rd5 23.b4 Ncd7 24.bxa6 Qc6 25.Kg1 Rc8 26.Rec1 Qa8 27.Bb3 Rxc1+ 28.Rxc1 Rh5 29.Qc4 Nf8 30.Qc6 Qb8 31.a7 Qxb4 32.a8Q 1–0

A great example of how important it is to play openings that you know:

Peter Nelson (1770)
Jeff Aldrich (1900)
French: MacCutcheon (Tartakower), C12

Notes by Tim McGrew

Peter Nelson delivers a powerful attacking performance.

1.d4 d5 2.e4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4!?

MacCutcheon's invention, with which he bearded World Champion Steinitz in a simul in 1885.

5.e5 h6 6.Bd2

Another very complex line goes 6.exf6 hxg5 7.fxg7 Rg8 when White is a little better on the kingside but Black's king usually goes west for safety. Chances are balanced. Steinitz tried 6.Bxf6 gxf6 7.Nf3 but after 7...f5 8.Bd3 c5! 9.dxc5 Bxc5 10.0–0 Nc6 Black castled long and used the open g-file for an attack that won in 28 moves.

6...Nfd7?

Know your openings! The main line of the MacCutcheon runs 6...Bxc3! 7.bxc3 Ne4 8.Qg4 g6 when Black's knight at e4 helps him generate play on the dark squares with a subsequent ...c5 and ...Qa5.

7.Qg4 Bf8

It looks weak to play 7...g6 and Black doesn't have all the counterplay he could wish, but at least this would enable him to play a quick ...c5 -- which his survival depends on now.

8.f4 Nb6 9.Nf3 Nc6

Black would like to play 9...c5, but his bishop is tied to the defense of g7.

10.a3 a6 11.Bd3 Qe7 12.0–0 Bd7 13.b4

This makes the queenside a very unwelcome place for the Black king. But where else is he going to go?

13...0–0–0?

Castling into it. Deep Fritz 7 suggests 13...Nc4 here, which is probably no worse than anything else.

14.b5

One could easily get the impression that White's attack now plays itself. There's some truth to that, but White also has to do some concrete calculation and find some fine moves.

14...axb5 15.Nxb5 f5 16.Qg3

There is no reason even to consider opening lines on the kingside.

16...Qf7 17.Rfb1 Be7 18.Qe1 Rdg8

White to Move

19.Nxc7!

Very nice, though not too deep.

19...Kxc7 20.Ba5

The point.

20...Bc8 21.Rxb6 Kd7 22.Rab1 g6 23.Rxb7+!

Again, not too deep but very nice. The key to finding shots like this is to even consider them in the first place. Nelson shows that he has good instincts and isn't afraid to follow them up.

23...Bxb7 24.Rxb7+ Ke8 25.Bb5

The point of White's exchange sac: he is actually winning another minor piece.

25...Kf8 26.Bxc6 1–0

Black's had enough. Kg7 27.Bb4 would be very embarrassing. Games like this show Nelson's great promise -- look for more from him in the near future.

Can Florean be caught?

5.5: Florean
5.0: Finegold, Davidovich
4.5: Ward

Round 7

Florean and Davidovich already played in round 2, so the pairing must be:

1. Ward Florean
2. Finegold Davidovich

Ward and Florean finished first. Florean castled queenside behind an advanced pawn structure. It looked like Ward may have had some possibilities down the a-file, when a draw was agreed to:

Tom Ward (2229)
Andrei Florean (2496)
Irregular King's Pawn: St. George, B00

1.e4 a6 2.d4 b5 3.Nf3 Bb7 4.Bd3 e6 5.0 0 c5 6.c3 d5 7.e5 h6 8.Re1 Nd7 9.Nbd2 Ne7 10.Nf1 Nc6 11.Ng3 c4 12.Bc2 Qc7 13.Be3 0–0–0 14.b3 Nb6 15.b4 Kb8 16.Nd2 Bc8 17.f4 g6 18.Nf3 Ne7 ½–½

Now, Ben has the opportunity to catch Florean, but Mani gives Ben problems every once in a while:

Ben Finegold (2614)
Manis Davidovich (2055)
Queen's Indian: Fianchetto (Nimzovich), E15

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.b3 b5 6.cxb5 Bxb5 7.Bg2 d5 8.0–0 c5

8...Nbd7 9.Re1 Bb4 10.Bd2 a5 11.Nc3 Ba6 12.a3 Be7 Kamsky-Salov (Amsterdam, 1996) with chances for both sides. 8...Nbd7 9.Nc3 Ba6 10.Re1 Bb4 11.Bd2 c5 12.dxc5 Bxc5 Anand-Karpov (Monaco, 1997) with an even game, later drawn.

9.Nc3 Ba6 10.Bg5 Nc6!?

An active choice, however Black soon has difficulties on the c-file. Consider 10...Nbd7 instead.

11.Rc1 c4 12.bxc4 Bxc4 13.Nd2 Rc8

13...Ba6? 14.Nxd5 wins a pawn.

14.Nxc4 dxc4

White to Move

15.d5!

Thematic and decisive, crashing the center open with Black not fully developed.

15...Nb4 16.Bxf6 gxf6 17.Qa4+ Qd7 18.Qxd7+ Kxd7 19.dxe6+ fxe6 20.Rfd1+ Ke7

20...Kc7 21.Rd4 Kb8 22.Rb1 intending 23.a3.

21.Rb1 Ke8 22.a3 Nc2 23.Rb7 Bxa3 24.Ne4

White's pieces coordinate beautifully.

24...Rf8

24...Be7 25.Rdd7 Bd8 26.Rf7! threatening 27.Nd6#.

25.Bf3 Rf7

25...Be7 26.Bh5+ Rf7 27.Bxf7+ Kxf7 28.Nd6+

26.Bh5 1–0

A surprising result:

Kevin Czuhai (2200)
Seth Homa (1959)
Sicilian: Moscow (Bronstein), B52

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Bd7 4.Bxd7+ Qxd7 5.0–0 Nc6 6.c3 Nf6 7.d4 cxd4

7...Nxe4 8.d5 Ne5 9.Re1 Nxf3+ 10.Qxf3 Nf6 11.c4 e5 Djurhuus-Jansa (Oslo, 1991) with unclear compensation for the pawn.

8.cxd4 d5

My reference database contains no examples of 8...Nxe4 presumably 9.d5 and 10.Re1, yet I don't see any traps here.

9.e5 Ne4 10.Na3!?

10.Ne1 f6 11.f3 Ng5 12.Be3 e6 13.Nc3 Be7 14.Qd2 0–0 Chiburdanidze-Ljubojevic (Bilbao, 1987) with rough equality. 10.Be3 e6 11.Ne1 h6 12.f3 Ng5 13.Nd3 f5 14.Nc3 Be7 15.Nf4 0–0 Haag-Dely (Balatonfured, 1959) with active counterplay for Black who later won.

10...e6 11.Nc2 Be7 12.Nfe1 f5 13.Nd3 0–0 14.f3 Ng5

Black's game is very similar to Haag-Dely where the f7-f5 advance opens kingside lines for attack.

15.Bxg5 Bxg5 16.Nc5 Qf7 17.f4 Bd8 18.Qd2 Rc8 19.b4 b6 20.Nb3 g5 21.b5 Na5 22.Nxa5 bxa5 23.fxg5 Qh5 24.Ne1 Bxg5 25.Qd3

25.Qxa5?! Be3+ 26.Kh1 Bxd4 27.Rb1 Bxe5

25...Rc4 26.Rf3 f4 27.Rb1 Bd8 28.Rf2 Qg6

Black offers a queen trade, expecting successful endgame play against White's queenside pawns plus the backward d4-pawn.

29.Rd1 Bb6 30.Nf3 Kg7 31.Qa3 Rf7 32.h4 Rfc7 33.Ng5!?

It's hard for White to improve his position, so he plays for complications. 33.Qd3 Rc1 34.Qxg6+ Kxg6 35.Rxc1 Rxc1+ 36.Rf1 Rc4 37.Rd1 Rb4.

33...Rxd4 34.Kh2?!

A full rook sacrifice for attack, but otherwise Black wins the exchange.

34...Rxd1 35.Rxf4 Bg1+! 36.Kh3

36.Kh1 Be3+

36...Rd3+ 37.Qxd3 Qxd3+ 38.Rf3 Qg6 39.g4 d4 40.Kg2 Be3 0–1

Fine win by Homa against a strong master - very well played.

Black whips up a kingside attack:

Michael A. Smith (1889)
Aaron Kahn (2066)
Sicilian: Najdorf B96

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Nc6 8.Nxc6

8.e5 h6 9.Bh4 g5 10.fxg5 Nh7 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.exd6 Nxg5 13.Qd4 Rg8 14.0 0 0 Bd7 Keres-Letelier (Santiago, 1957) with an unbalanced position. 8.e5 h6 9.Bh4 g5 10.fxg5 Nd5 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.Ne4 Qb6 Shabalov-Browne (Key West, 1994) with chances for both sides.

8...bxc6 9.e5 h6 10.Bxf6

10.Bh4 g5 11.Bg3 Nd5 12.Nxd5 cxd5 Vitolinsh-Shabalov (Riga, 1989) with dynamic equality. The text is logical but the ensuing open lines seem to favor Black.

10...gxf6 11.exd6 Rb8 12.Rb1 Bxd6 13.Qf3 Qc7 14.g3 f5 15.Bg2 Bb7

White has a solid position and a nice fianchettoed Bg2, whereas Black has the two bishops and a safe king in the middle of the board. Chances are even.

16.0–0 h5 17.h3 Ke7 18.Nd1 Rbg8 19.Ne3 h4 20.g4 fxg4 21.hxg4?!

21.Nxg4 was preferable, avoiding Black's next, yet Black has gained the initiative.

21...h3!

A wise investment, serving to open the h-file plus the long diagonal in Black's favor.

22.Bxh3 c5 23.Qg3 c4 24.Bg2 Bc5 25.g5

25.Rf2 Qb6 26.Re1 Bxg2 27.Kxg2 Qxb2 Black stands much better.

25...Rh5 26.Bxb7 Rhxg5! 0–1

Black wins after 27.Qxg5+ Rxg5+ Nice 28.fxg5 Bxe3+ and 28...Qxb7. Nice attack by Kahn.

Black starts working on the kingside when White makes a mistake:

Ken Williams (1924)
Wei Li (1820)
Old Semi-Slav: Marshall, D31

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 e6 4.e4 dxe4 5.Nxe4 Nf6

This line generally works very well for White, gaining a spatial advantage in the center while Black's queen bishop is stuck behind the e6-pawn.

6.Nxf6+ Qxf6

6...gxf6!? 7.Nf3 Nd7 8.Bd3 Bg7 9.0–0 0 0 Marshall-Alapin (Praha 1908) with chances for both sides.

7.Nf3 Bb4+ 8.Bd2 Bxd2+ 9.Qxd2 Nd7 10.Bd3

10.0–0–0 0–0 11.Qe3 c5 12.dxc5 Qf5 13.Bd3 Qxc5 Steinitz-Marco (Nuremberg, 1896) with slight advantage to White. 10.Qe3 c5 11.0–0–0 b6 12.Bd3 Bb7 13.Be4 Bxe4 14.Qxe4 0–0 Helling-Brinckmann (Berlin, 1928) with rough equality. 10.Be2 b6 11.0–0 0–0 12.Qe3 Bb7 13.Ne5 Rfd8 Muhring-Schmidt (Hastings, 1948) was better for White. Surprisingly, the logical 10.Bd3 scores the lowest success in my reference database.

10...b6 11.0–0 Bb7 12.Be4 Rd8 13.Qe3 Qe7 14.Rfe1 Nf6 15.Bc2 0–0 16.c5!?

Ambitious but creates weaknesses at d5 and d4. Consider 16.Rad1 and 17.Ne5.

16...Nd5 17.Qa3 Rfe8! 18.b4

18.Qxa7?? Ra8 wins the queen. Perhaps White overlooked this at first.

18...Ra8 19.Qd3 g6 20.a3 a5

See how Black is counterattacking on the queenside.

21.Bb3 Red8 22.Qd2 Qf6 23.cxb6 Nxb6 24.bxa5 Nd5 25.Re5 Nf4 26.Rc5 Ba6 27.Bc4 Bxc4 28.Rxc4 Qf5!

The queen sneaks into the kingside, also threatening the a5-pawn.

29.Rc5 Qg4 30.Rg5?

Drops the exchange. 30.Ne1 Rxd4! 31.Qxd4 Ne2+.

30...Nh3+ 31.Kf1 Nxg5 32.Nxg5 Rxd4 33.Qc1 Rad8 0–1

34.f3 Rd1+ 35.Qxd1 Rxd1+ 36.Rxd1 Qxg5 is decisive.

Players with nothing to lose in the last round often make for exciting games:

Tom LaForge (1821)
Tom Mazuchowski (2000)
Irregular King's Knight: Queen's Pawn, C40

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d5

The Elepant Gambit -- a relative rarity in tournament chess, though Mark Hebden has tried it in British Swisses of late.

3.Nxe5

It is doubtful that White can achieve any advantage with this capture.

3...Bd6

One exceedingly sharp line runs 3...dxe4!? 4.Bc4 Qg5! with great complications that should ultimately turn out equal if both players know exactly what they are doing. Do not enter here unless you are booked up!

4.d4 dxe4 5.Nc4

White gains the bishop pair but loses considerable time with his knight.

5...Nf6 6.Be2 0–0 7.Nxd6 Qxd6 8.0–0 Nc6

In his book on the Elephant Gambit, Jonathan Rogers recommends 8...c5. The idea is that White's bishop pair is not really that strong in this particular position, and Black's knights can easily become dominant if, say, one of them ends up on e5.

9.c3 Ne7 10.b3

Feinting at Ba3.

10...Re8 11.Na3 Ng6 12.Nc4 Qe7 13.Ba3 Qe6 14.Ne3 Nf4 15.Bc4

White is gaining a lot of time kicking Black's queen with his bishops, but unfortunately not much of it is useful since White's other pieces aren't coordinating well with the bishops to pick out targets for attack in the Black position.

15...Qd7 16.f3 b5

There goes the bishop pair. More importantly, Black now takes over the long light diagonal.

17.Be2

White could keep his disadvantage to a minimum with 17.fxe4 Rxe4 18.Bd3 Nxd3 (18...Nh3+!? 19.gxh3 Rxe3 is unclear but probably favors Black a bit, e.g. 20.Bc1 Qxh3 21.Bxe3 Qxe3+ 22.Rf2 Ng4 and the exchange comes back, leaving Black a pawn up.) 19.Qxd3 Bb7 and White is only slightly worse, though I'd still rather be Black.

17...Bb7! 18.Ng4

Black to Move

18...Nxe2+

This is perfectly natural and Black does win shortly, but it may not be best. 18...N6d5! lets Black snip off a second pawn and exchange queens under favorable circumstances: 19.Ne5 Nxc3 20.Nxd7 Nfxe2+ 21.Kh1 Nxd1 22.Raxd1 exf3 23.gxf3 Rad8 24.Nc5 Bc6 and I don't see how White can hold both d4 and f3.

19.Qxe2 exf3!

Tom correctly judges that White will be in no position to make anything out of the weakening of Black's kingside pawns.

20.Nxf6+ gxf6 21.Qf2?

Leaving the queen on the second rank was an oversight.

21...Re2! 22.Qg3+ Kh8 23.Rxf3 Rg8! 24.Qf4 Rexg2+ 25.Kh1 R2g6

The immediate 25...Qh3!! is a brilliancy, e.g. 26.Qxf6+ (26.Rxh3 Rg1#) 26...R2g7 27.Rg1 Qxf3+ 28.Qxf3 Rxg1#.

26.Raf1 Qh3! 0–1

Second time around does the trick.

The state’s strongest players end up in a tie at six points. No tiebreaks for first place this year, so we have co-champions, Andrei Florean and Ben Finegold. Four players finished with five points. Seth Homa took third place on tiebreaks. This result should help him to leave behind the ranks of Class A. Other players at five were Salah Chehayeb, Manis Davidovich, and Thomas Ward.